i did a search and am trying to understand total timing my question is if i set total timing first to 36-38 at 3000 does this automaticly set inital timing if not how is it done i've read alot of the articles in the search but it is not clicking in my mind and what do i have to do if my total timing is all in by 2300 it seems real early to me do i need stiffer springs? please help any ideas thanks

stiffer springs will delay the rate of mechanical advance. Total timing is checked with the vacume advance disconnected. Total advance is your initial advance setting at idle plus the total amount of mechanical advance your distributor has. Vacume advance is functional only at part throttle and disappears at wide open throttle. I usually disconnect the vacume advance and tune for good acceleration trying different initial settings and also the rate and amount of mechanical. When satisfied with the performance (good throttle response and no hesitations during acceleration) then I add vacume advance in small amounts with an adjustable advance unit until ping is heard then back some out. Carb tuning is also usually necessary, first tune the idle circuit, then move on to main jet, then enrichment circuit and accelerator pump shot volume and rate. When the perfect tune is found you'll be able to floor it from a dead stop without hesitation and it should pull cleanly through the rpm band. At part throttle cruize condition the plugs should be burning clean. Bob

thanks for the reply bob i see that your from mich. also what part? so i guess what you are saying is it is a hit and miss i have usually just tuned by ear but i'm having a hard time getting this one right so i thought i would try learning how to get the timing right and seeing how setting total timing would effect performance.I have a dial back timming light plus the degrees on the balancer so if i set the inital at say 16 deg. how do i get the total from there i know to disconect the vac adv do i set the timing light to say 38 rev it up till the the pointer and bal are at 0 graemlins/clonk.gif i am just not getting this what happens if it is not comming in where it's suppossed to how do i change it?

read third post:

http://www.chevelles.com/forum/ultimatebb.php/topic/35/2252.html

thanks for the link jeff that is also interesting on the vacume i've always used ported vac am going to mess around with it today see what i get smile.gif

well i have tried setting timing what is happing now is when i go to check total timing it still comes in at about 2200 but the light is flickering out i've set the advance on the timing light to 36 deg. and rev engine to get marks to 0 it comes in at about 2200 and the light starts missing beats i put in a heavier springs so it would not come in so sooner whats can cause the timing light to do that? it is a new proform dist.w/ 50,000 coil what should i check for ? thanks

I'm sure it has to do with the timing light, you could try it on another plug wire to verify if it's the light or the wire/ignition system. Your timing marks will mean nothing on another wire but at least you'll be able to see if the light flickers on another wire. Your total engine, drivetrain, and vehicle combination will determine what advance curve you'll need. Fuel also has a very large effect on what timing curve to use. I run a 355 with 180 psi cranking compression with 87 octane gas in a daily driver with no problems, but it took awhile to get the fuel and spark curve right. The lower the octane and heavier the vehicle the less initial and slower mechanical will need to be.

i will check that tomorrow bob it is a brand new craftsman light. mine is also a 355 10-1 compression 202 heads w/ 205 valves have no idea as to the cam specs it ran great when i first got it then it seemed to loose power still gets up and goes just not like it did i run 93 octain not having any detonation i'll keep trying thanks for all the help so far