How To Find Top Dead Center On A Chevy 327?

[jeffmont...@gmail.com]

On my commuter car, which has a hemi style head, I remove the spark
plug and insert a long narrow diameter plastic rod. I put the car in
neutral and rock the car back and forth until I know I'm at Top Dead
Center.

How do I find Top Dead Center on an engine like a Chevy 327?

[Paul]

Same way.

[Rodan]

<jeffmont...@gmail.com> wrote:

My commuter car has a hemi style head. To find TDC I remove

the spark plug and insert a long narrow diameter plastic rod.
I put the car in neutral and rock the car back and forth until I

know I'm at TDC. How do I find TDC on a 327 Chevy engine?
___________________________________________________________________

If you put the car in neutral, rocking it won't turn the engine.
Maybe you meant you put the car in top gear and rocked it
back and forth until the plastic rod projected out the furthest.

You can find TDC on the 327 the same way. Or you can
just turn the engine over until the advance scale on the
vibration damper is at zero. This is TDC for cylinder 1.

Good luck.

Rodan.

[Kevin]

"Rodan" <Ro...@Verizon.NOT> wrote in news:v8Fql.486$%u5.370
@nwrddc01.gnilink.net:

no because you can never trust a small block chev vib dampner to not
have slipped. that is why you check for true tdc. KB

--
THUNDERSNAKE #9

Protect your rights or "Lose" them
The 2nd Admendment guarantees the others

[theni...@yahoo.com]

> You can find TDC on the 327 the same way.     Or you can
> just turn the engine over until the advance scale on the
> vibration damper is at zero.    This is TDC for cylinder 1.
>
> Good luck.
>
> Rodan.

You have to make sure it is TDC on the "compression" stroke. There are
two TDC's in a four stroke.

[theni...@yahoo.com]

>  no because you can never trust a small block chev vib dampner to not
> have slipped. that is why you check for true tdc.  KB
>
> --
> THUNDERSNAKE #9
>
> Protect your rights or "Lose" them
> The 2nd Admendment guarantees the others

Never? Come on.

[Doc Humphreys]

They also make a "whistler" that I use. It's bout $10. You screw it
into the number one cylinder, turn the engine over by hand, and whn it
stops whistling, you are at TDC on the compression/firing stroke.
-Doc

[Steve W.]

Pull number one plug. Put a long ratchet and proper socket on the damper
bolt. Put trans in neutral and rotate the engine with your finger over
the spark plug hole. You will feel the compression try to push your
finger off the hole. When the pressure stops your at TDC on the
compression stroke. The damper line should line up with the 0 mark on
the pointer.

--
Steve W.

[HLS]

<theni...@yahoo.com> wrote in message news:495e25fd-20b9-4037-a247-

You have to make sure it is TDC on the "compression" stroke. There are
two TDC's in a four stroke.

***********

Underline this statement. Lots of people miss this fact and get 180 degrees
off with
the ignition.

[disston]

They also make a "whistler" that I use. It's bout $10. You screw it
into the number one cylinder, turn the engine over by hand, and whn
it
stops whistling, you are at TDC on the compression/firing stroke.
-Doc

Been many years since I had to do this but it was not a mater of
getting the car "exactly" on top dead center, it was only that I
needed to get the distributer back in and needed it within a few
degrees. Never saw one of those whistler things, I would have bought
one. But I use a piece of tissue paper, wadded up and placed into the
#1 plug hole. Always turned the motor over with the starter, disable
ignition, and when the paper flies out if you stop cranking
immediatly, it is now on TDC. Rather simple and it works for me.
disston

[ray]

are you trying to set the timing or are you in the process of rebuilding
the engine?

http://www.classiccarauto.com/impala/how_to/find_tdc.shtml

http://www.pontiacstreetperformance.com/psp/camshaft.html

[cuh...@webtv.net]

Get something more than long enough that fits into the number one
cylinder spark plug hole, hold on to whatever.you have in there.Slowly
turn the crank shaft with a socket wrench.You will know when the piston
is at top dead center and begins to come back down.You might need to
move the crank shaft back and forth a few times.Be sure the piston is
coming up on the compression stroke.
cuhulin

[man of machines]

remove number 1 plug and stuff a rag into plug hole and crank it over if you
can. it will pop when it''s tdc
<jeffmont...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:d4a38656-52bf-4e66...@k19g2000prh.googlegroups.com...

[Kevin]

theni...@yahoo.com wrote in news:a23e13c7-11b7-47b3-985b-
a2c4c7...@q9g2000yqc.googlegroups.com:

they are well known for slipping the timming ring on the vib dampner.
if you want to be sure of the timing, check for true TDC. Do not trust
the vib dampner ring markings. KB

[Doc Humphreys]

On Mar 7, 10:49 pm, Kevin <kevyNOS...@netins.net> wrote:
> thenited...@yahoo.com wrote in news:a23e13c7-11b7-47b3-985b-
> a2c4c7f34...@q9g2000yqc.googlegroups.com:

The simple stuff works for the easier engines, but if you are doing a
timing belt on an import or even indexing the cam sprockets to the
cams on a Chrysler 3.5L, you need to be precise. In extreme cases, I
have inserted a 1/4" extension, then put a dial indicator on top of
that with a clamp on magnetic arm to get the precise TDC. Some imports
time off of cylinder 3 instead of 1. When in doubt, check your manual.
I like the whistler cause it's quick and easy to use.
-Doc

[sdlomi2]

"man of machines" <dbr...@cac.net> wrote in message
news:ce2e4$49b1be5c$4a7e02e6$16...@123.NET...

Some would argue to use Doc Humphrey's dial indicator with extension and
'sneak up' on it turning crankshaft in a cw direction and mark the damper
with/at a FIXED pointer when it 1st moves, Then, 'sneak back up' on it from
a ccw direction and again mark the damper. Halfway between your 2 marks is
true TDC. HTH, s

[theni...@yahoo.com]

On Mar 14, 10:39 am, NickySantoro <NickySant...@optonline.net> wrote:

> Correct.  If you remove the dist cap and have the rotor pointing at #1
> position while the timing mark is on 0, you are at TDC on the
> compression stroke.

You might wana re-think that. Remember, there are 2 TDC's.

[jim]

What? Is that like "this is my brother Larry nd this is my other
brother Larry"

There is only one TDC for a given piston. The OP wasn't asking how to
align the crank with the cam. He was asking how you deal with the fact
that on a 327 the spark plug hole is not in line with the piston
movement. On a hemi the spark plug hole points in the same direction as
the piston. On a 327 it is closer to 90 degrees from the direction the
piston travels.

-jim

[theni...@yahoo.com]

On Mar 15, 8:12 am, jim <"sjedgingN0Sp"@m@mwt,net> wrote:

> There is only one TDC for a given piston. The OP wasn't asking how to
> align the crank with the cam.

> -jim

Interesting. So what do you call it when "a given piston" is at the
end of it's stroke, and the exhaust valve has gone closed?!?! If that
isn't TDC also, then let me know what it is. Guess it's one of those
rare 2 stroke 327's huh?!?!

[Thomas Tornblom]

theni...@yahoo.com writes:

TDC has nothing to do with an engine being two or four stroke. TDC is
when the piston is at the Top Dead Center, and that will happen twice
for each full four stroke cycle.

[jim]

theni...@yahoo.com wrote:
>
> On Mar 15, 8:12 am, jim <"sjedgingN0Sp"@m@mwt,net> wrote:
>
> > There is only one TDC for a given piston. The OP wasn't asking how to
> > align the crank with the cam.
> > -jim
>
> Interesting. So what do you call it when "a given piston" is at the
> end of it's stroke, and the exhaust valve has gone closed?!?!

I call it TDC when the piston is at the top of its stroke. The question that was
asked was not about how the crank aligns with the camshaft. To determine where
TDC is on the crankshaft you don't need to know how the cam is oriented.

>If that
> isn't TDC also, then let me know what it is. Guess it's one of those
> rare 2 stroke 327's huh?!?!

For all I know the person asking the question hasn't even installed the
camshaft yet. He wants to know how to find TDC that's got nothing to do with the
camshaft - the camshaft and distributor may be still sitting on his bench.

-jim