Crane Fireball 700 coversion - Help

Hi All,

I started in on putting in the Crane fireball ignition box to my 190sl and am stumped with the optical points part of the job. There were three sets of 4 cycl disks that go on the distributor shaft, but none fit my distributor very well. The one that works the best won't allow me to fit the rotor correctly. Seems like I can make it work by cutting the bottom part of the rotor off, but that doesn't seem right. What did the rest of you that reported success with this kit do?

Thanks,
Eric

[DANTRCAV]

Eric:

The conversion for my 250C went without a hitch. I suggest you call Crane Tech Services. I had some questions about my conversion before I bought the kit and they were answered. In addition, I was told that if I had any problems whatsoever just to give them a call.


Dan

[bstreep]

Eric,

Just did my 700/190SL Sunday! I know what you are talking about. The one that's supposed to be for "Bosch" distributors doesn't fit. Here's what I did (and I have digital pictures if you need them, just email me at bstreep@satx.rr.com).

Remove the post for the points. You will have to remove the 3 screws holding the point "base" and remove it to get to the post. Carefully grind down the peen on the bottom, and knock the post out (in case you ever want to reuse it). Use the smaller "foot" for the trigger base, and install it perpendicular to (over) the bumps on the base that used to hold the points. It should point out from the center of the distributor. When looking at the distributor, using the front of the car as 12 o'clock, the trigger is mounted at 9, the foot is at 7. Screw the arm on the trigger before installing. I had to do a little grinding on it, as it didn't fit as well as I'd expect. Install the trigger and the disk at the same time. Use the one, I think it's labled 219. It should have 4 metal spring clips in it. I had to trim a SMALL amount (1/16) off of the entire outside rim of the disk to get it to fit in.

I installed new plugs and fired it up. Works great, although it's been too d*#m cold to take it for a run (and I live in South Texas). Supposed to be in the 60s tomorrow, I'll let you know how it runs!

Good luck

[Jim Villers]

My Crane unit went right in on my 190SL. I also did not need to modify my plate as Bill described. On my 230SL, I needed to cut the bottom off of the rotor. Both units fired up the first time and the engine smoothness was very noticeable.

[bstreep]

Jim,

What did the disk you use look like? I had to remove the post for clearance of the disk I used.

I was thinking of cutting off the post, but then it wouldn't be reversible if I needed to, nice to hear that I wasn't the only one.

I'm going to cut a 1/8 -1/4 off the post, to leave a little if needed.

I'm sure I've screwed up the timing. Anyone have any quick timing information? I'm going to set the 1st cyl manually to TDC and adjust the optical ring grove to the center of the sensor.

Anyone know what the static timing should be? Thanks again,
Eric

[bstreep]

Eric,

I looked at cutting off part of the post, but 1) I noticed that if I put the points half way on the post, (like the post was only half there?), it wobbled, while it didn't wobble with a full post, and 2) if I remove the post, I can fairly easily put it back in if I need to. That's why I removed it.

The ignition timing, according to the book, should be 4 degrees, unless you have a newer cam (that one is 7 degrees). I could be wrong, but I adjust the timing so that above 3000 rpms, it is between 35 and 40 degrees (where it should be according to the chart, and assuming your centrifugal advance works). Cheap timing light and some chalk (for the flywheel - tape it to the end of a stick and chalk while the engine is running) should show you where you need to be.

Good luck!

[Jim Villers]

Bill ... You were correct. I cut the bottom off of the distributor rotor to install the Crane unit in my 190SL.

Eric ... I also set my timing at 35-40 degrees advance at about 3000RPM. I initially set my timing by turning the crank to 10 degrees advance, then working on the distributor to get a slot and the sensor aligned. The engine will then start or not. If not, check for spark (unit connected correctly) and then swap plug wires across (changing timing 180 degrees, easier to move wires than to move the sensor).

[bstreep]

Wow. Just went for a drive across town and back. NEVER has this car run this well. No hesitation, no sputtering, nada. Ran PERFECTLY. Thanks, Jim for talking me into doing this conversion.

[hgupta]

I bought the crane Fireball XR3000, which calls for removal or bypassing the ballast resistor. Where is the ballast resistor on a 1957 190SL? Also where does the wire from the condenser go that was formerly attatched to the points wire?

[bstreep]

Out of curiousity, why a 3000? The condenser is removed from the distributor and not used. As far as I know, there is no resistor ballast on the 190sl...

[Jim Villers]

Bill as usual is correct. No balast resistor on the 190SL. The condensor is removed and the pick-up wires come out the hole where the condensor wire was connected. The XR3000 will work fine.

[hgupta]

I bought the XR3000, because I had a $30 coupon for a purchase over $100 (from e-centives.com) to carparts.com. The XR700 was $86, but you couldn't use the coupon, and the XR3000 was $112 with $30 off making it $82.00. So it was actually cheaper...and I figured that if I went back to points one day, the fireball unit would sell for more on Ebay. The XR3000 is supposedly better at higher RPM ignitions, but I doubt it makes a difference on our cars.
By the way, do check out http://www.e-centives.com and http://www.carparts.com. I was impressed by carparts.com's prices and quick shipments. Although their selection of parts is poor for vintage mercedes, with the significant savings from e-centives, they are great for aftermarket parts and tools.

One more question...next to my coil is a cylinder shaped object that looks like the condensor attatched to my distributor. It is a bit larger and has a wire lead attatched to eash side of it. One wire lead is attatched to the coil's positive terminal, and the other end is a braided wire that is grounded on the engine block. What is this thing? It's holder does not look stock, and I have found no references to it in the catalogs or service manuals that I have. More importantly, should it remain connected when I install the crane fireball?

[Edited by hgupta on 04-26-2001 at 02:41 PM]