car won't crank over,, help

[wazazzle]

i can't fiqure this out. my first mistake was not remembering how i took the distributor off w/o marking it. well, i researched and am a bit confused. i am reinstalling my distributor. i check the cylinder 1 with my finger for compression and set to 0' tdc. got to tdc, not on the bottom stroke. i then put all the plugs back on the cap. i try to install the distributor with the rotor pointing to the one cycl cap plug... however when i get it finally all the way in it's like not lined up. so i still put the cap on, and try to fire her up. it cranks , but doesn't crank over. it's better than before because the thing wouldn't even crank the car (tpi/pip replaced). the coil, plugs, wires, connectors, are good. fuel syst was just replaced few mo ago. so i'm pretty sure it has to do with the timing. is the rotor suppose to be pointing to a #1 cycl or #1 cap plug? does it matter how in install the distributor into the engine? i'm sure it has to do with the timing setup and distr install. was suppose to show car at pony trails today instead working on car. ..help...

 

[p.exeter_bleu]

i cant remember off the top of my head, but i know for sure its in the haynes manual. im thinking its plug cap no.1

 

[TheUser]

after you get it on TDC on the compression stroke, set the balancer to whatever degree timing you want to run (10*, 12*, etc) and tighten down the hold down enough so that it will hold the distributer, but also you can turn it. It's been a while, but I believe you want to play w/ it so that the rotor is placed right before (to the right since firing order is counter clockwise) the number one plug wire. Also, make sure your firing order is set COUNTER-CLOCKWISE!

After you get it cranked up, you want to get a timing light on it to check the timing and get it set wherever you want it. You can use white out to mark your balancer degrees to make it easier to see. Be sure and unplug the SPOUT connecter before you set the timing and put it back in after you're done. It's the little plug near the TFI module.