Can anyone assist me with the procedure for replacing points and condensor in my 455 71 Centurion. I attempted to replace it yesterday and now the car will not start - just sputters. I'm a novice but want to try this fix on my own. Don't have a repair manual so I'm looking for some advice. I was told the point gap should be 16/1000. Does that sound right?
Get a Dwell Meter! Try getting your hands on a decent (Craftsman are good) dwell guage. Comes as a combo dwell / tach / voltmeter. About $50 on a bad day, and worth every penny. Easy to hook up too. The trouble with replacing points then checking with a manual blade guage is the possibility of contaminating your points with grease / oil / filth / mung. Believe me, even the slightest amount can fry a brand new set of points. With the dwell guage you just cinch them down then check the dwell, and adjust through the little sliding window using a hex key. Watch your fingers as the engine is turning with the fan right there! Replace the points and condenser, rotor, and cap. Swap the plug wires over one-for-one at a time. Make sure the cap is properly seated when you put it on. Adjust your dwell first, then recheck the timing as changing the former can change the latter, or maybe it's the other way around. Don't forget to re-hook up the vacuum advance after setting idle speed. Then when you're all done consider going to HEI - I am. Erik:bglasses:
im also a bit of a novice but 0.016 is correct for the gap, which happens to be about the thickness of a matchbook cover. do you have a tach/dwell meter. using the matchbook cover is a good method to get the car started, but once it is using a dwell meter to set the correct dwell, 30*, is more accurate. changing gap changes dwell and vice versa. other than that the procedure is as simple as unscrewing the old points condensor and wire leads and screwing in the new ones. go back and look at what you did, maybe you left a wire off or something else as simple.
Try setting them at between .018 and .020 when the distributor cam lobe is opening them (at the top of the lobe). Bump your starter and make sure that they are completely closed when you are on the flat spot. Check to make sure that your wires are hooked back up and tight. It should be very close to the called for degrees of dwell when you set them like this. I don't suggest that you try to set the dwell with the engine running unless you are experienced at it as the fan is quite close and it's bite hurts! Also, when you are finished setting them put a clean piece of paper between them when they are closed and pull it out, should take off any oil that you may have gotten on them. Good luck. :grin:
Advice appreciated OK. Thanks for the help. If the car does not start, will the dwell meter work if the engine is just turning over with the starter or does it have to be actually running on it's own to get an accurate read? I may try Craftsman. Need to replace one of my Craftsman socket wrenches that has failed me. Kill two birds with one visit to the store.
WHILE YOUR AT IT SPRING FOR THE ACCELL RACE POINTS AND CONDENSOR, YOU WILL SEE A DRASTIC DIFFERENCE IN QUALITY. THEY ARE GETTING HARD TO FIND, AND ARE PROBABLY COST TWICE AS MUCH AS REGULAR POINTS BUT ARE DEFINATELY WORTH IT. ALSO MAKE SURE THE DISTRIBUTOR SHAFT BUSHINGS ARE NOT WORN BY SHAKING THE SHAFT SIDE TO SIDE, THIS WILL EFFECT POINT OPENING/CLOSING. GOOD LUCK
NAPA quality line is exact same as Accel as far as points go, made in the same factory, specs, etc. you don't need the high tension racing points, they just wear really fast on the street, go for the NAPA points and keep the condenser separate. There are points sets called Uni-Point, with the condenser fitted to the points themselves, you don't want them, they have issues you don't want to go to. Yes, the dwell meter should work with just the starter motor turning the engine over. You should be able to get the dwell very close by spinning the engine over with the starter motor and Allen wrench setting the points. After starter spining the points close, put the cap back on and fire the engine up, set the points to 30 degrees. Now, take a close look at the points you just installed. Some retain the feed and condenser wires with a screw, others use a tension method, "pinching" the wires to the points spring and an plastic insulator (usually white, but can be other colors). Now, if you have any of these connections/wires misplaced and/or grounded, the spark will not happen. If the tension type has the wire placed incorrectly, so it grounds on the holder for the tensioner, no spark. You also need to do the check outlined above for worn bushings. See if there is any significant side to side movement of the distributor main shaft. If significant, the points may not close/open correctly, no matter the setting they have. Usually, unless the oiling to the dist shaft/upper bushing is not good, the bushings will be OK, but do check.
I replaced my not too long ago and just had my uncle tighten them down with the engine running until it ran correctly. But it was a little close to the fan blades.
