1973 Plymouth Duster repair and rebuild
So more info on the car.
As discussed in the harmonic balancer thread (link found in first post), after getting it started I jumped into dealing with timing. I found mass amounts of slack in the cam/crank timing setup which warranted a replacement. As such, I ended up going with JP Performance Double Roller timing chain set. The only reason, I wanted it. And there is a possibility it may come in useful in the future. I have it locked in at factory for the time being. There's a possibility this engine has been rebuilt and may have a RV cam. After getting it running, I will spend some time and investigate that with a degree wheel.
With the timing chain done, I got the car together and set initial timing and was thrown for a loop. With the harmonic balancer set to 8 degrees advanced, and the distributor locked in at #1, I expected to see the engine running at roughly 8 degrees. Or at close enough to dial it in.
What I found was the engine was at 60 degrees advanced.
After going over it with a fine tooth comb to make sure mechanically it was correct. Listening to the car which sounded great and good throttle response, I had to assume it was the timing light. Getting ready to buy a modern one to replace my old basic light with dial back, my neighbor loaned me his. And I got the same numbers. Now I believe the new distributor the car had may have been amazon cheap. So I bought a new distributor and installed the same way I have always done in the past, and got the same result.
In complete frustration and thinking its still a timing light issue as my neighbors was advertised as not multi-spark compatible, he came over and took a stab at it. We lifted the distributor, rotated the rotor back 1 tooth, dropped in and started. Dialed it in to 8 degrees and we are golden. Ran the engine up in high rpms and saw the mechanical advance work. Plugged the vacuum advance in, and saw it work again.
This morning, I tried starting it with no choke and 2 pumps of the throttle. And it started. I am really happy with the modified HEI ignition setup.
In all, happy.
So more info on the car.
As discussed in the harmonic balancer thread (link found in first post), after getting it started I jumped into dealing with timing. I found mass amounts of slack in the cam/crank timing setup which warranted a replacement. As such, I ended up going with JP Performance Double Roller timing chain set. The only reason, I wanted it. And there is a possibility it may come in useful in the future. I have it locked in at factory for the time being. There's a possibility this engine has been rebuilt and may have a RV cam. After getting it running, I will spend some time and investigate that with a degree wheel.
With the timing chain done, I got the car together and set initial timing and was thrown for a loop. With the harmonic balancer set to 8 degrees advanced, and the distributor locked in at #1, I expected to see the engine running at roughly 8 degrees. Or at close enough to dial it in.
What I found was the engine was at 60 degrees advanced.
After going over it with a fine tooth comb to make sure mechanically it was correct. Listening to the car which sounded great and good throttle response, I had to assume it was the timing light. Getting ready to buy a modern one to replace my old basic light with dial back, my neighbor loaned me his. And I got the same numbers. Now I believe the new distributor the car had may have been amazon cheap. So I bought a new distributor and installed the same way I have always done in the past, and got the same result.
In complete frustration and thinking its still a timing light issue as my neighbors was advertised as not multi-spark compatible, he came over and took a stab at it. We lifted the distributor, rotated the rotor back 1 tooth, dropped in and started. Dialed it in to 8 degrees and we are golden. Ran the engine up in high rpms and saw the mechanical advance work. Plugged the vacuum advance in, and saw it work again.
This morning, I tried starting it with no choke and 2 pumps of the throttle. And it started. I am really happy with the modified HEI ignition setup.
In all, happy.