I saw this post and had some Q's for ya.

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=145535

I wanted to know how much ( in teeth ) your timing chain was off. I think that I may have the same problem, but I'm not positive. And also, if you remember, which direction was it off??? If anything mine is retarded 8 degrees like yours. If I just advance the timing 8 degrees and leave it, will it perform the same as if I were to re-index the cam???

When I installed the cam, I follwed the directions and lined up the marks when the motor was at TDC and then installed the timing chain. I spun it around a few times to make sure it lined up, but I may not have done it enough, it was late at night and I wanted to finish.

Let me know what you think. I was thinking it would only take me about 3 or 4 hours to yank the timing cover off and inspect it.

 

I guess the easiest way to tell if it is off is to just turn the distributor until it pings.

But...... Total timing for my setup should be about 36-38 degrees, how much more will make it ping, in degrees????

 

WHERE ARE YOU??????

 

Why don't you just email him?

 

I got a failure notification.

Also, you can't PM him.

 

I do have a job to go to during the day. It only looks like I'm here 24 hours a day.

My timing chain wasn't off any teeth. I use an aftermarket SFI balancer and an aftermarket timing pointer. Throw them onto the engine and set the timing. The problem was that the timing pointer wasn't where TDC was suppose to be.

To index the timing you need to have #1 piston directly at TDC. You'll need a piston stop and a degree wheel to find true TDC. Once you have the piston at true TDC look to see where the timing pointer is pointing at the timing marks. It should point right at zero. If it isn't then either bend the pointer or buy an aftermarket adjustable one.

Your E-mail failure was because my mail server rejects all mail with a @hotmail.com reply address plus many more. It stops all the spam. Next time use a real e-mail address and it should go through. (see reply in racing forum)

 

Advancing the timing until it pings then backing it off a couple of degrees isn't the best timing for the engine. The best timing is where it makes the most HP on a dyno or the best MPH on a dragstrip. If the engine starts to ping at 42* and you back it off to 40*, the engine could make even more HP at 36* or 38*. Each engine is different so the timing that one person sets their engine to may not be what your engine wants.

My BBC worked best at 40*

 

I get hyped up sometimes and think I really might have screwed the cam swap up when I hear things like that. I had the cam in when the car was still TBI'd and it ran good. I am probably just trippin' out.

So, I am using a stock timing cover with the timing marked welded on ( stock style .)
Are they pretty accurate???

I just found the article which I built my engine off of and they found the best timing to be 38 degrees total and 16 degrees base. Right now I have a totally stock HEI down to the coil with crappy springs and all, and I set the base timing to 12 degrees. That's 32 total.

GO FIGURE! I'm 6 degrees off as it is! And to think I thought it was all due to the stock TC.

Got a brand new Distributor with a Accel coil, and I installed an advance kit on it with new weights to get 22 degrees out of the distributor and I'm gonna set the base at 16 degrees.

I think I've got it under control.

Thanks.