Don,

I suspect that in my first attempt to get the distributor back in, I was off by just a tad and that it was enough to still engage the oil pump shaft and turn it while the gears engaged with the cam shaft. The result was the distributor being able to drop in fully but being off by a bit.

Then my subsequent tries at reinstalling the distributor kept advancing the oil pump driveshaft so that the only way it could go in all the way was with the rotor advanced even further.

Here's a picture of what the top of the oil pump shaft looks like: http://www.handymanlyness.com/archiv...d_99_Jimmy.jpg

The bottom of the distributor shaft has a pin that goes across a deep recess that engages this. http://www.rockauto.com/info/301/888...mary__ra_p.jpg

I used my largest flat blade screwdriver to engage the oil driveshaft and rotated it to where I thought it would be advanced enough so that when the distributor engaged it while rotating along the camshaft gears it would all line up. Fortunately, I got it right on my first try. Then again, I had put it in and pulled it out several times by then so I had a feel for the amount of extra rotation it would need.

For reference, there are 13 teeth on the distributor drive gear which translates to about 28 degrees per tooth. That means that if you are off by one tooth, it would be pretty noticeable. http://www.rockauto.com/info/903/6D1037_2__ra_p.jpg

Of course, when it comes time to start the truck up again, one of the most important things I'll be looking at is the oil pressure!

I'll tell you, after doing this, I have a whole new appreciation for doing distributor work on my 1968 Mustang with a 289. It engages with the oil pump driveshaft using a hex shaped hole so that it is easier to engage. But most importantly it is on the FRONT of the engine so you can see what is going on! :-)

Christine

P.S. As extra insurance I disconnected the battery at the start of my repair so that there would be NO chance I even accidentally could rotate the crank shaft.

 

my little comment was supposed to be a joke....[tongue in cheek I guess]...I've been there before.....

I've cussed GM for years because they would not redesign to put that disty in the front [I'm sure it had all to do with ford doing it first ;-).......you know we used to have to change plugs points and condenser every ten k.......if we wanted an engine to run to a 100k.....

that distributor is the reason why i dumped the air out of my front tires, when i did the lim job on my blazer.......

 

Got my dash and everything buttoned up today, and I'm quite proud of myself for not having a SINGLE screw, nut, or bolt left over

Everything works, and the heat is hot as hell once again and no misty antifreeze from the vents!

Even took the time to change the turn signal switch while I was working in there; the old one the buttons were almost completely worn off, and the wipers have been acting retarded for a while now even after changing the control board in the motor about 4 times with no help... Had the switch sitting in the garage, was just waiting on a reason to be in the dash lol

 

Today I went and got the 3 aluminum skidplates for my 05 jimmy...after seeing them online for $80+ a piece I got them all at pick'n pull for $30 altogether...cashier listed them as "heat shields" lol
So far so good but I got them from what i think was a '95 or '96 blazer. I didnt check what tcase it had (np231?), but i have a 236. The tcase plate doesnt fit as is but it looks like if i just make a little hole/relief cut for the drain plug it will work perfect...

 

LOL We're good.

Oh yes, if I had had a points/condenser GM distributor car it would have driven me nuts. Then again one nice feature on some of them was the little window on the side that would let you adjust the dwell while it was running with an allen wrench. I wish Ford had done that.

As for working on my Blazer, I have a 2" suspension lift and so I've been getting a lot of use out of my step-stool!

A hint that got from somewhere that has helped immensely was to tie the hood up to a roof beam so that the hood prop would be out of the way.

Christine

 

that distributor is the reason why i dumped the air out of my front tires, when i did the lim job on my blazer.....

Why didn't I think of that?

 

Bought a Thrush Welded #17655 muffler to install when I do the catalytic converter this weekend.
Still can't make up my mind on what kind of tailpipe.

 

Got the motor just about all back together after installing a new (upgraded) LIM gasket and new fuel injection spider.

I still need to do a coolant flush and power steering flush along with an oil change and install the last two spark plugs (the two closest to the driver).

 

I had to change my radiator after the flush and fill.........I washed the crap out of the cracks in the plastic, I would guess??.......So if your radiator is original......You need to watch for leaks,,,,

good luck on the start-up.......

 

First repair on my '01 Blazer (just got it a month ago)

Previous owner repaired a crack in the radiator with JB Weld. Well, that gave up on my way home from work yesterday. spraying coolant all over the place. So, I replaced the radiator last night, took almost 5 hours by myself with a few surprises.

1. The lower fan shroud was broken. The previous owner zip tied the pieces to keep them in place.
2. The transmission cooling lines were sooo freakin hard to get back on. Holy crap. Almost like the lines were too short to reach the connectors
3. The petcock drain had no where to drip "cleanly" to the pan. Fluid was running all over the place, dripping and made a nasty mess
4. Dropped a upper fan shroud screw down into the engine depths. Christ help me, I never found it
5. tested for leaks this morning, just had to tighten up the top trans cooling line. No more drip .... drove to work