Again, thanks to everyone for the suggestions. I’m going to try tweaking the distributor. I took the cap off and the contacts look clean. I;ve been reading other posts about setting the timing correctly. What I cannot understand, though, is how to rotate the engine.
I’ve read that I need to put my finger over the #1 plug while someone rotates the engine and wait until I feel the compression. I know what compression should feel like, but how do I rotate the engine without turning the key (which fires up the starter motor)?
BTW, the guys at AutoZone have no clue what a spark tester is. Is it called something else, or did I just happen to visit while the Junior Varsity squad was on duty?
Also, the distributor is a Motorcraft with breaker points.
What firing order are you using? The firing order for the 460 ci engine is: 1, 5, 4, 2, 6, 3, 7, 8. The distributor rotates counter-clockwise. When standing in front of the engine, cylinders 1, 2, 3, 4 (front to back) are on your left. On your right are cylinders 5, 6, 7, 8 (front to back).
It is much easier to rotate the engine after the spark plugs are removed. Then, you can put a wrench on, almost, anything which rotates when the starter turns the engine.
Your firing order mentioned is the firing order that I have set up. At least something is set up correctly!
Am I inferring this correctly: The spark plugs, when removed, allows the pressure to be equalized, thus making the engine rotatable without the “work” of compressing the air in the pistons? That seems logical.
So I would turn the engine until I feel compression in the #1 spark plug hole. Then loosen the distributor bolt and align the contact to the top center (towards the back of the car)?
No, No, No…With everything hooked up, remove the coil wire from the center of the distributor cap, hold it close to but not touching any metal surface and have someone crank the engine. You should be able to observe a series of rapid sparks as the engine cranks. No spark? Locate and fix the problem. Step one. with the key “on”, check for power at the + side of the coil. (the wire from the engine harness). If you find power there, check the point gap. Turn the engine by HAND until the little cam under the point rubbing block opens the points. The gap should be .015-.017". You can crank the engine with the starter and observe the points and see if they open and close.
To check the timing, (sort of) locate the TIMING MARKS, one on the front flywheel dampener (a simple line) and a fixed pointer located near the edge of the rotating dampener. Turn the engine over by hand until the marks line up. The rotor in the distributer should now be pointing at the #1 post in the cap. If it seems to be 180 degrees out, rotate the engine one complete turn and they should now line up.
Don’t mess with the timing until you have determined you have a proper spark.
Top dead center is when the pistobn is at the top with the connecting rod aligned at dead center of the cylinder bore. Hou you gonna know when? You can just turn the engine until the timing marks go to where the timing should be set. Then if the rotor is pointed toward where the #1 plug wire is supposed to attach to the distributor cap you go on to the next step. You turn the distributor to where the points start to open and your timing is set to about where it should be. You should have set the point gap before doing any of this. You should use a points file on the new points to rough up the smooth surface. Back and forth twice is usually good. File them before you put them in, it’s easier. Points files were made for new points because mechanics got tired of them not working. Test your old points first by turning the distributor and if you don’t hear the snap of an electric arc when the points open, you may have a problem. It’s not a loud noise. Caddyman has the procedure down well for you.