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Timing Marks

British Slave said:
What you describe you were one probably two teeth off on the dist. The module wiring won't let you turn the dist. enough to bring the marks into sight.
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module wiring wont let me turn the dist???

i think it was more like the vac advance hitting the carb that stopped me from turning it one way.. and vac adv hitting the cab the other way...

i sooooo need to remove my tcase drop... it has pitched my motor enough so the cap is bout on the firewall... my plugs in the back pretty much are... :doah:
 
I recently learned that if you have an oversize cam you have to advance the timing to about 12* BTDC. I would put it at 8* & it would run weak. at TDC it wouldn't run at all.

... But spun around 180* it runs like a shotgun & looks like a flamethrower!!!
:weapon36::weapon11:
 
so im back at this again.. LOL... now so i get 12 degree... but .. what are the lines on the timing cover? i see the line now.. and it is about a 1/4" pas the entire teeth guide.... so im guessing that is way off..
is 0 where the big V is then the Vvvvvv for every up is 2?
I think im still too high on timing..

**********edited..
so looking at this..

12 is the last point on it.. yeah so im well out of that.. id say... 20 or so...

http://autorepair.about.com/library/a/1a/bl328a.htm
 
I've posted a few times about the two different timing setups on SBCs. The tab mounted in two different locations depending on engine and you needed the balancer to match, of course. Sometimes after parts have swapped it's off by something like 90*. So you need to make sure you know the real engine position and then look at the tab/mark. If it lines up then you can use it to set the timing. If not, then it is just confusing you. On mine I just used a strip of timing tape from Summit.

When did you last have it timed and running right? Have you ever confirmed that the tab and mark are lined up right?
 
well i put the motor in the truck in 1999... and didnt drive it until 2004...
now the motor was out of a 1991 caprice police car.. i took the tbi off...
put all my front end stuff on it...
vortec heads
comp cams xtreme 4x4 cam.. mild one.. .458" lift so power is idle - 5k
weiand power plus+ vortec intake
msd distributor, msd 6al with rev limiter

i have NEVER had this thing run right.. the motor is fine.. it has always been me.. at first i didnt know about the high idle screw on the truck avenger.. so after about 4 years running timing so retarded so it would idle down.. then realizing i had 4.5v coming from a 12v source for the choke.. lead me to rip every wire out of the truck..

im now at the point with so many new parts.. ready to set this thing up.. the timing cover and balancer are all from the same vehicle...

my question is when people say 12 degrees... does that mean the last point towards the passenger side on timing? at idle im about 1/2" beyond it.. :whistle:

i know it isnt exact.. but a base starting point...
 
do yourself a favor and go buy an adjustable timing light.. set the knob, bring the motor to zero.. done...

and I'm gonna say it, a quad wouldn't be giving you all these issues...
 
ryoken said:
do yourself a favor and go buy an adjustable timing light.. set the knob, bring the motor to zero.. done...

and I'm gonna say it, a quad wouldn't be giving you all these issues...
Click to expand...

if your saying quad as in quadrajet.. i agree 100%.. i have too much money into this holley and want to get it running good...
i was told that a qjet always works.. but a properly figured out and adjusted holley produces way more power
 
Yeah, I have a cheap fixed timing light and it's pretty much worthless when the multiple spark is enabled - the discharge is almost random if it will flash at all. I disable the multiple sparks on my Ford EDIS and read the timing from the timing tape wrapped around the balancer.
 
any of those digitals is fine, they all have advance adjustment...

critical imo for checking total timing too...
 
RootBreaker said:
can you recommend one? yes a cheap one that will work and get used maybe 4 times???

i can pickup either of these on my way home..

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00914066000P?prdNo=2&blockNo=2&blockType=G2

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00914065000P?mv=rr

which do you think? digital seems nice... but you said knob above!!! HAH
Click to expand...

ok bought the first one...
$10 off ordering online.. pickup in store... charged tax... so $99.99 turned out $96.29... figured i wont use it much but when i do may as well have something in the so so nice category... :whistle:
 
Ok got my gaskets replaced... Fired up the truck... Sed timing gun on it... Adjusting the advance up and down did nothing..... Timing mark didnt move... I thought the way it worked was when you adjust the advance... It will go towards zero.. Once at zero u look at what it is at... That will tell u your toming.

Am I wromg? Didnt move so something aint right....

Sent from my Epic 4G Touch using Tapatalk
 
you need to put in what advance you want into the display, whether thats 4, 10 whatever. than start the truck and move the dizzy until the mark gets at zero... tighten... if you change the advance on the gun at that point to zero, you should see the timing mark move an equal amount from the 0 pointer...

it's the same with total timing.. set the gun to say, 32. start the truck and rev it to about 3 grand.. you should see the timing mark come to the zero spot.. cuz your total timing is "all in" at that point...
 
ryoken said:
you need to put in what advance you want into the display,...
Click to expand...


thanks for the explanation... this is how i thought it worked..

start truck...
with display @ 0.0 start hitting up arrow...
you would see the timing mark move towards 0
once it was at 0 you could look at the display and whatever reading it was at is what your timing is at..

thus i started the truck and moved the arrow up and down.. i figured i was doing it wrong when i hit 99.9 degrees and nothing changed.. :whistle:

so tonight..
1. with truck off.. hookup timing light
2. set timing light to 12 degrees
3. start truck
4. move dizzy till it is @ 0

so that would set the truck to 12 degrees....


which method do you prefer?
12 degrees idle or total timing of 32 degrees @ 3k?
 
well, that's a controversy, most will set initial... and I do too, but with my marine background where high rpm's are where the boat lives, I consider total critical.. and it is due to the fact that thats where it's gonna grenade, not at idle..

so I will generally do initial, than see where that puts me for total.. as the total number is not always the same from mill to mill, and a function of specs, cam, etc.. where the motor is happy it can vary greatly from motor to motor... it's always at least 28, most SB's like around 32, but hairy stuff can like the 40 range... total will give you max performance...

as long as the dizzy advance is working fine, initial alone should be good...
 
thanks ryoken...

now i just really confused myself more by watching this..

http://www.setyourtiming.com/video.html

while it is a great watch.. im curious...

when i stand in front of my truck.. looking over the radiator.. i see the sawtooth timing marks...

i want my timing mark to go to the left (passenger side) right?
at least my timing marks dont go the other way.. but the MSD tape in that video shows 12" to 0 then wayyyyy to the right with numbers...

that video shows them where it appears to me that the timing is actually to the drivers side?

maybe im over complicating it (most likely) and over confusing myself...
 
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