This morning I was working on the ol' Y and decided to check the timing while there. Disconnected the vacuum line and put the light to it. Timing was @ ~20° advanced. Brought it down to 10° and it almost stalled. Didn't like it at all. Hmmm Checked the damper, it was spot on.

Then I connected my vacuum gauge and timed it using just the readings on the gauge. Runs/starts good. Rechecked with light and it's back up to 16-18° advanced. Didn't notice any detonation or over heating (tho my electric fan did come on while I was leaning over it. 'Bout scared me to death).

Runs good so I left it but it's got me puzzled.

Any ideas why it likes the timing so far advanced?

"The Master Cylinder"

Enjoying life at the beach in SOCAL

[quote]The Master Cylinder (9/16/2013)

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This morning I was working on the ol' Y and decided to check the timing while there. Disconnected the vacuum line and put the light to it. Timing was @ ~20° advanced. Brought it down to 10° and it almost stalled. Didn't like it at all. Hmmm Checked the damper, it was spot on.

Then I connected my vacuum gauge and timed it using just the readings on the gauge. Runs/starts good. Rechecked with light and it's back up to 16-18° advanced. Didn't notice any detonation or over heating (tho my electric fan did come on while I was leaning over it. 'Bout scared me to death).

Runs good so I left it but it's got me puzzled.

Any ideas why it likes the timing so far advanced?[/quote

The first thing that comes to mind is the damper outer ring has shifted.The only way to check it is remove the rocker cover on passenger side and rotate engine until both valves are closed on #1 cylinder..Should put you very close to TDC.Check the postion on the damper.If its off you have found the problem.Many old timers used to set the timing with a vacuum gauge.If its not pinging or hard to start it should be fine.If it is,back the timing down until it doesn't.

  

Hi Mark. Yeah checked the damper with Piston TDC Stop similar to this one. The "0" is right on the money. Has me a little baffled.



By the way I'm probably one of those "old timers that used to set the timing with a vacuum gauge". We used to "Power Time" the engine also, haha

"The Master Cylinder"

Enjoying life at the beach in SOCAL

Whats the chances that someone has modified the dissy? How many inches of vacuum did you come back?



"Came too close to dying to stop living now!"

Background on the distributor; Cardone reman ~1 year ago, Mr. Gasket advance springs, Pertronix III w/Rev limiter set a 5500 rpm.

I advanced the distributor until 20 in/hg, then backed off 2 in. That's where it is now, timing ~16° BTDC at idle. Much lower than that and the engine starts to stumble a little.

"The Master Cylinder"

Enjoying life at the beach in SOCAL

Mmm somthins a little odd..? 20" is pretty good then 2" off = OK..But what is your max degrees now? With those springs you should be all in well before 2500RPM. Ahh think yourself lucky if all is running well .



"Came too close to dying to stop living now!"

It does seem a little odd. That's what has me puzzled. I don't know what the max advance is now, the damper reads only so far...

"The Master Cylinder"

Enjoying life at the beach in SOCAL

I would suggest you mark the damper with the full advance you want - 36º/38º and do just what you said earlier............"power time" the engine. Meaning rev the engine to see the maximum mechanical advance and lock it at the 36º/38º by observing the point where she stops gaining advance.

When you release the throttle it should back off according to the slots you used in setting up the mechanical advance - if it doesn't, you'll have to find out why...... Where was it set when you put the lighter springs in?

 
 Steve Metzger       Tucson, Arizona

Steve, thanks for the suggestion. I'll check it out as soon as I get some timing 'tape' to extend the reading on the damper so I know where it's at at full advance.

When I rev it now with the timing light it does show that it is advancing and returning to ~16° BTDC.

I think the timing was set at 10° when I installed the lighter springs, but that was a while ago (~ 1 year) and lately I have a hard remembering what I had for breakfast.

Do you have any suggestions what 'tape' to use on the damper?

Like I stated earlier it does seem to ping (that I can hear, damn old age) and doesn't over heat like it's out of time.

"The Master Cylinder"

Enjoying life at the beach in SOCAL

Haha, what I meant by "power time" is we would the trans in low, hold the brake and stand on the gas while advancing the timing until we heard it ping, then back off the timing a little. best to do outside. Only works on an auto.

"The Master Cylinder"

Enjoying life at the beach in SOCAL