willysmjeeps.com

Hi there,

I'm trying to set the timing on a 56 DJ3A with an L134 flat head motor. I can't find any timing marks. I can't find any hole to look at the flywheel and there is nothing on the timing gear cover or front pulley.

Anyone have any suggestions on where to look for the marks, or how to establish some marks?

You can't locate any of these tabs or marks?













If you have none of these then locating #1 piston at TDC is necessary. The most accurate way to do this is using a piston stop and a degree wheel.

1-Pull the 4 spark plugs out.
2-turn engine by hand in it's normal rotation (look at your fan blades and turn engine so the fan moves air back towards the engine) with your thumb or finger in the #1 (front) spark plug hole until you feel air pressure starting to build up against your finger. Stop.
3-Bend a piece of thin steel stock so you can slip it in the spark plug hole and work it into the cylinder bore above the piston. Use a piece of wood dowel or something that you can wedge in the spark plug hole with the metal rod/strip to keep it from moving.
4-Now with your hand on the metal rod/strip so you can feel when the piston touches it, slowly continue rotating the engine by hand in it's normal rotation until you feel the piston touch the rod/strip and stop.
5-Make a mark on the crank pulley and then a matching mark on the timing gear cover.
6-Now slowly rotate the engine backwards until you again feel the piston just touch the rod/strip. Make a second mark on the timing cover matching the earlier mark on the pulley.
7-Now slowly rotate the engine in it's normal rotation and stop again when you feel the piston just touch the rod/strip. Your pulley mark and the first timing cover mark should be aligned. If not start over with step 4 and make sure the rod/strip does not get moved.
8-If your marks were properly aligned at the end of step 7 then make a new mark on the timing cover halfway between the (shortest distance between) the first two marks. Remove the first and second marks you made. Remove the stop rod/strip. Continue to rotate the engine in it's normal direction until the timing cover mark and the pulley mark are aligned. This is TDC for #1 piston.
6-Now place a degree wheel on the pulley and set it's "0" at the timing cover mark. Now count 5 degrees towards the passenger side of the jeep and make a new mark on the timing cover. This mark will be the 5 degree before TDC mark.

Make the three marks permanent. Easiest way is the file a small notch in the rear flange of the pulley at it's mark. Then using an engraver make two permanent lines radiating from the two marks you made on the timing cover. Make these two lines about 1" long and make sure they show up easily. Then engrave a zero above the line towards the driver side of the jeep and a 5 above the line towards the passenger side of the jeep.

Now you are ready to set your distributor timing.

1-Inspect the distributor. Clean if needed and gap the points at .020" . Loosen the housing adjusting bolt.
2-with the rotor pointing at the #1 spark plug lead position in the cap rotate the distributor housing enough to get the points open.
3-Now rotate the distributor housing clockwise (advanced) just until the points close.
4-Insert a small piece of clean plain paper in between the point contacts.
5-Now while holding a very slight pulling pressure on the piece of paper slowly rotate the distributor housing counter clockwise and stop the instant the paper slips free of the point contacts.
6-Tighten the distributor housing adjusting bolt.

Your distributor initial timing is now set a 5 degrees before TDC on #1.

Now you can put her all together, connect a timing light and at idle she should be reading 5 degrees before TDC. If so that's good. Now when you advance the throttle the centrifugal advance should advance the distributor another 6 or 7 degrees. If so then it is working correctly.

Hi Wes,

Thanks for the very detailed reply. I've looked pretty carefully and can't find any marks on the pulley or timing gear cover. And I can't find any opening to look at the flywheel. I do know that this jeep had the transmission swapped out at some point because although it is a DJ it has 4wd and the date tag on the side of the transmission makes it a 1952 transmission. I wonder if the view port for looking at the flywheel could have been eliminated in that conversion. I suppose I could pull the starter to look for marks that way.

I suspect however, that I will need to use your description for creating a new mark on the front pulley and cover. Thanks again for that.

Russell

An update to earlier. I finally found the marks. Your pics told me the area of the timing cover to look at, and I found two marks stamped into the front of the cover. No protruding pointer or anything like that, and the marks were almost invisible under layers of paint. But they were there and I got it adjusted.

Thanks again for the help.