Staring at it is a good way to psych yourself up to go after it, like meditating!  ... or praying!

I haven't been able to install it yet. I did stare at it though.  

Hopefully this weekend. 

"Edit: My dizzy is the A+ With Vacuum version."

Unfortunately, Mtymouse's  won't work with your Pre A+ block!  But I'm glad Steve at MED agrees with me!

How did installing the distributor go? Did my youtube video of my test stand and shifting the remote linkage help? 

Thanks for keeping the conversation going. I got an email back from Steve at MED. He told me that my 25d distributor and my starter shouldd work work just fine on this motor for now. It will at least let me test it out and make sure it runs ok. I only paid $500 for it, since it had an unknown history. In my top end tear down, it looks to be very low milage, and ready to go. I will get it bench tested and then I would highly consider a better distributor for it, and the 123 looks to be a great option. MtyMos...don't store that thing away in a tough to access place. I think it might be just the ticket once I make sure thing thing will run!

+1 for using a 123 - as Marcel Chichak's website said, the suggested curve selections are close, but your engine will tell you what it is happiest with. It worked a charm on my 1275 high compression engine - the curve it liked didn't happen to be one of the suggested ones. Years later, I still haven't needed to touch it. Timing is sooo easy - the timing light (actally 4 of them) is built right in.

I've got a new 123 dizzy sitting in a box. Used it for a few weeks before my transmission let go, so it's brand spankin new. I bought it for $450 ish I think. You can take it for $350+ shipping. 

Edit: My dizzy is the A+ With Vacuum version.

Are both engines A+?   Do you know that the same distributor will physically fit the 1380?  If so, it will certainly be close enough to run well enough to test it out... same with the starter... the one from the 998 will work just fine!

Just a suggestion, but I would contact Jeff at Advanced distributors and have him rebuild your dizzy. If you can provide him with the correct build info he can convert to electronic and recurve. I have taken to sending all mine up. I recently started a repair on a 72 998 non Cooper 1000. I removed the dizzy and found the mech. advance was frozen on the shaft and the vacuum was bad. Jeff. has had vacuum units remade. 

Again just my thoughs but I would add an electric fuel pump at this time. At the very least buy a new mech pump. I have had a couple mech fail and kill engines as they went. If they leak fuel into the base pan cam, cyl walls, bearings everything will suffer. Steve (CTR) 

An option for a distributor is a 123 distributor which has 16 advance curves to choose from but they price in at around $400. You can guesstimate the most appropriate curve based on MEDs recommendation or do some runs at the drag strip while changing the curve until you get the best one.  You could also use a dyno but it would be more fun at the strip. There is an elaborate DIY way to measure hp from acceleration runs but you need a tachometer. If you are interested in this I could dig out the steps.

The radiator is not standard, it's a newly uprgraded one. A quad core I believe. It's perfect for the 1380. The 1380 also has a Cooper S oil cooler. 

So the distributor and starter are the missing components it sounds. I swapped the maual fuel pump over as well. I was told that should work fine with my new carb (HIF44).

A standard 998 radiator is not a good one for a 1380 in most cases.

I just sent them an email, I am hoping it will work! Got such a good deal on the motor, but was hoping more than just my radiator and alternator would swap over. 

Your 998 distributor probably doesn't have the right spark advance curve for a MED 1380. Ask MED what they recommend. If you use the existing distributor you probably won't get the best performance out of the MED motor. 

Set the static timing after you put the engine in place.  Once the engine is started and at operating temperature you can set the timing using a light if you wish.

You can read up on how to set the static timing by reading my PDF on it.  Visit the page linked below and look for the document there.

https://sites.google.com/site/purlawson/home/files

I finally grew a pair, and yanked my motor today! Went pretty darn smooth. Now to start moving parts over to the new power plant. I am really worried about the distributor. How do I move it to the new engine and not throw the timing all out of whack? I dont know much about timing....so that may be the issue. I just know slightly rotating the distributor changes things. So how do I avoid that when moving it to my new engine? Also, is it safe to assume that the timing should be the same between my 998, and my new 1380? I have been told by MED the engine builder that it should be at 11 degrees...which is where mine is set now.