Starting the Engine

I started the engine this morning. It cranked for just a 40 seconds total before fuel reached the carburetor and it started up. It ran for a few seconds and I noticed there was no oil pressure reading. I turned the engine off so there would not be any damage.

I went to Ace and purchased a fitting to reinstall the mechanical oil pressure unit which was previously on the car. I started the car and immediately the oil pressure was 40psi. As the car warmed up, the oil pressure dropped to about 20 but would increase when I revved the engine.

The timing was not set properly as I loosened the distributor to clean it and the surrounding parts of the manifold. I connected a vacuum gauge and timing light. The vacuum was at 16 but I could not identify the timing. I turned off the engine and then made darker marks for TDC on the crank pulley.

The second attempt worked a little better. I was able to set the timing at 12 degrees which put the vacuum at 19lbs. If turned to 15 degrees, the vacuum reaches 20lbs. Performance normally increases with timing (to an extent). I've heard of setting timing based on the highest vacuum. For now, I'll just leave it at 12 degrees as it is a safe setting.

I did notice a little blue smoke when reving the engine and on the second start. The smoke goes away quickly but is a sign of oil burning. I'll need to keep an eye on this as I do not remember this occurring before.