have a rebuilt stock lg4 in 1984 berlinetta. only difference on internals is lunati cam braketmaster II part #00016 duration at 0.050" 218. will not tolerate stock setting, (pops upon acceleration and sluggish acceleration). what should i set timing at?

 

You probably need a little prom work, but that ECM (if it has one...some LG4s don't) is quite limited so it would be a lot of expense for very little gain.

Your best bet, is to slowly increase the base timing. Start with 6* and play with it (both up and down) until you find something the engine likes the best and doesn't cause detonation to occur.

 

sorry, forgot to mention, holley carb and vaccuum advance distributer.

 

My answer remains the same. I was implying even IF you were computer controlled, to not bother with the prom and play with the timing as I suggested.

For your setup, then you must play with it as I am suggesting - there is no perfect number. However, you may have play with the advance of the distributor to ensure you don't give it too much timing if your base timing is still too low.

 

Give the engine what it wants. Set it to wherever the car runs the best.

I'd suggest, as a starter, that you put it at 36° advanced at 3500 RPM with the vac advance disonnected; then set the idle speed back to where it belongs (700 RPM or so); then check what it is at idle, and use that if you ever disturb it later. 36° "total" is a pretty good starting point for most any street SBC. If this is a "performance" distributor, the idle timing will probably come out to 12° or 15° or so; but it's anybody's guess, if you don't have the curve specs in front of you.

There's no "magic number" that anybody can give you for what your particular engine is going to want, coupled with the unknown of what the distributor you have happens to have its curve set up for. "What should my timing be" on a non-stock motor setup is newbie talk.