FItech timing control disaster

512Stroker said
That fancy adjustable rotor is mostly likely contributing to your timing issue.
Think of how a 4 cycle engine functions.
For it to bang that hard out the exhaust it would have to be firing after or near TDC.
16-16 = 0* TDC
If you to go in the other direction and backfired out the intake it would need to be BTDC.
16+16 = 32 * BTDC

Lol. The instructions call for it, so you can get the phasing correct.

I want to understand what I'm doing wrong before I start guessing and moving things. I do appreciate the responses.

67Dart273 said
Here try reading this:

Ask Away! with Jeff Smith: Rotor Phasing and How it Relates to Aftermarket EFI Systems - OnAllCylinders

I know little (yet) about timing control. When I ran my Dart I did not use it. At the time, I simply did not want to take the time.

You may not have the rotor/ trigger "where you think." Remember, EFI which controls timing DOES NOT CONTROL timing ADVANCE. Read that gain.

It actually controls timing RETARD. That is, electronics cannot advance anything. Electronics can only DELAY or RETARD timing. This means THE TRIGGER POINT must be at or more than maximum timing, AKA 40-50 degrees BTC so that the system can electronically delay the spark "back" to the slow speed timing of (whatever) 15BTC or so, and then at higher RPM REDUCE the delay so that it is not retarded so much, that is, "advanced" closer to the trigger point.

With a locked rotor distributor, this places the rotor contact all out of whack, so that now it must be positioned/ repositioned so that it lines up with the cap, again because the electronics is pulling the spark "retarded" with no mechanical movement in the dist. mechanism

Thank you Del. It does make sense and I THOUGHT I had it setup properly. Here are the instructions I am following. Does it sound correct to you?

If I set my motor at 16* BTDC and then rotate the adjustable rotor CLOCKWISE another 16* (which is actually 32* due to the cam turning twice the crank) with the adjustable rotor that puts me at 16* + 32* = 48* of advance. So then the FiTech handheld unit can limit or retard my advance back to 16*. I get all that. Now I am wondering if I was on the exhaust stroke this whole time, hence the huge back fire?

Here is how I determined #1 on the compression stroke:

1. Used piston stop in #1 cylinder to determine TDC - to verify balancer mark.
2. took #1 plug out and connected my compression gauge
2. rotated motor by hand at the crank
3. Saw compression on gauge
4. Rotated motor until I saw 16* on balancer line up with "0" on the timing cover
5. Removed valve cover to verify both valves were closed - did this by spinning the pushrods
6. Stabbed in my distributor - with rotor pointing at #1 tower on the distributor
7. Rotated the adjustable rotor 16* CLOCKWISE
8. Lined up the reluctor wheel with the magnetic pickup
9. Put the cap on and the verified firing order

What am I missing?