Re: Timing the A

Posted by DJ.Voyce on March 07, 1998 at 01:25:09

In Reply to: Timing the A
posted by Tim Wildey on March 06, 1998 at 21:36:03

G'Day Tim,
Locating TDC is a fairly simple exercise, so here's how. Remove all spark plugs & turn the engine slowly with your thumb or heel of your hand over #1 plug hole until you can feel compression pressure (the paper trick would work here). You can then either look into the cylinder with a torch, which is probably the easiest way & watch for the piston reaching the top of its stroke, or slide a long thin screwdriver down the plug hole across towards the cylinder & feel for the piston coming up remembering to pull the screwdriver back as the piston comes up or you'll jam it in there & have to turn the engine back a bit to free it. As a check that you're definately on #1 compression stroke, look into #4 plug hole & both valves should be slightly open. If you turn the engine back & forth a little with the fan, the valves should rock, or in other words the exhaust will just be closing & the inlet just opening when the engine is turned in direction of rotation. Once you're happy that you've definately located TDC, take the drill bit to be used & smear grease in the flutes to stop any shavings falling into the engine, then using either a hand drill, or with the drill bit in the chuck of an electric drill, turn the bit slowly by hand to make the dimple in the gear. This way you can check on your progress bit by bit as the fibre material of the gear drills pretty easily. Hopefully you can now continue with setting your ignition timing.
Regardz
DJ.
OutOfAfrica A's
: Today I installed new points and condenser on my modern upper distributor plate. I removed the timing pin and rolated it into the opening. While hand cranking the engine a friend held the pin in place. We never found the dimple to find TDC.Then I remembered the previous owner stating that he replaced the timing gear. I looked in Bratton's Parts catalog and noticed a note to enlarge the new gear dimple to 5/16".I am thinking about removing the timing gear cover to located the dimple.I have also heard of a way to find TDC by placing paper in all spark plug holes then crank the engine.The paper in Spark Plug #1 will pop-out in TDC and make sure it is the compression stroke ??
: Open to Any Ideas,
:Tim Wildey

Follow Ups:
Re: Timing the A Gordon Biggar March 07, 1998 at 21:51:11(0)

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