Firecore fc1001 mechanical adjustment help

[gordo1968charger]

Hi there,
Have nt been on here in a while, I ve treated myself to a new firecore distributor(the one with the vacuum advance) following the instruction on removing the breaker plates for access to springs and mechanical advance,only it wo nt come out as the vacuum can is in the way.instructions do nt mention removing vacuum can..thanks in advance.
Gordo

[gordo1968charger]

?

[cdr]

I had to remove the vac can.

[firefighter3931]

Yes, the vac canister needs to be removed in order to remove the top plate 


Ron

[gordo1968charger]

How do you remove the vacuum can

[cdr]

How do you remove the vacuum can
[/quote]


A HIGH PERFORMANCE IGNITION SYSTEM WITH THIS DISTRIBUTOR, PLEASE REFER TO THE
INSTRUCTIONS THAT COME WITH YOUR
IGNITION CONT
ROL BOX. 
Adjusting
the
mechanical
advance
Please keep in mind that how quickly the mechanical advance comes is controlled by the stiffness of the advance springs. 
Softer
spring
s
allow the advance to
come
in more quickly (low compression street engine)
while stiffer springs delay the
advance curve until higher RPMs are reached (purpose built race engine).
The factory installed medium
blue springs generate
a performance ignition advance curve that typically begins at 1200 RPM and generates 2
2
-
24
° cranks
haft
advance
that
is
fully
in by 3
200
-
3300
RPM.  This mechanical advance curve will work in most street performance engines.
The
mechanical
advance curve in your new distributor is full adjustable and can be custom tailored to meet most
n
eeds. 
To
gain fu
l
l
access to the mechanical
advance to change springs
,
it is best to have the distributor out of the engine.  You can
adjust the amount of mechanical advance with
distributor in the engine.
1.
Remove the cap and rotor
fr
o
m the distributor
.  Carefully drive t
he roll pin out of the stop
collar and remove the stop
collar and trust washer
from
the distributor shaft. 
2.
Disconnect the two wire leads to the magnetic pickup.  Note that the terminal
s
on these leads are such that you can't
get them crossed.
3.
Remove th
e two large screws and lock washers from either side of the bowl.  These hold the
breaker plate
s
in place. 
4.
R
emove the two small screws and lock washers that hold the vacuum advance canister in
place.  Push the shaft
assembly
up about ½".  Locate the vac
uum a
dvance lever arm between the upper
and lower break plates
, just below
the magnetic pickup assembly
. 
U
sing a small screw driver
,
gently pry down on the lever arm until the locating pin on
the end of the lever arm is free from the upper breaker plate.
Gently remove the vacuum advance
canister from the
bowl.
5.
Push the shaft assembly
upward
until the
lower
advance plate
s
are clear of the bowl
–
be careful as the shaft
assembly is now free and can be completely remove
d
from the bowl and lower housing.
You
can now see and work
on the
mechanical
advance plates and springs. 
If you
need
the
mechanical
advance curve to come in more quickly
,
swap one or both of the blue springs for the silv
er springs.  If you
need
the mechanical ad
v
an
ce curve to come in
more sl
owly, then swap one or both of the blue springs for the
black springs.  DO NOT BEND THE SPRING
PERCHES.
6.
The amount of mechanical advance is controlled by the two lower advance plates.  There are two adjustment screws
,
on
e
either side of
the advance plates
. To adjust the
total amount of
mechanical advance, loosen the two screws and
rotate the
two
advance plate
s
. 
DO NOT BEND THE ADVANCE TAB
S
.
Using
either
the
Mopar Performance PN
5153446 or Summit Racing PN SUM
-
850535
advance curve kit
keys, choose the tot
al amount of mechanical
advance that is needed
.  The amount of crank shaft degrees is marked on each key.  Insert the flat side of the key
toward the advance tab and rotate the adjustment plate
tightly against the key.  Tighten the adjustment screws to 30
in
-
lb
.
7.
Reinstall i

[gordo1968charger]

The instructions I got must have been for the ready to run without the vacuum can.
I managed to adjust the mechanical advance with distributor in situ
According to my vacuum gauge I needed about 20 initial and 37 total.
My engine is stock apart from big cam (spec unknown) headers and intake.would you just leave the blue springs in?
My car is probably running the best it has in the 12 years I ve owned it.
It is 383 auto with 4.10 gears

[gordo1968charger]

The firecore distributor at just $165 seems to be an absolute bargain

[gordo1968charger]

Thanks cdr 

[cdr]

I would put the lightest springs in. it might want more timing, bump it up 2 deg at a time & check for pinging  23 in,39 total

[gordo1968charger]

Thanks

[brad mcintyre]

how much hp would firecore ignition and distributor ad to a stock 383.had my car 18 months now. not a mechanic by no means. but threw trial and error have finally got running good. but now just wonder what some other things might do, I do have petronics ignition but stock dist  flamethrower coil .stock carter 4131s 4 bl and I think stock possi rearend 

[firefighter3931]

how much hp would firecore ignition and distributor ad to a stock 383.had my car 18 months now. not a mechanic by no means. but threw trial and error have finally got running good. but now just wonder what some other things might do, I do have petronics ignition but stock dist  flamethrower coil .stock carter 4131s 4 bl and I think stock possi rearend 

Depending on how far off the tuneup is from ideal....there could be a LOT of power left on the table. From my experience most are not properly dialed in with the advance curve being slow...which hurts power and throttle response. 



Ron

[brad mcintyre]

looks like I will need a mechanic .

[brad mcintyre]

how do I check and correct the advance curve I have timing about 3.5 ahead of recommended with timing gun

[gordo1968charger]

From my limited experience the factory timing is nt enough

[gordo1968charger]

UPDATE!! I swapped one of the medium springs to a lighter spring and it's really woke the motor up,do I swap the other medium spring for a lighter spring or leave it as? is?
Initial timing is 22 and total seems best at 39.3