Technical SBC broken distributor

I’m tearing down a 350 SBC . When the distributor didn’t budge, I decided to use a pipe wrench to free it up. It didn’t move, so I got a ball peen hammer and while putting pressure on the wrench I gave some raps to the wrench. I thought it moved and freed up. NO! Instead the distributor sheared off at the valley. The shaft is still in. I can not get the remaining parts to move. The engine sat for about a decade and apparently had a coolant leak at the rear of the intake, seeping into the valley. Now there is serious galvanic corrosion. What next ? Red wrench? I’m soaking it in penetrating oil and using the shaft and vise grips as a makeshift slide hammer. Has anyone else had this problem, and if so how did you solve it?

 

Never had one broken, but a couple very seized up. Good penetrating oil, and long soak time worked. We wiggled it back and forth with small pipe wrench.
If you have no where grab the body now, with the broken top, you might have to unbolt intake, and see it the distributor will come off with it.

 

Pull the intake ,pull the pan ,drive the remainder out from the bottom .

 

Yeah, use a torch to cut the shaft so you can pull the top part of the housing off, then remove the intake, etc. and do like they said.

 

Intake pulled, heads pulled, pan and oil pump pulled. Top of distributor out, only shaft and broken piece in the valley remain. I had thought that it may be possible to knock the remnants out from the bottom, but wasn’t sure if it could be reached. Certainly better advice so far compared to the antique guys.

 

My Dad has a 327 in a driver with a stuck distributor, it's timed well, so it's staying in there until it needs rings or bearings. I can't talk him into a new cam

 

If this is a full teardown, muriatic acid makes quick work of aluminum.

 

don't worry, even without a distributor it will outrun a Ford.

 

Have you tried driving out from the bottom, with a long 1/2" steel rod and a BFH?

 

OUCH!!!

 

Any of you Ford guy's want some ointment for that burn??? LMFAO!!!

 

I'm good. My Ford has a blown Hemi in it.

 

It's not uncommon to have a distributor stick in the intake and have to take it off with the intake and go from there but it have the shift stick to the oil pump means that you probably have an engine that is pretty well rusted beyond reasonable repair when push comes to shove.

 

I had one stuck once. I used pry bars and tire irons to move it up about a quarter inch. Then used the intake manifold as a slide hammer. Finally came out.

But that ship has already sailed for you. I later heard that you can use some kind of fire extinguisher to "quick chill" the distributor to shrink it loose.


Good luck.

.bjb

 

That's a Carbon Dioxide fire extinguisher.

 

I once picked up the nose of a 1970 Cougar with a forklift, via the distributor.

It still did not come out.

 

As @squirrel said, Should be able to drive it out from the bottom, with a piece of round stock and a hammer. Now you can hit it straight on. Little more oil around it to help reduce the drag.

 

That sounds like something I saw one time on the Red Green Show.

 

The oil pump is out. Only the shaft and the portion of the body where it goes through the valley remain. I’ll try Squirrels advice. The engine was supposed to be a rebuild. Unfortunately it came unglued and I got disgusted and put it aside. Now I’m going through it to see if I can salvage it.

 

Thank you, Squirrel!!!! Problem solved! I was able to insert a 3/8” drive extension through the hole for the oil pump and drive the remains of the distributor out from the bottom. Now on to the rest of the tear down.

 

Recent Tech school graduate-"what's a distributor??"

 

What a Dizzying thought.