So can you put a LT1 dist. in 180 deg out? I'm guessing I did, it will run if I hold the gas half way down. It sounds like it's 180 out!

from my personal experience when i had mine 180 out my car wouldnt even start. got fuel and spark but wouldnt fire. i tested to see when i was getting spark and when i was getting fuel and it turned out i was getting spark before fuel.

My question was CAN YOU put the dist. in 180 out.

I pulled it back apart but can't see how it can go in
any way but right. The rotor is keyed and will only go
on one way. The dist. housing is marked 1 and 6 but
only lines up one way to go onto the pin on the cam.

I'm open for some insight.

well sorry, i didnt answer your "CAN YOU" question, i was giving my personal experience of when mine was so it must mean you can?

but i was on cylinder one tdc exhaust instead of compression, and thats what caused mine. maybe that doesnt explain it, but i tore mine all down and re did it on cylinder one tdc compression and it started up...

I have a 96 LT distributor which is keyed. The 94-95 had splines that
could be forced on. I just wanted a definate yes or no before I put it
back together. Sorry if I seemed to POP-OFF at you that wasn't my
intenshion.

95 didn't have splines, it was pinned also. No, you can't get it 180* out without forcing it onto the incorrect slot in the opti. The pin goes into the largest of the three slots, I've had mine on and off several times and it seemed no matter where I put it, as long as it was in the largest slot it was always correct. I even took a used opti that had been off an engine for months spun it around a couple of times and installed it with the pin in the right slot and it fired right up.

That's what I thought. I just wanted conformation.
Well I guess I'll put it back together.
I may have got the lifters to tight that would be the
only other thing I can think of.

Opti has an alignment pin, much like a camshaft has for the timing gear. It won't go on all the way without being lined up properly.