Distributor broken?

[youngb506]

Drove my 1957 saloon out of the garage to check my contact breakers, adjusted them and thought the cam didn't seem to be going round as quickly when turning the starting handle. Some mechanical noise on trying to re start and now the cam isn't moving at all, though I can see the screw head inside it turning? Do I need a new distributed? (Not had to deal with this in almost daily Minor driving over 30 years.)

[bmcecosse]

Did you dismantle the dizzy to adjust the points ? Why did you decide to 'adjust' them anyway?

[mike.perry]

Undo the screw, lift the cam out and have a look

[bmcecosse]

This couldn't possibly have happened just with 'points' adjustment....there's more to this !

[les]

Both the tiny springs below the plate must have detached or broken

[youngb506]

I decided to adjust the points because I hadn't checked them for about a year and there was the odd cough when accelerating. I didn't do anything unusual, just pulled off the rotor arm and adjusted the gap which seemed to have become pretty small. There didn't seem to be enough movement in the contact breaker plate to get a decent gap and when moving the points the base plate moved. Would broken springs stop the cam from turning. If I undo the screw inside the cam and pull the cam off, what am I looking for?

[bmcecosse]

The centre screw under the rotor must be loose -or missing. The springs just restrain the bob weights which try to twist the cam round for advance. Without the springs it will just go immediately to full advance.

[youngb506]

Thanks, that's the first thing to try, then. If the screw's come loose that will be the third thing to come loose in a week after a bumper overrider and the nut on the pin that goes through the top trunion on the off side!

[mike.perry]

If the screw is loose you could have lifted the cam off the springs

[youngb506]

Had a check tonight and found that the screw holding on the cam was loose. Tightening up the screw didn't restore the usual spinning of the cam when turning the starting handle. In fact, whereas there's usually a bit of to and fro movement if you try to turn the cam with the fingers, it seems quite stuck now. Not sure I can understand quite what the cam is supposed to be connected to by studying the exploded diagrams in the Haynes manual. Can anybody tell me what I need to do next?

[bmcecosse]

Fit another dizzy - strip & inspect the one from the car later. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Points-distri ... SwBahVE9nO
Or spend the extra and get the electronic version. In both cases - I would go for the 45D.

[youngb506]

So, time to fit a new distributor. Is there anything to be gained by fitting any other distributor than the original spec for my 1957 948cc saloon? I'm not considering an electronic ignition set up.

[mike.perry]

The cam is connected to the bob weights by two springs. The rotor arm should have a springing feel to it when you try to twist it. If it does not then remove the two small crews on eiter side of the body, lift out the plate then remove the centre screw and cam and you should be able to see any problems,

[youngb506]

I suspect I'm going to have more likelihood of long term success if I saw the distributor for a reconditioned or new model. I've had the car for 20 years, driving a lot and the distributor's never been touched. Can anybody tell me for sure which model it should have ( the car's a 1957 Minor 1000 with the 948cc engine) ? At the moment it has screw on ht leads and a side entry distributor cap.

[liammonty]

It should be a DM2, I believe. If memory serves, all the 948 cars were fitted with these, along with the first of the 1098s, before they changed to the 25d4. If you have some time, you could get the original unit rebuilt which is what I did with mine. The 'Distributor Doctor' does a super job. You could buy a new 'Lucas TVS' one slightly more cheaply, but be aware that these are made in India and are not the same quality as the originals.

[bmcecosse]

The link I gave you to Powerspark leads you in to all the dizzies they sell. Unless desperate for originality - I would fit a 45D, and yes I would go for electronic for future 'trouble free' motoring - but the choice is yours. Yes - you can probably fix your own dizzy by re-assembling it correctly - but I get the feeling from your posts that you are not up for that, although it is straightforward enough - there are some fiddly small parts involved !

[youngb506]

Thanks for everyone's help. I'm a bit of a one for originality. Bryan has a new old stock DM2 40561. Half the price of a Distributor Dr rebuild. Can anyone see why this wouldn't be fine for my 1957 saloon 948cc which is often driven daily?

[liammonty]

Sounds absolutely perfect to me. Just make sure you use good quality points, condenser and rotor arm etc., and it will probably keep you going for another 50 years!