Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

**Bob R.** · February 26, 2021, 08:00 PM

Re: Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

When I installed the fuel line on my 63 I installed all of the parts (pipe from pump to filter, filter, and pipe to carburetor, bracket holding filter in place) very loose. Align the parts and slowly work your way around tightening all of the parts. There has been some comments that the reproduction pipe from pump to filter may be too long which would cause a problem.

**Tom D.** · February 26, 2021, 08:22 PM

Re: Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

My rotor does not point to that area when my engine is at TDC for cylinder number 1. I have a 1960 283 V-8.

Search on ebay for a SUN Tune Up Sheet for your engine. This one is a 1968 Chevelle 327, but gives you an idea of what is typically on the front side of one of these sheets. The back side has about the same amount of "tune up information". (If you have money and space in your garage, there are Sun Distributor machines to buy also.) Special "photo credit" to the ebay seller who wants about 20 US for this single sheet of card stock.

This sheet does not give you the orientation of the distributor on your engine, but in your photo, I would expect the rotor to point to wire number 1 when your piston for number 1 cylinder is at top dead center (TDC).
1968 Chevelle Tune Up sheet.jpg

**Bill B.** · February 26, 2021, 09:00 PM

Re: Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

Tom...With the distributor cap installed the rotor is pointing to #1 plug wire. I forgot I downloaded a copy of Lars Grimsrud distributor installation paper and my distributor rotor is pointing just as the one in his pics. My #1 wire position is between the point adj. window and the vacuum advance. I think I'm correct but I do have a lingering doubt and since the engine rebuild is brand new I want the car to start immediately. I don't want to screw this up.

**Bill B.** · February 26, 2021, 09:18 PM

Re: Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

Originally posted by Bob Rosenblatt (38164)

When I installed the fuel line on my 63 I installed all of the parts (pipe from pump to filter, filter, and pipe to carburetor, bracket holding filter in place) very loose. Align the parts and slowly work your way around tightening all of the parts. There has been some comments that the reproduction pipe from pump to filter may be too long which would cause a problem.

Bob...Do you have a phenolic spacer on your 63? I'm thinking the spacer I just installed is causing my problems, however, I'll try your suggestion. Thanks

**Duke W.** · February 27, 2021, 10:50 AM

Re: Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

Originally posted by Bill Bonnichsen (32446)

65,327/300

Just got my rebuilt engine back and am about ready to install. I have 2 questions.

1. Distributor is installed and I checked that dimple is towards rotor. Rotor is pointing towards approximately #4 when distributor is in block. When cap is installed installed #1 wire lines up perfectly so I would like confirmation that this is correct. Engine is set on compression stroke and about 8 degrees advance. I also used a meter and on the points and they just started to open so the distributor is locked down in that position.

2. The car never had the micarta spacer installed and I put one when reinstalling the carb. It is .400 thickness. Fuel filter is sitting at a fairly severe angle towards the front of engine and nothing I do can get the filter level. All fuel lines from pump to carb are correct. I'm about ready to remove the spacer and just go like it was before rebuild. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks

Bill B.

Your description of how you installed and indexed the distributor sounds correct. The #1 wire should be indexed in the cap tower immediately to the right (pass. side) of the window as illustrated in fig. 52 page 6Y-28 of your 1963 Corvette Shop Manual. The illustration for the distributor installation for a 1968 Chevelle in post #3. DOES NOT apply to Corvette distributor installations.

Indexing the distributor housing as you did with an ohmmeter with #1 piston at 8 BTC (that I assume is the OE recommended initial timing) is exactly the correct way to do this, which few understand. Both the rotor tip and #1 cap tower should be pointing approximately 20 degrees to the right of centerline, and the cap window should be very close to perpendicular to engine centerline.

The procedure you used is called "static timing the engine" that few seem to understand unless they owned a twin-cylinder Honda motorcycle back in the sixties or seventies.

If you prime the carb bowls and go through the normal cold start procedure the engine should fire right up and the initial timing should be very close to 8.

I'm not sure of the issue with the fuel line/filter installation, but your AIM should show from bottom to top a gasket with a heat slot, phenolic insulator with heat slot, thin steel heat shield, and carb. Off hand I don't know the insulator thickness is, but 0.4" sound a bit high. Perhaps someone with a known OE insulator can measure the thickness and report. Also, are you absolutely, positively sure that you have the right filter to carb fuel pipe?. The '63-65 L-75 pipe is different than the '63 L-76 due to the different height of the carbs relative to the filter outlet.

In the last two weeks I helped a '65 L-79 and '66 L-72 owner get their distributor installations dialed in so the engines would run properly. The L-79 owner had spent a few weeks and a few hundred dollars at a couple of shops, and it still didn't run right. The L-72 owner had spent three weeks on his own trying, including seeking internet advice, which was ALL WRONG, to get it right, but to no avail. I gave my phone number to the L-79 owner on the Corvette Forum and we got things squared away over a few phone calls. The L-72 owner called me as he had my phone number from a decade ago or so when I consulted with him on another issue.

The usual suspects turned out to be the problem, dimple and wire indexing and one way out of spec VAC. If there's one thing in life that you really need to do BY THE BOOK, it's installation of a Corvette distributor, and I'm sure there are still many out there that are wrong, which likely means operational problems.

If you have any additional questions or concerns call me on the phone. Endless discussion board and email threads don't cut it when you're trying walk someone through proper distributor installation. It's the equivalent of trying to do it over a nineteenth century telegraph with the improvement of being able to type actual letter instead of dots and dashes.

Duke

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**Bill B.** · February 27, 2021, 10:58 AM

Re: Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

Thank you, Duke. This is exactly what I wanted to hear. I feel like the distributor is in correctly.

Bill B.

**Bob R.** · February 27, 2021, 04:20 PM

Re: Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

The 63 300 hp does has a phenolic spacer

Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

Timing Confirmation and Fuel Filter Issue

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