While I was removing the alternator bracket on my Duster today I noticed that my distributor still has an I.D. tag on it. Didn't get a good look at it but what kind of info does it have on it? Does it tell how many degrees of advance the distributor has. Trying to figure out how many degrees advance this thing has is giving me fits.

By the way, what is initial advance? I am trying to figure out how much total timing this is giving me. I think it may be over 30 degrees. Is that too much?

I need a timing light.

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82 D150-225/727
02 Dakota-3.9/5 speed
87 GMC C7000-8.2 Detroit Diesel/5+2

Part number only.
No, but if it's an all-original distributor that hasn't had any parts replaced, you can use the P/N plus the 1974 FSM to determine the original advance specs.
That's the setting referred to when you "set the timing" by using a timing light and adjusting the rotative position of the distributor within the engine.
Could well be!
Wholly dependent on your car and driving conditions.
Ayuh...you can't find the info you're after without one!

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Well, how do I tell if my advance weights are gummed up? The car runs well at full throttle until it hits 35 and it suddenly gets a power surge. Carb is set up perfectly so I think that the weights may be sticking and flying open all of a sudden.

I currently have 2.76 gears under my car and I plan a change to 3.21 gears in the future. Should I wait and do my distributor tuning after the gear swap where it will be noticed more? I am mainly after low and mid range grunt and this engine rarely ever sees anything over 4200 RPM.

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82 D150-225/727
02 Dakota-3.9/5 speed
87 GMC C7000-8.2 Detroit Diesel/5+2

Disconnect + plug vacuum advance hose, put timing light on engine, and watch the timing mark as you rev the engine!

Step One really is to buy a good timing light. My advice: Better to buy a used high-quality light than a new piece of crapola from China.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Might as well make it a timing light with the advance dial (advance timing light) the basic plain jane 'inductive timing light' is cheaper but is really crude to get proper(or easy) measurement. Too bad you weren't closer because I have two of these(one for sale). A simple vacuum pump with gauge will aid in diagnosing vacuum advance a good one (Lisle) can be had for $30retail or $7.99 on ebay

If you have the original 1974 Distributor then your timing curve just plain sucks and has no room for any initial advance... I have a stock 1973 and 1974 distributor in my "horde" and they are just great for that daily driving EGR Holley 1945 shuffle... 15R governor (Your fender sticker should say "Initial:TDC"), your vacc. adv. will vary as the Auto tranny is a bit different than the manual tranny in terms "load at idle"...

For the most part, mech advance of 30 degrees is all you need (init+mech.)...if you want more initial, you need to swap governors (that's why in all previous recurving posts, people are asking for the 1976+ 9R governors so they can run 10-12BTDC initial...or 10R's like the Mopar Performance distributor).
Time to get out the dial back timing light and check you curve (make a chart of rpm vs. degrees of advance)...Your power surge I'm going to bet is the fact your mechanical is not "all in" until 4400 rpm....and the lug into a higher gear suddenly kicks in the vacc. advance and gives it the rest of the advance it really needs to make "power"....(of course too much advance isn't good either....).

Grab a timing gun per previous instructions.
Map your curve through the rpm range.
If you get a vacc. pump, then you can map the vacc. advance curve and know when it comes on.
Take it for a drive with a tach and a vacc. gauge attached to see where it shifts and what the vacc. reading is so you know how to "tailor the curve" for your needs.
Get a couple of spare distributors and you'll have to play with the governor and spring combinations to get the best curve for your build.
Take notes on which recipe gets you the best mileage or the best 1/4 time.


good luck,

-D.Idiot