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Timing question

Yes if you could maybe walk me through it to tune that distributor it’s a unilite thanks so much.


sorry, I have no experience with the Mallory Unilite distributor. I've only worked on stock and Malloy with the YH adjustable mechanical advance distributors. I believe Mallory Unilite distributor uses bushing to adjust the distributor timing like MSD distributor.
 
Drill bit shanks work great instead of those mallory keys. There is a post somewhere with the degrees and keyway width.

Have to limit mechanical in the distributor to get the idle correct. Idle is the foundation, total is the roof in house building terms. Which do you get right first, foundation.

If that is the set up for the unilites now it's definitely an MSD style. I used to sell 10 and 14* bushings to allow for increased initial/idle timing. Others are selling them as well, FBO being very expensive for them.
 
boy so complicated , I've never used a timing light , I just adjust it to what performs best for my driving style , maybe I should have gotten a college degree so I can over think it too
 
boy so complicated , I've never used a timing light , I just adjust it to what performs best for my driving style , maybe I should have gotten a college degree so I can over think it too

if using that thought you are limited to what you can have for your base timing. If your distributor has 24 degrees and you want 38 total you have to run 14 degrees initial , that's it nothing else. But if you change the degrees in the distributor you can change the initial timing to what you want. So if you want to use 20 degrees initial you can set the distributor to 18 degrees for a 38 degrees total. I've found different motors want different settings. Nothing is set in stone when it comes to working with distributors . Just my 2 cents worth.
 
boy so complicated , I've never used a timing light , I just adjust it to what performs best for my driving style , maybe I should have gotten a college degree so I can over think it too

Yep, if you ask the best engine builders in the world, the nascar and top fuel mechanics, and the manufacturer engineers, they all say the same thing....”Never use a timing light, it just over complicates things”.
 
Yep, if you ask the best engine builders in the world, the nascar and top fuel mechanics, and the manufacturer engineers, they all say the same thing....”Never use a timing light, it just over complicates things”.
Basically its a scam to sell timing lights
 
boy so complicated , I've never used a timing light , I just adjust it to what performs best for my driving style , maybe I should have gotten a college degree so I can over think it too

The issue with that is I can hand you two distributors and setting it the total method, no pinging, you'll get entirely different idle qualities. One will be much snappier off idle too. Most cars timed using total method, especially with a decent sized camshaft, smell like a gasoline truck dumping raw fuel out the pipes.

Ever have a car where it cranks for a while and might require flooring the pedal to get it to start? Soot all over the airhorh of carb? Those are symptom of a poor idle tune up. Car should start with a flick of the key.

It's easy to figure out what the engine wants at idle, then a simple math problem and set up distributor.
 
This is a pain. I wish I knew a good guy on Long Island to help me tune this lol
 
It's not that hard, it will fire up with the distributor pointing anywhere close to number 1 , if it pops retard it a little and try again ,you can move it while idling to where it'll start and be responsive with the throttle adjust your idle then leave the bolt snug so you can move it by hand but it wont move on its own then take it down the street , if it bogs advance it a little if it backfires retard it , keep playing with it till it runs good for you then you can adjust your fuel and tune it in better ,they aren't fragile
 
Drill bit shanks work great instead of those mallory keys. There is a post somewhere with the degrees and keyway width.

Have to limit mechanical in the distributor to get the idle correct. Idle is the foundation, total is the roof in house building terms. Which do you get right first, foundation.

If that is the set up for the unilites now it's definitely an MSD style. I used to sell 10 and 14* bushings to allow for increased initial/idle timing. Others are selling them as well, FBO being very expensive for them.
This is true.
I use a Firecore distributor and although they included a set of those plastic keys they aren't really helpful. The degree settings they have on them do not equate to what they actually give, at least on mine....they space the slots open way too far. Drill bits work great, but I could never find an accurate chart so I used trial and error and for my desired 12-degree curve the drill size ended up being fairly small...much smaller than the 12-degree key. But it was quick because I use a TIMING LIGHT!
 
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It's not that hard, it will fire up with the distributor pointing anywhere close to number 1 , if it pops retard it a little and try again ,you can move it while idling to where it'll start and be responsive with the throttle adjust your idle then leave the bolt snug so you can move it by hand but it wont move on its own then take it down the street , if it bogs advance it a little if it backfires retard it , keep playing with it till it runs good for you then you can adjust your fuel and tune it in better ,they aren't fragile



I have it running and all that I just think it’s running like crap because it’s not enough timing.
 
This is true.
I use a Firecore distributor and although they included a set of those plastic keys they aren't really helpful. The degree settings they have on them do not equate to what they actually give, at least on mine....they space the slots open way too far. Drill bits work great, but I could never find an accurate chart so I used trial and error and for my desired 12-degree curve the drill size ended up being fairly small...much smaller than the 12-degree key. But it was quick because I use a TIMING LIGHT!



what do u do just cut a little off a dill bit and fit it in there?? Never did this
 
I have it running and all that I just think it’s running like crap because it’s not enough timing.

You can up the initial and see how it idles and "rolls out". You just don't want to hammer it till you reign in the total as it'll most likely ping.
 
Relative to Ignition Timing....
Is this a low rise dual quad Intake Manifold being used with that .564" Cam ?

Where does the engine run 'rough' ? if that is the chief complaint related to your timing inquiry ?
 
Relative to Ignition Timing....
Is this a low rise dual quad Intake Manifold being used with that .564" Cam ?

Where does the engine run 'rough' ? if that is the chief complaint related to your timing inquiry ?




It is a dual plane eddy rpm with 2 600cfm carbs it’s at 3 inch of vacuum at idle it’s just hard to start. And I can tell it’s not happy
 
It is a dual plane eddy rpm with 2 600cfm carbs it’s at 3 inch of vacuum at idle it’s just hard to start. And I can tell it’s not happy
I've ran the same set up on a 440. It was very responsive and had a lot of torque. But, it got weird in the heat. Would run shitty in summer traffic. Otherwise it worked really nice. I also agree, you definitely need more initial timing. Listen to the smart guys on here. 16 to 20 is where I'd start. Also if you have that little vacuum at idle, possibly need to change the step up springs in the carbs to a softer spring.
 
boy so complicated , I've never used a timing light , I just adjust it to what performs best for my driving style , maybe I should have gotten a college degree so I can over think it too
This is just ignorant.
 
I just looked at those cam specs. 251 257 @ .050. That's A LOT of cam. I'd start with 20 degrees minimum at idle. Regardless of what you do, it's gonna run rough at low rpms with that much duration and overlap. For a street car, I'd go with a smaller cam, or more cubic inch with that cam.
Dual quads, huge cam, moderate cubic inch. You have yourself a bit of a tuning challenge.
 
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