Thanks for the tips Harvester. I shouldn't have any trouble getting the distributor out as I just had it out. It sounds like I may have made the mistake of thoroughly cleaning the distributor an putting it back in dry. Should I lube the shaft with grease before replacing it? Would lithium grease be acceptable to use?
When I replaced the distributor, I gave the grease cup a bit of a turn, but maybe this wasn't enough to make up for a totally dry shaft.