Draco,

0.005-0.010" is what Aaron stated in another dist. rebuild thread. Had mine at ~ 0.0025" so I openeed it up a little to set at ~0.0055". It still feels tight and the play can be bearly felt. If you wanted to replace all the orriginal parts you could, but if you have your play set right I'm sure it will outlast the current motor ;)

I don't think those washers wore out... I had 80k on mine and they were almost spotless. I think you are correct that the last one through the dist. was a moron :)

Best regards,

michael

Hey Rusnak & Euro911SC,

Thanks Rusnak for the tip about the under the felt placement of the drops of motor oil, will do. Actually when I pulled it out for the second time there was motor oil on the shaft. luckily the crank case lubed it for me.

I am suprised that I did not have more problems with 2MM or play on the distributor. I love our Pcars, they trully have over engineered these babies.

Any idea on why a non metal washer is used at all? I got the 356 kit and used the one fiber(?) washer for the missing washer at the top but reused the existing washer on the bottom near the gear since it seemed to be solid as ever. should I replace it with the same thickness using all the metal shims the kit came with?
Also, any idea on how to compress the pin? I bought two from out hosts assuming I'd bugger one of them up which I've done. Can't seem to get a handle on it without it spinning and I don't want to hit anything "expensive" or possibly bend the shaft.

Not sure about the fiber washer but, since the bottom runs in oil anyway, I would use metal washers to get a little clearance up and down in the shaft.
I believe the gear is centered so that it lines up with the hole for the pin even if the gear is turned 180 deg.
The pin should be a slight press-fit with a lead-edge to get started in the gear.
Eyeball the correct location and tap on the pin to get it through the gear and into the shaft.
Light oil will help.
The ends of the pin need to be lightly hammered to spread them a little like a rivet.

Hope this helps. :)

Thanks, I notices there is a spiral groove cut into the bottom of the shaft...would that possibly be to pull (push?) oil up the sides of the shaft? I guess I'll replace the fiber washer at the bottom (the older one) with an equivalent thickness of metal shims. Is this measured by just putting a feeler guage in between whatever shims are on there? Mine's solid but not binding at all...certainly hard to feel any actual movement though.
I need a small press to focus the pressure on the pin. It's pretty hard to strike the pin without a good chance of hitting the distributor itself. I may just take it to the guy who rebuilt the alternator and let him use one of his presses.

This is a great friggin' thread, thanks to all of the posters. Definitely one of those outta sight/outta mind components.


PS: Buck-got the package, thanks!

Buck,

Check this thread out. Aaron (Burn-Bros) supplied valuable info on how get the pin out and info on the distributor near the end of the first page. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/326574-carrera-distributor-mechanical-advance.html

Very useful...I recalled that thread but could not remember the title. I'll switch out the fiber washer the metal shims.
Good to hear it got there Ed, thanks again, it was a lifesaver.

Yes, just put feelers in growing thicknesses into the groove between the gear and the shims and when it gets tight, not super tight, you have measured the clearance. Use the spec posted above and you will be fine.

My pin slipped in with no press. I suspect I drilled with too much enthusiasm or off center. I put one end of the pin on the edge of the vise and lightly tapped the other end until it was slightly mushroomed. This would stop that end from going through the hole. Then I turned it over and hammered on the smaller end so it mushroomed out too. I repeated this several times until the pin did not move anymore. You need a very small ball pean hammer or punch to miss the gear.

Best regards,

Michael

What is the usual rebuild mileage; or is it more of an individual condition basis?

jp

Are there signs that a rebuild is required such as play in the shaft or something else?

If the small felt plug under the rotor is as dry as camel fluff in the desert, the upper part of the shaft has not been lubed and that usually results in the upper bushing wearing out.
Plus the upper half of the shaft is part of the mechanical advance and needs a little oil under the felt.

A distributor that gets TLC can last a very long time (~200K) without a major overhaul.
If it runs in a dirty environment, the internal vacuum advance plate can and will freeze up.
The vacuum pod should be checked for a leak now and then:
Remove the cap, disconnect the vacuum line on the advance side of the pod, suck on it and watch the advance plate move a little.

People will do plugs, rotor & cap, wires etc., but the inner mechanism of distributors is generally neglected meaning: the curve cannot be right.

If in doubt, do the simple maintenance required to keep it working correctly. :)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/333640-distributor-service-clean-lube-real-easy-without-removing-pinion-gear.html