Hello, and thanks for help in advance. I've loitered around the forums since around 98/99 and have found many an answer/idea that has helped out, and I'm hoping someone can help me with my distributor situation...

1) Specs:

1973 Ford F-100 ranger XLT
V8 360
2WD
2 Barrel Carb

Nothing too fancy or special about the entire setup. While a fair number of parts have been replaced/repaired it all looks fairly stock.

2) Background:

I'm not a mechanic by trade and this is the first engine replacement I have ever attempted.

Bought a replacement long block engine from Carquest in San Antonio, TX. They have been very helpful at every step of the way (even when I dropped the old engine off for the core refund and realized that I forgot to pull the mechanism that drive the mechanical fuel pump ).

I have put the entire engine compartment back together, EXCEPT for the distributor.

3) The Situation:

The distributor is apparently not seating correctly. At first I had troubles getting the oil pump shaft to even hook into the bottom of the distributor. After about 3 hours total of me randomly trying to place the distributor in the engine at various parts in the build process the darn thing finally appears to have engaged the oil pump shaft.

If you're still with me at this point go ahead and look in my gallery and you will see 2 pictures of the distributor problem.

However, from everyone that I have talked to (1 Ford house, 2 Carquests, 1 NAPA, 1 Autozone, and 1 partridge in a pear tree) they all believe that the distributor should sink further in until the last circular part of the distributor is flush with the top of the intake manifold.

I am scared to turn the engine over cause it was told to me that if the distributor is not seated correctly then the camshaft? could be damaged.

Should be noted that I live 140/160 miles from where the truck currently is ( my parents ranch), so I do not have immediate access to the truck, nor a quick timeline for trying suggestions. However I do have lots of digital photos of higher quality than is in my gallery, so I can email them to anyone.

4) The Request:

I'm at my wits end of trying to figure this darned thing out.

After talking to Carquest again today (I took my laptop in and showed them the same pictures in my gallery) they suggested using emory cloth to wipe all contact edges to make sure that nothing is binding on a burr of any sort. They also suggested to then use some grease to coat the various surfaces that are to come in contact and then to put the distributor in and then take it out to see where things are not touching or where things might be binding based on how the grease has been moved.

Is the distributor really not seated correctly? Or is it in the correct position after all??

I have tried pushing it down further to no avail.

Any other ideas? Tips? Tricks?

If I can’t figure something out I'll have to winch the truck onto a trailer and drop it off at Ford for them to fix, which I would just rather not waste my money on.

Thanks,

JLS

 

Whenever I pull my dist. I almost always have to bump the engine over to get it to drop the last little bit. I usually just cross the solinoid with a screwdriver while pushing down on the dist. You could use a breaker bar or ratchet on the harmonic bal. bolt to do the same thing. i think it's just meshing with the cam gear and bumping the engine over allows it to fully mesh
Clint

 

I was just thinking about the distributor and figured I better note several more things...

1) The body of the distributor can turn freely. Which to means means that the distributor is not binding at the locations where it touches the block or the intake manifold. Which would then place the problem on either the oil pump shaft or on the gear that the distributor engages on the passenger side of the engine.

To 71swissaqua:

Do you mean that you're crossing the battery side of the starter solinoid to the side with the wire that goes to the solinoid? If so, how long do you do that? Just enough to have the starter kick on?

Thanks.

 

I'm jumping the terminal from the pos. side of the battery to the small term. just bump it enough to make the engine turn alittle. Enought to allow the cam to turn and allow the gears to mesh. You could also have a friend bump the key a bit while you hold it down. probably not the safest thing to do so be carefull and make sure the truck is in park and maybe chock the wheels.

 

I will have to take a look at my motor this evening to see how far down the Dist sits in the manifold. But until then... Was the oil pump drive shaft already in the block, or did you need to put that in? You should be able to drop the Dist in and watch the middle rotor turn as it engages the teeth on the camshaft. Does your Dist housing have the "O" ring? If so, I would dab a little vasaline on there to make the install smoother. Let me know about the shaft and I'll take a look at my motor this eve, unless someone else answers your concerns.

--Mike

 

To Mike G:

I replaced the oil pump with the new once that came with the engine and we installed the shaft in the oil pump.

If I turn the crankshaft with a socket the rotor does indeed turn.

The distributor has some sort of seal that has an angle to it. Not sure how to describe it. Will try putting vaseline on it.


Probably won't get to try any suggestions until July 17/24/31... not sure which weekend I will be able to swing.

 

Which end of the rod did you install the oil pumprod lock ring on?
What's that you say?
On the rod there is supposed to be a lock ring, looks like an inside star washer.
That star washer acks like a stop so when you pull the dist. the rod stays in position. Proper install in that the star washer is at the dist end sandwiching the rod between the block and pump. Could it be next to the pump limiting the rod end engaging with the pump leaving to much rod at the Dist. end?

 

That was sort of where I was going with the question... You have to install the oil pump shaft from the bottom, not the top, which was going to be my next question..

JLS73:
Did you install the oil pump shaft from the bottom of the motor with the retaining ring setting on the bottom of the distributor bore, and then install the oil pump?

If the shaft was installed from the top, chances are the shaft is not down far enough and is causing the distributor to not drop completely.

Keep us informed --Mike

 

Thats a good question. I can't remember how the part was installed. It is possible I did not install it. My dad and a good friend we're helping me at the beinning of the eninge and I was mainly cleaning parts off to hand to them so I do not have a clear recollection.

I can see how that would cause a problem if they/me installed the thing upside down.

We had the engine on an engine lift and it was rotated upside down I think when we installed the oil pump. So the shaft was connected then.

I'm assuming to check this I will have to pull the oil pan, is that correct? If that is the case, then can the oil pan be removed while the engine is in the truck (please say yes, I've already had to backtrack so many times already )?

 

i'd think you could check this from the top with the dist. removed. take a light and look down in the hole to see if you see the locking washer on top of the block casting
Did you use a new pump shaft or the original? Just wondering if you could have gotten on too long
Clint

 

I use grease. Throw some grease down on the top of the oil pump shaft and get it centered in the hole. The distributor will then seat properly. The problem is that your oil pump shaft is setting against the side of the hole and the distributor is hitting it. It takes time and patience. DO NOT remove the distributor after you have put grease on it until you have driven it around for a while as the grease will make the dizzy grab onto the shaft and it will pull it out of the pump and it may fall into the oil pan.

 

Just wanted to post a follow up...

Finally got to go back to the ranch and work on the truck 2 weekends ago.

Well, I tried everything that was suggested to me.

1st the emory route, no luck.
2nd, looking down the dist hole to see where placement of the rod was, couldn't see enough.
3rd, dropping the oil pan.

Dropping the oil pan was more fun than I thought it would be... but I discovered that the rod is engaging fully on both ends, and that it was installed correctly... which meant that I pulled the oil pan for no good reason... which ticked me off, but at least I knew it was all installed correctly.

All the junkyard guys and ford techs I talked too said it should be flush, but it just won't go that way. Period.

The short end of it...

So, after reassembling the truck, my dad and I went to start the truck and it would not turn over. Was getting spark. Was getting fuel. Went to give it gas while turning it over and had flames come out the carb.

So... we tried adjusting things, but finally went for the btter part of valour and admitted we were out of our league and winched it up on the flatbed and hauled it to the Ford House in Copperas Cove, TX.

On a side note, while they can be extremely busy @ times, their techs are dead-on and are good people. My family takes 4 different trucks to them to get serviced all the time. If your in the area and have a 70s truck then ask for the shop foreman, Gerald, to work on your truck. He started working at the ford dealer in the early 70s, so he is one of the few good techs that knows how to deal with the 70s trucks just by hearing how they sound.

Anyways... he finally was able to take a look @ the truck today. My dad and I suspected the timing was off. Evidently we were 180 degrees off, which made the spark ignite when fuel was being pumped in, not when the fuel was being compressed, hence the fireballs from the carb. Gerald the shop foreman tweaked a couple of small things and said it all looks good.

Once thing he noticed was that the starter is actually touching or rubbing the headers. He suggested bending the headers or denting them slightly to get a gap in there. I also need to look into getting some form of heat-shielding for the starter. Will search the forums in a bit to see if I can find anything on either topic.

Just wanted to say thanks for everyone's help!

 

oil pump shaft fits in the oil pump in only "one way", however fits in the distributor shaft in all 6 directions. with the distributor out, you have to poke down in there with I think a 5/16 deep well, get a hold of the shaft, twist and turn till it drops in the groove. Then you can fit the distributor over the shaft in any of the 6 sides of the hex shaft.