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Hi Guys.
Pulled a plug, no spark.
The Technical Manual says to pull the distributor in order to inspect/change the points.
That sounds kind of serious, does everyone really do it that way? Is getting the distributor reinstalled successfully really something a newbie can expect to accomplish?
On the other hand, it looks like it would be pretty awkward working on it in place too.
Any guidance, comforting words would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Dan

i did it with the dist in place just pulled the cap

Same here-no need to pull the distributor out. If you did you'd have to realign the offset tang at the bottom of the distributor shaft into the oil pump on install.
Gary

If you were to pull the distributer it really is not all that bad. Remove the cap with wires still attached pull it back tie the cap out of the way then mark the clock position of the distributer and mark the clock position of the rotor cap when it comes out of the engine as it will turn a few degrees (with this marked you can drop it right back in place without a big battle of timing the pump and distributer back together) Disconnect the power feed wire and vent lines you are ready to pull it out of the block. When out on the bench set up of the points is much easier and accurate than doing the job in place. At this time you can inspect the distributor for other concerns such as brittle wires chafing, worn bushings, plugged vent lines. When all is checked and repaired all of the marks and references that were made make it very quick and easy to drop it back in and you’re good to go without retiming the pump or distributer.
I have found that any time you have to replace points in these older systems the likely hood of other problems that can arise are very good if you don’t take the time to look at the whole component .

hb

FYI,

Don't forget to lube the wicks while you are doing your PM.

Bert

Hey...... Welcome back to the real world HB. Good advice on removing the distributor. Newbies SHOULD
experiment with minor repairs to get a "feel" for working on their "M" 's. These old trucks almost always
need more r and r than what is apparent at first glance. Besides, it's a good way to establish a "baseline"
for each and every maintenance chore that you perform. Short of that, you don't know what has been
done previously or the quality of work or the extent of other unexpected problems.

Thanks for the reminder from Bert to lube the wicks.

Any other questions??? .... ask on this forum and/or do a "search" on your question.
JB

has someone bean playing with V8's?

hb wrote: mark the clock position of the rotor cap when it comes out of the engine as it will turn a few degrees

the military distributor has an offset tang on the end of the shaft and will only go in one way . the oil pump is timed to the cam. the civilian distributor/oil pump is not offset and will go in 180* out

RMS wrote:has someone bean playing with V8's?

hb wrote: mark the clock position of the rotor cap when it comes out of the engine as it will turn a few degrees

the military distributor has an offset tang on the end of the shaft and will only go in one way . the oil pump is timed to the cam. the civilian distributor/oil pump is not offset and will go in 180* out

RMS: You ARE right about the off-set tang.... at least on M series military vehicles . I had a '42 Dodge WC Carryall (military) and it did not have an
off set tang on the distrib. shaft. Dummy me, I tried and tried to get the old girl started but it only popped and belched fire and smoke
out of the carb. Checked and re-checked the firing order and cam timing, but still only fourth of July pops and bangs. Finally pulled the distr. Rotated
the shaft 180 degrees AND reset the plug wire firing order. Fired right off after that. I concluded that someone else had been fooling with it before
I bought it. All that being said it's still not a bad idea to "clock" the rotor and the distrib. body before removing. Helps newbies and dummies like me
to get my head on straight.
Just a hard earned tip for you guys messing with WW II Dodges.
JB

[

RMS wrote:has someone bean playing with V8's?

That was a practice that I had used in the thirty plus years working in the automotive/aviation industries as a flat rate technetium. every movement cost you time and lost time doesn’t pay the rent.
By taking a moment to mark and take notes of different things you can make the job so much easier and cut off literally hours of rework. I used to watch other techs do jobs and steal some of their methods and ideas and they did the same with me.
So yuup a lot of V8’s were played with! Thanks for noticing!!

hb

[quote="m37jarhead"]Hey...... Welcome back to the real world HB.

Thanks Jerry

hb

i mentioned it because when i first got my truck a mechanic buddy told me to do the same, mark the rotor....

I must have spent hour's pulling on the distributor trying to get that rotor to turn a few degrees

RMS wrote:i mentioned it because when i first got my truck a mechanic buddy told me to do the same, mark the rotor....

I must have spent hour's pulling on the distributor trying to get that rotor to turn a few degrees

I bet you did!!! turning the rotor still in the engine is real tough to do!!!! That sounds like my early years of repairs.
Sometimes the assumption that everyone understands what we are talking about gets in our way and we leave out the little details that are trivial to us but critical to the layman. Just like the term it’s just right over there!! Ok where the heck is right over there??

hb

I must have got lucky. First time dealing with points and pulling the distro, kinda eyeballed it and once I got the fuel issue sorta solved (enough to verify it wasn't a spark issue) fired right off.

I will agree with making notes though, I have no idea what has been done to my M other than a poorly executed 12v con, part of the reason I'm going to go back to a manual fuel pump until I can sort out the wiring.