OK, Creig- Here we go...
Easiest way I found to do it-
First, make an arbitrary mark on the timing chain cover, then turn the crank
to No1 firing TDC by hand. Mark the crank pulley at the point corresponding
to your initial mark. You now have a TDC indicator. Leave the crank where it
is, and go to your distributor.Remove the cap. You should have the one with
the adjustable vacuum advance unit on it. Turn it all the way in. (fully
retarded- look at the inside when going to full retard- these verniers have
a few extra turns past full retard, so you can throw yourself off. Retard it
till the advance stops moving. Then you're at full retard) Look at the
position of the rotor. Compare it with the location of the No. 1 lead. If
necessary, loosen the distributor clamp screw, and rotate the distributor
until it lines up (firing at TDC) so the points are just opening. Turn the
vernier knob on the distributor(you set it to full retard already) 1 click
advance for each degree on the crank. Spitfire 4 should be 13 deg. before
top dead center(BTDC), Spitfire Mk2 should be 17 deg. BTDC, and Spitfire Mk
3 (non emissions controlled) should be 6 deg. BTDC. Once you get it in the
ball park, adjust a little either way till it runs best. Also, .
There may be a problem associated with this method- Sometimes when an engine
has been apart, the dizzy drive gear is incorrectly installed, and the
distributor will be out of proper alignment, not allowing it to swing
properly, due to the vacum advance adjuster hitting the block. Proper
position for it is roughly a 45 degree angle to the engine, roughly about
the 4 o'clock position. The only way to correct it is to remove the
distributor, and remove the drive gear, and turn it the amount required to
get it properly arrayed. You can always move wire, but that can foul you up
later. Number one wire should be at 9 o'clock.
Oh, BTW- That TDC mark you made may be augmented with a simple mark to
indicate the firing position BTDC by using a protractor laid on top of the
crank pulley, and set the 0 line on the TDC line, and mark it at the proper
spot. Just be sure to remember which way the crank spins, which way is
advance, and that you need to measure from the center of the pulley . Then
you can use a timing light to set it up. But I only recommend this if you
have a different distributor than original in there.
Page 1-138 in Group 1 of the Factory manual, for those interested. Another
great reason for Factory Vs Other Manual makers..
Have fun,
Scott
> List Members,
>
> I have a 63 Spitfire that I am trying to figure out how to set the timing
> on. First, I can't find any timing marks. I see one small hole in the
fly
> wheel. Is this it? There are no other scale marks on the fly wheel and
> only one pointer hanging off the timing chain cover. Am I missing
something
> here? My Haynes manual says the timing should be 170 BTDC. But they
don't
> say what to do if I can't find any scale marks. Any help would be
> appreciated.
/// triumphs@autox.team.net mailing list
/// To unsubscribe send a plain text message to majordomo@autox.team.net
/// with nothing in it but
///
/// unsubscribe triumphs
///
|