Cant get dist to seat down all the way.... HELP ASAP

gcwh02 · May 14, 2007

same problem with me too, i had to cut a little off the end of the distributor. It doesnt hurt anything and it runs fine still

strokeme393 · May 14, 2007

chop chop

N8Miller · May 15, 2007

i got it everyone... dint have to cut antyhing.

thanks to those that lended their advice!

vristang · May 15, 2007

Were you able to figure out what the problem was, or did it just give in and drop into place?

Glad you sorted it out,
jason

4G-KDMP · May 15, 2007

i'm curious also.

getusummm · May 15, 2007

Well, I know my response is late, but no chopping here either. Same shaft has been in 2 different engines and 3 different distributors. All were 5.0 FI engines and dizzyz. So I dunno?

N8Miller · May 16, 2007

actully, i had a guy come over, put it at TDC, install a Melling Shaft and the thing just dropped in!
I guess that the ARP shaft is just bent a slight bit!

4G-KDMP · May 17, 2007

good to hear all went well and everything worked out for you!
i'm just curious as too why you think the shaft was bent, or did you just assume that was the problem?
by no means am i trying to be a smart a.., just trying to gain some knowledge that i could posibly pass on later is the reason i ask.

vristang · May 17, 2007

N8Miller said:
actully, i had a guy come over, put it at TDC, install a Melling Shaft and the thing just dropped in!
I guess that the ARP shaft is just bent a slight bit!

I don't suppose you did a side by side with the Melling and ARP shafts?

Glad it's running,
jason

N8Miller · May 18, 2007

the reason why i think it was bent was that when the shaft was down in the hole, it was leaning toward one side. when the melling went in, and in the hole, it was straight up and down.
so i went with the melling.

vristang · May 18, 2007

do you still have the ARP shaft to check for straightness?

I hate to keep harping on this, but your not the only one to have a similar issue. Others could benefit from exploring the root cause a little better.

Also, I don't see how the shaft could be bent that way, even if you used a hammer to beat on the dist.
Unless it was twisted out of straight, but you would have other issues showing up in that case.

I'm still curious,
jason

krallman · May 18, 2007

It was probably bent where you didnt have the #1 cyclinder at tdc and tried to beat it in with a mallet. Never hit your distributor with anything. It should fall into place with a little twist. If it doesnt you either dont have the cyclinder at tdc or you have the wrong parts.

4G-KDMP · May 18, 2007

vristang said:
do you still have the ARP shaft to check for straightness?

I hate to keep harping on this, but your not the only one to have a similar issue. Others could benefit from exploring the root cause a little better.

Also, I don't see how the shaft could be bent that way, even if you used a hammer to beat on the dist.
Unless it was twisted out of straight, but you would have other issues showing up in that case.

I'm still curious,
jason

subscribing!
because i'm curious also, as i said before.

vristang · May 19, 2007

krallman said:
It was probably bent where you didnt have the #1 cyclinder at tdc and tried to beat it in with a mallet. Never hit your distributor with anything. It should fall into place with a little twist. If it doesnt you either dont have the cyclinder at tdc or you have the wrong parts.

This guy does not strike me as being foolish enough to damage his distributor by hammering on it.

Besides...
The force needed to buckle a rod of that size, would have destroyed the dist.

jason

jrichker · May 19, 2007

Compare the hex sizes on the two shafts using a micrometer. A shaft with the wrong part number on the package would have given you a shaft with the wrong size hex on one end.

2002BLGT · May 19, 2007

when I put my engine together I spent about 2 hours trying to figure out what was wrong with mine , I dont advise hitting a distributor with a hammer normally but the star washer being too far up was a problem on mine and I smacked mine with a regular hammer with one good tap and it fell right into place , I dont suggest doing this unless its a new shaft and you didnt check the location of the washer before install , mine was a melling by the way , and i took it right out of the box and slid it into the oil pump and finished bolting my engine together , I will check this from now on when I put an engine together .

my67falcon · Jul 7, 2007

N8Miller said:
the reason why i think it was bent was that when the shaft was down in the hole, it was leaning toward one side. when the melling went in, and in the hole, it was straight up and down.
so i went with the melling.

O.K. I just ran into the same problem with my '85 302. I pulled the distributor and when I went to put it back in it wouldn't seat. I looked down and noticed the oil pump shaft was resting to one side. would this prevent the shaft from going on. If I need to replace the pump shaft how do I do it. Not trying to sound stupid but I'm learning as I go.

maxine-70 · Jul 7, 2007

same thing with the 86 5.0 i put in my ranger. same distributor that came out was going back in and just wouldnt go in fully. after dozens of up and down movements and wobbline and twisting the rotor while going up and down....and it finally seated itself. i dont know why, it just took some fumbling around and it went

getusummm · Jul 8, 2007

One thing I noticed from the original post, is that he had the pointed end down instead of up. That very well could have been the 1/8 difference.

The reason you have to stab and restab your distributor is because when you remove it, the oil pump shaft turn as the distributor shaft rotates coming out. When you restab it and remove it, you eventually turn the oil pump shaft to the correct posistion and everything lines up again.
An easy way, if you are certain you are lined up on the correct teeth, is to just bump the engine over while pushing down. This will cause the distributor to rotate with the cam and eventually line up with the oil pump.

Maryland Stang · Feb 7, 2008

Just wanted to let you guys know that at least one person uses the Search function before posting. My dizzy wouldn't go all the way down tonight. I'm using all new Ford parts and it just didn't make sense. So I did a search and came up with this thread. A couple of wacks with the rubber mallet and it slid right in. Perfect guys.

Thanks a ton.

Cant get dist to seat down all the way.... HELP ASAP

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