timing

[Anonymous]

just got a timing light and am going to check the timing on the car. right now the car is idling at about 875 on average.

I am going to check the timing first. then well what is the timing supposed to be again between 10-12??? is it before or after top dead center? on the crank before is on the left and after is on the right correct???

I know it isnt gonna be 6 degrees before top dead center cause kept on hearing that in the 60's ford did that and just didnt work.

to change timing I unscrew the nut near the base of the distributor relativve to the block and to retard is clockwise or counterclockwise?????

( I know must disconnect and plug vacuum line first)



And one more thing sometime in the future I am planning on going to a pertronix 2 ignitor what else must be done with that modifaction and what are the benefits and side effects?????

 

[Anonymous]

to retard the timing you twist it clockwise and to advance, counter clockwise. timing should be after top dead center, but how much really depends on the setup u have but stock is about 10-12.

 

[Anonymous]

i am beginning ot thinkj I might be 180 out...

or I just retarded it too much

it was barely running and I was gettng ping ping ping

getting frustrated again..

how much was your timing light?

 

[Anonymous]

i tune the engine by ear and sometimes a vacuum gauge. i advance it till it runs crappy and then back it off slowly till i get very smooth...

 

[67 Falcon]

Get a copy of Mustang and Fords April issue. There ia a good article on tuneing the distirbutor. Russell

 

[Anonymous]

Pony carburetors suggests that the vacume line coimg off the distributer should point in between cylinder 5 and 6. They also told me to let the car warm up and when it is at opperating tempurture to adjust the distributer till the motor runs the fastest and the smoothest.


wes

 

[Anonymous]

Dave posted a typo above. The initial timing should be Before Top
Dead Center BTDC (not after). Make sure to plug the disconnected vacuum line when timing.

Timing lights can run from $30 to $100+. (I just checked E-bay, and they can be had for very little) I bought a Craftsman Dial Back light for about $70 last year. Nothing wrong with my old one, but the dial back function sure is handy when trying to tune a distributor. The scale on the timing cover of the engine only goes to something like 12 deg or so. A dial back will let you see how far it is advanced up to 60 deg

 

[Anonymous]

Dave posted a typo above. The initial timing should be Before Top
Dead Center BTDC (not after). Make sure to plug the disconnected vacuum line when timing.

Ooops! yea sorry bout that.

 

[Anonymous]

here's how I timmed mine today...as I was really out.

first, I had my choke screw so far out that it wouldnt idle..so I screwed that in...so I could get an idle...then I turned the distributor slightly...then ran around the block. I kept doing that until, even under heavy load, there was no pinging...

my distributor ended up pointing (if you look straight down on it) with the vacuum pointing toward 4 oclock

is that OK?

seems as if I still have a push rod issue...sound slike marble slighlt on light accelleration...

 

[addo]

Once again, ladies and gentleflakes... If it's not fouling anything there's no matter which way the dizzy points.

Rule of thumb for ping is subtract 2° from setting where it was no longer audible. So if you couldn't hear it at 10°, set the dizzy to 8°. This is your margin of safety.

Adam.

 

[kirkallen143]

Is that while you are at idle, listening for the pinging, or under a load or both? And Addo, don't you mean, "...if you can hear the ping at 10 degrees, then back off to 8 degrees..."
I upped the timing to 10 degrees and get a slight ping under a load, but I run regular unleaded and could probably fix by using higher octane?

Kirk ' 73 bronco

 

[CobraSix]

Just to echo addo,

that "Points to" addage...ignore it. You have to base it on TDC, got where the vacuum canister points. I think originally from the factory, they did point between 5 and 6, but it is not a requirement. I don't think I've ever had mine point there.

kirk, right, you check for ping under load. If you are ping at idle, you have some issues. You can take care of the ping by running higher octane, or retarding the timing.

Slade

 

[addo]

No, I mean if you can hear it at say 12, go to 10. If you then can't hear it at 10, set to 8. Not all knocking is audible; that's the problem. If you really know a specific motor well (a single, solitary motor, not a general type) it's possible to compromise a little.