All Small Six Distributor Advance

[John Ha]

I finally got around to measuring the advance for my distributor. I'd talked and thought about using a template with degree markings glued to the crank pulley but they either flew off or I couldn't read them. I ended up spending a little money to get a timing light with the adjustable advance feature (new tool drool ). That made the whole process a piece of cake.

I only went to 3,000 rpm - the engine revs were making me feel a little nervous, even with the emergency brake full on and the tires chocked.

I have the "13" distributor weight as the controlling weight so the maximum value for the centrifugal advance at "all in" would be 13x2+17 = 43°. It's a degree short of that at 3,000 so it would probably be all in at 3100 or 3200 rpm. The numbers and the graph are below fyi.

I used a a length of coat hanger on the throttle arm and another stuck in the hood frame (the metal on the underside of the hood skin), and connected them wtih a turnbuckle to adjust the throttle opening. Even so it was a little difficult to get a steady rpm exactly on the desired value. The worst I saw was 200 rpm off but most are either exact or ±100 rpm. That's why the curve is a little wavey.

 

[wsa111]

What kind of distributor do you have???

 

[John Ha]

What kind of distributor do you have???

I'm running a DuraSpark II setup. I got the distributor from O'Reilly. If remember correctly it's for a 75 Maverick 250. I did the mods to the springs and tabs laid out in the tech section. The engine seems very happy with a base timing setting of about 17°

 

[wsa111]

What is your total centrifugal advance? What RPM does you advance start & stop?

 

[John Ha]

The base timing is 17° so per the data above, it starts to advance around 1200 RPM.

The weight that's controlling the centrifugal advance is stamped "13" and I've not modified the slot or the pin inside the slot. So the total centrifugal advance possible is 26°. Adding that to the initial 17°, I should see a total advance of 43° for centrifugal only. I only measured to 3000 rpm and got 42° of centrifugal advance. It was incrementing at 2° of advance per 2000 rpm. Extrapolating, I would have hit the 43° total at 3100 rpm.

 

[wsa111]

Way too much. You only need 36-38 total centrifugal which includes your initial. You need to purchase one of my DS11's. Email me your phone # & the best time to call you. billythedistributorman@live.com
My Sun tester can check what i have in a few minutes. I'm sure you spent hours to get where you are. Bill

 

[John Ha]

Way too much. You only need 36-38 total centrifugal which includes your initial. You need to purchase one of my DS11's. Email me your phone # & the best time to call you. billythedistributorman@live.com
My Sun tester can check what i have in a few minutes. I'm sure you spent hours to get where you are. Bill

I appreciate your input but it runs really well now and my life experiences have made me a firm believer in "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".

I actually have very little time in the distributor. All I've done is the spring change and the tab bend I referred to in post 3 - maybe 30 minutes tops. I suppose I could fiddle with it some more to reduce the total advance by sleeving the pin to reduce the length of the slot.

Shortly after I bought the first distributor I bought a second distributor, which is identical to the one in the car, just so I'd have one to mess around with if I needed to change something on the one in the car. They are both set up the same. If I get an uncontrollable urge to mess around with it at some point I'll alter the spare and swap it with the one that's in there now.

 

[wsa111]

What you spent on two distributors, you could have one of mine for probable less.
Best of luck on your engine.

 

[John Ha]

What you spent on two distributors, you could have one of mine for probable less.
Best of luck on your engine.

They were about $65 each (they're twice that now).

 

[wsa111]

Probably getting scarce. Also not getting cores back.

 

[chad]

thank you John.
U da man~

 

[wsa111]

thank you John.
U da man~

No Chad, he is running too much total advance.

 

[John Ha]

No Chad, he is running too much total advance.

Isn't the reason for running less advance to prevent pinging? I don't have any pinging - under any driving condition - even floored going up a long, steep hill. Even so, if you look at the total advance with the distributor vacuum advance in play, it's way more than 36°

 

[chad]

(I all ways write too short.)
U da MAN John (for wrking it this way)

"...36-38 total centrifugal which includes your initial..."
and yours is 7 or so more than many of us run

 

[John Ha]

(I all ways write too short.)
U da MAN John (for wrking it this way)

"...36-38 total centrifugal which includes your initial..."
and yours is 7 or so more than many of us run

I'm absolutely not trying to be a snot about this. It's a well-known (and often-demonstrated) fact that I don't know everything. Maybe there's another reason for the advance limitation. But if there is, I don't know what it is.

 

[chad]

you dont seem like 1 to me anyway.
Measured correct?
Hey, 5, 7* aint much I say.

 

[wsa111]

No comment, when you're dealing with people not knowledgeable.

 

[chad]

but... that IS a comment, Bill.
Ur 'allowed" to elaborate
(w/o sales pitches or personal attacks. Well, U could...)
you have w a y more experience wid ignit than me~

We see 47 is more than 36, nice thing bout math...