Replacing Distributor Shaft

[ghaegele]

Hey Atomic 4 friends:

I'm nearing the end of my rebuild and am looking for a clarification of the procedure for replacing my distributor. The manual states to position the tab on the distributor and the rotor directly away from the engine while the engine is at #1 TDC, and replace shaft. Then, with timing light connected, turn engine until light just goes off, and tighten down the shaft. After that I'm directed to set the dwell. When the engine is installed I'll adjust the timing for peak performance at cruising speed.

This all makes sense. But I have the Ignitor electronic ignition. Is the procedure the same? I don't think an electronic ingition has an adjustable dwell angle. And does the timing light go off the same with electronic ignition as with points? Any other aspects that I'm missing?

By the way, the repair to the threads looks great. http://www.moyermarine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3291&highlight=thread+distributor+stripped I expect it will hold as well as the original thread--that is, about 32 years!

Greg

[Don Moyer]

The Ignitor will open and close the primary circuit just as the points do in a conventional system, so that part of the procedure is exactly the same. You're correct to note that the dwell factor is not relevant to an Ignitor since the dwell is controlled by the Ignitor module itself.

Don

[67c&ccorv]

Don, is the initial set-up procedure any different for an early-model A4 with a Prestolite distributor with Ignitor electronic ignition?

[Don Moyer]

Not really; set the first cylinder at TDC , install the distributor with the rotor pointing directly aft (this is a slight difference since in a late model we orient the tip of the rotor directly away from the block), orient the housing of the distributor with the cap alignment notch under the tip of the rotor, find the spot where the Ignitor is just opening the primary circuit using a 12 volt light across the primary terminals of the coil, tighten the hold-down bracket and your finished.

Don