Is there a tutorial around that shows you how to adjust timing? I checked the faqs but didnt find anything. Im interested in learning how so I dont have to rely on a shop to charge me 60$ every time i need it done.
Any help is greatly apreciated. Thanks!
Nathen

 

First thing is to buy a timing light. You will be hooking it up at the battery and #1 spark plug. Get a piece of chalk, white paint or white out and mark your balancer and pointer with the white stuff. You will be marking the "0" which is top dead center, and the second mark to the right of "0" which is about 8 degrees below top dead center. Loosen the distributor. There is a nut head at the base of it, and you will need a special tool to get to it. Once the distributor is loose and the timing light is hooked up to number one spark plug (you will need to have the wire from the light hooked up to the spark plug wire AND the spark plug) turn on the engine. Pull the trigger on the light and shine it down toward the marks. Now, turn the distributor until the pointer lines up with the 2nd mark. Tighten down the dizzy and remove the light. Now, reset the points if you have points.

 

Cant you explain this more.
"You will be marking the "0" which is top dead center, and the second mark to the right of "0" which is about 8 degrees below top dead center."

 

i understand you a little bit there Soaring but i too am a bit confuzzled. Midnight, Top Dead Center or TDC is the 0 degree mark on the cranksaft damper. It is where the number one piston is fully compressed. Timing can be set by degrees. Plus or minus depending on how the engine is tuned/running. If you look on the damper you should see a small TDC or 0 along with several other numbers and marks.

But I have to ask too, what do you mean to the right a little at about 8?

EDIT* I hope i didnt insult your knowledge Midnight, i dunno if you know about timing but just not setting or what. if so, this is a lesson to all you other newbs out there who dont know about engine timing.

 

You will need to crawl under the front of the car. Now, find where the pulley is at the front of the engine. That's the pulley with the belt on it. Now, just behind that is the balancer. It will have marks on it. You may need to turn the engine over to have those marks show up on the bottom. There will be a "0" and then some marks indented into the balancer. There will be 3 or 4 of them to the right of the "0" mark. Now, locate the pointer at the bottom of the timing belt cover. Mark the pointer tip as well as the other two places. The reason for marking the "O" is to have a point of reference in case you want to go less than 8 degrees or more than 8 degrees from TDC.
On Edit: I forgot to mention that you will need to disconnect the vacuum line from the distributor and plug it with a screw or something. Here is some more reading for you. http://www.2quicknovas.com/happytiming.html