so i succesfully set the points, then succesfully did the timing, that all went swimmingly well suprisingly, so then, i start the car, run it for a bit, about 5 mins, its reluctant to run for first few mins (kept having to crank) but i realistictly think i had flooded it tbh. but never mind, so that was all good, decided id just check the points and the timing again after running. points where fine, timing was about, 1-2 teeth advanced (going out before it reached white mark) (oh and it was going out 4 or 5 teeth before i had fiddled!) so i decided to rectify this, and re do the timing, once again, went swimmingly well, putt the car back together, (the light i conntected straight from battery then via points box, so that was all good and working, and then i put the car back together, except id forgotten to put the matt hing infront of the ponits box back, dick.. so i take fan off, and thought to my self oh ill check the timing AGAIN while im here, so i plug the wire in again, and put it on the batery terminal also, try to check the timing, light doesnt work. so at this point im confused, have i fucked it up or has the bulb gone? so i tried bridgin the gap between the points with mr screw driver, and voila! the bulbs springs into action, and lights up. so this has me even moer confused, so i check the points again when there open, gap is fine, so i try to start the car (id put earth back on coil etc, and nothing, dead, like a dodo, like a hedhog crossing the road, like a pidgen infront of a shotgun, not a pulse!!

i think that when the points are "shut" then there not actually shutting (i wrote shitting by mistake first time )
so how do i sort this problem out? what do i need to do?
also after 5 mins of running a very very very slight maynoise build up on the oil cap, (i wiped it before starting it, and there was hardly any there, and i hadnt wiped it for a while, and the oil level is fine now) so it was advanced so i like i said rectified this.
also talking about running on cos of being advanced, sometimes when the car wont start, (let me make it easy to understand, so if youve got, 0 1 and 2 on the ignition, 0 being off, 1 being ignition on, and 2 being cranking, )
so when i used to crank on 2, and it wouldnt start, when i went back to one, it would then start, i geuss this is down to the advanced igition??

so any help would be aprieciated

It sounds like you've set the points gap so big that the point won't close at all. What did you set the point gap to?

0.40mm haynes say 0.35 - 045

i wouldnt worry too much about the bit of mayo, i think its down to condensation due to the engine not getting warm enough , i suppose common in cars that dont have the muff fitted when its freezing

I don't entirely get what you're doing. You need to first set the points gap to 0.4mm. It needs to be spot on and it has to be even on both sides of the cam. If you can't get it even the cam is worn out and needs to be replaced.

If the points gap is incorrect then the dwell angle will be out.

Once you've got the points gap right you set the ignition timing. Connect a light between the two leads on the ignition coil. As the coil isn't powered up you can mess to your heart's content without frying it. Lock the engine with the locking pin through the bell housing. You'll need a 6mm rod. Now turn the points box against the rotation of the engine until the bulb just comes on.

Pull the rod out, turn the engine a full revolution and check the firing point is the same.

As a sanity check you can count the number of teeth the light remains off. More than 67 means the points gap is too big, fewer than 63 and it is too small.

When the ignition is set up correctly the top of the points box will be roughly horizontal.

You can't adjust the timing until the points gap is spot on; there is no point in going from one to the other and back again.

are the points new? It's possible they're just not clean enouggh,perhaps a bit oily? You might be able to clean them by sticking a bit of paper between them when they're closed, and pulling it out. If there's a black mark left on the oaper, that could have been the problem. It needs to be a type of paper,which won't leave
fibres in between the points, rizla paper works well, but if you don't have any then a banknote will do.

If that doesn't work, i'd be tempted to try setting the gap far too small, so they *must* be closed properly, and see whether your bulb lights up then. Obviously then you'll have to reset the gap + and the timing.

right so just been out to the garage for a further play, the gap was correct, and i suddenly remebered an old school trick i learnt, well i say school, i learnt fuck all in skl, but in my spare time of fucking with outboards, a bit of wet and dry paper obviously dry and a gentle rub when the points are shut
twi fifty, i know you cant go form one to the other dont worry
ive got it so the bulb goes off 1 tooth after the firing point, as suggested by sean, i managed to start the car after cleaning the points (and the light came back on!) but when the engine is running, the points spark a lot, is this normal??
also looking closely they look slightly pitted, however the points aer only 4 months old and about 3000 miles old, however the timing has been about 6 teeth advanced since then

condensor

fit new points and condensor ...only valeo ones like ECAS sell, intermotor brand are just no good they just collapse in that sort of time once you got the good ones in your going to have to dust off the multimeter and check the voltage reg isnt over charging

set the gap first then the timing

you made a mistake somewhere the car wont have advanced 24degrees(each tooth is 3.36deg) because you wiped the contacts

ah just re read your post youve been running 24 degrees out for that time

you will get slight mayo as water evaporates out the oil as it heats up

how it gets there depends on your engine and the way its been running if its been too advanced like yours has the combustion gasses have been blowing past your rings and water is a large constituent of exhaust.
should help with oil leaks and filter lid popping off

but get new points and cond in as soon as you can


Sean

i meant it was 6 teeth ish out before i did the timing and points when i first got to car ealier not after wiping the points, after wiping the points it was fine, ill order a nother set of points and condenser again :( 2nd set in 4 months!

aye got that on re read

if your going thru condensers at that rate you have to check the voltage reg( but i wouldnt be surprised if thats how long i got out of intermotor ones...that the ones all over ebay and what many motorfactors give you-come in a yellow and blue box, totally useless)
mechanical ones can be ajusted
electronic just fit and kind of forget
sean