Hey guys, had enough problems with the worn out 283ci so finially I was able to come across a motor from carb on down for the right price. Info on engine: Jasper Engine guy says it came out of a suburban. Has about 40,000miles on it. So he says? Rochester QuadraJet 4bbl Carb My 283ci exhaust manifolds, with my same exhaust(for now) 8mm Delco wires Bosch Platnuim Plugs New vacumn lines(where no lines were needed they were capped off with the boots you can buy at a parts store) New Freeze Plugs, engine flushed with just water at each freeze plug Fresh Oil and Filter New Fuel Filter New Starter Same Alternator Edelbrock Air Cleaner The motor is in and running, but does have a miss and sputter, you can really feel it under hard acceleration. Just cruising its barely noticeable but its there. The Timing bracket on this motor is just under the water pump dead center. Me and a friend tried messing with the timing to eliminate the miss and stumble but the timing light said it was between 32-34 degrees TDC. He has the digital timing light so you can go up and down on the advance and the line on the balancer is directly under the timing mark in those numbers. I thought I read on the internet somewhere with that motor it should be around 4 degrees TDC for normal driving and 6 degrees TDC for more of a towing or heavy duty driving. No way I could turn the dist enought to go from 32 to 4 TDC. What am I missing? I am new to this engine stuff still so please talk to me like its my first engine. Thanks for your time Bernie Not the prettiest thing but once its running correctly it will get cleaned up nicely with some paint or maybe powder coating. Looking to get long tubed headers soon and a full exhaust so I can really hear what she sounds like.
Sounds like the distributor isn't in right (off by a notch or two) or your vacuum diaphragm is toast. What year is the engine from? This sounds like this issue on Mr. Gasket's Tech FAQ: http://www.mr-gasket.com/TechSupportResults.aspx?ID=35132 But, here's something you might try. Mark the distributor, where it is, check the rotation with the cap off (quick spin with the starter), then lift it and turn it back on gear tooth at a time, until you're in the 4 to 8 degree range. You might get your friend to start it up before you do anything, to see if the diaphragm moves (you or him watching the flat shaft for movement). Also, if you're planning on upgrading the ignition to Electronic (HEI), you can swap the Advanced Timing Curve springs in the distributor (from Mr. Gasket, Accel or MSD) and gain some mileage and a few ponies (HP & Torque). http://www.mr-gasket.com/ProductsListByMinID.aspx?minID=5282&majID=525&selection=16&minselection=3 Instructions for above are on this page http://www.mr-gasket.com/InstructionSheetsList.aspx These little spring kits are worth the $10! Cheapest engine tweak to boost up MPG, and OOMPH: So knowing what engine year might just be handy. Just check out the casting number on the block and look it up on one of the Chevy sites, or your friendly GM dealer? Your 283 diaphragm might fit too.
I am going to pull the dist and rotate it tomorrow and recheck the timing and get back with you and let you know what happened Thanks bernie
Sometimes you can just move each wire one spot on the cap to get more timing without taking the whole dist. out. A 350 should have about 36 degrees TOTAL advance at about 2600-2800 RPM. This is initial timing, centrifugal and vacuum combined. You will need a timing light with a meter on it or timing tape to do this. If the distribitor is old, check to make sure the advance mechanisms are working. A rebuilt dist. might be the best money you could spend. Make sure the cap/rotor are clean and in good condition.
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Just checked the Mr. Gasket site. Current tapes are: 1588 - TIMING TAPE SB CHEVY 6-3/4" http://www.mr-gasket.com/ProductDetails.aspx?productID=1436 1589 - TIMING TAPE CHEVY 7" http://www.mr-gasket.com/ProductDetails.aspx?productID=1437 1591 - TIMING TAPE CHEVY 8" http://www.mr-gasket.com/ProductDetails.aspx?productID=1438 Timing Tape Instruction PDF (free) http://www.mr-gasket.com/InstructionSheetsDownloads.aspx?ID=540
