I am somewhat mystified at the near-universal choice of MSD ignition systems - not only in Cobra-land, but almost everywhere. They have their share of failures, more than some, it seems sometimes, yet it's hard to find anything but MSD on any built engine. Why?
I've always leaned towards Mallory, which seems to have a better selection and better-engineered ignition controllers. To bring the issue home, Mallory has been around a LONG time - since the 1930s, at least - and has a long track record in racing and street rods. MSD didn't even come into being until (IIRC) the mid-1980s. So while Pertronix and Ford dual-points might be the truly original components for Cobras, it seems like Mallory would be a strong second choice. But it's not... why?
MSD seems like a Chevy-related choice as well, but maybe that's my flawed perception.
707 has, like most, an MSD system. I will probably be swapping it out for Mallory, one of the very few "just cuz" changes I plan to make. For one thing, I like the continuously variable rev limits and dual rev limit selection - it would be nice to have one street/new driver safe setting (maybe 3500 RPM) and one performance setting (6k, 6500).
What're your thoughts on the extreme preference for MSD and the preference over Mallory?