Timing Curve on 360 in an RV

78DodgeRV said

Anyone know a clever way to confirm I’m at 12 degrees BTDC on the compression stroke of cylinder #1 without taking the valve cover off?

Last time I hand cranked the engine with a finger over the spark plug hole until I felt pressure, dialed it to 12/before on the markings on my balancer, and then used a screw driver to check it was near the top.

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All a screwdriver does is waste time. It's not accurate enough to confirm timing marks, and it does not determine the stroke. If you think the timing mark is wrong use a piston stop and confirm the mark is correct. To find compression stroke, just stick your finger in no1 plug hole and bump engine around. Or if this is one of those with rear timing marks (bellhousing) might be easier to use no6. Bump until you feel compression and stop. The marks should be "on the way up". Now bump or wrench the engine around until the marks are aligned on 12BTC. Then set up the dist. so the reluctor is centered on the pickup coil.