The Ford Barn

Hoop · 03-26-2020, 12:32 PM

I simply cannot believe that Henry Ford and Ford Motor Company gambled the entire future of the company on a new V8 engine ... with a distributor that had to be timed by Michael in Tennessee with a machine that hadn't been invented yet.

Does that make any sense?

I've read Ford's patent on the helmet distributor. It states that it could be timed by someone with little or no mechanical skills and without the need for special equipment.
https://patents.google.com/patent/US1963657A/en

It does not mention Michael at all.

Timing is ... timing. If you have a distributor with problems like excessive wear, etc. and need it tested and maybe rebuilt, by all means send it to Michael or Charley or your choice. But, timing itself was designed to be simple.

The average early flathead owner should be able to replace points and time the distributor. It's a job that can be very satisfying without a lot of heavy lifting involved

03-26-2020, 12:32 PM	#18
Hoop Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Jacksonville FL Posts: 1,137	Re: Timing procedure on 59AB? I simply cannot believe that Henry Ford and Ford Motor Company gambled the entire future of the company on a new V8 engine ... with a distributor that had to be timed by Michael in Tennessee with a machine that hadn't been invented yet. Does that make any sense? I've read Ford's patent on the helmet distributor. It states that it could be timed by someone with little or no mechanical skills and without the need for special equipment. https://patents.google.com/patent/US1963657A/en It does not mention Michael at all. Timing is ... timing. If you have a distributor with problems like excessive wear, etc. and need it tested and maybe rebuilt, by all means send it to Michael or Charley or your choice. But, timing itself was designed to be simple. The average early flathead owner should be able to replace points and time the distributor. It's a job that can be very satisfying without a lot of heavy lifting involved __________________ "Remember that when it comes to intelligence, half of all of us are below average."