Thread: Timing issues??

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I recently insalled a rebuilt 283 in my chevy. ive had a horrible oil leak and have been watching pressure to keep from damaging the motor. recently though the car has started "missing" on acceleration and backfiring through the carb...now i cannot even start the car as it cranks three times and fires...cranks three times and fires...could i have just jumped timing and if i cant start the car if the chain jumped will i see it at TDC? HELP!!!

thanks,

rob

Do you have points?

yes i have points. ive got my motor as close to TDC as i can get it with crude tools. The timing mark on my balancer shows that im about 13degrees advanced. if i get the mark to about that 4-6 degrees advance the rotor is just past its rotation pointing towards the #1 cylinder. does this mean i could be a tooth off? should i pull the distributor and line it up again??

check your gap on the points and replace condenser-could be bad

the distributor is brand new and the points seemed to be fine...the car fires but just wont start...everything is new on it.

Just some info for ya,...not sure if its relevant or if you already know this.
Rotor position is variable,you can have no#1 at any position you want,standard is pointing to the front driverside .The one tooth off thing comes from trying to get no#1 to that position.No#1 can be anywhere on the cap as long as you follow the proper firing order around the cap.One tooth off becomes a problem when you do not have room to move the distributor left or right far enuff to get the timing where you need it.If you have enuff room to rotate the distributor 360 degrees it does not matter where you drop it in at or where the rotor is ,you simply rotate the distributor untill the rotaor is lined up with any one of the plugs ,use that one as no#1 and go around the cap with the proper firing order.

I hope this helps, the one tooth off is a myth,any possible position you can drop the distrubutor in at is the right spot ,having room to move it back and forth is the only concern.It does not matter which post is no#1,as long as you go from there around the distributor in the correct order.
I would try to keep it as close to standard as possible as to not confuse anyone who buys it or works on it.But its really irrelevant to the engine as far as no#1 position on the cap.If you do not have the play to adjust it left or right far enuff,just simply pull the distributor out and move it a tooth or 2 the way you need it.
The only thing the engine cares about is that the rotor is pointing at no#1 plug on cap{any position} and that when its pointing at no#1 cap that no#1 cylinder is at approxamatly 10 degrees before top dead center.I try to set the distributor in at a position that allows me plenty of left to right movement for adjustment with the settings I mentioned.
Please correct me if I am wrong anyone,I think I have pretty good reading comprhension and have tried to pay attention to what has been posted in the past so I can help others.This is how I did my engine and it worked great ,it fired right up.

You might want to rerun your valves and double check there, also tell us more about the "horrible oil leak"

That "cranks three times and fires" bit sounds like you have the dist. wires on the cap the wrong way around, it's only firing on two that are directly opposite on the cap. Did you disturb the wires while fixing the leak?

guess what guys i wasnt getting fuel!!!! timing was fine and the oil leak is result of those horrible rubber intake gaskets...hopefully ill have it running tomarrow. just goes to show you dont get to focused on one thing or youll overlook the simple things. thanks for everything guys ill be back here more often and post some pics of my project! thanks again

rob

im completely lost guys. now i have no spark. all new points, condensor, cap, rotor, distributor, coil and my pockets are empty. the only thing left for me to replace is the ignition switch. i had spark before and now its completely gone. i have no idea what to do anymore.

frustrated...

Is the battery getting weak from all the cranking? Is the coil getting power from the switch, the points power from the coil, and is the condenser wire mounted in such a way as to not get pinched or contact the breaker points as they open? Are the points opening at the right time and is the dwell timing reasonable? Sounds like you have some intimate time with the test light ahead of you

Originally Posted by threearmsinjune

Is the battery getting weak from all the cranking? Is the coil getting power from the switch, the points power from the coil, and is the condenser wire mounted in such a way as to not get pinched or contact the breaker points as they open? Are the points opening at the right time and is the dwell timing reasonable? Sounds like you have some intimate time with the test light ahead of you

Are the plugs fouled by chance?

all the plugs were fouled out now i have all new plugs in...

remember to relax........nothing good happens in a hurry. Maybe quickly but never in a hurry.

another question guys...i run the stock coil with that "external resistor" it looks like a condensor but it goes onto the coil. im sure most of you old guys know what im talking about(no offense=) could that make for problems??