71whitewesty Tuning A 1600

[71whitewesty]

Well my bus has been running soooo smooth ( a good 6k miles so far and lots of trips!) since I met Colin at the Maupin campout that I decided to do the same distributor switch to my other 1600 dp motor.
It was so successful that I've been searching for another 205Q dvda dist since and I finally found one.
So I took it all apart and cleaned things up and it looks good to me and had no issues that I can see.
I then took out the 009 that was in it. It was running well by the way other than the 009 hesitation that drives me nuts... and I put in the new 205 Q. BUT darn it, I cannot seem to get it running well at all again.
And this all happened last night and I ran out of time and ideas so I thought I'd post it here.
I also put the 009 back in and still can't seem to get it running well at all.
So here's what I did and what I noticed. I know it's something simple, I am sure it's a combo of timing and carb adjustment but I suddenly feel stupid...
Vacuum can is new and I really don't think it has anything to do with the distributor, just me.
To try and keep this short and sweet, I pulled the 009 and put in the 205Q and static timed it at tdc using the pulley notch as my tdc indicator, sure that works as I've put a lot of miles on the motor and found tdc before on it that way using the straw method ( I know that's not 100% accurate but it's been working great). Hooked up the vacuum lines and started it. It ran but not well at all. I also remember that we adjusted the carb quite a bit so I loosened the idle screw (large one) 6-7 turns to bring the idle up. I did not mess with the fuel mixture yet. It sounds like it's running on 3 cylinders, sort of. No pep in the throttle at all. Will idle but not much more. I have timed it to no avail. Also back firing if I give it gas.
I even rotated the wires on the cap one spot counter clockwise and had no luck. Maybe I should try clockwise?
Anyway, the one thing I noticed as a difference between the two dist is the relation between the direction the rotor faces vs the two nubs on the bottom of the dist that go into the dist drive gear. They don't match up as far as orientation. It seems that it could be a spark plug wire off, if that makes sense.
I may not be providing enough detail with my limited knowledge but does anyone see an obvious problem or have a suggestion?
I put the 009 back in and still can't get it to run worth a darn. Basically both dist now run about the same, like poop. What am I missing? Thanks in advance and I hope you make it back out this way again next year.

[71whitewesty]

Well I do believe I have found my problem...I had the wires switched up on the dist cap...
I could have sworn that wasn't the case but I'll be darned.
I am now going to make another attempt at switching the distributors around and see if I can pull this off.

[71whitewesty]

Just to update this. I did get the 205Q distributor in and it seems to be running fairly well now. It has that noticeable low end grunt that the dvda seems to be known for. I still have a bit of hesitation when gassing it though. I'll have to work on that some more but otherwise it's running better than before.

[Amskeptic]

Just to update this. I did get the 205Q distributor in and it seems to be running fairly well now. It has that noticeable low end grunt that the dvda seems to be known for. I still have a bit of hesitation when gassing it though. I'll have to work on that some more but otherwise it's running better than before.

This series of updates must go elsewhere, perhaps "Engine Forum"? The Itinerary Forums will eventually be my retirement trove of travel stories.

So, crossed wires in the cap? Let's review: The Volkswagen Air-Cooled Engine Firing Order is merely a count-down.
1-4-3-2 is exactly the same as 4-3-2-1. You can remember that for the rest of your life.

Hesitation issue:

You CANNOT time a DVDA to the factory idle specification of 5* ATDC without confirming that the retard is working correctly.
IF you time to the factory timing specification of 5* ATDC and the retard has not pulled the timing back, you end up retarding the whole timing map by some gruesome amount, you get weak power, hot exhaust parts, hesitation, delerium, and tremors and tics.

A) Set timing with all hoses off the distributor to 28@ 3,200 rpm, then stick hoses back on.

Note that you cranked that big air screw out in your above post. Once you reach a certain point, turning that screw out has no effect. I do not know if you are 3 4 5 6 turns out, right? So turn it in until you hear a noticeable drop in idle speed. Screw it back in until you hear a noticeable reduction in idle. This establishes your "base point" for actual effect. Now set idle speed for 950-1,000 rpm.

Mixture screw is the little guy. Like above, turn it in clockwise until you get a noticeable drop in idle speed. This time, the drop is not because you are setting the airflow (idle speed), but because you are starving the engine for fuel. As soon as it drops, turn the screw back out until idle recovers to best possible idle. Now add a quarter turn out (richer). Test drive and report back. If you do not see your post here, and you really shouldn't, look in the Engine Forum under "71whitewesty Tuning 1600"

[71whitewesty]

Ah yes... thank you Colin! This is helpful. I sometimes get stuck on the itinerary threads...
I will take the hoses off and re time it that way. I'll also adjust the carb per your post and report back.
I may not get right back to this as I'm taking the motor out to put it in another bus. I'll probably finish tuning it up in that one. Winter project... Thank you very much for your help.