Remove #1 spark plug.
Mark a line on the distributor housing that lines up with #1 plug wire. ( I use a paint pen)
Remove the distributor cap.
disconnect the wires to the coil
Either use a remote starter or an assistant to "bump" the starter...don't crank the engine over, just bump it so it turns a little at a time.
Put your finger on the spark plug hole and check for compression. When you feel tha air pressure on your finger stop bumping the starter.
Check your timing marks on the crankshaft pully and use a socket and ratchett to align the timing mark at "0" on the timing cover.
When thats all lining up, look at your distributor rotor, it should be lined up with the mark you made on the distributor housing

 

Guys,

Thanks for the quick response; I have questions on the above advice.

1) Remove #1 spark plug.
Ok, that’s the spark plug on the driver’s side closest to the front of the vehicle, got it.

2) Mark a line on the distributor housing that line up with #1 plug wire. (I use a paint pen)
Distributor Housing is the piece that bolts into the engine, which houses the rotating metal plate, right?

3) Remove the distributor cap.
Easy, done that a few times.

4) Disconnect the wires to the coil
Easy again, I have labeled them with some tape so I know which #'s are what.

5) Either use a remote starter or an assistant to "bump" the starter...don't crank the engine over, just bump it so it turns a little at a time.
Ok, I will get someone to help, no probs.

6) Put your finger on the spark plug hole and check for compression. When you feel the air pressure on your finger stop bumping the starter.
Easy, although you guys must have long fingers, its real hard to get a finger to cover the threaded hole.... there is a half round heat shield that covers the hole from the reach if you are above the engine leaning in. I think it may be possible though.

7) Check your timing marks on the crankshaft pulley and use a socket and ratchet to align the timing mark at "0" on the timing cover.
Ok, this is where you guys loose me? I know there are 2 lines on the crankshaft pulley, If I position one vertically up, i.e. 12 o'clock, which is this, compression or exhaust? Then if the other is on the side going clockwise, what is this line?
The "0" on the timing cover, where is this, is this the round piece cast into the lower part of the engine on the right hand side.

8) When that’s all lining up, look at your distributor rotor, it should be lined up with the mark you made on the distributor housing
Ok, that’s the "needle" on the rotor disc. I think that makes sense.


The confusion is just the "0" on the timing cover, and how and what to align, and what line to align it with.

If you are looking at the front of the engine (standing in front of the front bumper) which way does the engine rotate, is it clockwise, if so then that makes sense if the first line is the compression and second exhaust.

I think the only thing I can remember from Engine Class 101 is: "Suck Squeeze Bang Blow"

Sorry for the detailed questions, I'm sure for all you Mechanical Guru’s these are probably dumb questions, but I am learning...........

Thanks,
Ryan.

 

My program for editing images is not working, argh!
So I have a picture of a timing cover, the notch on the cover is "0".
When you turn the engine and you feel the compression, the next line on the crankshaft you see coming to line up with the mark on the timing cover is TDC #1.
If you can't get your finger in there to feel the compression, use a compression tester hose.

Compression is the Squeeze in engine class 101

It looks like you have the rest of it though
Carry on, keep us up to date. I will sigh a large breath of relief when you get this engine running.

Oops, forgot the pic and I found another with the crank lined up...not the best pic, but the best I can do for now


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Well I have good news to post, the beast finally started.......

I finally broke down and decided to do this right; I removed the plastic fan cover/shroud and complete fan assembly, and then slipped off the belt (that tensioner is the easiest one I have ever had to deal with! Great!). Disassembled the steering shaft to the steering gear to allow better access to that driver's middle plug. Took all plugs out and installed a compression tester gauge in cylinder #1. Bumped the engine and found the compression point, then lined up the line on the bottom crank with the v-mark and moved the rotor assembly to position 1, and low and behold all my old marks now lined back up again......

Left all the fan and belts off and replaced the upper intake plenum with a couple of bolts in and it started and ran. Didn't let it run for too long, as everything was apart.

Very relieved that it started and has the potential to run good, however I do have some questions, and I thought I would keep them on this post as it kinds of relates to the whole project. Just incase anyone has the same problems as me.

These assume that you are standing in front of the engine looking towards the back of the vehicle.

1) After removing the steering linkage (the one that goes from just under the brake reservoir down to the front linkage connector on the right) I removed the bolt at the linkage and pushed it back (with a bar I might add..) so I could lift it up, easy and worked a treat, however now trying to get it back together again I tried to get it lined up with the flat and the teeth which is the easy part, however, I can't seem to slide it back down onto the teeth, it doesn’t seem to want to slide down? Is there an easier way of putting this back together?

2) I removed all the coolant as I had to take off the main intake chamber below the spider assembly to retrieve my clip (see above lol) I disconnected the top right radiator hose only and twisted the bottom right plug to allow the coolant to escape. Now that I have it running I had better put the coolant back in so I don’t overheat the thing if I idle it for too long. I filled up the coolant tank (maybe overflow tank its on the left hand side of the engine) and it doesn’t want to flow down into the radiator. There is a cap on the top left, but I can’t get it off, it only twists about 45 deg and then lifts up about 1/4" probably just to relieve pressure? Anyway, how do I get the coolant back into the system. Do I have to wait for the thermostat to open and then it will flow through the system?

3) Will the computer have to learn for a while whilst the engine is running, it seems a little rough, just wondered if it will settle down in time.

Thanks for all the advice; it has been quite a journey, and one that I have enjoyed tremendously....there is a great wealth of knowledge on this board and I appreciate it very much.

Any help on these questions would be appreciated.

 

the cap on the radiator WILL come off.

give it a push inward and try turning it further. that is where you fill the radiator. Pick up a new cap for a few bucks.

 

(1) I don't know for sure, but I would think that if you put some vise grips on the shaft, then tap the vice grips with a hammer, the shaft should slide back down to the gear.

(2) When you turn the rad cap to loosen it, when it stops at 1/4 turn, push down and continue to turn. By pushing it down you turn it past the lock.

(3) You really shouldn't run the engine without all the plenum bolts in, and tightened. If you get it together and it still runs rough, you might have to remove the plenum again and replace the gasket.

Good for you to get it running!

when you fill the rad, run the engine until the coolant level drops (now the thermostat is open) top up the coolant and replace the cap.

 

Wow! Good job on getting it running again!

And yeah, I completely agree with Rob!

 

Thanks to all for the responses.

I managed to get the radiator cap off, it was on there real tight........I had to get some vice grips and push real hard down and rotate it at the same time, I have got a new one to put on there. I filled it nearly to the top and will do as instructed below once I get it running when I get it all back together.

I have a new plenum gasket so will replace that once I put everything back together again. I want to make sure all my leads and wires are out of the way of the manifold so they won't burn or get to hot.
Do you reconmend on getting new plenum bolts? or just clean and reuse the old ones, they are not to bad, just some small amount of junk on the threads.

I am doing the oil next, I have a new filter and plan on getting some SAE 5W-30 oil (at least thats what it says on the filler cap). Anyone got any recomendations on brand, I think I want to put a high mileage oil in, as she has 115k, also as mainly used inthe winter should i change the viscosity of the oil to something differnt, it gets cold but not to cold. I live in Peoria IL. Any tricks on removing oil, I see the oil filter is positioned nice at the front in the flap down panel. Is the drain plug easy to get to if I jack up the front and support with stands?

Anything else I should do preventative to help it through the winter and cold months. The brake fluid looks good, so do the brakes, however I will have to replace them next spring I think.

I also want a good battery with some high CCA, anyone got a preference?

Thanks,
Ryan.

 

I use optima batteries in both of my blazers

 

Nope, not necessary to replace the bolts. Just clean them up good and you'll be fine.

On the oil, get what ever you can justify. I use Mobil 1 synthetic oil in my vehicles, but I do extended oil changes (5k+ miles) and every so often have my oil analyzed. When I switched over to Mobil 1 in my Bravada, it unclogged leaks in my oil pan and alerted me to loose pan bolts (9 of them I could spin out by hand). Synthetic oil does have a tendency to clean out an engine. There could be sludge buildup that is currently blocking a potential leak path and if the synthetic cleans that sludge away, it will leak. This is where synthetic got a bad name in the start because people thought it was the fault of the synthetic oil that their engine was leaking when in fact it was the fault of the conventional oil before it.

With today's additive packages in oils, it really doesn't matter what you run. If you change your oil every 3k miles and use a good quality filter, you should be fine. I won't recommend a filter but you shouldn't pay more than $6 for an oil filter.

I do believe that the high mileage (or 4x4 or whatever) specific oils are a farce.

Your owners manual should have a viscosity chart showing you where to use what oil depending on the environmental conditions.

As for batteries, it seems that the AC Delco's had a bad streak where they were internally corroding on the positive terminal with no signs of failure until things just wouldn't start. I have had VERY good experiences with Deka batteries on my dad's farm. We ran them in all of our tractor trailers and tractors and they all lasted a very long time with some pretty grueling conditions. But then again, most modern batteries are of pretty good quality. If you go with a decent CCA rating, you should be fine for anything the winter has to throw at it.