ignition time for sbc 350

hello..i just bought a sbc 350 crate motor and its bone stock, i also bought a edelbrock 600 cfm carb. and a weiand stealth matching intake with a msd hei distributor.. now my question is, im at a point to where i need to time it so it will idle better and get the most out of the engine, can i time it by ear till it idles smooth and doesnt ping. i dont have a timing light and i,ve read on this forum about timing by ear but i would feel better about the job if i could get it to run and idle better so i could get it to a shop to have them time it better..im thinking the timing is close cause it will start every time but its a little harder to start when warmed up and it idles kinda rouph.. thanks for any advice for a 1st timer

Do you have a vacuum gauge? You could use it to get your timing real close. Just hook it up to manifold vacuum and rotate the distributer until you reach it's highest vacuum, then turn the distributer the opposite direction to drop your vacuum by 2 inches. Tighten the distributer down and test drive it for pinging and throttle response. You should be good to go after that.

I would not dispute this tidbit of wisdom because I have never done it and CSC obviously does this for a living. My dial back timing light only ran me 50.00 at the local auto parts store and will allow you to set the timing exactly where you want it.

Pinging, or detonation, can ruin an engine in short order, and I would rather you spend a few bucks on a timing light instead of pistons and a teardown.

Suggested reading for this timing setup would be "timing 101" which you can find in the knowledge base. Your engine is brand new, do it right and you'll be safer and happier in the long run......... JD

I have to set the timing this way on 3 of my customers hot rods. They do not have timing markers on them at all. One of which is the Blown Corvette in my pictures.

get a light and set it properly. As stated in the above post, you can destroy the engine if the timing is to far advanced

As I intimated in the previous post, you are much more "saavy" at this than me.

Question though, isn't it quite easy to determine TDC and then at least make a mark and set timing exactly from there???

Yes but that is best done with the cylinder head off, using a piston stop. I also have a portable 5-gas anylizer to finish the fine-tune.

I'm not pulling the head off to determine TDC though this might be a bit easier and I doubt our original poster has a 5-gas analyzer. I don't, but would sure like one.............

I still feel timing should be done with a light so initial, mechanical and vacuum can all be checked for proper operation, and the desired curve dialed in.

Agreed

Speedy! He just wanted to get it close enough to be able to drive it to a shop to have it set correctly.

Missed that in the post. Not the first time I read too quickly.

is this a gauge that i can purchase at any parts store also you are saying i need to hook the gauge to a port somwhere on the intake manifold, also do i unplug the vacuum advace from the carb and plug the carb before i do my vacuum reading.. now do i turn dist. counterclockwise to retard and clockwise to advance...thanks guys for helping a greenhorn

Any parts store should have a vacuum gauge. Back by the distributer there is a manifold vacuum port, that should go to transmission or inside vent control, temporarily hook up to that source. Leave the vacuum advance hooked up. Counterclockwise is advance and clockwise is retard. No problem! I appreciated any help I got when I was a greenhorn, and I still do. Nobody knows it all.

I tried it one time with a vac guage...............useless.
Timing light that´s the tool to use for timing.

well shoot..i guess i might have to buy a gauge and timing light ..i just wanted to get it close so i could get it checked at a shop..i just hate buying a tool to just use it once and maybe not use it again...