Timing Tip

[magwakeenercew2jh]

I've been messing with the timing now for a couple of weeks. Last week I bit the bullet and bought an Innova 3568 series timing light. It was pricey ($100),
but I'm a guy working almost always alone, and I really wanted to have a digital that read out RPM and advance rate. So, I treated myself.

So, I was also doing too many things at once. New carb, dialing in the electric fans, going to the "shop" for 134a in the Vintage Air system, new coil on the HEI....
...Too many variables.

And....to top it all off, I couldn't find the dots on the harmonic balancer that I had made while we were wrenching on the motor when it was out. And while we were "stabbing" the Accel HEI.

I thought I had the timing good enough using the "running good" method of advance and retard. Then, the putz wouldn't start after sitting for 6 hours. I blamed everything I listed above.
Then, I found the mark(s) on tyhe balancer....Yay!!!!

Went to 14/29 (idle/total timing) degrees using that mark....Wanted 12/33 or 34 but that wasn't in the "run good in the garage" cards. So, I went with the former.

Road test. "Ouch!" Ran like a pig. Seemed really, really retarded. But what do I know. I slewpt on it. I read the Forum on it...Seemed like I better check the balancer mark for TDC.
No lie, it took two of us an hour with a 1/2 18" ratchet to hand-turn the motor on the lower pulley, one thumb over the empty #1 spark plug hole "feeling" for the air on the compression stroke,
cutting an 8" chunk of plastic hanger to use as a feeler in the same hole. Then, we were certain about where TDC was on the compression stroke on #1.

I painted a dot. It was at least 45 degrees away from the mark I had made before.

Now, I'm, at 12/32. No test drive yet today. No "start when cool" test, either. But, I bet it's a done deal. All the indicators are that she's right on the money. Like, the fact that the back two
header pipes on the exhaust ports don't glow red under higher RPMs.

The tip? Unless you really, really trust who put the TDC "dot" on your balancer, verify that it's correct. This little fubar cost me a cruise in the truck to a gathering tomorrow.
I need to work the bugs out and not leave myself and my woman stranded on the side of the road.

So, we take the car......Had I checked the TDC earlier, I'd bet tomorrow would be a smooth truck ride with fresh, cold air conditioning.

Oh, well!