I got my dream pickup, a 1981 720.

[TinKanTosser]

You people piss me off!! I've been trying to join for a month and a half but the captcha was invalid, and the moderator contact form is locked behind the same captcha!! The e-mail address Google suggested belonged to a moderator wasn't monitored!!

 

 

So a couple months ago I got addicted to scrolling Marketplace again, and I found this Datsun listed for $1500 running. Uncle drove me over there and it turned out he knew the guy selling it, and they were talking and catching up while I looked it over. I was shocked to see it has only 58,000 miles, and the steering feels tight and the seats are good enough to suggest the odometer didn't just freeze. The seller had kind of ended up with it and didn't want it so he had very little to tell me and no spare parts: it had a cheap "eBay" carburetor put on it and the original is unavailable, same with the clutch master cylinder it appears. So I intended to test drive it, had to jump it off, and it would not idle whatsoever, I had to keep the pedal mashed but it sounded good. (My uncle later realised he'd forgotten to open the choke which isn't wired up and felt really bad LOL) Seller liked me so he said he'd sell it to me that day for $1000, or have his mechanic look it over and sell it to me for $1500. I accepted that and then got word that the mechanic said it had a blown head gasket, so the seller chucked it at me for $500, and I was elated.

...Weird thing is, I can't find much evidence of a blown head gasket. Coolant is green, oil is black, compression is pretty damn good completely cold:

#1 - 190, #2 - 187, #3 - 170, #4 - 175.

If there is a little bit of a head gasket blow between 3 and 4, maybe re-torquing it will close it? I've lurked enough to know that doing so is essential for every z24 and can't hurt a z22 either. Before testing compression I ensured the intake side plugs were tight and tested on the exhaust side; plugs were all black and slimy with oil, sticky valve seals or just a lot of running rich?

 

There's a little bit of an electrical problem. When I turn the headlights on, sometimes the taillights come on and sometimes not. The dash lights are the last ever to come on. I'm sure there's stuff I can clean, but one concerning bit is that neither the turn signals or flashers work at all: no response whatsoever from the flasher switch. Maybe a relay? The previous owner replaced the round relay mounted to the bottom of the steering column on the right and whatever it is is too small for the mount so it hangs loose. Ignition switch is aftermarket and also hanging loose because the key broke off in the original switch, so I'll need door locks too.

 

 

Is this carb likely a rebuild or a Chinese repro?

 

 

Whatever is going on with this aluminum and gasket looks like pure crap to my untrained eye, but to be fair I don't really know what I'm dealing with. My Corolla has a Weber 32/36 and just blew a head gasket so I'm strongly planning to re-jet it and slap it on here, it's served me so well as a daily driver and could give this truck some extra power that would help with hauling stuff.

 

Mushy section of my debut post: when I was little my dad drove a 1984 Nissan 720 that he'd bought for $80, and he basically never put money into maintenance on it. It had been rolled off a small mountain, rewired by a nutcase with wires hanging all from the dash, had rust holes all through the bed, and despite being 2WD my parents readily used it as a rock crawler. When the starter went bad he wired a second battery into the passenger floorboard that I'd rest my feet on. He put rear helper springs from a Chevy under it and claims he hauled two tons of gravel in the bed and has the receipt somewhere in the truck. We'd load our firewood on it every winter and be stranded at the wood plant while he struggled to get it to run with every emissions and electrical system bypassed. My dad is insane but I've always had the greatest admiration for that truck and have always meant to have one of my own, and now all of my Toyotas have laid down and died on me for one reason or another and this Datsun looks like my best shot at getting back on the road.

[datzenmike]

I have no idea what google moderator was listed. maybe they need to update.

 

Running lights : (front parking, front and back side markers, tail lights and licence lights as well as the dash lights are all on the same fuse and all come on at the same time. If the dash lights are not working the exterior lights won't be either. Try taking the two part plastic clam shell off the steering column and rinse the headlight switch with a spray can of electrical contact cleaner.

 

#1 - 190, #2 - 187, #3 - 170, #4 - 175. Is perfect don't mess with this. Only the Z24 engine has a problem with blowing head gaskets the Z22 is fine. Keep an eye on the oil and rad for a while. Change the oil and filter, it shouldn't be black. Any filter but fram. I run Rotella T4 10w30 as it matches the ZDDP level available in oils prior to 1993 when they started phasing zinc additives out for the new cars.

 

Black plugs with those compression numbers likely the choke was on .

 

Likely a Chinese carburetor but they can still work.

 

Get this sorted out and running. Listen at the rear of the carburetor while someone turns the ignition on off on off. If the idle cut solenoid is working you should hear a soft clicking sound. The idle cut must have power when running to allow fuel down into the idle circuit. No idle cut solenoid... no idle. Connect to the positive side of any coil.

 

Get the timing and valve lash set and many of your carburetor issues may disappear.

 

 

 

 

[Sephakrid]

All of the Hitachi carburetors I've seen have a glass window to check the fuel level while the repro carbs just have a metal fuel bowl cover with no window. The fuel jets should also be stamped with the Hitachi logo.

 

Offhand, I'd say that your looks like a repro unit, but it's probably still usable!

[ggzilla]

Or a rebuilt genuine Hitachi, and they slap a solid over on it to replace a damaged glass window. But even if a Taiwan Hitachi, those are good anyhow

[ggzilla]

Congrats! Good deal for a solid truck that needs a little work with a mystery problem

3 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

I accepted that and then got word that the mechanic said it had a blown head gasket, so the seller chucked it at me for $500

 

 

This looks perfectly normal for 10 year old engine, let alone 40 year old

3 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

 

Whatever is going on with this aluminum and gasket looks like pure crap to my untrained eye

 

Weber 32/36 won't give it extra power for hauling. It works on a Corolla, but the 720 carb is already bigger than a 32/36. If you tune-up (adjust) the engine the stock carburetor will be just fine. 

3 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

My Corolla has a Weber 32/36 and just blew a head gasket so I'm strongly planning to re-jet it and slap it on here, it's served me so well as a daily driver and could give this truck some extra power that would help with hauling stuff.

 

i just notice something. Is that a crack? Somebody might have overtightened the carburetor flange bolts

 

Get it running and spray some carb clean on that and see if the engine idle speed changes. It it is cracked, slap the 32/36 on there, it will work OK except for the crankcase breather and the engine running on and all the usual Weber problems. Oh and you might have to rejet it

[Thomas Perkins]

23 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

You people piss me off!! I've been trying to join for a month and a half but the captcha was invalid, and the moderator contact form is locked behind the same captcha!! The e-mail address Google suggested belonged to a moderator wasn't monitored!!

 

 

So a couple months ago I got addicted to scrolling Marketplace again, and I found this Datsun listed for $1500 running. Uncle drove me over there and it turned out he knew the guy selling it, and they were talking and catching up while I looked it over. I was shocked to see it has only 58,000 miles, and the steering feels tight and the seats are good enough to suggest the odometer didn't just freeze. The seller had kind of ended up with it and didn't want it so he had very little to tell me and no spare parts: it had a cheap "eBay" carburetor put on it and the original is unavailable, same with the clutch master cylinder it appears. So I intended to test drive it, had to jump it off, and it would not idle whatsoever, I had to keep the pedal mashed but it sounded good. (My uncle later realised he'd forgotten to open the choke which isn't wired up and felt really bad LOL) Seller liked me so he said he'd sell it to me that day for $1000, or have his mechanic look it over and sell it to me for $1500. I accepted that and then got word that the mechanic said it had a blown head gasket, so the seller chucked it at me for $500, and I was elated.

...Weird thing is, I can't find much evidence of a blown head gasket. Coolant is green, oil is black, compression is pretty damn good completely cold:

#1 - 190, #2 - 187, #3 - 170, #4 - 175.

If there is a little bit of a head gasket blow between 3 and 4, maybe re-torquing it will close it? I've lurked enough to know that doing so is essential for every z24 and can't hurt a z22 either. Before testing compression I ensured the intake side plugs were tight and tested on the exhaust side; plugs were all black and slimy with oil, sticky valve seals or just a lot of running rich?

 

There's a little bit of an electrical problem. When I turn the headlights on, sometimes the taillights come on and sometimes not. The dash lights are the last ever to come on. I'm sure there's stuff I can clean, but one concerning bit is that neither the turn signals or flashers work at all: no response whatsoever from the flasher switch. Maybe a relay? The previous owner replaced the round relay mounted to the bottom of the steering column on the right and whatever it is is too small for the mount so it hangs loose. Ignition switch is aftermarket and also hanging loose because the key broke off in the original switch, so I'll need door locks too.

 

 

Is this carb likely a rebuild or a Chinese repro?

 

 

Whatever is going on with this aluminum and gasket looks like pure crap to my untrained eye, but to be fair I don't really know what I'm dealing with. My Corolla has a Weber 32/36 and just blew a head gasket so I'm strongly planning to re-jet it and slap it on here, it's served me so well as a daily driver and could give this truck some extra power that would help with hauling stuff.

 

Mushy section of my debut post: when I was little my dad drove a 1984 Nissan 720 that he'd bought for $80, and he basically never put money into maintenance on it. It had been rolled off a small mountain, rewired by a nutcase with wires hanging all from the dash, had rust holes all through the bed, and despite being 2WD my parents readily used it as a rock crawler. When the starter went bad he wired a second battery into the passenger floorboard that I'd rest my feet on. He put rear helper springs from a Chevy under it and claims he hauled two tons of gravel in the bed and has the receipt somewhere in the truck. We'd load our firewood on it every winter and be stranded at the wood plant while he struggled to get it to run with every emissions and electrical system bypassed. My dad is insane but I've always had the greatest admiration for that truck and have always meant to have one of my own, and now all of my Toyotas have laid down and died on me for one reason or another and this Datsun looks like my best shot at getting back on the road.

Man you got me laughing so hard.

[TinKanTosser]

23 hours ago, datzenmike said:

I have no idea what google moderator was listed. maybe they need to update.

"AI Overview

To contact the administrators of ratsun.net, the email address ratsunguy@ratsun.net has been used in the past. However, according to posts on the forums, users have reported receiving no response when contacting this email."

Honestly don't mean to come off as snarky but it kind of sucked having no way at all to contact someone running this site to report it broken. I could have made an account on some other Datsun site to message you about it since you're everywhere, but I decided to wait it out since someone probably would report it, but apparently a lot of other people just had no way to contact anyone.

 

23 hours ago, datzenmike said:

Running lights : (front parking, front and back side markers, tail lights and licence lights as well as the dash lights are all on the same fuse and all come on at the same time. If the dash lights are not working the exterior lights won't be either. Try taking the two part plastic clam shell off the steering column and rinse the headlight switch with a spray can of electrical contact cleaner.

The whole fuse box is uncovered and if I bump or wiggle it the radio goes off, so I have reason to suspect some wiring or contacts near it. I wasn't able to get to the truck much today because a big rain is coming and had other things to do, but the column cover is the ashy sort of dryrotted plastic and it wouldn't come apart even a crack when I got the screws loose this morning. I'll get into it early this coming week but may end up breaking the plastic. Never seen auto interior plastic turn ashy before, Toyota steering column plastics usually turn yellow/brown, petrify, and shatter specifically there, lol

 

23 hours ago, datzenmike said:

Get the timing and valve lash set and many of your carburetor issues may disappear.

I haven't been into it yet but it appears one distributor bolt is broken off with the threads still in the hole. The other one is in but the distributor is rotated almost all the way over, don't remember offhand which way. I don't have a way to get that broken bolt out although I'm sure I'll be able to time it and it will run fine with one bolt like Toyotas are designed.

 

23 hours ago, ggzilla said:

Weber 32/36 won't give it extra power for hauling. It works on a Corolla, but the 720 carb is already bigger than a 32/36. If you tune-up (adjust) the engine the stock carburetor will be just fine.

Really? No extra torque, just fuel efficiency from the Weber? Also, the crack-looking thing is just a casting mark and there's one just like it on the other side, checked today.

 

What I'm looking forward to most is taking the bed off and trying to de-rust all of it, the situation is pretty bad but better than most Datsuns I've seen that have been sitting. I got some Krylon acrylic clear coat for my taillight lenses because I've read that's good for protecting cracked/brittle light lenses. Also need a fan clutch, it's frozen solid. Worth trying to fix or rebuild?

[ggzilla]

48 minutes ago, TinKanTosser said:

No extra torque, just fuel efficiency from the Weber? Also, the crack-looking thing is just a casting mark and there's one just like it on the other side, checked today.

no extra fuel efficiency, it will be a bit worse

 

The Weber is jetted richer than the Hitachi, so it will run good, a bit smoother at times. Or, you could jet the Hitachi richer. If your Hitachi is worn out then the Weber will be big improvement, but so will a rebuilt Hitachi

[datzenmike]

6 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

"AI Overview

To contact the administrators of ratsun.net, the email address ratsunguy@ratsun.net has been used in the past. However, according to posts on the forums, users have reported receiving no response when contacting this email."

Honestly don't mean to come off as snarky but it kind of sucked having no way at all to contact someone running this site to report it broken. I could have made an account on some other Datsun site to message you about it since you're everywhere, but I decided to wait it out since someone probably would report it, but apparently a lot of other people just had no way to contact anyone.

 

I just checked the e-mail addresses of other mods and site administrators and they don't match ratsunguy@ratsun.net. No idea who this is. This problem has never happened before. Like I said, if I'm in the back yard I can't hear you at the front door. Thank-you for being patient, I know this must have been frustrating. I have an account on The 510 Realm but it's slow right now, go there maybe less than once a week. I should have looked into this when mod approvals and bots and scammers stopped showing up. 

 

 

6 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

The whole fuse box is uncovered and if I bump or wiggle it the radio goes off, so I have reason to suspect some wiring or contacts near it. I wasn't able to get to the truck much today because a big rain is coming and had other things to do, but the column cover is the ashy sort of dryrotted plastic and it wouldn't come apart even a crack when I got the screws loose this morning. I'll get into it early this coming week but may end up breaking the plastic. Never seen auto interior plastic turn ashy before, Toyota steering column plastics usually turn yellow/brown, petrify, and shatter specifically there, lol

 

Probably 40 years of UV exposure. Radio is the 7th fuse over from the left hand side.

 

I haven't been into it yet but it appears one distributor bolt is broken off with the threads still in the hole. The other one is in but the distributor is rotated almost all the way over, don't remember offhand which way. I don't have a way to get that broken bolt out although I'm sure I'll be able to time it and it will run fine with one bolt like Toyotas are designed.

 

Remove the other distributor bolt, don't worry this does not alter the present timing as the distributor can only go back in in the same position. Drill the broken bolt and use an easy out if interested. One bolt will work

 

Really? No extra torque, just fuel efficiency from the Weber? Also, the crack-looking thing is just a casting mark and there's one just like it on the other side, checked today.

 

The stock Hitachi carburetor is rather complex but the best over all compromise for power, economy and drive ability.  The 32/36 Weber is much simpler so less to go wrong. It may give slightly better performance but it will seem much more than it is because it's compared to a badly worn and out of adjustment Hitachi. In addition you will loose the use of the stock ATC (automatic temperature control) of the intake air.  

 

What I'm looking forward to most is taking the bed off and trying to de-rust all of it, the situation is pretty bad but better than most Datsuns I've seen that have been sitting. I got some Krylon acrylic clear coat for my taillight lenses because I've read that's good for protecting cracked/brittle light lenses. Also need a fan clutch, it's frozen solid. Worth trying to fix or rebuild?

 

If the fan clutch bearing has seized the fan will turn 1 to 1 with the water pump without any slip. This will sound like a jet taking off and gobble up some power to move all that air. Unfortunately the fan clutch and water pump are integral and can't be replaced without replacing both. If working properly you should be able to turn the fan blade with your finger against firm but smooth resistance. The fan should not be able to spin by itself. Internally it's a viscous fluid drive like a torque converter. Keep an eye out for a good used one.

 

[TinKanTosser]

11 hours ago, datzenmike said:

In addition you will loose the use of the stock ATC (automatic temperature control) of the intake air. 

To be fair I got the Datsun air cleaner adaptor for the 32/36 and have been running a 620 one on the Corolla because I was concerned about it sucking pure hot air while also suffering from heat soak. So if I go with bolting it onto this pickup I'll have everything intact I guess. I appreciate all the remarks about the Hitachi, I'm not used to a stock emissions-era carburetor being worth anything after the horror show I experienced with the Corolla, it being computer-controlled with a web of actually unnecessary gadgets. It really does surprise me to see Datsun ran all its vacuum from the manifold to the self-contained gadgets on my truck (assuming this is correct) when Toyota would run about 25 vacuum lines to different junk on the carb alone. Reminds me why I jumped ship from Toyota, lot of nasty designs that made maintenance more difficult than it needed to be.

 

11 hours ago, datzenmike said:

Unfortunately the fan clutch and water pump are integral and can't be replaced without replacing both.

Isn't this kind of a sucky design? Do you know of any attempts to modify the pump pulley in order to bolt on a generic fan clutch? Kind of a shame to have to replace both when only one is bad. My dad's truck has the fan taken off and an electric fan wired in, now I know why.

 

So about the turn signals and steering column, I got the cover off and it's fine, nothing broke, the cover basically just had a layer of ashy rotten plastic that came right off while the rest of it is flexible and good as new. Maybe worth coating for UV protection?

Hazard light switch is badly corroded and dusty, I sprayed it down and worked it and now hazards and turn signals work. There's a lot of green corrosion on contacts and screws so ultimately all of my electrical issues are going to require me to open up and clean every contact sooner or later, but yeah I'm about ready to get on the road.

 

I mentioned my original ignition switch is no good and there's an aftermarket one hanging from the wiring. I now see that the original is a huge metal cylinder held on with a metal shaft, there's no good way to rig the aftermarket one in there and frankly I'd like to have an original switch with the metal mount; if I can get the ignition switch off the column can I take it to a locksmith or Nissan dealer to have a new key made for it? I don't have the manual to know what the key code is unfortunately. Another option is trying to take the switch and locks out of my dad's truck, but he still carries his key and it would be kind of sad...

 

I'm about to do a RockAuto parts order for the essentials, a few pressing issues:

The "housing" for the light switch stalks, the white plastic that wraps around the steering shaft itself, is rotten from heat and age. I can stick my fingernail in it and it comes apart with ashy powder like cheese. RockAuto has these for $125 and I know they'll be gone soon, because "all the parts your car will ever need" have begun disappearing for every classic make. Good to have for the future or just rig it back together when the original one falls apart?

My current spark plugs are Autolite and I believe I heard someone trustworthy say NGK is the only kind worth running. NGK has different part numbers listed for the intake and exhaust sides, does this matter and why?

Are there any bushings or such that I should get, that it will definitely need after sitting in a field rotting in the sun for over 35 years?

[ggzilla]

I have used Autolites in many vehicles and they provided great service. NGKs come out of the box with consistent gaps, but it's not always the correct gap for your year engine, so in the end that doesn't matter. Just gap 'em when install them

 

Nissan factory spark plugs included NGK, Hitachi and Champion. So there more than just one kind worth running, as least Nissan thought so

9 minutes ago, TinKanTosser said:

My current spark plugs are Autolite and I believe I heard someone trustworthy say NGK is the only kind worth running.

[ggzilla]

Bushings in the suspension generally don't rot from sitting. It's plastic/rubber parts in the direct sunlight that rot

13 minutes ago, TinKanTosser said:

Are there any bushings or such that I should get, that it will definitely need after sitting in a field rotting in the sun for over 35 years?

[ggzilla]

14 minutes ago, TinKanTosser said:

I mentioned my original ignition switch is no good and there's an aftermarket one hanging from the wiring. I now see that the original is a huge metal cylinder held on with a metal shaft,

The ignition switch is a small part that bolts to the back of the key lock cylinder assembly. About $40 new

[TinKanTosser]

8 minutes ago, ggzilla said:

The ignition switch is a small part that bolts to the back of the key lock cylinder assembly. About $40 new

Oh, they do still make this style switch! To be clear my whole cylinder is no good due to a broken and/or lost key. Part of it is claimed to be inside the switch but the rest is gone.

https://www.amazon.com/LATCHWELL-PRO-4030003-02-Ignition-Cylinder-Compatible/dp/B07H4Y1LXY

The aftermarket one the previous owner bought has the same plug connector but just wouldn't fit the same, doesn't look the same, and its key would never fit the door locks. I wonder if my door locks will re-key to these keys, or if I'll have to have separate ones. Gets annoying when you have a truck toolbox and two or three other vehicles you're trying to keep running on a keyring.

Edited October 20 by TinKanTosser

[ggzilla]

The Amazon page is for a Steering Lock/key with an ignition switch included. But they are normally separate parts

 

* The ignition switch is a small round thing that switches the electric circuits

* It is a separate part from the Steering Lock and Key cylinder, but it bolts to the back

 

There are at least four different key styles. Any locksmith can re-key your existing locks so the keys match (assuming the key fits). They can re-key it from a code, or by matching it to a key (no code necessary). And it's less expensive than new locks

 

When you talk to a locksmith don't ask for ignition switch to be re-keyed. It is the Steering Lock the needs the key

 

 

As a side note, this is why it's easy to start the engine without a key. Just unbolt the ignition switch and turn with a screwdriver. But hard to steal a vehicle, as this won't unlock the steering wheel

 

 

Edited October 20 by ggzilla

[NC85ST]

Yes, take your lock cylinder to a good locksmith and he’ll be able to get you fixed up. Better to have your original ignition key than some aftermarket setup.

[TinKanTosser]

Changed the oil today and tried to start it up, having no idea which wire goes to the choke I decided to try brute-forcing it by mashing the gas like the day I test-ran it, and it backfired a bunch and blew white smoke out the exhaust and the air cleaner pipe that comes from the exhaust. Explains why the mechanic thought it had a blown head gasket, and moreover explains thoroughly why it wouldn't run that day. I checked the spark plug order and it was like every wire on the distributor was rotated back one place compared to the diagram, so I put each wire where it's supposed to go, cranked, and all I'd get was a backfire through the carb. So this thing has a new aftermarket distributor cap (no plug wire numbers) but I'm guessing the original distributor going by how dirty it is. Rotor appears to have burnt contacts so it may not be new. But given that the previous owner broke off a distributor bolt he may have taken it out and reinstalled it improperly? I wasted all day waiting on rain to end and then it got dark so I didn't have the chance to get into that and find out. Maybe tomorrow.

[datzenmike]

The ATC in the air filter has a thermostat regulated to around 100F. If over this, the ATC would close the pipe supplying warmed air from the hot exhaust and instead draw air in from the snorkel which should have a pipe running to in front of the radiator. It runs on engine vacuum so when at full throttle and intake vacuum low the ATC defaults to closing the warmed air off and drawing air from in front of the radiator for max performance.

 

The water pump pulley is pressed onto the water pump shaft that the clutch is on. To use a bolt on fan, you would also have to change the pump to one that has the bolt on fan. If switching to electric you can cut the clutch fan off the shaft but stay at least 1/8" away from the pressed on pulley.

[NC85ST]

10 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

all I'd get was a backfire through the carb

So it wouldn’t start? With the plug wires not positioned correctly before, the previous owner may have tried to fix it by adjusting the distributor. Have someone try to start it while you adjust the distributor one way or the other.

 

10 hours ago, TinKanTosser said:

previous owner broke off a distributor bolt he may have taken it out and reinstalled it improperly

One great thing about these Nissans, the distributor only fits one way. You can pull the distributor out and you don’t have to worry about it being a tooth off when you put it back. You only worry about being a tooth off when you pull the oil pump. Which bolt is broken?

[TinKanTosser]

I'm an ADHD idiot, the cap is original and numbered but I didn't see because of low light and initially trying to leave the plug wires in place. It was wired right in the first place, I didn't realise I needed to look at the thing cockeyed to follow the diagram. I was wracking my brain trying to figure out where each wire goes last night before I decided to try rewiring it wrong 🫠

So this morning I wired it right again and tried rotating the distributor to about the midpoint, that should usually be a good base to start from, and it fired more eagerly but still sounded out of time and I didn't want to keep pushing it for fear of messing it up.

Won't let me embed an mp4 as an image so here's a link: https://i.imgur.com/bUnMTzL.mp4

 

1 hour ago, NC85ST said:

One great thing about these Nissans, the distributor only fits one way. You can pull the distributor out and you don’t have to worry about it being a tooth off when you put it back. You only worry about being a tooth off when you pull the oil pump. Which bolt is broken?

I didn't expect that. I spent a lot of time messing with a 22RE worrying about the distributor gear before I got a timing light.

Broken bolt is here:

Should be fine, seems like

[TinKanTosser]

I was in a rush to check my wires and post the above this morning before going on a trip, but just now I got back and the truck actually ran on its own for the first time -- I let off the pedal expecting it to go dead but it actually kept going, with the idle drifting up and down. Imgur cut the video off at a minute but when I covered the open vac port with my finger it made no difference to the idle, and then a short bit later it went dead on its own. I know I need my carb wires hooked up but right now I'm concerned about how it's not firing right. The way it shakes makes it seem like one or two cylinders are entirely not firing -- spark test comes next I guess

https://i.imgur.com/G45l1XV.mp4

[Thomas Perkins]

You need to remove that broken bolt and put a new one in it.You see where the worn part is.After getting a new bolt in,  turn distributor and align it up to the worn mark.Might get lucky and hit the timing mark on the head.My bolt is pretty much centered.Never in 31 years of owning my truck has my timing jumped.Advance has these cheap.

[TinKanTosser]

8 minutes ago, Thomas Perkins said:

You need to remove that broken bolt and put a new one in it.You see where the worn part is.After getting a new bolt in,  turn distributor and align it up to the worn mark.Might get lucky and hit the timing mark on the head.My bolt is pretty much centered.Never in 31 years of owning my truck has my timing jumped.Advance has these cheap.

So you think one bolt holding it on could be causing it not to spark on one side of the rotation?

Also forgot to mention it only ran on its own this time after I sprayed everything down with contact cleaner. The burnt contacts I mentioned are the four on the ring on the rotor around the rotor button.

Also my rotor button fell out when I took the cap off last night, I tried to jam it back into the spring but it's crooked. Don't know what to do about that or if it affects anything.

[banzai510(hainz)]

8 minutes ago, TinKanTosser said:

my rotor button fell out

thats something meaningful. called get another cap thats junk

 

8 minutes ago, TinKanTosser said:

one bolt holding it

on the timing slots its only one bolt.but if has 2 get 2 bout highly dought thats your proplem  to hold the mount it 2 bolts . ez to get another metric bolt.

 

make sure the wires are correct fire order if this a 2wire per cylinder head.

Edited October 22 by banzai510(hainz)

[Thomas Perkins]

.

Edited October 22 by Thomas Perkins