1960 Ford Thunderbird distributor

KDECESARE

MEMBER
1960 FORD THUNDERBIRD

1960 Ford Thunderbird V8 Two Wheel Drive 00000 miles

On a newly rebuilt 312 v-8. Out of a 1957 T-Bird. When installing the distributor, do I need to find top dead center. Or whats the best way to install the distributor correctly. Thks Kurt

3 Replies

RASMATAZ

MECHANIC
75,992 POSTS

Put the engine no.1 piston on its compression stroke then line up the vibration damper/timing indicator to TDC/0 deg-now install th distributor making sure the rotor is pointing to no. 1 cap tower and distributor fully seated.

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Thursday, January 1st, 2009 AT 1:05 PM

KDECESARE

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2 POSTS

Sorry but I think I didnt phrase the question right.I undersatnd the #1 piston needs to be on top dead center of the compression stroke and the distributor rotor needs to point at #1 on the cap when fully seated. But how do I know i've got the cylinder at the top of the compression stroke. Can I tell by the location of the valves on # 1 cylinder.I've heard that if you put your finger over the plug hole while slowly cranking the engine youll get a "pop" at the top of the compression stroke. Not sure if i'm comfortable with that. Thks for your help. Kurt

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Thursday, January 1st, 2009 AT 5:35 PM

RASMATAZ

MECHANIC
75,992 POSTS

You can put a piece of cloth over your finger and seal the no.1 plug hole-have a helper crank engine in bursts till you feel pressure then stop-set the markings on the damper/indicator to TDC/0 deg-you can verify it -pull the valve cover off -both intake and exhaust valves should be closed.

Or you can use a compression gauge as you wish

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Thursday, January 1st, 2009 AT 11:45 PM