Ok. So I got my distributor back from the shop. Again, it's out of a 60 fyb. Going in a 317 lyb. I did swap out the gear on the distributor, the correct oil pump and shaft. When I put it in the hole for the distributor it seems to be too tight going in the small hole where the shaft comes out of. There was some minor surface rust on the bottom of the distributor shaft that I removed using a Dremel and grinding tip. But it still won't go down into the hole. The gear and cam gear don't mesh yet. Want any info to resolve this issue.
Plus, do I turn the engine until the no 1 piston is tdc on the timing mark or do I stop it btdc so the distributor gear is lined up when it rotates going down? Plus, if the bottom of the shaft rotates, how much clearance does there need to be in the hole that the shaft goes in to hook up with the intermediate shaft?

Brad
Sierra Vista Arizona
1954 Lincoln Capri

You want #1 cylinder at tdc of the compression stroke verified by both valves being closed. When the distributor is in correctly and completely seated, the rotor should point to the #1 tower of the distributor cap. The problem is not the gears meshing but rather the hex oil pump drive shaft not being squared away with the hex in the distributor shaft. I'll try to explain how I do this and maybe others will chime in too.  I have an old distributor shaft I engage the oil pump drive shaft with and simply rotate the hex shaft slightly then try installing the distributor again. You may have to repeat this several times until the distributor will mate with the hex shaft and seat properly.  This method does not require rotating the engine back and forth to get everything lined up then back again to make sure you got it right.  Again, when the strib is completely seated in it's normal operating range, the rotor should point to #1 tower. I'm assuming your engine is not in the vehicle yet so this should be fairly easy. If you don't have an old distributor shaft and you use a 1/4" socket, you might want to tack weld the socket on to the extension so it doesn't fall off into the engine. Don't ask me how I know how easy it is for that to happen. Hope this helps, good luck.

64F100 57FAIRLANE500

I pretty much do what Ford Dearborn said.  It's a trial and error procedure. Just keep trying until the vacuum canister and the rotor wind up in the spots (rotor on # 1) you want them. Instead of welding the socket to the extension, I tape it so there isn't a problem.  Use a deep socket, 1/4 inch, 1/4 inch drive as that is the smallest.


54 Victoria 312;  48 Ford Conv 302, 56 Bird 312
Forever Ford
Midland Park, NJ

I will try that once I get to that point. What's the #1tower?
I don't even have the oil pump shaft in the block yet and still can't get the strib shaft into the hole that the pump shaft goes thru.

Brad
Sierra Vista Arizona
1954 Lincoln Capri

#1 tower is where #1 spark plug wire goes in the distributor cap.  If the oil pump and pump drive shaft is still out, maybe that's a good thing, for now. It will make it easier to figure out why the end of the shaft won't go in the block. The Ford distributor shaft should fit in the hole where it engages the pump shaft in the Lincoln block. Is the gear the correct one? Is it located correctly on the shaft? Do you still have the original distributor gear for reference? I have done apposite to what you are attempting to do by running a Lincoln distributor in a Ford Y-block with no problems, after changing the gear to a Ford gear.  I do have a Lincoln distributor gear and a Lincoln distributor here if you need any dimensions for reference. 

64F100 57FAIRLANE500

Could you supply a couple pics of the distributor showing the gear and shaft? Maybe a couple pics would help us get a better idea of what's going on.

64F100 57FAIRLANE500

The hole in the block for the distributor should be in the 0.453” range.  The shaft end of the distributors is typically 0.450”-0.451”.  If the distributor is not falling into the distributor shaft hole in the block, then look carefully at the distributor.  At the top of the list is the shaft did get buggered or mushroomed when reinstalling the gear.  If that’s the case, then the end of the distributor shaft will need to be cleaned up to the aforementioned 0.450”-0.451” value.

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

Ted, yeah. That's why it was at the shop. I attempted to get the gear off by putting the gear in a vice and tapping the end of the shaft. In fact when I got it back the oil pump shaft wouldn't go in the bottom of the dist shaft until I cleaned it up using a Dremel. It's still tight but fits. Might make it easier to install when the dist gets in the hole and the oil pump shaft gets pushed in. It'll be easier to install the oil pump without worrying about if the shaft will keep dropping out while lining everything up.

Brad
Sierra Vista Arizona
1954 Lincoln Capri