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I disassembled a distributor today and cleaned all the parts. What should I look for before I reassemble and refinish it?

A Sun Distributor machine?

Good call! Without a distributor machine it is a guess as to how the distributor is performing. And it is always nice to test the distributor before installing it back in the vehicle.

What I meant is what do I look for before putting it back together? Are there particular areas that I need to inspect/measure/adjust or do I clean it up, put it back together, intall new points & condenser THEN go to the Sun machine?

I always look for play in the shaft bushing. If to excessive,replace. The next thing is the cam, if it's worn it should be relaced. If the gear looks good and the mechanical advance is working O.K. it should be ready to assemble. I always put grease on the moving parts of the mechanical advance.











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Thanks 37,
There was some up & down movement but no noticeable side to side movement. As for the cam, I'll check my other distributor & compare. Were the lobe corners rounded or sharp on a new cam?

If the distributor is tested on a distributor machine, the test results will indicate if the cam lobes are worn.

Thanks JD,

Looks like we won't know until then. I'll just put it back together & start looking for the SUN. Actually a fellow hobbyist here just bought all sorts of stuff from an old Ford Dealer. The SUN might just be there.

On the cam,the points ride on the center portion. There should be an area at top and bottom thats not worn. That is how I judge the condition.

Yep, you can pretty much tell by looking at the lobes on the cam if there is some wear. However, Sun suggests that if the cam lobe variation shows 2 degrees or more on the distributor machine, the cam should be replaced. Judging 2 degrees of wear with the old eyeballs is kinda sorta hard to do, and that would be a judgment call based on how much wear you see on the cam lobes.

In my case did not have the luxury of a test machine. The areas I was checking when completely stripping my 28 dizzy were the gear drive at the bottom and the amount of slop between the shaft and the housing. Using this method I have been able to make 2 very good units out of 4 dizzys. Excessive p and down play is also something to check for. Having stripped a couple down to bare bones, you soon get an idea of what to look for, and it makes you think yeh I will replace the insulating strp and the main body insulator where the points bolt goes through.

Cheers

Ray

Here are both of them. Lobes appear even from top to bottom.What do you guys think?

The cams look good but the only way you will know about the wear for sure is to test the distributor on a distributor machine.

Going by the photos both cams have very little or no wear but the lower has some discolored patches as though there may have been some rusting. This may cause the fibre rubbing block on the points to wear prematurely.
Tony

Looks good. I dont think you will have any problem.Dont forget to put a little grease on the mechanical advance weights where they rub,a drop or two of oil in the felt in the top of shaft.

And put a little cam grease on the cam lobes for the rubbing block too.

I have six or eight distributors and have been considering rebuilding them. Can you cure the up and down motion by shimming the shaft. Are dist. gear pins available?

DD

What years are the distributors?

The 1929-53 Chevrolet distributors are supposed to have up and down movement of the distributor shaft because of the oil pump thrust washer that is on top of the oil pump. When the distributor is installed the distributor gear rests against the oil pump thrust washer thus pushing the gear and the shaft up to their proper position.

For distributor gear pins, you can purchase the correct size roll pin at your local hardware store.

I do not recommend a roll pin for the distributor gear. Originally a soft metal pin was installed so it could shear instead of breaking something much more expensive if something jammed or froze. A roll pin is hardened steel which will break with enough force but virtually insures another part will fail first. I make my pins from common nails. It has worked well for over 40 years and they don't cost much either.

I have made them from mild steel welding rod.

I have used roll pins for over 30 years and I have them in hundreds of distributors. Never had an issue.

Nails are "tacky"!

All of the pins, I have seen, have been peened on the ends. Do you peen the roll pins? If so, how do you do It, since most are very hard?
Richard

Pat,
I have a Sun machine and the adapter for that distributor. I would be happy to run It for you, but with a shipping cost I doubt It would be worth It.
Richard

I'll check the post office and Purolator just for fun. What is your Zip code?

Pat,
Sent you a PM