Distributor Retards Itself

[LARRY70GS]

Do both of those come with the retainer clip and rod? The one on OPGI also looks like the one I got in the mail unless that picture is wrong.

Knowing OPGI, that may not be the correct picture. AFAIK, they do not come with that clip, and I do not know where to get the clip. You need some kind of cable stop. Maybe something like this,

https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/NOE7311134?cid=paidsearch_shopping_dcoe_google&gQT=1

Remember, you want the cable to reach FULL travel when the gas pedal is to the floor.

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Knowing OPGI, that may not be the correct picture. AFAIK, they do not come with that clip, and I do not know where to get the clip. You need some kind of cable stop. Maybe something like this,

https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/NOE7311134?cid=paidsearch_shopping_dcoe_google&gQT=1

Remember, you want the cable to reach FULL travel when the gas pedal is to the floor.

Ah alright, thank you so much! Hopefully I'll have that done sometime next week.

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Put on my kickdown cable that came in the mail and the little thing that's crimped on the end that goes inside the car and connects to the gas pedal was perfectly spaced. Cable reaches full travel when the gas goes to the floor! Though i have never been so angry putting a cable onto a linkage before, didn't help i was on cardboard which was on damp grass... worth it though

 

[LARRY70GS]

Put on my kickdown cable that came in the mail and the little thing that's crimped on the end that goes inside the car and connects to the gas pedal was perfectly spaced. Cable reaches full travel when the gas goes to the floor! Though i have never been so angry putting a cable onto a linkage before, didn't help i was on cardboard which was on damp grass... worth it though

Good, maybe that is the way they make them now. Yes, working on an old car can be challenging in a number of ways. Getting dirty, and the cuts and scrapes are all part of it unless you have access to a lift.

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Good, maybe that is the way they make them now. Yes, working on an old car can be challenging in a number of ways. Getting dirty, and the cuts and scrapes are all part of it unless you have access to a lift.

Wish I had enough money for a lift, would've made stuff like this and replacing the oil pan gasket a million times easier haha. I don't mind getting dirty or scraped, in fact I love working on this car! It may make me extremely angry every now and then, but it's all worth it in the end. On top of that I get bragging rights in saying that I have a cool car as a daily that I fix by myself 😎

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Put in a new distributor, coil, and plug wires on Tuesday (all pertronix besides the plug wires which are Taylor) and it fixed all my timing and self retarding issues! I can take my timing down super low before it starts to not like it when before anything below 14* would make the car sputter.

I went from 22* to 16* and it feels like it loves it, but could still be better. There is a slight issue though. If I go to almost or fully WOT from a stop the car will stall and I backfire? Not too sure, but i assume backfire (if that is the right term) because of what sounds like a pop then nothing. It'll start back up and drive just fine, but if I give it a bunch of throttle from a stop there's a pop then I have to crank it again.

Could that be a sign of timing being too advanced or something being weird? There are a couple of springs i could also put on if the weights are flying out too soon. Idk would love some other opinions is what I'm trying to say

 

[LARRY70GS]

That is a lean back fire through the carburetor. Not enough accelerator pump shot, or secondary problems. What carburetor do you have on there? Edelbrock square bore? What intake manifold?

 

[Jackhammer0312]

That is a lean back fire through the carburetor. Not enough accelerator pump shot, or secondary problems. What carburetor do you have on there? Edelbrock square bore? What intake manifold?

Edlebrock 1407 and I assume stock intake manifold. One thing I didn't do was mess with the A/F mixture after setting the timing. Should I mess with that when using get home and see if that fixes it?

 

[LARRY70GS]

Yeah, that's the wrong carburetor. The stock intake manifold only accepts a Quadrajet (spread bore carburetor). To run the Edelbrock requires an adapter. IMO, that carburetor will never run right. You need to have a Quadrajet built for your engine. Idle mixture needle adjustment will do nothing.

 

[LARRY70GS]

Going out now, will check in later.

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Forgot I took these pics when replacing the intake gasket. There is some sort of adapter plate before the carb. Other than the lean backfire (which only started yesterday) it has run perfectly fine for the longest time. Just had a bit of trouble understanding timing over the past few months that had it running a bit screwy, but that may have also been a combo with the distributor.

 

[MelsRegal]

Forgot I took these pics when replacing the intake gasket. There is some sort of adapter plate before the carb. Other than the lean backfire (which only started yesterday) it has run perfectly fine for the longest time. Just had a bit of trouble understanding timing over the past few months that had it running a bit screwy, but that may have also been a combo with the distributor.

The adapters are horrible. They totally ruin air/fuel distribution. Either you need a Quadrajet or a spreadbore Holley carburetor or a square bore intake.
For timing you should be setting total mechanical advance for 36 degrees at 3k rpm and ignore the initial timing. Did the instructions with the new distributor go into different timing curves?

 

[Jackhammer0312]

The adapters are horrible. They totally ruin air/fuel distribution. Either you need a Quadrajet or a spreadbore Holley carburetor or a square bore intake.
For timing you should be setting total mechanical advance for 36 degrees at 3k rpm and ignore the initial timing. Did the instructions with the new distributor go into different timing curves?

Yes, I'll have to take another look at the instructions when i get home. And forgot about total timing, I'll set that when using get home too and get into looking for a square bore intake.

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Okay so after looking at intake manifold prices I think i might get a rebuilt holley or quadrajet....

 

[LARRY70GS]

The only carburetor that will fit on a stock intake is a spread bore carburetor. That would be a Quadrajet, a Carter Thermoquad (no longer in production), or a Holley 4175. All of them are expensive. For a Quadrajet, I recommend Ken Gies,

Everyday Performance Rebuilt Rochester Quadrajet Carburetor Positraction Axle Store

From bone stock to street or sport, Everyday Performance can help you bring your cruiser or daily driven muscle to life

everyday-performance.com

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Before I left work I gave the carb mix screws a smidge under a quarter turn to richen the mix and it has fixed that backfire problem and wants to burn rubber at stop signs again, will do the total timing either today or this weekend.

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Got fixated on fixing up my motorcycle and riding that around a lot since it's been a few months since I rode any... but TODAY I finally did the total timing and everything. Skylark feels MILES better and does not try and stall at all on WOT from a stop!

Following Larry's absolutely awesome timing guide from v8buick.com I got it to feel almost perfect! It now idles a lot smoother and feels much more powerful, although I think the guy who had the car before me did something weird with the timing of stuff. Even though I have verified the TDC mark is accurate on the balancer I found out (with a timing light) that it's at 28* (??) after total timing it with a mark 1 3/4" clockwise from the TDC mark to get the timing to 32*. I originally did 36* but had to retard it to 32* for the engine to feel "right" (before putting it to 32* it was cutting itself off slightly with light throttle). Does this mean I need to put in a new timing chain or see if the guy before me put in different cams?

I'm just happy it actually runs without any problems now and I test drove it several times to a nearby gas station and back after tuning the carb after it felt better and I mean DANG does it feel better. I feel like I say that every post, but it's so nice now. Thank you guys so much for the amazing wisdom you share and for answering all of my stupid questions!

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Got fixated on fixing up my motorcycle and riding that around a lot since it's been a few months since I rode any... but TODAY I finally did the total timing and everything. Skylark feels MILES better and does not try and stall at all on WOT from a stop!

Following Larry's absolutely awesome timing guide from v8buick.com I got it to feel almost perfect! It now idles a lot smoother and feels much more powerful, although I think the guy who had the car before me did something weird with the timing of stuff. Even though I have verified the TDC mark is accurate on the balancer I found out (with a timing light) that it's at 28* (??) after total timing it with a mark 1 3/4" clockwise from the TDC mark to get the timing to 32*. I originally did 36* but had to retard it to 32* for the engine to feel "right" (before putting it to 32* it was cutting itself off slightly with light throttle). Does this mean I need to put in a new timing chain or see if the guy before me put in different cams?

I'm just happy it actually runs without any problems now and I test drove it several times to a nearby gas station and back after tuning the carb after it felt better and I mean DANG does it feel better. I feel like I say that every post, but it's so nice now. Thank you guys so much for the amazing wisdom you share and for answering all of my stupid questions!

Alroght so timing light is off, tried to check timing again today and it is not working right at all. Looks like I'll be getting a new one in the future. Lucky for me though I won't be needing one for awhile since I timed the engine before the light started acting up.

 

[Jackhammer0312]

Timing was checked yesterday after getting a new timing light and it's at 32*... feels great though! Going to redo the total timing when it isnt storming now that I know this new light actually works. But 32* though.... does that indicate something is bad timing mechanism wise? Also for the quadrajet is there a specific quadrajet model I should get or just anything for 70s Buick 350s?

 

[MelsRegal]

Timing was checked yesterday after getting a new timing light and it's at 32*... feels great though! Going to redo the total timing when it isnt storming now that I know this new light actually works. But 32* though.... does that indicate something is bad timing mechanism wise? Also for the quadrajet is there a specific quadrajet model I should get or just anything for 70s Buick 350s?

What do you mean by bad? The 32 was at what engine speed?
They don't make new Quadrajets other than junk from China, what do you have now?