steel wool is not the thing to use in/around the distributor, you do not want any fine bits of metal fluff in there
the points are what's being adjusted in fig 31, they have a block that rides on the central shaft, which is hexagonal shaped down there - as the distributor shaft turns those points open and close, when open they have a specified gap, and they should only be 'dressed' with a points file [very fine] - the plastic doobie on top the shaft that rotates to make contact with the cap pins is the 'rotor'
to get the points to an open position, at the top of any high spot on the distributor cam, manually turn the engine via the fan [plugs out if tough to turn with them in], or bump the starter until you luck onto a high spot - with a foot start you can usually do that by levering the starter button with a large screwdriver or bar against the floor
Bill
