Giving my rig a straight up time motor

[26ftcobraBBF]

Hey guys I just picked up my radiator from the radiator shop from having it rebuilt and I was thinking it sure wouldn't be a bad time to tackle that timing project to give my rig
a straight-up timing set like the later models. I believe y'all Said the benefit of this is increased horsepower and torque. Any chance I'll get better fuel mileage? Is it possible to get a quick tutorial on what this upgrade entails, a brief description of the procedure, And also when purchasing the parts what year engine do I buy them for. And last but not least tell me what not to do.
As always I appreciate the help Thank you.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Well radiator out is a good first step.
You just replaced your water pump too, right?

I've said before, an aftermarket Cloyes street true double roller is less expensive that a factory chain for '88-'96.

I don't know of any tutorial.
You strip the engine down to the front of the block and check that nothings compromised before you put it back together.

[26ftcobraBBF]

Yes I did just do the water pump, maybe I'll wait. I really wish I would have realized how far I was into it when I did the intake manifold gasket. I was right there. Time better spent elseware anyhow,I just discovered last night that my jeep needs ball joints, both upper and lower on both sides , and 2- ujoints. Bought parts for that last night.
On a side note I also picked up a MSD Blaster 2 coil for the Cobra. MSD says it needs a ballast resistor to be inline. Research I've done says the Duraspark ignition already has one. Can you confirm, and also why do they recommend mounting the coil vertically vs horizontal like the stock coil and bracket?

[ArdWrknTrk]

There is a resistor in the coil feed wire (in run)
.
They want it mounted vertically because it likely uses tar for insulation inside and this can run out, or expose the windings if mounted sideways.

It's not recommended to use low ohm coils with the DuraSpark II system.
The switching transistor can't sink that much current, and the stock coil works just fine up to at least 6,000 rpm.

We could get into a BIG tangent about saturation heating and electronic dwell, but basically if you already need a power limiting resistor, why put yourself at a disadvantage using a coil with a lesser winding ratio?

[26ftcobraBBF]

Not really sure Jim. I noticed a small miss or inconsistency at high RPM, and since I have new plugs, wires, cap, and rotor I assumed that the coil may have been malfunctioning. It was a Master pro coil from Orileys, so in bringing it back with the warranty it had, I was already halfway way there price wise to a ,"performance coil" so I thought what the hell, I'll give it a shot. Hotter spark couldn't hurt🤷. Glad I asked.. I can still return it if it's a bad idea, I havent hooked it up yet.

[Gary Lewis]

Like Jim said, it isn't recommended to use low ohm coils with a DS-II system.  They just can't handle the extra load and could leave you on the side of the road at the worst possible time.  I wouldn't do it.

[26ftcobraBBF]

Good to know thank you, I don't really have a clear understanding of how the system works so I'm glad I asked the pros. I'm going to take it back.
What would cause a bearly detectable miss. It's hard to tell by listening, but when looking at a Tach, you can see the needle dip when bringing the RPM's up and holding around cruising speed.

[Gary Lewis]

A quick overview of how it works: Power goes through the ballast resistor in the wiring to the + side of the coil.  The DS-II module is connected to the - side of the coil exactly like points would have been in the old days.  The module turns "on" as directed by the pickup in the distributor and effectively grounds the - side of the coil, causing current to flow.  And when it is time to fire the plug the distributor says "now" and the DS-II module quits grounding the coil, just like points would have done.  The EMF stored in the coil collapses and causes the spark.

But a low ohm/high output coil causes more current to flow than the module was designed to handle and it gets hot and eventually fails.  So that is why it isn't a good idea.

As for the miss, how long has it been since you put new plugs, wires, distributor cap, and rotor on?  If they are all new then how much throttle do you have on it at the time?  Perhaps the mix is too lean?  Rich isn't likely to cause a miss, but lean might.

Another thought - pull the distributor cap and check out the wiring going to the pickup inside it.  I've seen situations where the wire's insulation was failing and it would short to the side of the distributor at certain points in the vacuum advance's movement.  Make sure those wires are good!