Update on the CJ - I need advice on tuning and timing

Well, after a week of not starting due to lack of spark I pulled apart the ignition and reworked everything. It got a new coil, distributor cap, condensor, ballast resistor, plugs and points. After that it started right up (no skinny pedal or choke which it has NEVER done). We did the gap on the points then the timing to 5* BTDC using a timing light and everything seemed to go well. It idles high (idle was bumped up when it started stalling because of problems earlier) but its very smooth. The problem is, as soon as I give it any gas the engine bogs, stumbles and backfires pretty badly. We tried disabling the vaccuum advance by unhooking the vaccuum tube but that didn't do anything we could see.

It ran well when I was on the gas before it stopped starting (though it would slowly stall if I let it sit long enough due to the spark problem) so because it worked up until now I assume that there's something wrong with the timing or points.

Any pointers on how to get this thing running smooth again? I'm flying out of state in one week and I need to be able to drive this to where it will be stored.

 

You should check the dwell on the points. If they aren't right then the stumbling will happen.

 

It could be a vacuum leak, too.
spray carb cleaner (won't take much) at the base of the carb where it meets the manifold -all the way around. light spray. if there is a vacuum leak the idle will change. may also be the accelerator pump. pull the aircleaner off and look down the throat of the carb. (engine off and key safely in your pocket, please)
ease the throttle linkage down. you should be able to see (and hear sometimes) a small stream of fuel down towards the bottom of the carb when the throttle blades open up. If no spray, that is your problem. Do it a couple or three times to be sure. also while the air cleaner is off look at the choke blades. make sure they rotate freely, and that they open all the way up. when the engine is warmed up, they should be all the way open. And actually with the 85 to 95 degree weather we have been having they should be open all the way any way.
Auto choke, or manual choke? Either way they need to be adjusted to open all the way when at operating temp. Book says manual choke. Loosen the set screw on the throttle cable at the carb. Push the cable knob all the way in to the dash. Open the choke plates as far as they will go and hold them there, and tighten the set screw onto the cable. Auto choke is different, and some one else will have to help you with that one.R) :hurrican:

 

I was going by what the book said (Chiltons Jeep CJ , #40200). It mentions two carbs for the 225. A rockchucker and a carter yf (auto choke) However I am blind in one eye and can't see out of the other, and so may have read it wrong or something. R)

 

It may sound dumb but how do i check the dwell? I've got my FSM that tells me what it is but I don't have the stuff they say i should use.

I really doubt its the carb because this thing ran great right up until the problem with the ignition. I don't think it's likely that these two things happened right at once.

I'll try and check the dwell first.

 

you need dwell meter. been a while since I checked mine, or I could tell you the degrees needed.



<edit> forgot, you need the distrib cap with the window on it, as you need the :v6: idling to check the dwell.

 

This definitely has a manual choke. I got very used to pulling it to get it started when it was cold.

 

Take off the cap and suspend it well away from the distributer body. Hook up the dwell meter (some one help me here, my dwell meter has decided to go on vacation in Cabo, and I don't remember which goes where on it.) have a buddy turn the engine over and observe the dwell reading. Should be 30º. A .016" feeler gauge should set the points real close to this. If it is 29º-30º, you are in good shape. replace the cap, start her up and set the timing to 5º BTC, and see how she runs. And first chance you get to replace this distributer with the Delco-Remy unit, do so. It's a lot easier to set the dwell on, and is a much sturdier unit.

 

If you do away with the points and replace them with a Pertronix then you don't have to worry about points and dwell readings. When I got my Jeep it ran awful and backfired and spuddered and everything else wrong. I checked and rechecked the points settings and timing and played with the fuel mixture and nothing worked. I put a dwell meter on the points and they were way off and when I set it properly it ran like a dream.

 

The only place I'm seeing that has a dwell meter on the shelf is autozone. I'm going to have to bike over there since the CJ doesn't move.

That's a 6 mile round trip, not terrible but no fun. It's going to be 95* today. I really hate the guy that stole and crashed my XJ.

 

Ebay
search Dwell, Tach
There are tons of units that will work.
If there is a Pawn shop that has tools there is a chance that one might be there. Goodwill, Salavating Army. Neighbors or friends, try chatting up the local garage they might lend you one. My local flaps has a 60 ton press, he lets me go right to it and press lug bolts all day. Try garage sales. Someone said a matchbook cover was the exact fit for the point gap.
Good luck.
Try biking first thing in the AM less sun and drunks out.

 

Matchbook... brings back memories. My father taught me that working on farm equipment. Worked like a champ. We would file them down and reset with a matchbook cover.

Also, autozone and a few others rent tools if you do not want to spend the cash on a new one. Might check that possibility out. Good luck.

 

I don't have time for ebay right now, I need this thing to run by monday so I can get to where I'm storing it for the summer. I'm flying back home to NY then and the CJ is going to sit till I come back in August. I think I may just go to Autozone, use it and see about returning it afterwards.

 

I'm a college student who's about to get married. My disposable income is about as low as it ever has been. If it's not too pricey I'll keep it around. The jeep money is getting harder and harder to come by.

 

The jeep is staying (and I'm finally going to get my other Cherokee back in NY) so maybe I'll hold on to it.

I'm coming to terms with the fact that I'm going to need to take out a loan to cover our health insurance for the next year till I get a real job.