I hesitate to ask this, because I assume it has been asked before, but I have not been able to find the answer by searching this forum.
I am getting ready to install a distributor I received from a fellow Stovebolter. I got it cleaned up and reassembled, but since it came to me as a used unit, I don't know if it is all there.
The thing that causes me to wonder if I have all the parts is that there doesn't seem to be an 'O' ring or any other seal between the housing of the distributor and the block.
I have read several articles about installing the distributor and about the vacuum advance, but...is there nothing between the housing and the block to keep whatever blow-by from making a mess of the underside of the distributor and the block? I have looked at exploded diagrams and don't notice anything I don't have.
If it just goes in the way it is, does the distributor just get dropped down into the hole so the the tang at the bottom engages the oil pump and that sets the height? Does one raise the distributor up a 32nd or so to decrease wear on the oil pump?
What am I missing...?
Nick 1940 KC Model 1/2 Ton Pickup Project (with '37-'39 Bed and what we think is a '42-'46 Frame) Taos, New Mexico
Make real sure the distributor is in far enough, as it is possible to engage the gears without engaging the tang to the oil pump. I debugged a GMC 270 (uses the same distributor) that did not spin the pump, but did spin the disrtibutor. I have insert dimensions for GMC, but not Chevy.
'57 GMC 102, Original 347 V8, HydraMatic, 3.08 rear gear, added A/C, disk front brakes, HEI, AFB carb, '98 Honda Black Currant paint. T-boned and totaled 10/12 '52 GMC 152 Stake Bed, Original 228, SM420, added A/C, HEI, disk front brakes, '67 Chev 3.55 rear gear. Gets used as a real truck.
The groove in the housing is there to keep liquid oil from getting splashed onto the housing and creeping up to overflow. No O ring is needed. If there's enough blowby to force oil past the groove, the engine has serious problems. At any speed above 30 MPH, there's enough airflow past the end of the road draft tube to create a slight negative pressure in the crankcase. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
Nick, I bought a gasket to use when I installed my distributor, but in did not fit over the lip on the vacuum advance. So I took a razor and trim a little bit off the inside diameter. I guess you probably don't need the gasket, but that's the way I installed mine. I also wonder if there's a gasket that does fit over the lip - maybe just need a different part number.
~ John in Utah 1946 1/2Ton w/4-speed manual transmission w/1960 235 engine Here We Go Follow in his DITY Bay
- If you think about it, it has been one year ago today!
That gasket is for the194/230/250/292 distributors. Also the V8s. They don't have the recess in the block that the earlier engines have. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
