[AdamLym]

I was under the impression that a ballast resistor would lower the voltage through it. Using my multimeter and sending 12V through one side of the resistor, I get 12V on the other side I'm trying to get my Unilite distributor to work, but I wont hook it up until I know for sure that it will only be getting the required 9V after the resistor.

Thanks for any help!

[John_Muha]

Adam
You out of school for the summer? Sounds like you're slipping my friend.
You won't see any voltage drop because there isn't any current to speak of. The meter has a high impedence input for that reason. Attaching a ballast resistor to the car's coil forms a voltage divider. The ballast resistor is in series to the coil primary which ties to ground through the points.
If you want to calculate the needed ballast resistor, you need to know the value of the Unilite. Typically you get around 8 volts when tied to a standard coil.