The information about the Winterburn system is very interesting. I see that it is the inventor's son who is now producing the units. A primary disadvantage of CDI systems previously was that they only provided a single, albeit very nice and fat, spark, but apparently the new incarnation of it uses a
multiphase spark, which is one of the strengths of the popular systems like Pertronix. Here is the Winterburn site:
http://www.capacitordischargeignition.com/
As to the OP's and your own experience with poor running with Pertronix, etc. systems, I have found that the way to overcome this is the way I used to time my ignition way back in the 1970's...... by loosening the distributor clamp while the engine is running and manually twisting the distributor. Once you have it idling nicely and picking up well when you pump the accelerator linkage, then take it for a run and fine tune it. The whole process shouldn't take longer than 15 to 20 minutes. I believe that if you try this with these systems, and have otherwise installed them correctly, you will get better starting, excellent running and increased fuel economy. I can however see some major arguments in favour of the Winterburn system, if the price is not too astronomically high. Originally the system was very
inexpensive, way back in the early 1960's.
I would BTW be willing to wager that your mechanic's bin is a most curious one that does not lead to the dump. That's a mechanic I would be a bit cautious about using.