Which MSD distributer-427 FE with 2 4 barrels

[olddog]

Your not going to go out a buy a new distributor that all you need to do is stick it in and bolt it down. You still need to set it up for your engine. Odds are that you would be better off looking at your distributor. There may be nothing wrong with it. It may have always been set up incorrectly. Or it may just have a broken spring on the mechanical advance.

This is a big subject and you haven't said if your current distributor has vacuum advance.

What is your base timing and what it the timing at say 2000, 3000, and 4000 rpm, with vacuum disconnected if it has it?

My guess is there is no vacuum advance. Base timing is 22* and mechanical is adding 30* giving 52* total timing (give or take), but I could be wrong.

Lots of people set them up like this, but usually limit the mechanical to 20*. So your car may be doing exactly what it was set up to do and nothing has changed.

In my opinion 50* is way too much timing. I think 40* total is the upper limit. Usually an FE needs between 36* and 38* total timing at WOT. Again in my opinion any street driven car should have vacuum advance. Plenty around here will disagree and argue it is not needed. Well you don't have to have any advance, lawn mower engines run just fine with fixed timing. All I can say is Henry Ford new better, when he design the Model T. Just because you can get buy without it is no reason to do it.

First let's understand exactly what you have.