Meeting Resistance
Don L, Alton IL, 1996 Dodge Dakota 360
Hello, love the Mag , anyway I am looking for some decent plug wires for my 360, But why use wires with resistance? Would zero resistance be better? I remember a few yrs ago in my Dippy and my Aspen , I used metallic core wires from Blue Streak Standard and I had no radio interference, and the MP ignition with chrome box and Accel coil worked fine, and it seems they had almost 0 resistance.
Please explain
Don:
“Almost” is the key! There are three types of plug wires: The factory’s carbon-soaked-linen resistance core (the black conductor type), the solid core (usually copper) type, and the newer spiral-wound, metallic-resistance core.
The carbon ones aren’t great in high-heat applications – the core gets brittle, and then, if flexed – snap! But the solid cores can generate tremendous amounts of RFI, which can not only make AM radio reception annoying, it can be bad enough to interfere with modern engine control electronics. So they should be though of as “full race”, and offer virtually no advantage on the street.
The third type – spiral core, have “almost” no resistance, but still effectively supress RFI. That’s the hot ticket for hi-po street use, and, no doubt, what you had on the Aspen and Dippy. And what you should have on your Dak!
Rick
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