timming light

[oneday!]

evening guys
i have three notch pulley on the bus i no the middle one is 7.5 degrees so do i time this to the split in the crank case with the light or is it so that the you just pick up the notch
cheers
leon

 

[JLT]

evening guys
i have three notch pulley on the bus i no the middle one is 7.5 degrees so do i time this to the split in the crank case with the light or is it so that the you just pick up the notch
cheers
leon

I think we need a little more information. I don't know if there's a difference between the American and European configurations for the '71, but the ones over here only had one notch on the pulley, and that was for 5 degrees ATDC. This was because these were fitted with the 34 PICT-3 and a vacuum advance/retard distributor. If, however, you have another distributor -- say a vacuum advance or a non-vacuum distributor like the 009, then the 7.5 is the mark you want to time your engine to.

The fact that your pulley has three notches means one of the following:

• You engine is actually a '68-70 engine, in which case the timing should be set to 0 degrees TDC. (John Muir gives the engine codes for this series as HI, BI, or H5000001)
  
• You have the wrong pulley for your engine.
  
• You have the right pulley, and the right engine, but it's not the configuration that was shipped to America.

If I were you, I'd take it to a VW shop and have them time it dynamically so that the timing is correct when fully advanced (around 30 degrees BTDC at around 3000-3500 rpm, IIRC). When you get home, rotate the engine statically until the light goes on, and make a mark on the pulley at the crankcase seam. Use white paint or something. Then, when you set your timing thereafter, use that mark.

I guess I should mention that your dwell has to be set accurately before you do all this. You can do this with a dwell tach, or with a feeler gauge and a lot of luck, or using a procedure I wrote up here:

http://www.itinerant-air-cooled.com/viewtopic.php?t=6773&highlight=" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[Loxy]

This might help:
http://beetle.motorious.org/wiki/Engine_and_clutch_%28stock%29/Crankshaft_pulleys" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[oneday!]

niceone lox,jlt so i take it this is a different engine to what should be in my 71 it has engine code ad436671-9 mind you i dont no if its a 9 on the end it might be just a mark if that makes any sense and the engine case is in gold dont no if that means anything or its just been painted that colour i was told when i bought it the engine had ony done a couple of hundred miles but it doesent look like to me but she sounds sweet and pulls well the van that is :lol:

leon

 

[froggy]

If the engines gold then chances are its a recon from the engine shop (TES)

 

[cyberdyne systems]

Timing is only dependant on which distributor you are running, so first list the number on that for us. If you have a timing light with advance and say you need to set it to 7.5 degrees, then you dial in that number and using the tdc mark time the engine.

Gareth

 

[oneday!]

so i dont use the 7.5 mark i use the tdc mark instead? :shock: ive timmed it to the 7.5 notch bollocks oh and im using 009 dizzy
ive been de-bating if i should put the og vacum advance back on her as i have a couple in the garage what you think?

 

[Bugman]

If you are using the 7.5^ Mark then you need to adjust the "advance" of the strobe to show (IMHO no more 30^ total advance) a maximum of 32^ total advance - that means the engine will be revving somewhere between 2500 - 3700 rpm
The strobe will have a 24^ advance on the display (24+7.5)

If you are setting your timing with a 009 with the engine at idle then you have done it wrong

If you want to do the timing on the TDC mark then just set the strobe to 32^ (or 30^ which ever is your preference) and rev the engine untill the distributor has fully advanced, and do yout timing adjustments from there.

You can then adjust your idle speed using the carb settings to avhieve the 800-900rpm

 

[VWAIRCOOLED]

I would sell the 009 on ebay and fit the vac dizzy then time it to 7.5 degrees.Make sure the vacuum can isn't leaking on the dizzy.To do this you can suck the metal pipe on the dizzy and the plate should spin round a bit. It depends what timing light you've got and how you use it to what mark you aim for.If you've got one with just a trigger and no fancy buttons/dials then aim for the 7.5 notch.If you've got a fancy one you can do two things,either leave it on 0 and aim for the 7.5 notch or dial the timing light to 7.5 and aim for the TDC mark.When setting the idle RPM timing remove the vacuum hose from the dizzy and plug the end.Check the mechanical advance is working when you rev the engine the notch should advance smoothly as you rev it.Then check the vac advance is working,put the vacuum hose back on and hold it at certain revs remove and put back on the vacuum hose It should advance as you put the hose on.Check a manual for reference for specific settings on advance.

The fancy tool is much better because using the dial you can check the advance is working properly by dialing in the advance expected,rev the engine to the right RPM and check the mark lines up with the TDC notch.

 

[oneday!]

ok niceone bugman aircooled im running twin 35 this wont make any difference will it?

 

[Bugman]

Nope - timing is determined by the dizzy

 

[cyberdyne systems]

so i dont use the 7.5 mark i use the tdc mark instead? :shock: ive timmed it to the 7.5 notch bollocks oh and im using 009 dizzy
ive been de-bating if i should put the og vacum advance back on her as i have a couple in the garage what you think?

Listen to what VWAIRCOOLED wrote, as its a much clearer explanation. If you have a good condition vacuum style distributor, you should find it will be a smoother drive compared to the 009.

 

[oneday!]

all sorted cheers fellas