OK, so myself and a friend of mine ripped into my 1977 ford f-100 with a 300I6 and a three on the tree. When we fixed the vacuum leaks we tried to set the timing. I used some whiteout on the timing mark and we tried to set it. The mark came around at the mottom of the alternator belt when the light hit it. I looked and found another mark that lined up with 20 degrees advanced, (looked about like 20 but the timing gauge on the block goes up to 15 advanced) anyway we set it to 15 advanced but it still diesels a little, and I think that the timing could be better.
any ideas and which timing mark should I go with?

 

First are you trying to use the makes cast in to the cover on the driver’s side of the balancer? If so these are the wrong marks! The marks to use are on a tab on the passenger’s side of the balancer.

If you are using the correct marks, did you plug the vacuum to the dizzy? If all else fails look to see if the balancer has slipped!

 

Why are there timing marks on both sides of the timing cover? My 95 I300 has this bizarre feature as well.

I have rebuilt my engine and mixed and matched some parts. I have to start all over with my distributor and timing. Should the rotor point to the number one cylinder at TDC #1. Right now the rotor tends to point more or less straight ahead at TDC #1.

 

To my knowledge all 300's have them and I have not seen any applications where the cast marks are used. A Ford Mech. once told me that they were used on non-vehicle applications! I don't know, I have seen several non-vehicle apps and they use the marks on the passenger side. I wonder if the marks were not added for some future use in computer control engines!

 

no no no 5_labs. I'm talking the timing notches on the actual idler pulley

I marked one with the whiteout so I could see it when the timing light hit it, and it seems as though if I were to use that one that it lines up with about 300 degrees advanced while the other one lines up with about 15 degrees advanced. I'm using the gauge on the passenger side of the block.

 

ok, so wait a minute, if what you're saying is correct here there are two timing gauges on both sides of the block. This would mean that there would need to be two timing marks on the main drive pulley, and that the first mark would line up with the driver's side gauge amd the second would line up with the passenger's side gauge? This would make sense as the truck is lined up on the passenger side's gauge ( the timing marks in degrees on the passenger side of the engine) with the first mark, which if what you're telling me is correct should be lined up with the driver's side gauge ( the timing marks in degrees on the driver's side) which would account for the truck acting funny. somebody confirm that what I'm saying makes sense here.

 

 

Above is photo of my I6 300 from Econoline, I hope it helps. I don't think you should be using any notches as timing marks. I have a notch as well, but it is not a timing mark. The timing mark is just a narrow straight line on the outer edge. No notches.

 

ok thanks that helps a lot. Unfortunately I don't have that timing line, or else I can't see it. The closest thing that I saw to that was on the dish of the power steering pulley, it's a line but it looks more like a grease line than anything. Your picture suggests that the mark is a groove cast into the pulley. There isn't a cast line anywhere on the pulley, just the two notches. I don't mean to be a pain in the butt. That picture helps with the question I posed earlier too.
The notches appear to line up with the timing mark gauge and the cast gauge, like if you got the timing right that one would line up with the timing gauge and the other with the cast gauge. This wouldmake sense for the non-vehicle apps. because maybe you couldn't see one or the other, so you read the one you can read.