just want to verify - By design - When the cam timing gear mark is at 6 o'clock and the crank timing gear mark is at the 12 o'clock, then by design the #1 cylinder would be at TDC. thanks

 

Depending on which stroke, it will either fire #1 or #6.

 

Look at the cam lobes or
watch the valves or
thumb over spark plug hole feel for compression

 

The cam gear dot at 6 o'clock and the crank gear dot at 12 o'clock is cylinder number 1 at TDC on the compression stroke. Both cam lobes will be on the flat side of the cam and the rocker arms on cylinder number 1 will be closed.

When installing the balancer it should line up at 0 degrees if you have not rotated the engine and kept the dots aligned. If it is not zero, the outer ring of the balancer may have slipped/rotated on the inner ring which will cause an inaccurate base ignition timing setting.

Hope this helps.

 

12 o'clock 12o'clock is #1 tdc on an Olds.
6 & 12 is a Chevy.

 

+1.

Everyone gets this wrong, then wonders why their car won't start.

- Eric

 

when u take the cover off go dot to dot if that's all ur changing and put it back that way ur done

 

"12 o'clock 12o'clock is #1 tdc on an Olds.
6 & 12 is a Chevy. "

For an olds...if the cam and crank marks are at 12 O'clock and 12 o'clock is #1 at tdc for compression?

if you set the the marks to 6 o'clock for the cam, 12 o'clock for the crank, then should the rotor be pointing to the #6 cylinder?

thanks

 

Yes and Yes, the rotor should be pointing to the #6 terminal post of the distributor..

- Eric

 

thanks Eric -

 

The firing order is the same whether a Chevy or an Olds. Just the rotation of the distributor is different.

 

you can put the cam dot at 6 and the crank dot at 12 JUST point your dist. to #6

 

However, that has nothing to do with where the marks are on the gears.

 

I apologize for giving incorrect information and say thank you to those who took the time to provide the correction. This will teach me not to rely on memory for a critical application.

P.S. Smitty and Eric not everyone makes this mistake, you knew the answer