IT'S ALIVE!!!
Yesterday, we pulled the distributor and changed the gear with a Melonized one. The gear I originally got was too big at .491", it turns out my distributor has a .430" shaft. The Summit Racing gears costs $18.99 while the Comp Cams is $108.95
, guess which one I went with. FYI these gears have a dimple on one side under the roll pin hole. That needs to be in line with the direction the rotor is pointing. We stabbed the distributor again after confirming we are at TDC on compression stroke. We turned the engine over until the intake valve opened, then closed, and kept turning until the pointer and balancer were in line.
Then we put everything back on top - throttle bracket (yes it take 2 studs through the intake's left side rear bolts), Ignition coil, Throttle body, fuel lines, wiring harness to the sensors, etc. I got the 95-1/4" serpentine belt for A/C, W/O A.I.R. it fit perfect, the tensioner marks line up perfectly.
Then I wanted to check cranking compression to ensure we set lifter preload correctly and get some oil circulating before firing it up. I kept the old oil filter on it so we didn't have to fill it before getting oil to the rest of the block. Here's what we got - Cyl/PSI, 1/190, 3/197, 5/180 (at that time I was getting oil pressure on the gauge), 7/165, the rest were all between 160 and 165. We went back to 1, 3, and 5. They were all between 160 and 165. By that time I was getting ~54LB oil pressure. It seems, without oil flow (maybe cranking faster) we were getting weird readings, what do you think?
Installed the plugs before the headers - made it sooo much easier
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Valve covers and ESC/MAP modules' bracket, plug wires, coolant hoses, etc. We left the A.I.R. pump on since its top mounting bolt also helps support the A/C compressor. Down the road, I'm gonna make a sleeve to replace it and still help brace the compressor.
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Turned on the ignition and primed the TB, started cranking, it fired up, just like it usually does, after ~2 seconds! Sounded great with open headers! It settled down to idle and had a little lope to it
I shut it off after about 20 seconds but, I couldn't resist, I started it back up and rapped the pedal a couple times - instant response and no back fires or spitting, YAY!
We still have to put on the grille, Y pipe, O2 sensors (I have a NBO2 and a WBO2), fill it with coolant, before running it for ~10 minutes. Then we'll change the oil and filter, hook up my laptop and see what it does cold and warmed up
I'm about ready to close this upgrade down. Here's where I stand with parts and costs. I know there's cheaper ways to do it but, I'm comfortable with this.
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