I need some fresh timing tips. Tis 4 my V8 car.

Here is what I was told. [making the mark means I don't need a dial back.]

"Make a mark 1 3/4" advanced on the balancer. That will be 30 degrees. Then disconnect the vacuum advance and plug it. Then raise the rpm's to about 2500 and with the timing light set total timing @ 32. Take it for a ride. Then try 33. Then 34 and so on till you get all the power and no pinging or detonation. "

Problem is Anywhere near 30* and it diesels but has power. last setting I tried is probably 15-18* which seemed fine till about 1/4 throttle.

Course I dunno if he meant that for ported or full manifold vac for the advanced. Mine is on the lower right port in the front looking at the qjet.


Though it is better then before. It was dying hard off the line.

With everything hooked up before I touched anything timing was almost on TDC mark idlin....

 

if this is a computer controlled car you don't want your timing that high, since the computer will add timing as well.

 

Sorry about that, its a non computer car. Standard GM HEI qjet v8 system....

 

add some octane.

 

Its all stock, reg 89 should be fine?

 

If you want to time the motor using the total timing method, you have to rev the motor high enough to max out the mechanical advance. 2500 rpm is not enough unless you have installed very light advance springs in the distributor. On a stock unmodded distributor this is much higher than 2500rpm. More like 4500rpm.
Properly marking your balancer depends on its outside diameter. i usually mark it for 36deg. which is 10% of its outer circumfrence.(360deg) Wrap a piece of masking tape around the balancer noting where the two ends meet. Remove it and lay it out flat and measure the length. then make a mark 10% along that length. (36deg). reinstall the tape on the balancer and mark off 36deg.
Reset the timing while reving the motor high enough to max out the advance.. When you set the motor up like this you very well may need to run more octane than 87 to avoid run on and pinging, especially if the motor is older and uses a bit of oil. I run a slightly cooler than stock plug when running the engine timing maxed out like that. if R45ts is stock switch to R42T or Champion RV8c. for "performance driving". To avoid run on install a anti deiseling solenoid on the carb. Retaining your EGR sytem will allow this agressive timing without part throttle pinging as the exhaust gas slows the burn rate cooling the combustion chamber. You may now have to recalibrate your vacuum advance (amount and rate of advance at cruise) to account of the new more agressive mechanical advance.
It all has to work together.
Emission equipment is actually your friend overall on a stock or near stock motor. If you remove it you have to retune the ignition timing.

 

Well anyone got any fresh tips on how they would do it???

Im just tired of it laying down off the line but I can't have it sounding like the valves are gonna jump out of the motor when it diesels like that.

 

do you have a vacuum gauge?
I'd make sure you're running ported vacuum. Stock-ish motor will run fine on 10* timing at idle. Get some weaker springs, and throw them on. Get your full curve at 2800RPM or so.
crane 996001 is good for that.
F-birds advice is good there. I don't think you'll need an anti dieseling solenoid though.

Any specific questions on how to accomplish some of those things?

oh, you can also get an MSD timing tape set, $4. If you have an 8" balancer, use that one, if 6 3/4" use that piece of tape, etc. That's quite accurate. You can set up your timing before the tape falls off, and you're done.

If you want some specific tips on YOUR motor, you can tell us what it is eh?

 

Aww man rereading fbird stuff clicked off a brain fart. That is my problem, the stupid EGR system was broke/ disabled / blocked off years ago. It actually already has that anti run on sol.

I need to get the carb redone or get a used non egr qjet?

 

N yea I got a vac gauge, Last year I had similar problems power timing it by ear and with vacuum. It will shred the tires off the line and about break my neck but past 1/4 throttle it diesels hard. Or it bogs off the line but quickly takes off as I can open up all 4 with no noise.


Why I got a cheap $12 timing light to see if I could find that middle spot but it just wont reveal its self.

 

The q-jet will have nothing to do with EGR, won't know if you have it or don't. I don't.

Diesel means after you shut it off, it keeps running for a few seconds. A car can't diesel while you're driving. What is it doing?

how do you mean it sounds like the valves are going to fly out of the engine when it "diesels"?

What are the motor specs here?

 

Yea there are two, diesel and dieseling.
yea dieseling is when ya shut it off, run on stuff.
[had an electric fan do that before, was wired wrong and the run down of the fan provided juice to the system.]

Diesel means when your on the gas your valved clatter like a diesel.
Which isn't the valve persay..........

Guess you could call it ping but its sound more like a diesel top end rattle.

 

ok, yea, never heard of that before. Did you make that up?

The rest of us call that detonation. You are getting wayyyy too much timing. Grab that timing tape at your local speed shop, and check your base, WOT timing, and vacuum advance timing.
That crane kit I listed is a good piece, $30 very well spent. Gives you gobs of adjustability.
Make sure you reset your idle mixture screws with the vacuum gauge, after resetting timing and whatnot.

 

I was hoping to find a way around spending loot

I was gonna get a new dizzy next year and go with the smaller trigger type and dump the monster in cap HEI.
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I dunno who came up with that up but its what it sounds like so....... 2+2=
In any case its not cool.

Had similar problem several years ago when I tried to use an open element filter. At WOT it would diesel. Gotta keep the stock filter housing but I do feed it with fresh air.

 

Well, if you have a basically stock motor, you don't need that crane kit that much.
Just get that MSD tape, it's a whole lot easier then marking tape and putting it on the balancer. Then you can use a cheesy non dialback timing light. 10* base should get it running well with no side effects. To maximize power and fuel economy, then that crane kit will help ya out.