Overheating.... Sorta

What do you mean?

 

Are you replying to me?
If so, that is a safe initial timing range for a stock dizzy.
It will run OK, but getting the potential the engine has will require tuning.

 

On the side of the distributor is a vacuum can and a vacuum line connected to it. Unplug it, put a plug in the vacuum hose (a golf tee works great, but anything that prevents vacuum loss), then start the engine. Using an inductive pickup timing light (the North Island base hobby shop should have one you can use), hook up the leads, the pickup to #1 wire. shine the end of the light at the damper where the pointer is, and read the scale. Set the base timing to 8* if it's not there by loosening the hold-down bolt, then rotate the dizzy body. To advance the timing, turn the dizzy so the vacuum can moves toward the passenger's side; to retard, turn the dizzy so the vacuum can goes toward the driver's side. And when you turn the dizzy, do so like minutes on a clock face--one or two minutes at a time and recheck with the timing light. Once you have 8*, +/- 1*, shut off the engine, remove the timing light, remove the plug in the vacuum line and plug it back in to the vacuum can. Then go test-drive it. BTW, are you still running point-condenser ignition? If so, the points dwell need to be checked/set before you change the timing, as a newly set or replaced set of points may put the timing back where it belongs. Damn. I can't remember if he installed a Pertronix unit....

 

I hauled my car back to Michigan on a uhaul the beginning of August been working on as much as I can before I go back to california on a 10 month 7th fleet cruise haha..

 

Oopsie. Well, shows ya how much I've been paying attention to 'simple detail.' Anyway, the big things are, if you have point-condenser ignition, set dwell first, then check your timing. If timing is less than 8* BTDC, set to 8*, and test-drive it. You wanna keep your ears open for 'ping' or 'knock' under acceleration, especially if the transmission has not yet kicked down a gear. If no pinging, you can bump the timing up another 2*.

 

Once that's been set, then you can pay attention to your temperature.

 

I set it and It seems to jump around and it still runs hot

 

The timing jumps? Or the temperature jumps?

 

Is the vacuum advance disconnected and capped?
Is the pickup pointing the right direction on the plug wire?
Check the springs on the mechanical advance for a broken one.
When at TDC, according to the pointer, is the rotor pointing at #1?
If you have points, check your condenser.

 

I have not pulled the cap off my dizzy but I will next chance I get if I still can't fix it I'm just gonna take it into a shop and let them figure if it for me Im running outta time

 

How can I tell if it's points?

 

To be sure, take off the distributor cap and then pull up and remove the rotor. Underneath it you'll see points. Or if it's a later car it might have a Duraspark in which case you'd see an 8-position star wheel -- in which case it won't have points. Or it could have a modified stock distributor using a Pertronix add-on -- which also won't have points.

If you're thinking of replacing them, the AutoZone would know from the year of your car.

 

OK, right there, if you haven't pulled the cap off and verified if it has points, and subsequently set dwell, or replaced them if they're worn out, then you need to verify it. If you PM me an email addy, I'll shoot some pics from one of my professional books that will show you what you need to do.

 

Reading this thread. Have I missed something? I see a lot of mention of fans and clutch fans. And now into timing and point settings? All good suggestions, however.
My question is. Have you checked the radiator? Having the radiator flushed and cleaned would be a start point. Especially on older vehicles. Not specific to Ranchero`s. Recently purchased my`79 and was one of the 1st things I did.

 

Isn't funny that sometimes the most obvious gets overlooked. Good suggestion Don.

 

We had him chasing his tail and the whole time he may have been leaning over the problem.

 

Timing was brought up at the beginning of the thread. It just recently got checked and it is not stable, so the process is moving back to the beginning.

 

Freestyle is right, overheating problem, start with the basics like the cooling system, I got sidetracked on the thermostat just assuming that the radiator had been checked, it may not be the problem but it's sure worth checking it out since he wants to go with an electric fan anyway he can buy an aftermarket radiator like I did that is aluminum and comes with the fan and shroud.

 

Improper timing can be a significant contributor to overheating at idle and low speed. Even a properly working cooling system will overheat if the timing is sufficiently retarded.

 

Ribald is absolutely right. I recently had to replace the wrong timing set that NAPA sold me, and after replacing it with the correct one, I timed it to spec and took it for a test drive. It gradually started losing power and overheating, enough that it left me parked by the side of the road. I was able to make it back home after several stops for cooling down. What I found out was I forgot to tighten the distributer clamp down, causing my distributer to swing to MUCHO retarded. DOH! A simple re-timing and tightening the clamp solved the problem.

Although Ribald can ruffle feathers occasionally, his advice is usually spot on. And he didn't pay me to say this...