Need help with TIMING.

I am trying to figure out where to set the timing on my dauntless 225. I bought a timing gun and I have it set right where the red mark is on the pic below. It seams to have a better start but it is running in high idle it seems like and it smells a lot diffrent than when I had it at about 5 degrees on the ruler marks(not sure what you call that little timing ruler). Would it hurt if I run it like that or where should I be set at? Thanks in advance.

 

5 degree before is what my Chilton manual says...point dwell at 30 & point gap at .016

 

If it runs well there, leave it. Unless you use a piston stop to determine the timing mark and indicator are matched and accurate you are guessing anyway. Set the dwell (I personally do not like setting by gap) and adjust the idle speed. If you change the timing, reset the idle. Now if you have an other than stock distributor, the discussion gets more involved.

 

Felipe,
Looking at your picture, you are setting the timing about 5° retarded, that is, after TDC. These engines turn clockwise from the front perspective, so the numbers on the timing indicator above the 0° are all advance numbers, before TDC.

Try it set to 0°, drive it and listen for ignition pinging on acceleration. If not, set it to 5° BTDC and listen for pinging then. If you reach a point where it pings noticably on acceleration, back it down a couple degrees until the ping goes away and run it there.

I think the reason JAlves said what he did about the accuracy of the timing mark is because an old harmonic balancer can sometimes slip the weight after the rubber isolator ring deteriorates. When this happens the timing indicator line will be off.

With your Pertronix ignition module you can ignore the advice about the gap and dwell. Just reset the idle after you are satified with the timing.

Don

 

I had the timing set at 5° BTDC before and I would get a lot of back fire, it sounded like the engine wanted to die and would take a bit to start even after spark plug change and the pretronix. Once I set it to where it is at I got a better start, not much backfire but it sounds like it idles really high.

I will defiantly try to do it your way and see what happens.

 

did you disconnect your vacuum line to the disturber

 

Not sure wich is the vacuum line. Is this the vacuum line?

 

Yes that is the vacuum line to remove. This disables vacuum advance so you can set static timing. If you have been trying to set the timing with this still connected, no wonder you have problems. Try this, disconnect the vacuum line then set it to 5° BTDC. See how it runs. If you still get the backfiring or pinging, retard it a couple degrees at a time until you get the setting that gives the best power without pinging or hard starting, then run it there.

Don

 

yep

 

Don't forget to plug the vacuum hose after you remove it from the distributer.

 

Good call, that little vacuum leak will affect how the engine runs.
Felipe, disconnecting the vacuum line is only a temporary thing, just as long as you have the timing light on it. Notice when you put the vacuum line back on how much the timing strobe will move.

Don

 

I use a golf tee, but a screw will work also.

 

golf tees work the best. as a matter of fact there are still some on mine almost 10 years later. not on the dist though.

 

also too. not sure about the 225 but the 231 can use the front cover from a buick 350 and the marks are different as i found out.