what is a good rule of thumb as when you should upgrade to an aftermarket ignition? I have a non cc HEI distributer now, at what point in my mods should that be upgraded and how?

 

It may just be my opinion, but unless you you burn a lotget to the point where of fuel and run at high RPM's, there's probably not much value in spending money on a new ignition system.

I'd be willing to bet someones else's paycheck that the majority of those who:

idle better
run better
increased fuel milage
etc...

Needed a good tuneup anyways.

 

The factory pices are pretty good, actually. But when you decide to spend a couple hundred dollars, get a good cap with brass terminals (factory are aluminum). A higher voltage coil, Proform makes a nice inexpensive 50000 volt unit for $40 or so. And a high performance module so you are getting good spark at 5-6000 rpms. Again, Proform makes a nice inexpensive one.

Wires are iffy, performance wise. But spiral wound wires are the way to go for low resistance.

Forget about those digital boxes unless you are using nitrous or a blower. They are overkill.