Seems to me that inductive timing guns just aren't a good idea to use with FCs... most of them time they will only pick up one of the two coils (although you're technically only supposed to use one of them anyway, I don't see why you wouldn't be able to use both).

And even if they do pick up the signal fairly strong, sometimes the position of the inductor will COMPLETELY change where the timing mark is (depending on the quality and brand I suppose, but it can still happen).

I had the inducer right next to the coil like it's supposed to be and I couldn't even find the timing mark for the leading coil... I moved it to next to the plug and I could find it just fine, but that makes me wonder, wtf is wrong with the ignition or the gun that would make it have that much of a difference? Actually, the L1 wouldn't even pick up near the coil, although the L2 would and that's probably why the time was off, but they training coils are supposed to be on the same timing, so why?

Strangely, the T1 coil picked up fine... the T2 didn't pick up at all.

And then there's the matter of cheap guns with adjustable advance... I don't know how much I trust those markings at all. I get the feeling that just because I set it to zero doesn't nessicarily mean it's actually on zero per say (although I'm sure it's reasonable close). But it actually adjust all the way past zero with no markings...which makes me wonder just how well it's designed.

So basically I've bitched about how cheap timing guns are annoying to use... and like always, according to my timing gun, the engine barely even runs at stock timing... damn vacuum leaks.

 

Watch out with graduated advancing ***** - some of them do not correspond degree to degree.

A trick about using those guns...pull the spark plug boot off the coil tower slightly.
This will induce a stronger spark due to the bigger gap you just induced.
The timing gun should pick-up the signal pretty consistently.


-Ted

 

I tried that but it didn't seem to make a difference, at least not on the coil that already picked up just fine.

 

One of two things...
You didn't pull the boot off enough - you almost gotta take the boot off the coil tower to make this work.

or

Flip the inductive pick-up on the spark plug wire.
Most of those pick-up's are actually directional - most don't tell you that.


-Ted

 

Oh yeah.. come to think of it they are.

 

Yeah, mine has an arrow pointing to the plug. Inductive fields are directional, so it matters.
I just had my first experience using a timing gun yesterday, actually. Unfortunately there is a vac leak so the timing changes everytime it bounces. ******* motor still doesn't have any power though, dammit. :end rant: