getting ready to test fire the 170 slant. It is a 66.

Off hand, anyone know the point and plug gaps?

Thank you

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-76 Cordoba, 360 4bbl
-68 Valiant, 273 2bbl
-67 Dart /6 4bbl, Leaning Tower of Power!!!

Plugs .035
Points .017 - .023
Dwell 40-45 degrees
Timing (this is for a 65, but probably the same) 2.5 BTDC

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Ed
64 Valiant 225 / 904 / 42:1 manual steering / 9" drum brakes

I agree with Emsvitil's specs, except that I would start with 5° BTDC. I usually set points carefully at 0.020" (right in the middle of the spec) and find the dwell "spot on".

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Stupid Question:
Why can't I use a regular feeler gauge to set my points? I always hear something about "non-magnetic"?

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225 Cubic Inches of Iron-Head American Muscle

225 bored .040 /.100 off block, Schneider Cam 224@.050~ .480 lift - Stock valves, blended bowls, Offenhauser intake with 500 Edelbrock carb

You certainly can use a regular feeler gauge to set your points, as long as it's very clean (free of oil) and not so large that it tends to lever the points open wider than the actual width of the gauge.

The only application where a nonmagnetic gauge is needed is in setting the air gap between the reluctor and pickup in an electronic distributor.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Thanks, Dan!

Please explain.....

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225 Cubic Inches of Iron-Head American Muscle

225 bored .040 /.100 off block, Schneider Cam 224@.050~ .480 lift - Stock valves, blended bowls, Offenhauser intake with 500 Edelbrock carb

stupid question here.

Dwell = the amount of time the points are open, right? wrong?

Thanks,

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-76 Cordoba, 360 4bbl
-68 Valiant, 273 2bbl
-67 Dart /6 4bbl, Leaning Tower of Power!!!

Dwell is the degrees of rotation the points are closed. The actual time varies with rpm. Set the gap, but the dwell is the final word for getting it right.

Ok, stupid question #2. Is there a FAQ or article on how I set the dwell. I don't think I saw anything in the articles on it.

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-76 Cordoba, 360 4bbl
-68 Valiant, 273 2bbl
-67 Dart /6 4bbl, Leaning Tower of Power!!!

You need a dwell meter. Not so common these days but was the norm for any tune up work in the past. You may find a small digital one if they still sell them at the auto parts stores or you surely could find a nice older one on ebay.

If you are looking at spending any amount of money on a meter, I would just look at converting to electronic ignition instead. It will run better and never need points again. I like the stock mopar magnetic distributor, but if you just want to buy one new thing and your distributor is in good condition, the Pertronix kit is a very good way to go and simple. I have installed about a dozen of them and they all still work. Some of them are about 15 years old.

Good info. Thank you!

I will look for an old meter somewhere, and take my time about it.

I do want to upgrade to elec. ign. if I can ever get this darn thing running! I figured I'd keep all the old points stuff anyhow. That way if the terrorists ever figured out a way to build an Electro Magnetic Pulse weapon, I'd still have wheels

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-76 Cordoba, 360 4bbl
-68 Valiant, 273 2bbl
-67 Dart /6 4bbl, Leaning Tower of Power!!!

The dwell isn't a separate adjustment, per se. It is controlled by the point gap adjustment. Wider point gap = less dwell. Narrower point gap = more dwell. Checking the dwell with a dwellmeter gives you an idea of whether the distributor's point cam is in acceptable condition, or if it is worn. It also serves as a means of determining if a used set of breaker points is still in good enough condition to keep running. If the points' rubbing block has worn significantly, you won't be able to attain the correct point gap and the correct dwell at the same time.

So yes, a dwellmeter is a nice thing to have when you're tuning a points car, but you don't need one, strictly speaking, if the points distributor isn't going to stay in the car permanently and you're just trying to get it running. Set the point gap to the middle of the range, check it on all six point cam high spots, and move on.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Funny you should mention that! for some reason I decided to check the gap on each of the breaker lobes. It turned out that two of the lobes wouldn't open the points and one other was really weak.

I looked a little harder and found that the distributor shaft was bent. When I spun it by hand very quickly you could see the rotor end wobble.

So I pulled the shaft out of a spare dist and swapped 'em.

What in the heck could cause a distributor shaft to bend???

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-76 Cordoba, 360 4bbl
-68 Valiant, 273 2bbl
-67 Dart /6 4bbl, Leaning Tower of Power!!!

Age, wear, lack of lubrication (there's an oiler on the side of the distributor...frequently ignored for decades at a time), and the distributor shaft gnomes.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.