Wednesday morning questions...

[beatnik beetle]

ah my fellow  loungers...1st question..late 60's/70's aftermarket distributors don't seem to have any markings..how do you tell whats a Deano - Mallory??......also there has been a FB topic about the ol days of Bikini Contests at the california events back in the 80's and 90's...who was the popular winner who was murdered?..in fact there were two...I think both in Vegas...there you go, bit diverse..;o)

[javabug]

The Deano, Treuhaft, and Scat distributors were licensed Mallorys. So if it looks like a Mallory, that's what it is regardless of what the tag says.

[restojohnny]

I know one of the models was Linda Sobek but I can't seem to remember the other model that was murdered not 100% sure but was she Tina New ? Tooo lazy to google anything right now 

[bugnut68]

Linda Sobek, indeed, was murdered... I believe Tina New was dating some guy that murdered his wife, as there was a 48 Hours type TV news program that detailed that case.  Dont' remember all the specifics.

In an equally grisly bit of lore vaguely tied to VW drag racing, Mike Lanning (of the Todd Reynolds/Mike Lanning Pro Stock VW later raced by the late, great Andy Costello) murdered his wife, as well.

[Fastbrit]

[.]

The Deano distributors are NOT Mallory's !!!!!!!!!!!

[beatnik beetle]

Cheers guys..I have two distributors how can I tell what they are though?....maybe I'll post a photo and let you lovely folk have a look....

[javabug]

The Deano distributors are NOT Mallory's !!!!!!!!!!!

These are absolutely both Mallory.

http://cal-look.no/lounge/index.php/topic,7475.0.html

and

http://cal-look.no/lounge/index.php/topic,19006.0.html

[hotrodsurplus]

Question 1:
As has been mentioned, that was Linda Sobek. Charlie Rathbun did her in not in Las Vegas but along Angeles Crest Highway--at least that's where he dumped her body. Harry Hibler (San Fernando Drag Strip operator) was a publisher at Petersen when Charlie did that. He said it was truly heartbreaking and totally unexpected even though he said Charlie was a bit of an odd duck. But all publishing people are odd ducks.

Question 2:
Mallory did in fact make the distributors that Deano made--at least it made all of the distributors with the Deano branding that I've ever seen, including the ones in the links Mike posted. Mallory sold TONS of those distributors as private label items to the likes of Treuhaft, Scat, and so forth. I've also seen Deano ones that had the printed aluminum tags instead of stickers.

The distributors in the links have the sharper die-cast housings which mark them as the later models. The earlier sand-cast Mallory distributors have rounder edges and more complex tags riveted to the body. To the best of my knowledge Mallory did not offer the sand-cast models as private-label parts.

These are absolutely both Mallory.

http://cal-look.no/lounge/index.php/topic,7475.0.html
and
http://cal-look.no/lounge/index.php/topic,19006.0.html

[.]

The Deano distributors are NOT Mallory's !!!!!!!!!!!

These are absolutely both Mallory.

http://cal-look.no/lounge/index.php/topic,7475.0.html

and

http://cal-look.no/lounge/index.php/topic,19006.0.html

Nope, not Mallory's !!!!!!!!
(By the way, your top link was mine !)

[hotrodsurplus]

Nope, not Mallory's !!!!!!!!
(By the way, your top link was mine !)

Okay, I'll bite. You're telling us that Dean and Ken Lowry, two guys who sort of ran in the margins, had expensive permanent dies machined for bodies, caps, and rotors, and punches created exactly in the image of parts produced by one of the most prolific ignition manufacturers of the time? I mean I have half a dozen distributors that look EXACTLY like that one save for the 15-cent sticker pasted on the side.

[.]

Nope, not Mallory's !!!!!!!!
(By the way, your top link was mine !)

Okay, I'll bite. You're telling us that Dean and Ken Lowry, two guys who sort of ran in the margins, had expensive permanent dies machined for bodies, caps, and rotors, and punches created exactly in the image of parts produced by one of the most prolific ignition manufacturers of the time? I mean I have half a dozen distributors that look EXACTLY like that one save for the 15-cent sticker pasted on the side.

First of all, Ken Lowry ran ARPM who made most of the aluminum parts for everyone else !
Secondly, I am just saying that the Deano distributors were not Mallory's.
Yes, they share some parts with other distributors, but Mallory parts are not interchangeable.
Put the two side by side and try and swap parts !

[javabug]

I am going to say that I respectfully don't believe that. The only difference I see between those distributors that were listed here on the Lounge (and YES, I know one of them was yours) and the later Mallory distributors is the point plate.

I know the Lowry brothers were cool and enterprising guys. But the licensing of a quality part to another company isn't at all unusual in the automotive aftermarket.

[javabug]

PAY ATTENTION!   

I'm going to eat the crow I deep fried myself and concede the DDS distributors are indeed not Mallory. But they're about as close as you can get without actually being a Mallory.

Richard, since you were right, care to educate the studio audience today?

[hotrodsurplus]

You're right, Richard. The Deano distributors are not in fact Mallory private-label pieces as others (including myself) speculated. But the real blame lies on the shoulders of that Mike guy. He's such an a-hole. The nerve of some people...

All joking aside (well, except the part about Mike), your staunch defense and the photos got me to thinking (oh brother). I dragged out one of my Mallory distributors and compared them with the photos that you and Johnny posted (thanks in advance for letting me repost those, Johnny). It turns out that Mike and I were also right. The Deano-badged distributors were in fact private-label parts. It's just that they were made by someone completely unexpected.

First, the differences between the Mallory and the Deano-badged distributors.

The bodies on the Mallory distributor and the one Deano sold differ slightly. Most obviously, the bottom of the Mallory distributor bowl is pretty much flat and has a generous radius to the stem. The bottom of the one Deano sold has a bit of an angle to it and has a very abrupt radius to the stem. The caps also differ. The one Deano sold has substantially more support around the clip area and the lower edge flares out more dramatically.

Deano:


Mallorio:


The guts differ even more significantly. The Mallory uses points from the '55 and '56 Chevrolet (and many more applications but I don't care to dig that deep). The Mallory points use an eccentric screw to set the gap and a separate screw to fasten them to the points plate. The Mallory also uses black insulation on the points strap.

Mallorio:


On the other hand, the deano uses points from another application like the '54 Chevrolet or the like-year Studebakers (and probably dozens of other applications). They lack the eccentric screw for adjustment sort of like VW points. I also noticed that the top of the points cam was chamfered. It also appears that the cam is part of the distributor shaft. But two things looked super-duper familiar to me. One, the Deano distributor uses red insulation on the points strap. Two, it uses a knurled plastic knob for the external wire (although that's not really visible in this photo).

Deano:


Here's a better shot of that knurled knob on the Deano. It also reveals one other thing that's barely discernible on the first photo of the Deano-badged distributor. The dual-point Deano-badged  and Mallory distributors locate their condensers on the outside of the body but the exact locations differ. The Deano-badged cap clip has a rounded top whereas the Mallory (not shown) has a squared top. The Mallory distributor mounts the capacitor below and next to one cap clip whereas the Deano distributor mounts the capacitor directly below one of those rounded cap clips:


I knew I'd seen the red strap and the knurled knob before and I also knew that they weren't on my Mallory distributors. I remembered that the tach-drive Chevy distributor that I bought about 15 years ago had red insulation on the points strap. Because I'm a hoarder I knew I still had it so I dug it up. And because I was the one who took it out of its original box I knew that all of the parts inside it are original to the distributor.

The distributor was, um...distributed by Mr Gasket and sold under the name DC Goldspark. Check out the points design, the red insulation on the points strap, and the knurled knob. Also note the chamfer on top of the points cam. All of those are consistent with the Deano-badged distributor.



Now check out the hole directly below the cap clip. Though this has dual points it also has the capacitor inside; however, the threaded hole below the cap clip remains as a vestige. That's the same as the Deano-badged distributor. And check out the cap clip. It has a rounded top like the Deano-badged distributor.


Now here's where it gets goofy--at least goofier. This is a photo of the condenser in my Goldspark distributor. Again, I know this is original to the distributor because it was NOS when I got it and I know that I haven't changed a thing inside it. In fact I used it all of like two months. But check out the marking:


Now here's the deal. Mr. Gasket doesn't make much. It has manufacturing roots but it made its name as a private-label distributor. It contracted other manufacturers to make things for it which it sold under its own name. But at one point Mr. Gasket started buying the companies that it contracted. Two of those companies are, surprise...Accel and Mallory. My Goldspark distributor is a real bastard item. Whoever made it machined the bowl from a Chevy tach-drive distributor and bolted a large machined bowl in its place. The stem is clearly an Accel part (I've already invested too much time in this so forgive me if I don't want to go take more photos).

I was feeling all good about what I'd discovered but then along came that Mike character again. He found this post by Nicklas on Boxerville (thanks in advance for letting me use this, Nicklas). This is a Bugspark by...Mr. Gasket.

There it is, the angled bowl, the sharp transition, the generous support for the cap clips, and the round-top cap clips from the Deano-badged distributor.


And here are the simpler points and red insulation from the Deano-badged and Goldspark distributors.


So in closing, you were right, Richard: Mallory didn't make the distributors that Deano sold. And Mike and I were right too: another company made these distributors for Mr. Gasket with Accel and apparently Mallory parts and ostensibly Deano replaced the sticker and sold them as its own. So at the end of the day a Deano distributor ISN'T a $30 Mallory distributor with a 15-cent sticker pasted on the side. In fact it's a $30 Mr. Gasket distributor with a 15-cent sticker pasted to the side.

Richard and Mike, thanks for sticking to your guns on that one. We all learned something (at least I hope we did).

[ESH]

You're right, Richard. The Deano distributors are not in fact Mallory private-label pieces as others (including myself) speculated. But the real blame lies on the shoulders of that Mike guy. He's such an a-hole. The nerve of some people...

All joking aside (well, except the part about Mike), your staunch defense and the photos got me to thinking (oh brother). I dragged out one of my Mallory distributors and compared them with the photos that you and Johnny posted (thanks in advance for letting me repost those, Johnny). It turns out that Mike and I were also right. The Deano-badged distributors were in fact private-label parts. It's just that they were made by someone completely unexpected.

First, the differences between the Mallory and the Deano-badged distributors.

The bodies on the Mallory distributor and the one Deano sold differ slightly. Most obviously, the bottom of the Mallory distributor bowl is pretty much flat and has a generous radius to the stem. The bottom of the one Deano sold has a bit of an angle to it and has a very abrupt radius to the stem. The caps also differ. The one Deano sold has substantially more support around the clip area and the lower edge flares out more dramatically.

Deano:


Mallorio:


The guts differ even more significantly. The Mallory uses points from the '55 and '56 Chevrolet (and many more applications but I don't care to dig that deep). The Mallory points use an eccentric screw to set the gap and a separate screw to fasten them to the points plate. The Mallory also uses black insulation on the points strap.

Mallorio:


On the other hand, the deano uses points from another application like the '54 Chevrolet or the like-year Studebakers (and probably dozens of other applications). They lack the eccentric screw for adjustment sort of like VW points. I also noticed that the top of the points cam was chamfered. It also appears that the cam is part of the distributor shaft. But two things looked super-duper familiar to me. One, the Deano distributor uses red insulation on the points strap. Two, it uses a knurled plastic knob for the external wire (although that's not really visible in this photo).

Deano:


Here's a better shot of that knurled knob on the Deano. It also reveals one other thing that's barely discernible on the first photo of the Deano-badged distributor. The dual-point Deano-badged  and Mallory distributors locate their condensers on the outside of the body but the exact locations differ. The Deano-badged cap clip has a rounded top whereas the Mallory (not shown) has a squared top. The Mallory distributor mounts the capacitor below and next to one cap clip whereas the Deano distributor mounts the capacitor directly below one of those rounded cap clips:


I knew I'd seen the red strap and the knurled knob before and I also knew that they weren't on my Mallory distributors. I remembered that the tach-drive Chevy distributor that I bought about 15 years ago had red insulation on the points strap. Because I'm a hoarder I knew I still had it so I dug it up. And because I was the one who took it out of its original box I knew that all of the parts inside it are original to the distributor.

The distributor was, um...distributed by Mr Gasket and sold under the name DC Goldspark. Check out the points design, the red insulation on the points strap, and the knurled knob. Also note the chamfer on top of the points cam. All of those are consistent with the Deano-badged distributor.



Now check out the hole directly below the cap clip. Though this has dual points it also has the capacitor inside; however, the threaded hole below the cap clip remains as a vestige. That's the same as the Deano-badged distributor. And check out the cap clip. It has a rounded top like the Deano-badged distributor.


Now here's where it gets goofy--at least goofier. This is a photo of the condenser in my Goldspark distributor. Again, I know this is original to the distributor because it was NOS when I got it and I know that I haven't changed a thing inside it. In fact I used it all of like two months. But check out the marking:


Now here's the deal. Mr. Gasket doesn't make much. It has manufacturing roots but it made its name as a private-label distributor. It contracted other manufacturers to make things for it which it sold under its own name. But at one point Mr. Gasket started buying the companies that it contracted. Two of those companies are, surprise...Accel and Mallory. My Goldspark distributor is a real bastard item. Whoever made it machined the bowl from a Chevy tach-drive distributor and bolted a large machined bowl in its place. The stem is clearly an Accel part (I've already invested too much time in this so forgive me if I don't want to go take more photos).

I was feeling all good about what I'd discovered but then along came that Mike character again. He found this post by Nicklas on Boxerville (thanks in advance for letting me use this, Nicklas). This is a Bugspark by...Mr. Gasket.

There it is, the angled bowl, the sharp transition, the generous support for the cap clips, and the round-top cap clips from the Deano-badged distributor.


And here are the simpler points and red insulation from the Deano-badged and Goldspark distributors.


So in closing, you were right, Richard: Mallory didn't make the distributors that Deano sold. And Mike and I were right too: another company made these distributors for Mr. Gasket with Accel and apparently Mallory parts and ostensibly Deano replaced the sticker and sold them as its own. So at the end of the day a Deano distributor ISN'T a $30 Mallory distributor with a 15-cent sticker pasted on the side. In fact it's a $30 Mr. Gasket distributor with a 15-cent sticker pasted to the side.

Richard and Mike, thanks for sticking to your guns on that one. We all learned something (at least I hope we did).

Thanks for posting, this was one of the most interesting single posts on The Lounge for a while! (To me anyway, a gem in the rough as they say).

[hotrodsurplus]

Thanks for posting, this was one of the most interesting single posts on The Lounge for a while! (To me anyway, a gem in the rough as they say).

You're welcome and thanks for the props. I have CDO. It's like OCD but the letters are alphabetical...as they should be.

[ESH]

You're welcome and thanks for the props. I have CDO. It's like OCD but the letters are alphabetical...as they should be.

I enjoy suffering the same affliction with various things and love seeing it at work in all its brilliance! This is a ('kin) fine example! :-)

Mat.

[beatnik beetle]

WOW..thank you for all this information, I honestly think this says more about after market "dizzy's" than anything else I have ever read...Right...I need to look at those distributors