I am in the process of building my new 292 motor.  I read about the issues with Cardone distributors and checked mine just in case.  I bought this distributor from Mac's Auto Supply about a year ago.  Sure enough, my distributor is one of the defective units.   The shaft is too short and the gear is in a different place. I have the pan off my engine, so I tested it in my block and the gear does not touch the load bearing surface in the block.  It's about 1/4" too high. Not only that, but the oil pump rod was not seating fully in the distributor.  I have a 1957 distributor that I was going to use as a core. I placed in in my block and it fits perfectly.

What should I do?  Should I use the 1957 distributor?  It's the type with the ball bearing advance plate.   I will need to buy a straight arm vacuum advance and probably convert it to a Pertronix module.  Can I swap the 1957 shaft into the Cardone distributor?  I don't want to run a modern ignition system.

If you use the 57 shaft in the Cardone also use the 57 gear and collar to insure the drilled holes for the pins line up.
Can't the 57 ball bearing breaker plate and vacuum advance  be replaced with the later design?

I  have that Distributor in mine. The Ball Bearing type is actually I think better than the later Type with the nylon rubbing Blocks instead of the Ball Bearing Plate.Provided the Plate is in good Shape. If the Shaft Bushings are in good shape without side Play I would go ahead and use it. The Problem You may have if U don't have a Vacuum Advance Unit now is that the Replacements come with no Internal Parts like Spacers and Springs or the end Cap. This recent availability of made in China Electronic Replacements are  going to be a wait and see how well they work and replacement Parts availability I think. Too bad Pertronix isn't making them (Yet). I did contact them asking about it but no Response. I would be surprised if Cardone starts making correct replacement Shafts because of Cost. Their Units are cheap now but I think would be much more if they have to start having correct Shafts manufactured. I bought the Ball Bearing One to use when I converted mine in the Spring and then found a later (1964) NOS Original Ford One on Ebay also which I bought to have on Hand if I do another Conversion at a later Date. I can see there may be a shortage of Distributors unless there is something done regarding availability of correct Shafts for rebuilt Units.

  

Can read my saga of rebuilding a distributor in the older thread.

As you know, the dimensions are critical. What I found: NOS distributor shafts are available and not particularly expensive. These are not drilled. NOS distributor gears are available, and they are not expensive either. They have one (1) pilot hole pre-drilled. Location varies. Gear dimensions also vary. Distributor bushing is available. These are not expensive either.

Point being it's not going to be a simple matter of taking a new gear (or used gear) and re-installing or installing it in a used or new distributor shaft etc. When you put together a distributor, it's a custom job basically. Since the labor is the same there is little point in re-installing used gears, shafts, etc, and the finished product will not be optimal.

Even if the plan is to use a Pertronix module in lieu of points it is best to use a new distributor shaft along with new bushing. It will run noticeably better, even a slightly sloppy distributor often means de-tuning the motor in order to prevent pinging on just a couple cylinders. The NOS distributor shafts commonly available are the type that use that "fat comma" or kidney shaped centrifugal weights.

Keep your eyes peeled for NOS service replacement distributors on that auction site. They are out there.

The 1957 Ford distributor I have is out of the same 40,000 mile Ford station wagon engine where I got my crank and rods.   The distributor has no detectable wear.  The ball bearing plate was stuck from age.  I cleaned it up and it rotates freely.  If  replace the vacuum canister and swap the points from the Cardone unit, is it OK to use?

Sounds good. Points and Condensor fit 57+. All the same for V-8.

  

It sounds like it's OK, what you're looking for to be clear, is radial or sideplay of the distributor shaft. Seems to me iirc the straight-shaft vacuum advance cans are getting hard to find. Maybe not. The ball bearing point plates are good but they were prone to wear too. I think the fix was they can be re-set on installation to utilize a new surface or non-worn portion. Or, install a later motorcraft points plate and curved arm vacuum advance. Check the centrifugal weight slot pins and slits for excessive wear, they get grooved, this will mess up the advance curve too. Dennis Carpenter has these in stock.

With that low of mileage I would keep it and use it. If the breaker plate is good all the better, I think the bearing type better then the newer type.

The cans are available at Macs but as I mentioned they do not include the Spacers Springs or end Cap. As Jim also mentioned the Ball bearing Plates can develop  flat Spots but just reposition  the lower part of the Plate in relation to the upper Part and reinstall.

  

How do you know if you have a bad Cardone distributor? I bought one a few years ago and it seems ok but I haven't put much mileage on it.


~DJ~ AKA "Bleach"
1956 Ford Fairlane Town Sedan 30K original miles