No start on 54-1173

[Kendo]

IS the timing correct? Could the distributor have slipped?

[Gary t]

It won't move if I push it
I'm starting to wonder if it is a cap fault.

[jbcollier]

Check inside the cap for arcing.  Check for high resistance in the wires (which could cause arcing).

Swap in another condenser.  The engine can behave very oddly indeed with a failed condenser.

[Gary t]

I had the cap 9ff and it looks nice and clean inside  I'll get a new condenser tomorrow but there is no indication of point arcing. And I'll  check the resistance of the wires.

[cazman]

I had a similar situation and it was the ground strap. All looked good, but the bolt to the frame was loose and that was enough to provide the symptoms that you are experiencing. Cleaned it and tightened it and all worked.

[Gary t]

Thanks for the suggestion but I am pretty confident in my ground strap, it cranks fine, and I spent a good bit of thought into it when I did the electrical work.

[Gary t]

OK new condenser in no change
What am I missing?  Do these engines skip teeth on the timing chain? Can I check that with the engine in the car?
And yes the rotor goes around.

[kram350kram]

Put 12v power directly to the coil ,see if it starts.

[jbcollier]

They have very good chain wrap on both sprockets so, no, they are not known to jump teeth.  That said, anything can happen.

Remove your plugs.  Plug #1 spark plug hole with your thumb.  "Bump" the starter until you feel pressure under your thumb.  Put it in fourth gear.  Nudge the car forward until the timing marks line up.  Look at your cap and rotor, everything line up?  Rotor points to the correct cylinder?  Nudge it back and forth around the timing marks.  Points opening at (roughly) the right time?

That should tell you if something has jumped or slipped.

[Gary t]

Thanks John that is more or less what I had in mind for the next  step.  Today is full of non car stuff so you won't hear anything until tomorrow.

[GavinT]

G'day Gary,

I might be off on a tangent here but is the tach wiring secure behind the dash?

I'm picking up on a possible tach related issue because I experienced a similar thing when my car was first rebuilt, only in my case, the ignition went out altogether. It turned out to be a wire on the tach which was shorting to something or other though I can't remember precisely.

I'm thinking there should to be an explanation for both the ignition issue and the tach going berserk in tandem and all of which occurs intermittently.

[Gary t]

OK everyone thanks so much for all of the help and suggestions. John got me on the correct path,  it was in fact that the distributor had turned.  I did a static timing and got it to start.  Timing set and now it starts an the engine accelerates nicely. I now have the  distributor clamp bolt torqued to about 100 ftlb (well maybe not quite).
On a side note how does the distributor shaft get lubricated?

[jbcollier]

Glad it's sorted.

It is lubricated on assembly.  The odd drop of oil into the works is a good idea.  By "works" I mean the advance mech, not the points.

[Gary t]

So anybody that thinks a result is the end of the problem I say ha ha fooled you.
As I said last time fixed all is good, well not true. I took it out for a drive around the neighborhood, about a km out the car just switched off it was running fine just  like I had switched the ignition off.
Troubleshooting lead me to the ammeter, yes open shunt. Now why did that happen,  put my 15 Amp fuse in the battery positive lead, plugged the battery lead into the ammeter them the alternator lead and a nice little 15 Amp spark. Why? The distributor had turned again and shorted the alternator to ground through the  vacuum advance.  Now to put it all back together.
But there will still be a problem,  why does the distributor turn?

[Richard48Y]

I would suggest bringing the engine to No. 1 TDC and removing the distributor from the engine.
Remove the cap and spin the distributor by hand, does it spin freely (Only point drag if you still use them) or does it seem a bit tight?
If tight it may be close to seizing and the extra drag is turning the body.
Distributor may need refurbishing or replacement.