I followed the tips in here for finding true TDC, (The mark on the balancer was dead on). I was planning to set the init.timing to 18 to see if I can get more power.(Havent driven for awhile but doesnt seem to have the same snap I remember) What I found is it is currently set at 24 btdc. The car runs fine, vc gauge holds steady at 20. I would have thought at 24 the car wouldnt run well at all!

Does this sound right??:confused:

remember, initial timing is set with the vac advance disconnected. then you can determine your total advance and at what rpm it is all in by with a tach, timing tape and a timing light (still disconnected). sbc's like around 36 degrees btdc total. consider the vacuum advance an extra bonus for part throttle drivability and economy; it's not part of the total timing picture.

See above about the vac hose and total timing, but beyond that, the practical defintion of "too much initial" is either:
A: The starter can't crank the motor when it's hot.
or B: pinging during lor rpm, part throttle acceleration

If you have neither, you haven't yet found "too much initial."

we locked our dist out at 30 btdc all the time, and the car starts and runs fine...(blower motor though)its all about the test and tune...24 initial does sound like alot though, unless you too are running a 8 to 1 blower motor with 114 deg lobe sep...lol...sounds more like gucci said, and u left the vac adv hooked up...pull and plug that, and see what it says...

The advance was pulled and plugged- 24 was what it was at. I backed it off to 18 last night and it runs much better. I still cant believe it was running at 24! This is not a blower motor- Just a mildly built 327...

Oh well- All is good now.

Thanks guys.

When you backed off the initial timing from 24° to 18° do you think that you affected the total timing? What is your total timing? Initial timing is a wonderful number but it's the total timing that really affects the horsepower.

I have yet to check the total timing. If I have heard right , I need to pick up a timing strip at the parts store to be able to see what the total actually is.. I plan to do it this weekend and will let you know what I find.. Am I correct in thinking it should be close to 36 for starters?

Ignition timing is relatively new to me so i do appreciate the help!

total is normally 34-36 on conventional smallblocks. Vortec heads like less, others want more.

I have yet to check the total timing. If I have heard right , I need to pick up a timing strip at the parts store to be able to see what the total actually is.. I plan to do it this weekend and will let you know what I find.. Am I correct in thinking it should be close to 36 for starters?

Ignition timing is relatively new to me so i do appreciate the help!

You don't need a timing strip, just make a mark at 36° BTDC on your balancer. 36º is 10% of the circumference of the balancer. Do you need more info?

Yes...I could use some more info...
How is an easy way to determine where the mark (36 deg) should be? You said 10% of the diameter of the balance...Any tricks on how to measure this?

My 327 has 12 Btcc and total at 33 and it runs perfect, that's with an MSD ready to run and Holley street avenger 570. I keep the dizzy vacuum hose plugged into the full vacuum port of the carb and plug the other one.

When you backed off the initial timing from 24° to 18° do you think that you affected the total timing? What is your total timing? Initial timing is a wonderful number but it's the total timing that really affects the horsepower.

:yes::yes:
I only look at total timing. If it starts right up, doesnt diesel or detonate, it is correct. I run my 350 at 38 total.

so you are saying to find 0 and then measure out with a tape measure 2.512 inches, and call that an accurate 36 degree mark???really!!!???i dont know about you, but in the land where racers try to get the most power they can out of their motor, timing is a big deal...estimating where 36 degrees is can be a fatal error in some motors...if we estimated 30 deg on our blower motor, and we were off 6 degrees, we could rattle the motor apart in very short order...the tape is a cheep investment, and imo should be used on any motor someone cares about before estimating a scratch mark into their balancer...this is just my opinion, and i`m sorry if i sound like a dick, but come on...we spend thousands on our rides...cheaping out on a 5 dollar tape is stupid...and a tape measure isnt an accurate enough form of measure to find the spot between 2 1/2 and 2 9/16 and figure it as 36 degrees...

How accurate is this $5 tape? Would a $10 tape be more appropriate on a multi-thousand dollar motor? How accurate is the TDC mark? If you find it with a stop, how do you measure the distance between the two marks? Is this more accurate than measuring 36° with a tape measure? If you made the mark 2.5" from TDC, you would be about .013" off. How wide is the line? Is it more than .013" wide? How many degrees in .013"? Maybe 0.19°? It your timing was off by 0.2°, would you notice? Does your timing chain allow more than 0.2° error? How about the parallax of the timing light?

ONOVAKIND67, I determined 36 deg how you said and it looks like the car is running at 34 total. How can I tell where it should be 34-36-38? Is this just something to trial and error until you find the sweet spot? By taking the initial up, does that also raise the total the same amount?

How accurate is this $5 tape? Would a $10 tape be more appropriate on a multi-thousand dollar motor? How accurate is the TDC mark? If you find it with a stop, how do you measure the distance between the two marks? Is this more accurate than measuring 36° with a tape measure? If you made the mark 2.5" from TDC, you would be about .013" off. How wide is the line? Is it more than .013" wide? How many degrees in .013"? Maybe 0.19°? It your timing was off by 0.2°, would you notice? Does your timing chain allow more than 0.2° error? How about the parallax of the timing light?

That's exactly what I was thinking.

ONOVAKIND67, I determined 36 deg how you said and it looks like the car is running at 34 total. How can I tell where it should be 34-36-38? Is this just something to trial and error until you find the sweet spot? By taking the initial up, does that also raise the total the same amount?

It's trial and error. You want as little timing as possible.
Taking the initial up will also raise the total unless you take measures to limit it, such as closing up the slot or installing a bigger bushing.

What do you mean by as little timing as possible? Does that mean a lower # or higher?.. Sorry for all the questions.. but if I dont ask I wont know.. Thanks for the help!