Any tips to Distributer removal?

[gr8fulabe]

Hi,

I have an 84 2F sitting over in a friend's garage. We aren't doing an actual rebuild, but are having the head rebuilt & replacing the seals, gaskets, etc... on it.

Last night he was trying to remove the distributor & apparently spent almost an hour tinkering with it, but couldn't get it to come out.

He had removed the retaining bolt, and it would move freely (back & forth, like adjusting the timing) but he couldn't get it out. He didn't want to force it & screw something up, so he ended up leaving it.

Is there any special trick to it that he/I don't know, or is it just a little stuck & we should give it some light taps with a rubber mallet or something?

any ideas or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance,
Abe

 

[SteveH]

They can stick in there pretty well. If the retaining bolt is now out, try tapping from underneath. Spray some WD40 around the base where it goes into the block. Remove the cap/wires so that if something slips, you don't shatter the cap.

You may want to get under the truck with a long screwdriver, pipe, or socket extension and tap lightly from underneath the truck while another guy rotates and lifts from above. Hammer access in the engine compartment is limited. I suspect a rubber mallet won't have a sharp enough impact to get it loose, but don't wail on it with a bigger hammer. Slow easy taps should get it going.

 

[nuclearlemon]

does he have the motor at top dead center?

 

[gr8fulabe]

does he have the motor at top dead center?

Hi Ige,

Probably not. I couldn't say for sure, but I doubt it. I don't recall that ever being a problem on my Galaxie (Ford V8), is it a necessity for a 2F? All of my manuals and such are over at his house.

thanks,
Abe

 

[nuclearlemon]

i've never had it make a difference coming out on v8s, never tried anything but on cruisers though. figure since you gotta be at top dead to install, may as well be there to remove.

 

[gr8fulabe]

Sweet! thanks for the tips.

If he doesn't tinker with it tonight & figure it out, I am heading over there tomorrow after work, so hopefully we will get 'er done!