I appreciate this info. You explained a few things that others that I have watched did not. I will be using this information in my new 528 Buick install with a 680 lift. thank you.
Interesting information for sure. I've got an Innovators West balancers on my SBC. I got all the parts for the crank trigger when I bought it but I didn't use the crank trigger as I didn't think it would be useful on a N/A SBC street/strip engine. I will definitely get it installed over the winter as this poor SBC needs all the help it can get.
Pulling a distributor out and putting it back in differently does not change rotor phasing, it only changes when the distributor fires in relation to engine rotation...If you don't have an adjustable rotor, an adjustable cap, an adjustable breaker plate/reluctor, or a crank trigger you are only chasing your own tail by putting the distributor shaft on a different tooth. Putting the distributor in differently, adjusting the distributor body, taking the distributor out and turning the crank, These 3 things are all the same!
You made some mistakes, allow me to point out that you said if there is total advance of 40 degrees then the rotor is almost pointing at the next plug wire (on a v8) when the distributor fires, thats not how a distributor works. The ONLY thing that changes rotor phasing is vacuum advance, unless you have a crank trigger, an adjustable rotor, an adjustable cap, or an adjustable breaker plate/reluctor even then phasing only changes while driving when the vacuum advance moves the plate.
Thanks for the in depth video! I learned a lot. When you talk about gaining 15+ horsepower is that at the crank or wheels? I’ve been debating making the swap to a crank trigger. I’m locked out with an msd 85551 distributor. On the chassis dyno the timing was wandering at higher rpm.
Tanks well get Crank Trigger in May Procharger F2 Efi Big staff..Dyno with Fast Despirator Get good Nr i The Dyno 1100Hp only 12 psi I Boost...Hope I can get more Power with The Crank Trigger 30-40 Hp ????
will this work with a vortec SBC? Reason I ask is because timing is partially electronically controlled by ECU. Meaning that the distributor sets timing and ECU will fine adjust it. Obviously if distributor is off a tooth, then ECU can only adjust timing so much...
How does that work on a street/strip engine with an advance curve? Same logic correct? Or would you have to manually advance it to make sure its phased?
Does the crank trigger lockout the distributor and make it to where it doesn’t advance? How exactly does that work with initial timing of say 12 degrees?
Now all of us who tuned up street strip cars and charged good money for it are going to lose income, on tune up jobs. Lol, but we will get more engine jobs because a lot of them are going to try 41° so they can make more power 😄 Thanks
So if I understand this, the ticket is to pull the distributor and set the motor at total timing based on the balancer marks (say 41*) and then drop in the distributor so that the rotor is perfectly phased in line with the #1 lug on the cap? And you check this by using a cap with a hole in line with the #1 lug?