hello guys its me again man this olds is kicking my behind but here we go i got a 455 with a mild cam torker intacke no timing tab stock dizzy with hei the engine only likes to run in one spot with vacume advance up against the intake if you move it anywhere it wont put out spark to plugs im confused an stumped so im reaching out to the olds gods for some advice

 

how about a bad shaft check for real movement on the distributor.

 

I would start by getting a timing tab, you want your vaccum advance hooked up to the port on the carburetor that doesnt have vaccum at idle. hook it up that way, break the hold down bolt loose and turn the distributor while someone cranks it until it starts, once it fires up try and get it to like 8-10 degrees initial timing, i run mine at 10, and if it wont run, you have other problems lol, id start there though

 

First I'd start by positioning the distributer so you can get some adjustment out of it. Get it to top dead center and pull the distributor and rewire #1 so as the vacuum canister is not interfering with the manifold.

Then as explained abve you really need a timing tab. Since you have it at #1 and tdc, scribe a mark and then time it about 1 to 1 1/4 inches behind that. That will put in the ball park. You can time it by ear and keep advancing it untill it pings, but that can be dangerous if your hard of hearing like me.

 

thanks for the quick replies im not to familiar with some of the lingo what is ping i got it to run an idle its alil ruff i need to move the vacume advance an try it again can i just buy a timing tab for it but it runs then shuts off an takes a while for it to start up again

 

Yes, you can buy an aftermarket timing tab and mount it. Align "0" at tdc. As far as it stalling and being hard to restart there are a number of reasons it does this. Not knowing what your tune settings are makes it harder. Is it running rich or lean, vacuum leaks, choke not working properly, idle to low, is there 12v to the distributor, we know the timing is off, etc...

 

Re-index your distributor so that the vacuum canister is at about 9-10 o'clock position. You should have enough movement to get up to 25 degrees initial before hitting the firewall.

 

This is actually pretty easy, and shouldn't be scary. The engine/distributor don't care where the #1 wire is, as long as the firing order is followed. Move #1 wire one position so you can get a bigger range of motion with didtributor and vacuum can, and then chase the other wires around. It's a good time to make sure you have the firing order right (iirc, 18436572, and clockwise).

Steve

 

My memory is a little suspect, but don't oldsmobile engine distributors go against the grain, eg. counterclockwise?

 

Correct: COUNTERclockwise.

- Eric

 

Thank you, Bunser and Eric, I was wrong and you are correct.
Steve

 

Whew...thanks, I've been wrong so much this week I was afraid to answer!

 

Spoon fed here are some quick basics to get you going. You should look into “super tuning” all 3 timing events and the carb settings once you are able to get it running respectably.
Start with the basics of ignition systems trouble shooting:
1. Pull # 1 spark plug.
2. Stick finger in hole.
3. With someone tapping the key or preferably a remote start button, tap the starter until it spits your finger out.
4. Now look for the timing groove in the balancer. Even without a timing tab the groove should be visible. Say about the 1 o’clock 1:30 position as viewed from the radiator. Move it by hand if needed. This will get you close to TDC.
5. Now look at the distributor rotor. It should be pointing towards #1 plug/cylinder. If not pull the dist and make it point to #1. You may need to tap the key to get the oil drive shaft to line up with the dist gear down in the block if it doesn’t want to sink fully into the hole where you want it. Then verify TDC again with above method.
6. Install cap snug up the dist hold-down so you can move it by hand and crank it up.
Without a timing tab it will be quite possible to be a tooth off in either direction. So this procedure may need to be performed a few times...Now get yourself a vacuum gauge. Hook it into manifold vacuum and set timing and A/F mixture to obtain the highest possible vacuum reading by adjusting the timing and the air/fuel mix screws on carb. Do one adjustment at a time in other words do the timing first. Then set A/F mixture. Now go back-n-forth to tweak each to get the highest vac reading possible This will yield optimal performance. Give the engine as much timing as it will handle without spark knock (google pre-ignition and pre-combustion). This is usually done with the engine under high load on a hot day. That’s why I leave the dist lose enough to twist while road testing. Let us know if this gets you up and running. Also verify that your vacuum and centrifugal advance mechanisms are in proper working order. Vac can doesn’t leak or bind, weights & springs aren’t rusted and move freely etc…