MSD 6AL vs 6M

[JIMS]

HEY WHATS THE DEAL ON MSD BOXES IS THERE REALLY A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 6AL AND 6M I KNOW THAT THE A STANDS FOR AUTOMOTIVE AND THE M STANDS FOR MARINE BUT OTHER THAN WEATHER PACK CONNECTIONS AND BAKE-O-LITE WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE IS ANY ONE USING THE 6AL AND HAVE YOU HAD ANY PERFORMANCE ISSUES OR FAILURE BECAUSE OF MOISTURE ?

[JETBOAT BRIAN]

I have been using a 6al box on my jet for 4 yrs with msd billet dist. not one problem yet also it has a built in rev limiter,where the marine box requires you to buy another box for a limiter!

[shockwaveharry]

If you burn your boat down and it turns out to be because of a non-marine approved part, you'll have a hard time getting a check from your insurance company. Other than that I believe they have the same internal gadgets. 6m = 6a

[Craig]

That's pretty much the same thing the rep at the races working the MSD trailer said.
Craig

[Hotcrusader76]

The only major differences between the two are the internal circuit board coatings. The 6M is coated internaly and sealed for protection against the harsh MARINE enviroment of salty moist air. Your 6A should suffice for any lake/river water use. Also the silicon layer inside helps protect the transitors from vibration, it's sort of a dampner. But if your 6A is mounted on the back transom, the vibration is less harsh then it is from where you sit in the front.
Also noted that the 6M is somewhat case protected from the enclosed enviroment it might see in a hatch enclosed engine bay, where fumes could pose a fire hazard.
If you run a jetboat with an open engine, save your money and buy the 6A. It will outlast your engine anyhow, and I also spoke with a MSD rep at the races in POMONA and he told me that if you have an old MSD unit, they will replace it with a newer one if you take it in for rework. Call them up, they are very polite people to work with...Hell there Texans !
[This message has been edited by Hotcrusader76 (edited May 03, 2002).]

[JIMS]

THANKS FOR YOUR INPUT GUY'S I PLAN ON USING THE 6AL SINCE IT HAS THE BUILT IN REV LIMITER AND I JUST REPLACED MY ENGINE 5.7 MERCRUISER WITH A ZZ4 AND NEED THE REV LIMITER CHANGED. AND AS FAR AS I KNOW THIS IS PROBABLLY THE CHEAPEST AND BEST WHAY TO GO ABOUT IT.

[BadBoyzSkiRacer]

g'day guys.... just remember when using the 6M it is coated to stop internal water corosion... use an external fuse of 10 amp because if you blow the unit you have to get all the coating removed from the board before repairing
all msd units have a built in fuse on the internal circut board .this fuse is rated at 10 amp so if an external inline fuse is used you can just replace it without getting the unit repaired from an MSD agent.... this has saved me a few times when pluging in a taco whilst the engine is running.. DO not plug in rev limiter chips once your msd unit has 12 volt power connected. u will blow the internal fuse. one other point of note with the MSD units is that they run so much better with 16 volts rather then 12 volts...hard to beleive when MSD is rated at 12 volts.

[Thunderbutt]

Why go through all of that bull shit, Go with a Magnetio. I know most of you people don't understand the Mag. But look into it. Originally posted by BadBoyzSkiRacer:
g'day guys.... just remember when using the 6M it is coated to stop internal water corosion... use an external fuse of 10 amp because if you blow the unit you have to get all the coating removed from the board before repairing
all msd units have a built in fuse on the internal circut board .this fuse is rated at 10 amp so if an external inline fuse is used you can just replace it without getting the unit repaired from an MSD agent.... this has saved me a few times when pluging in a taco whilst the engine is running.. DO not plug in rev limiter chips once your msd unit has 12 volt power connected. u will blow the internal fuse. one other point of note with the MSD units is that they run so much better with 16 volts rather then 12 volts...hard to beleive when MSD is rated at 12 volts.

[eliminator777]

Just use a mag. Skip all the B.S.

[GofastRacer]

I been running a mag for 20 yrs, never let me down once..... http://free.***boat.net/ubb/cool.gif