Set the distributor up in your machine. Isolate one set while setting first, then reverse procedure … then test for total dwell.
Finding someone with a distributor machine who knows how to use it is probably the best approach. Though finding someone like that in your area may be problematic. You can accomplish the same thing with the distributor installed in the engine with a degree wheel on the front of the crank and a dwell meter. But it will require a bit of patience if you've not done it before. Try to find someone experienced to watch over your shoulder and talk you thru it if possible. And be prepared to accept a possible slight variation in dwell readings between the two sets of points. Most of all, remember that changing the dwell will also change the timing. Your main goal is to get a cylinder firing every 45 degrees. Concentrate more on the phasing between the points so the timing of one set isn't a few degrees earlier or later than the other set. Or you might want to even consider just setting the point gaps instead of making yourself nuts trying to get the exact same dwell reading between the two sets.
Dave, If you are in a jam, I will syncronize your dual points distributor on my Sun distributor tester. Free of charge - however, you pay the ride to and from New Hampshire. Let me know. Tom
Thank you all, my limited information says gap at .022 but does not give dwell?? How do I determine dwell ?
Tom that’s the best offer I had all day I’m trying to get it running enough to see if it needs anything, been sitting at least 25 yrs. then may ask you later if I can take you up on your generous offer I’ve lightly filed & gapped points, replaced condenser etc
Point gap and dwell angle are essentially just different ways of measuring the same thing. A dwell reading might be a bit more accurate but the proper point gap should be more than sufficient for your purposes. If you feel like reading up a bit on the subject . . . "Basic Ignition Systems" from the old Hot Rod Magazine Technical Library series. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/hot-rod-technical-library-basic-ignition-systems.983424/ Scroll down a bit to see an explanation of how dwell is measured.
wait. maybe I read an earlier post wrong, but I need to say that the whole purpose of dual points was to increase the amount of dwell time the coil had to build up a bigger magnetic charge. If you don't get a longer dwell meter reading over a single-point, then the dual point is all for nothing. That would require the two sets of points to operate a few degrees apart, one opening up a tiny bit after the other, for the LONGER DWELL TIME it provided to build up the coil energy a tiny bit more before the current stopped, and the better-saturated coil sparked a hotter spark due to a slightly longer build up time. The two sets of points must be slightly staggered one-after-the-other for that to work (I thought the factory pre-determined the amount of stagger between the two points sets by the way they drilled the points plate in the distributor). This also increased the dwell meter reading to saturate the coil more, or the dual point design was for nothing. I hope no one gets the idea that both sets need to operate simultaneously. That would defeat the purpose. In this case vs single-point, the dwell meter cannot truly tell you if points-gaps are correct. The dwell meter reading in this case is more related to the deliberate off-phasing between the points sets than it is to actual gap. You must manually check each points gap by itself when using dual points. And they must not operate perfectly simultaneously. And if done correctly, your dwell meter will tell you that you have more dwell time =success. WHY BE ORDINARY ?
^^^^^^^^^ Not that kind of dual point distributor. Here they basically run 4 cylinders of each set of points, unless I'm totally lost, which has happened.
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