Timing a 1932 DL6

[Guest outlaw car man]

Hello-

silly question- I'm timing my 32 DL6 as per the owners manual. I got the crankshaft rotated so the DC marks line up on the flywheel and the timing indicator plate.

The distributor is loose and ready for adjustment ( counter-clockwise) .

The manual says to rotate till No. 1 cam begins to seperate the breaker points-

What is No. 1 cam ? Does that simply mean the first cam the points touch as I turn the dist to the left.

Do not have a timing light, going completely by the owners manual.

Appreciate any help

S Jones

[nearchoclatetown]

OCM, do you have a 6 volt test light? Hook the ground clip to the wire from coil to distributor. Then use the Probe to ground close enough to the distributor that as you turn the distributor you can see exactly when the light comes on. At that point is when the points break or open, which when the engine is timed correctly. It''s much easier then trying to see when the points open. The "number 1 cam" is the distributor lobe that opens the pints for Number 1 cylinder. Number 1 spark plug wire will corospond to where the rotor points also.

[Guest outlaw car man]

cool, I'll do it manually as per the owners manual , then use your 6V test light system to proof it. Looks like I need to turn the distributer about buck-eighty, since I know what a No.1 cam is now. Illustration in the OM shows the same-

Appreciate the response.

[nearchoclatetown]

Are you positive you are in the right position? Did the engine run before? When you come up on number 1 Top Dead Center the intake valve has JUST closed, rotor comes to number 1 wire on the cap, and you come to your timing mark with the piston at the top of it's travel. It sounds as though you may be 180 out from your comment.

[Guest outlaw car man]

Not as I thought- Back to it but , DC marks STILL in place. The rotor, in place, points to the #2 plug wire in the dist cap, when installed.

I assumed, ( never done this before) when the DC marks were lined up, No.1 piston is on compression stroke, the No. 1 cam & rotor would automatically be lined up with the No. 1 plug wire connection in the dist cap.

Am I thinking incorrectly .

The body of the distributer( points) rotates around the shaft, WHICH now points to the #2 plug wire with DC marks in place.

The 6 Volt test light is probably the real answer- Should at least come close manually, that's how it was done in 32-

BTW, the car was bought brand new in Hersey in 1932

Thanks-

[Guest outlaw car man]

Not positive at all. Car has been stored for many years, I'm just trying to bring it back to life, all stock.

FYI, the Carter and fuel pump are restored and seem to be fine-

I'm heading to the ignition side of things here.

Just so you know where it's at-

Car runs- At idle it's fine. Any demand on it , it starts farting and cutting out. I followed the OM and set the timing JUST A HAIR- Things got a bit worse, so I thought I'd ask this group before I continue.

I haven't touched it yet to do a 180- So, why is the rotor pointing to #2

Wouldn't it set at the DC marks to No 1 cam, rotor pointing to the No.1 piston in the dist cap .

sj

[nearchoclatetown]

Did you have the distributor out? Do you know the name of the dealer? There was a Hershey Dodge dealer close by here, but taht was the owner's name. I don't know when they started in business, but I saw my first GTX there at the new car showing. They are no relation of Milton Hershey.

[Guest outlaw car man]

I haven't touched the dist, other then what we have discussed here-

I have contacted the original owner of the car, by accidentally finding their name inside the passenger door panel.( seriously!!!)

The father that bought the car in Hersey, is long gone, but the son is still around. They owned the car in the family for almost 60 years- They were kind enough to even send me old pictures of it. Pretty much have a full history on the car.

Off the track here, need to get the car running -

Wonderful car-

Again, thanks

[Rusty_OToole]

When the timing marks line up both the #1 and the #6 piston will be at top dead center. But only one of them will be firing. The rotor will be pointing at the one that is firing. The other will be 180 degrees out. In other words, the wire on the opposite side of the distributor cap.

You could just time it and try it. Or, if you want to be absolutely positive, take out the spark plugs and turn the engine until you get a "woosh" of air out the #1 plug hole. That will mean #1 piston is coming up on compression. Now you can be sure that when you line up the marks, #1 will be firing.

Here is another tip. Put a piece of cigarette paper between the points. Slowly rotate the distributor forward while gently tugging the paper. When the points let go, that is the instant the spark fires. Lock the distributor down.

I suggest you set it up as is, then double check that it is #1 that is firing. Make sure the rotor is pointing to #1.

You should also double check that the plug wires are all going to the correct plugs. The firing order should be on the head. This is a very easy mistake to make even for experienced mechanics. #3 and #4 are especially easy to mix up.

This could be the cause of your misfire.

[Guest outlaw car man]

Did everything, I think, correctly- followed all the advice-

and appreciate it-

Now, the car doesn't seem to have any fire at all. turns over no problem, no nothing? Pretty sure getting gas, but no spark.

I haven't replaced the points or rotor, they seem clean with no problem. Only thing I can think of, the points appear to only contact at the top , maybe, 15 % of the surface.

I have not messed with points in a long time, but shouldn't I be getting full flat point contact ?

Just looking, this may not be anything-

Car was running before I screwed with the timing, but not well, that's why I'm here.

Next ideas ?

Probably going to call a buddy for a second set of hands tomorrow.

frustrated again-

thanks-

[Guest outlaw car man]

PROBLEM SOLVED-

Odd resolve- The two timing pointers , under the inspection plate ( which I fully removed this time) , had been mounted on the wrong side of the inspection opening. , sometime in the car's past. I was just fishing for a solution and stumbled across this.

So, that's why it wouldn't come up on the No. 1 cylinder- I was setting the DC marks about 2 inches off, to basically the other pointer ( IGN 10 %) .

Got my 6 v test light out, set the points & I'm back in business-

Appreciate all the help-

SJ

[nearchoclatetown]

Good for you, are you ready to drive?

[keiser31]

Got any photographs of your '32 to show us??

[Guest outlaw car man]

Yep- Solid rain for two days has kept me inside for now-

( of course)

[Guest outlaw car man]

I do and I will.

Thanks-

[Rusty_OToole]

Don't know if this applies to your car or not. But by the mid 30s Chrysler engines had a unique feature. There is a little pipe plug over the #6 piston. You can take this plug out and drop a wire right on top of the piston. This allows you to feel the piston as it moves up and down, making it easy to find top dead center. If you want to be really precise you can use a dial indicator.

This was the way they set the timing.

[Guest outlaw car man]

Thanks, I did know that- Another guy that owns a 32 DL6 pointed that out.

It is on my car, have not removed it , still has engine paint on it.

[Guest outlaw car man]

Been meaning to ask, just what is the two marks for on the inspection plate ? One has DC other is IGN 10%. Why is there a 10% advancement.

OM says to line up the DC on the flywheel to the ignition mark on the timing indicator plate. I've been lining up DC( flywheel) to DC( indicator plate) , what if I line it to the IGN 10% mark.

Would the timing then be advanced 10%- Car runs a little sloppy on demand, this might help. Or would it.

Back to timimg 101

SJ