Ok heres the Background story:
I purchased a 1985 GSL from a salvage yard. To my surprise it ran, and I drove it home. On the way home I couldnt get it to idle under 2000 RPM. Later when I removed the engine to swap into a non rust bucket I noticed someone had salvaged the rear tube on the intake manifold creating a giant vacuum leak. That would explain the idle problem! That and old gas.....sprakplugs, etc.....

Then with the engine removed I followed the excellently written tutorial on Rats Nest removal. Completed it easy as pie, and thanks to carl for the yoohoo belt size, engine was finished.

The non rust bucket car is a 1981 GSL, purchased off some kid down the street who couldnt manage to get it to run. I found the problem real fast.....No compression in the rear rotor. So that motor is toast. Thats ok I got a good runner waiting to go into it anyway. Now through years of idiots ownership and neglect the keys were lost and the previous owner was too cheap to change out the ignition so he just cut up the wires and wired in switches and a push button starter. After a couple hours of wire repair I got the ignition off the 85 into the 81. I installed the egnine into it and went to fire it up.....Hmmmm no go so I checked the coils and sure enough no juice..... I finally found the problem to be in the wires on the ignition....maybe I should have checked the schematic to see if the colors changed....DUH Fixed that then I tried to get it to run and man it was just trying real hard, but not quite making it.....SO I switched the coils out with some I knew worked from the 85. Still no go....In a desperate Ill try anything move I switched the T and the L coil wires to the dizzy, and BAMM! fired right up still kinda rough tho. Now the T coil is the closest to the headlights while L coil is the rear one. I double check several different firing order schematics and I know I got the coils backwards....but it runs this way so I figured the timing must be fudged.....
Current situation:
No timing marks so I followed this procedure listed here at the forums of lining up the rear apex seals to find TDC. made the marks on the crank and fired it up...In the stock wire locations doesnt fully run. Switch them backwards and too life it comes? WTF???????? I still cant get it to idle under 2000 RPM. I figured it is a cross between timing and air to fuel mixture.........

THE REAL QUESTION:
Why in everything Un-holy is this car running with the coils firing backwaRDS?
Why in the heck is it not running when the wires are where they are supposed to BE?

Any suggestions Im at a loss here.....Oh yea this isnt my first rotary swap either....actually number 6.....I know....thats alot really sad actually but not my fault really.....Long story.....

 

timing sounds 180ş off.
maybe some yo-yo switched the coils around.
check the idle speed screw on the carbie.

 

The front coil is the trailing coil so the wires can be routed cleanly over tot he distributor cap. In other words, no twists. Also check that L1 on the distributor cap does indeed go down to the lower spark plug in the front rotor housing. Then check all the other wires for proper routing.

 

I have double checked all wiring connections both plug wires and + and - leads to the coils....Im thinking maybe my ignitor on the lead coil is fried? Im gonna check that today....Does anyone know how to tell if the ignitor is bad....and an even better question where are these ignitors I noticed in victoria british wants $300+ each for these.....OUCH

 

as for the 180 degress off on the timing I tried to "Flip" it 180 and it wont even try to start that way. Dead cranking.....except a Jolt like the rotor gets jolted back in this position.....I have tried to move the dizzy one tooth clockwise each time, and I did a complete 360 to no avail.....

 

Jeffs right, the front coil is the trailing.

Theres got to be timing notches on the pulley. The Haynes and FSM has a way to check the igniters.

 

Problem Solved........
I traced some more wires and inspected the ignitors. I finally found on the connecters to the ignitors under the rubber flap that one wire had broken off, so after a couple hours of delicate rewire and solder I fixed it. I started it up with the coil wires in the stock location and zoom zoom zoom. ITS ALIVE! Now I cant get it to idle for crap and it has some hesitation in the acceleration. So I scrapped the NIKKI and put my weber in. Im letting the gasket set over night, and Im gonna give it whirl tommarrow afternoon after work. Hopefully that will fix it..........