OK found what was leaking. After doing my water pump I found out my intake was leaking. Well pretty bad. Ok after replacing the intake gaskets. My truck wont start. My buddy forgot to mark the distrubutor before pulling it. Now how do I get this truck to start. I am officially stumped. Please Help!!
Thanks,

Brian

 

Brian, your timing is off, as you have figured out. Setting it back right involves getting the #1 piston on the top of the compression stroke with the timing marks lined up, ifthere areany, and putting the distributor back in so the rotor is lined up with the contact for the #1 plug wire with the distributor all the way down. That will get you in the ballpark. Then, if there are any timing marks, you need to set the timing with a timing light, which probably requires unplugging the timing override wire from the engine control module (computer). Go ahead and spend the money to get a Haynes manual from your local parts store, it can walk you through the procedure step by step for your particluar model. And the manual is always good to have anyway. I hope it works out for you.

 

If you know which rocker is the intake on number one, you can remove the valve cover and turn the crank manually to the timing mark of dead 0 and watch the rocker to once you have it set to TDC 1, then you can set your distributor in as such. The 0 mark on the harmonic balancer hits it twice on intake and exhaust. Having the valve cover off is the only sure fire way to tell if you are on the intake stroke or the exhaust stroke.
Good luck

 

When I did mine, I ended up pulling plug#1 and had a friend stick a straw inside the plug hole until it touched the cylinder head (make sure it's a long enough straw!). Then I had him watch the straw and make marks while I was turning the crank manually. Like MNHawk said, you will hit the 0 mark twice, but its only on the compression stroke where the straw will be pushed out the most. The Haynes manual was pretty helpful in describing the proper positioning of the distributor once your on TDC. I can't remember the exact position, and wont even attempt to guess. I've heard from other people that if you're lucky, both will line up and the distributor will just drop into place. No luck for me, I took us two tries to get it right, so just be patient. Both times it dropped down a notch then we had to turn the crank again slightly to get the oil pump to line up.

 

your piston should move the same ammount every stroke no higher or lower depending on if it is on the intake or exhauste cycle.

 

With athumb or finger over the spark plug holeyou will feel compression building as the piston starts upward on the compression stroke.Then I do stick a straw or something similar in the hole to find the top of stroke. But I didn't want to be responsible for telling someone else to do it in case they didn't hold it straight in line and got in a bind and broke off in the holeas the piston came up, especially if they used a stick or something really dumb like a screwdriver. That's the way I've always seen it done, never heard about removing the valve cover. Never too old to learn ..., but I'm close.

 

Ok I have done everything I possibly could. I got the motor to TDC and pulled the distrubutor out and lined it up with the number one spark plug on the distrubutor. It still wont fire and it is backfiring. I really don't know whats going on. I have changed the cap/rotor and tomorrow I will be changing the plugs and wires. Is anyone around the Chicagoland area that would want to help me with this. Please.
Thanks,

Brian

 

If it's backfiring, its firing, just at the wrong time. Sounds exactly like you have it 180 degrees out of timing, meaning top dead center of the Exhaust stroke instead of the compression stroke. I've seen it enough to know the symptoms. Don't run out and buy more parts, take a deep breath, gather your patience, and go at it one more time. The good news is, if you are 180 out, you're almost there, it will be easy from here. Now you can simply mark the crank pulley, carefully turn thecrankshaft exactly ONE revolution. Pull the distributor cap and the rotor will be 180 degrees from where you want it. With the crank still on the mark, pull the distributor 1 more time and line rotor back up with the #1 plug wire contact inside the distributor.(The contact inside isn't always in line with the wire on the outside.) No more fishing in the spark plug hole. I'll bet you it will work and you will be happy and smarter. Let us know how it turns out. Remember, patience. And, making mistakes is how we learna lotof what we know.

 

Brian, me again. I forgot the very important first step. Before you mark the crank, turn it so the rotor is pointing at the #1 wire just like you did before. Then, as I said, mark the crank pulley and carefully rotate it ONE turn. Now the rotor will be pointing the opposite way. Pull the distributor and line it up with the #1 again and you will be set. (the crank makes 2 revolutions; exhaust and compression, while the cams and distributor make 1.Another way of putting it is when the crank turns once, the distributor makes half a turn. That'swhy its easy to be 180 degrees out of timing.Happens all the time.)

 

One more time. Let me clarify this. Before you mark the crank, turn the Crank so the rotor is pointing to #1. Don't pull the distributor until you rotate the crank and the rotor is pointing the opposite way.
Man, its harder do describe it than it is to do it.