I just bought a DUI to replace the points dist on my Toronado engine in the Motorhome. I marked where the rotor Was pointing when I pulled the distributor and tried to put the dui in the same spot. After about 20 tries I settled with it pointing just so slightly to the left of where my mark was. It was the closest I could get. I tried to orient the vac diaphragm in about the same place. The wires are numbered so theres no confusion on what cylinder they come from and I have the correct firing order 1 8 4 3 6 5 7 2. When I crank it it back fires through the carb no matter which direction I turn the distributor advanced or retarded. I cannot get an eye on the timing marks because of how the Motorhome covers the pulley and balancer. What could I have done wrong and how do I go about fixing this? I get great spark by the way. Thanks for any help.

 

Damn I forgot the pics. 20150929_123700%201_zpse9v8o3yh.jpg20150929_123714_zpsw93jxupl.jpg

 

Bring cylinder #1 back up on TDC on the compression stroke. Pull the dist then set it in where it should be(where you originally marked it). The rotor should be pointing to #1. If it wont go back down into the block all the way its because the oil pump drive is not aligned. In this case. Hold the distributor base where you want it and use a remote start switch or have some one turn the key for a full revolution or two while you hold downward pressure on the dist. It should then seat for you. Adjust the timing (10-12* BTDC) and tighten down the hold down clamp. Did you run a keyed unresisted 12 volt supply wire to this new HEI? Dont use the wire that came off the points dist. It will only supply 8-9 volts when you release the key to the dist. HEI needs a full 12+ to run properly. Carry an extra distributor control module and heat sink grease that you must apply to the under side of said new module.
The remote start switch will also assist you in getting it to TDC as you said its difficult to see. Stick your finger into the #1 hole and tap the switch until it spits out your finger. Keep tapping until you feel vacuum. Then repeat until your confident your as close to TDC as possible as you wont feel any more compression nor a vacuum. Thats close to TDC. This will get you in the ball park. You may need a few attempts. You really need to see the 0 mark on the damper though to get it 100% with confidence.

 

didnt this 455 die while driving ?

has it run since ?

has the timing chain slipped ?

 

are you sure your dist is wired to the 18436572 firing order...its looks off from the pic

 

I marked it at a convenient spot where I could see easily to put the new one in. I didn't set it to #1 tdc before I removed the dist. When you say it should be pointing at #1 what do you mean? Not literally at the #1 cylinder right? I don't have a problem finding the compression stroke but I do have a big problem seeing the timing bracket. Im wondering if while cranking with a wrench I can watch the mark go by me from underneath and if its on the compression stroke be able to guess when its going to get to the 0 mark. Should I remove the dist and get it to where I think tdc is then put it back in and set my wires accordingly?

 

Ya it ran with the points dist in it. I just started this today.


Yep I checked that about 10 times. that closeup pic is upside down for some reason.

 

The rotor should be pointing to the location on the cap where the #1 wire is plugged into. The reason that you are bringing up the #1 cylinder is apparently your method failed and you need to start over. Don't worry about what you did. An Olds distributor turns CCW and should be wired that way. If you fill in the balancer line with chalk or a yellow crayon you'll see it better.

 

Ok so get it to tdc look at where the rotor is pointing and put the #1 wire on that spot. Am I right?

 

Yes and no, the distributor body also needs to be oriented so you can adjust timing with no interference with other parts of the car. So you may need to rotate the body of the distributor and then plug in the number one wire where the rotor is pointed to and then wire the firing order CCW from there.

 

correct, but it has to be on compression stroke, easiest way is pull #1 plug out, stick your finger in the hole and crank it over, watch where the rotor is pointing when air blows by your finger, thats where you start with #1 wire, and carry on COUNTERclockwise wiring the cap again. good luck

 

I put a vac and pressure gauge on my compression tester and cranked it by hand until it went from pressure to vac then backed it off a little and inched it forward till it went to 0 on the gauge. That should be tdc.

 

The rotor is pointing directly at the #1 cyl now.

 

Is the line on the balancer in front of the indicator on the block?

 

I cannot tell as I cant see the bracket. Im guessing its gotta be close because I watched the mark pass my face on the compression stroke and it disappeared around the corner towards the bracket. Big problem now is all my custom wires are in the wrong spots. Ill need to remark them if it fires.

 

ok, is it pointing where it was before? or a different spot?

 

No good. Its still spitting through the carb. That is the first time I set it to tdc.

 

Ok so I advanced it as far as it would go before the vac can ran into a bracket and it fired but rough. So it needs to be turned to the right more but I have no room.

 

So now Im thinking get it back to tdc, mark where the rotor is pointing, rotate the dist body to the left and put it back in. Does that sound right?

 

I had no issues installing my DUI. I hope this helps a little. I had my wife turn the key a little at a time with number 1 spark plug removed. I inserted a small screw driver down number 1 cylinder until I felt it come up to the top. I then pulled the cap off and sure anuff the rotor was facing number 1. I pulled the old distributor out and dropped the new DUI with the rotor facing the same way. I remember the rotor wanted to go back a little before it dropped into the right place.

 

I just set tdc again and got the same direction on the rotor. I think it was way too retarded on the base. Im going to pull it and try to move the base. Thanks for that bro.

 

If you think the rotor is facing #1 then you should be good to go by pulling it and turning the base until you feel you have enough room to get full timing without anything hitting and dropping it back down with the rotor still facing # 1

 

Well now I know how these things really work. I rotated the base, reset the rotor and bam. Ive never heard this thing run so smooth. I really appreciate all you guys help on this. One problem I have is all the precut numbered wires I got no longer work. Some are too short and others too long because of the orientation of the distributor. The other problem is I need to set it to 12 degrees and it's impossible to get a timing light in there much less see the whole timing bracket. any ideas on that? Thanks again for the help.

 

Good to hear you have it running ! These guys are awesome here for sure. I myself left my hold down a little loose, turned my distributor until I heard some pinging under load (foot on brake and gas) Then I backed it off just as the directions said in the DUI box. Other have mentioned to use a dial back light/timing lite. Mine seems good without the light.
Cheers
Eric

 

Can you use a mirror? Did you get a slip that told you how many degrees of mechanical advance your new distributor is setup for? I'm afraid your 12 degrees won't be enough with an Hei.

 

I would really like to do it with a light since it was setup from the company to run 12 degrees initial advance but I guess that's not going to happen. Ill have to learn how to adjust it on the fly.

 

IMHO, adjusting the engine by ear most likely will end badly over time. I would figure a way to be able to view your timing marks and do it correctly. So you have 24 degrees of mechanical?

 

That's what I done, Mashed the gas, heard a ping , stopped got out and backed it off a bit. Once the pinging went away I figured it was ok. Tightened it down and it runs great. maybe not perfect but not far off. I hope it works out for you as well.

 

Ya Im pretty sure its 24 degrees mechanical. I just cannot see how to get a light in there with the fan in the way and the front of the RV covering the whole top of the front of the engine. I noticed Airstream put a timing bracket on the bottom so you could time it from there but Revcon didn't do that. You can just barely see a corner of the bracket with a mirror and a flashlight. Not good.

 

Is there a bottom timing bracket made for the Toronado? That could help a lot.

 

It looks to me like your also using the wire from the points dist to feed the new one? Thats a no-no. Find a keyed 12vdc source at the fuse box and run a new 12 or 14 gauge stranded wire to the dist from the box. Use the shrink tube crimp on terminals or put shrink sleeveing over the regular terms. Corrosion will creep into these connections if not sealed from the elements. Apply a dab of die-electric grease to the terminals as well.
That square portion of the distributor cap where the power connections are should be at the ~8-9 o'clock position. In the picture it looks more like the 11 o'clock position. As noted, start from scratch. Find TDC on the compression stroke of #1 cylinder. The rotor needs to be on # one tower and the rotor should point in the general direction of #1 cylinder. Once you get a full 12 volts supplied to the dist and it fires then set the timing as noted. Your #1 plug wire is not where it should be. Unless Im not looking at the pic correctly. Reduce the size of the pdf once its open. Note the groove in the damper.

 

With HEI, I have seen the factory literature suggest placing the #1 wire towards the driver's seat, rather than towards the #1 cylinder as used pre-HEI. This makes for somehow a better layout of the wire routing.

 

Ill try that. Thanks.

 

Ya that didn't work. The wires are custom cut and numbered. I don't know what template they use when they cut the wires but it's not right.

 

Go in order and disregard the numbers at this point, lay them all out and use the one that seems to work with each spark plug.