Hot Rods Stuck distributor

Just bought a streetrod with a gen1 sbc. Car sat 20 years so i changed anything rubber,fuel pump water pump points and condenser. Set point dwell to 30. Timing is 3 deg btdc. I cant move the distributor at all ! I’ve been soaking it , tried warm engine, cold engine , nothing happening. I dont want to moose it because it runs half decent but not 100% Any suggestions ? Its cruisin season and i dont want to break anything till winter.

 

Leave the hold down loose and drive it checking often for movement.

 

I've had good luck with Aero Kroil over the years. It doesn't take much, just all around dist to block. Then a very small ball peen hammer, LIGHT taps all around, tiny bit of spray, repeat a few times.
Then grip body, small pipe wrench or similar, gently taps with a soft mallet.
If you can get it to move a fraction you've got it. Idea is gentle. Works for me.


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the hole in the intake is a loose fit on Chevys, but the fit in the block is kind of tight...so it's probably stuck in the block, not the intake, and spraying it won't do a damn thing..

 

Thanks for the replies, i just got a can of kroil from a neighbor ive used it before and it is great stuff.

 

Can i cheat a couple degrees with dwell setting ? Or is that asking for problems ?

 

Try tapping it side to side with a hammer. Use a piece of wood against it and tap it on one side than the other and see if that loosens it up.

 

sure you can. How much you can cheat it, you'll discover...but the stock range is 28 to 32 iirc, and you should be able to go a ways past that and still have it run ok.

 

Does it have an aftermarket intake manifold, and could it be binding there?

 

Aluminum or Cast Iron distributor?

 

You've got a 50/50 chance of getting it out in one piece but only a 50% chance of that.

 

I I’ll try working the dwell if i can get a little more advance. I’ll try removing it this winter , its an aluminum distributor and an aluminum offenhauser intake. I don’t expect good results but maybe if i keep soaking it i may get lucky.

 

Need small gap between distributor and intake. Pry or slide hammer it up until brake cleaner can get in. It's worked for me.

 

It probably wants to be a Ford.

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Kroil Oil is pretty amazing stuff. It might just eventually work its way down all the way to the block. If you can get it to run pretty good with the dwell I'd just leave the hold down loose and keep putting a little Kroll around it every couple of days or so. It might just cure itself before summer is over.

 

I agree. Kroil is good stuff and maybe over time it will free up. At least it runs half decent and i can take time and not break stuff. It’s just buggin me that its stuck

 

I've had to use a chunk of wood and a big pry bar before. I didn't think I would ever get it out, but managed to in the end.

 

Lets just say you never get it loose or do not have the time until it comes loose. This can be done. Remove vacuum advance unit and pay close attention to mounting holes and where rod goes into breaker plate. Now devise some sort of strap that will hold breaker plate from turning but also allow for adjustment to allow it to be advanced. This will get you by until...

 

Johnny , i was actually thinking that i may be able to slot the vacuum advance mounting hole to keep it in an advanced position. Shouldn’t take much and should get me by for a while. Easy enough to try Thanks for the idea.

 

33rod, when done see how far advance takes it. One of two things could happen. Too much advance or spark may phase to far away from original terminal post to the next and time will jump 45 degress. If either happen just run it without vacuum.

 

Will do Johnny. It shouldnt take much to pick up a few degrees worse case i can put it back as it was.

 

Disconnect and plug vac advance and spool it up to 3000+ RPM. Make sure it's done advancing all the way. Find out what your total mechanical "all-in" advance # is. The initial timing # isn't critical, but the total amount, and how fast it comes in is. 3° does sound light, but you have to check. Connect vac advance to manifold and it will help considerably at idle.

 

Too easy

 

I think Jim gave you good advice, it is probably stuck in the block.
If it were mine I would fix it right by removing it however you can and making the proper adjustments.
I would try the wood block/tapping on the distributor housing a few times and see what happens.
Some heat might help but not to the point that you are melting the distributor housing.
Less to think about while driving later on.

 

One thing i did notice is the advance springs are really heavy would lighter springs help ? As far as idle goes it idles great its just flat on hills

 

Ever pull a distributor out of an engine that never had oil changed? I did once. I has a bitch to turn first then a bitch to pull out. Tar pit city. Well all the crap I couldn't see went down into the oil pan. Guess what happened next after a short while later.

 

You can fix it twice or fix it right. It only took me 35 + years as a HD wrench to figure that out.

 

We were going to get to that after you measure your total mechanical advance. 3° intital timing is sort of a meaningless number by itself, ignition timing is a package deal. Lighter springs may help provide more zip for sure.

 

My plan is definitely a new distributor but i wanted to wait till winter when all the cruises are done. Its runs half decent now and I’ll take that over sitting on the porch

 

First time on this site. It’s pretty cool how many people offer suggestions Thanks you all