10-11-2022, 03:44 PM
Hi John
I think David has hit the nail on the head, the timing is/was grossly out
Just to put things another way, when the flywheel 1/4 mark is at the top, it means that either Cylinder No 1 is firing OR Cylinder No 4. You can't tell which is which without some extra information.
One way is to look at the valves, where the firing cylinder will have both valves closed (springs uncompressed).
If it's too much of a faff to take off the valve chest cover, an alternative method is to take out the spark plugs and put your finger over the plug hole of No 1. You should feel the compression as TDC is approached. Unless you are a contortionist you will need an assistant (glamorous or otherwise) to turn the starting handle.
Although the plug lead MUST always be in the order 1,3,4,2 clockwise, you may find their angles don't correspond to the "book" positions because the distributor gear has been engaged at a random/incorrect angle. This doesn't affect engine performance so you can just leave them be, but if you prefer things to be "right" you will have to lift out the distributor, reposition the gear (you have 15 positions to choose from, i.e. steps of 24 degrees) and test again.
Good Luck
I think David has hit the nail on the head, the timing is/was grossly out
Just to put things another way, when the flywheel 1/4 mark is at the top, it means that either Cylinder No 1 is firing OR Cylinder No 4. You can't tell which is which without some extra information.
One way is to look at the valves, where the firing cylinder will have both valves closed (springs uncompressed).
If it's too much of a faff to take off the valve chest cover, an alternative method is to take out the spark plugs and put your finger over the plug hole of No 1. You should feel the compression as TDC is approached. Unless you are a contortionist you will need an assistant (glamorous or otherwise) to turn the starting handle.
Although the plug lead MUST always be in the order 1,3,4,2 clockwise, you may find their angles don't correspond to the "book" positions because the distributor gear has been engaged at a random/incorrect angle. This doesn't affect engine performance so you can just leave them be, but if you prefer things to be "right" you will have to lift out the distributor, reposition the gear (you have 15 positions to choose from, i.e. steps of 24 degrees) and test again.
Good Luck