Timing

I just installed a Pertronix 1 in my 009 with mech. advance. I set the timing at idle to 7.5 degrees BTDC. At 3000 rpm it only advances to 10 or
11 degrees ATDC. Does this sound right or should it advance a little
more than that? She seems to run smoothly though.

Thanx
BD

Uh... I think you mean it's advancing to a BTDC reading? Set the timing 28 to 30 degrees BTDC for full advance all in at 3,000, then check to see what your timing is at idle. Sounds like you may have a problem with the mechanical advance in your distributor.

Could also be that your pulley is not set to correctly indicate TDC when the engine is at TDC. If you did infact set the timing at 7.5 ATDC, then it could read 10 BTDC at full advance. That would be a total advance of about 18 degrees. If the car ran with those settings, then your pulley if off by about 20 degrees. I'm not sure how that's possible, but it would explain the settings you used.

All VW cankshaft pulleys are keyed to the crankshaft so it would be impossible for the pulley to be off unless someone installed it without the key in place (in which case it would probably slip, anyway). All aftermarket pulleys are made with TDC relatively aligned to the keyway and normally won't be off more than one or two degrees one way or another if there were machining errors.
(Message Edited 7/24/2003 5:36:44 PM)

The crankshaft rotates clockwise as you are looking at it from the rear of the car, therefore BTDC is the apporpriate pulley mark to the left of the case parting line. Full advance should have the timing mark farther to the left by about one inch.

The BTDC idle speed ignition timing notch is to the right of the TDC notch on a stock VW pulley.

Well I'm really cornfused now! I'll have to take another look. If the TDC mark on pulley is at 12'oclock, is BTDC to the left or right of this mark? I set idle at 7.5 to the left of the TDC mark and at 3000 it went towards the right past the TDC mark on up to 10 Degrees to the right of the TDC mark. I'll pull #1 plug and determine true TDC on compression in the meantime.
DOH! I got it straight now! Man, what a brainfart I had. I set it up at idle to the right of the TDC mark. As I turned it over by hand I realised my mistake.
Thanx,
BD
(Message Edited 7/24/2003 5:42:40 PM)

Thanx George! Read revised post above. Was having major brainfade!
BD