Greetings!
I replaced the points in this classic '68 Camaro with a Pertronics Ignitor II and prepared to set the ignition timing. I unplugged the vacuum line to the distributor and aimed my timing light at the marks on the balancer. It ran rough at 10 degrees advanced but loved to rev up at 8 degrees retarded. Very strange. The owners of the car told me that it had been rebuilt and had a performance cam that affected the idle. Even taking that into consideration, it still wanted to run with the timing too far retarded. I had to find out why.
I assumed that the small, chrome timing tab was the wrong one for the engine so I inserted a piston block tool into #1 cylinder and rotated the engine each direction until the piston came up and hit the block tool. I made a mark on the balancer each time the piston hit the tool tip and stopped. The center of the distance between the two marks indicated true top dead center. Surprisingly, TDC was 1/2" away from the markings on the chrome timing tab. This explained the way the engine ran when it was set at the retarded mark.
I noticed the size of the harmonic balancer. It was a small 6 3/4" diameter unit usually used on smaller V8 engines like the 283 or 327. I remember the owner telling me that it was a"numbers-matching" car and that the engine was a 327. This seems to check out, but further proof is in the casting numbers
The casting numbers on the rear of the engine were hidden by the transmission linkage bracket but I was able to use my phone camera to get a glimpse of the number and it definitely is among the casting numbers for this vintage Camaro, and not only that but this casting lot of engine blocks is a very desirable block due to it's nickel content. I think the only problem with this combo is the timing tab on the chrome timing cover.
I looked at the heads and saw that they were an aftermarket casting evident by the machined face and the large engraved number. It was marked 4265-1 which turned out to be a World Products cast iron head with a 58cc combustion chamber, just perfect for this 327 hot rod. Last thing on the list is a set of performance headers, something that will clear the Powerglide transmission linkage. The headers, along with the cam, heads and intake, this should make this classic really take off. Especially now that the timing is controlled electronically with the Pertronics unit under the cap!
Doug
I replaced the points in this classic '68 Camaro with a Pertronics Ignitor II and prepared to set the ignition timing. I unplugged the vacuum line to the distributor and aimed my timing light at the marks on the balancer. It ran rough at 10 degrees advanced but loved to rev up at 8 degrees retarded. Very strange. The owners of the car told me that it had been rebuilt and had a performance cam that affected the idle. Even taking that into consideration, it still wanted to run with the timing too far retarded. I had to find out why.
I assumed that the small, chrome timing tab was the wrong one for the engine so I inserted a piston block tool into #1 cylinder and rotated the engine each direction until the piston came up and hit the block tool. I made a mark on the balancer each time the piston hit the tool tip and stopped. The center of the distance between the two marks indicated true top dead center. Surprisingly, TDC was 1/2" away from the markings on the chrome timing tab. This explained the way the engine ran when it was set at the retarded mark.
I noticed the size of the harmonic balancer. It was a small 6 3/4" diameter unit usually used on smaller V8 engines like the 283 or 327. I remember the owner telling me that it was a"numbers-matching" car and that the engine was a 327. This seems to check out, but further proof is in the casting numbers
The casting numbers on the rear of the engine were hidden by the transmission linkage bracket but I was able to use my phone camera to get a glimpse of the number and it definitely is among the casting numbers for this vintage Camaro, and not only that but this casting lot of engine blocks is a very desirable block due to it's nickel content. I think the only problem with this combo is the timing tab on the chrome timing cover.
I looked at the heads and saw that they were an aftermarket casting evident by the machined face and the large engraved number. It was marked 4265-1 which turned out to be a World Products cast iron head with a 58cc combustion chamber, just perfect for this 327 hot rod. Last thing on the list is a set of performance headers, something that will clear the Powerglide transmission linkage. The headers, along with the cam, heads and intake, this should make this classic really take off. Especially now that the timing is controlled electronically with the Pertronics unit under the cap!
Doug
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