Timing - Is this the problem, and is it hard?

[MikeTarr]

Well we just got the carb workin right again, its no longer flooding. Now, we had 2 back fires, and today I tried starting it and it would idle rough for a few seconds then shut off. And if I tried giving it gas it would completely shut off. I hear I need to time it. Is this correct?

And is timing hard? I mean, what exactly is timing, and what do you mess with to time. I see the distributor, and I see the cap, if I take the cap off I see the rotor and the points. But I have no idea what any of it does...

Any help would really be appreciated, thanks again guys.

 

[fordconvert]

First thing(s) you will need to buy or borrow is a timing light and a dwell/tach meter. With those 2 tools we can then explain how its done. Without those tools you might as well just poke at things and hope for the best. If you have to buy just ask for recomendations. Both can be had new at most parts stores for under $100. Pawn shops almost always have stuff like that and you could luck out and get em both for $25.

 

[Bort62]

Or you could just turn the distributor counter clockwise until it pings under load and then back it off

 

[fordconvert]

Ya like I said poke at things and hope for the best....... Turning the dizzy works if things are fine and you want to see if you can get a bit more power but it sounds like he may have multiple issues going on here and a timing light and a dwell meter would allow him to set the timing and dwell at factory sepcs as a base to try and figure out what else he may be dealing with for problems. Someone could have already F'ed with the timing to deal with the carb problem that he may or may not have fixed.

 

[Anonymous]

Well we just got the carb workin right again, its no longer flooding. Now, we had 2 back fires, and today I tried starting it and it would idle rough for a few seconds then shut off. And if I tried giving it gas it would completely shut off. I hear I need to time it. Is this correct?

And is timing hard? I mean, what exactly is timing, and what do you mess with to time. I see the distributor, and I see the cap, if I take the cap off I see the rotor and the points. But I have no idea what any of it does...

Any help would really be appreciated, thanks again guys.

Could be something as a simple as a plug wire out of order. Recheck your firing order from plug #1.

Do a search on here to find TDC timing tips and you'll see how it is done.
That way you'll know you have the correct wire spot for plug #1 when it's firing.

Good luck,
Steve-O

 

[pedal2themetal45]

BEFORE YOU START TURNING THE DIZZY.
was it running OK befor you did the carb repair????? Other than the flooding???? It might still be carb related hows the float level and mixture adjustments???
tim

 

[JackFish]

If the car has been sitting there could also be moisture in the fuel system.
I would put some gas line anti-freeze in there to eliminate that variable.
And spray some starting fluid in the carb.
When adjusting the timing you should back off the distributor hold down bolt just enough to free the dizzy. If you haven't moved it before, it might be sticky from the gunk around it. Mine I can rotate in an arc with the vacuum canister anywhere from about 6 o'clock to 4 o'clock (when looking across from the driver side) and it will run OK.
Try closing the idle mix screw all the way (not too tight, you can damage the tip) and backing it out about 3-4 turns, which should give enough gas to idle. That might be too rich but you can adjust it later.
Make sure the idle stop screw is set so that the butterfly is open a hairline crack, but not shut all the way.
You also have to take into account how the choke is working during cold start-up. And you can't set up a cold engine...
When setting the timing you have to bounce between these variables to get it right.
An inexpensive vacuum guage will help in adjusting the carb.