Distributor cap - can this be refurbished/saved?

[vamram]

[61SNRF]

[jonat]

[bnam]

I cut a strip of abrasive paper - say 100 grit into a roll that fits into the opening and turn it around (in the direction you rolled it). You can even wrap it around an appropriately sized bit and run it with a dremel.
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1971 1302LS Convertible (RHD) owned since '74
Click to view image
1965 Karmann Ghia Coupe - under restoration
1966 Fiat 1500 Cabrio (with 1600 Twin cam)
1952 Citroen TA 11BL

[Glenn]

Sure sounds like a lot of work for a $20 part that is meant to wear and be replaced.
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Glenn
74 Beetle Specs | 74 Beetle Restoration | 2180cc Engine
"You may not get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get"

Member #1009

#BlueSquare

[bnam]

[Glenn]

[Cusser]

[Glenn]

[bnam]

I enjoy being able to repair parts and reuse them - and get satisfaction out of getting extra life out of original parts. The waste and energy reduction potential is an added bonus. I do happen to use refillable bottles - a personal preference. And I don’t look down on people who choose a different path. YMMV.

Cheers!
_________________
1971 1302LS Convertible (RHD) owned since '74
Click to view image
1965 Karmann Ghia Coupe - under restoration
1966 Fiat 1500 Cabrio (with 1600 Twin cam)
1952 Citroen TA 11BL

[Rickf1985]

You can try to clean the carbon track. what you will find is that it is not just a dust trail but a burnt in etch in the bakelite cap. This is a condition that has happened to vehicles for as long as they have had distributor caps. I have NEVER seen one that was a dust trail. But if you want to spend some time on it then go for it. I know I would not depend on that cap on the road.

[Starbucket]

When you clean it up and reinstall it and it runs like crap you will remember why you replaced it years ago. That carbon track will rob voltage from the other cylinders and I bet it leads to the green post. If you like repairing electrical components buy a can of "Deoxit D5" and make life easier.

[TornadoRed06]

[Glenn]

[Cusser]

[iowegian]

When I was 18 years old and working in a general repair garage/gas station it was standard practice, when doing a tune-up, to wash the inside of a distributor cap with soap and water-----and of course drying with compressed air.
But that was 60 years ago and a lot of folks were poor.

[Rickf1985]

And I do reline brake shoes but do you know that in that process you l also need to reshape the backing so that it fits the contour of the drum? Just riveting a new lining on the old backer is easy, doing it correctly is a bit harder. To refurbish a distributor cap you would need some way to push out the old terminals and replace them with new terminals to maintain the proper air gap between terminal and rotor. That cap with the carbon track already has worn terminals. And do you know what causes carbon tracking? It is not dust from the carbon, it is a bad plug wire or a plug wire that has been left off and the voltage has found a new path.

[jonat]

[Rickf1985]

No, I would have done further diagnosis at the garage and would have found the bad cap and replaced it without having to replace any other parts, besides the rotor, thereby saving the customer money and sending him on his way. I owned a shop for many years and most of my customers were word of mouth customers. I did very little advertising and what I did was in the way of sponsoring ball games and such. I had a very full clientele.