Dating Delco Tune Up Boxes

[SuperNovaSS]

Does anyone know if there is a way to date old delco cap and rotor boxes? I have a very old D 309R cap and matching rotor that I plan to sell. The boxes are unopened and I want to be sure they are old enough to have the OE style parts inside without opening the boxes. Does anyone know if the box style changed or if the parts themselves ever changed(different markings, colors, etc.)?

Thanks!


Jason

[SuperNovaSS]

[John Brown]

Jason, the D309 came out in 1958 as a black cap with copper contacts in a predominantly orange and black box that changed in the 60's to the predominantly white red and blue box shown in your pictures. D309 was replaced/superceded by D309R 10/69. Sometime in the 60's (in the white box) the cap construction of the D309 changed to the brown material. The D309R continued with the brown material when it superceded D309. Approximately 5/74, D309R was changed from the 60's style brown cap with copper contacts back to being black with copper contacts. The D426R rotor you show is the white rotor that replaces earlier black D409 and D409R. The lids on the boxes you show appear to be silver. Earliest boxes have black painted tops with later boxes (don't know what dates) having blue painted lids. I don't recall seeing any boxes with silver or unpainted lids. In such cases as with your boxes, I have punched small holes in the sides of boxes so that I could see what's inside. Don't know any other way.

[SuperNovaSS]

John,


That is great info. Thanks for taking the time to post it. So, if I understand correctly, this could be either a black or brown cap depending on when the silver/unpainted lids were used?


Thanks again,


Jason

[John Brown]

Yes, I'm afraid there is no good way of dating that box, at least that I know of. Maybe someone else can date the silver lids.

[Chevy454]

If I had only *one* guess as to who would've known that, John Brown woulda been it! Good stuff as always, John... [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

[SuperNovaSS]

Just an update,I looked through the broken part of the seal and the cap looks to be black.


Jason

[John Brown]

That'll be a good clue when it comes to buying the next box I see with a silver lid. One of those mechanics &quot;butt scopes&quot; with a light on the end of a fiber optics could be a real help in situations like this. Thanks for the update Jason.