Removing stuck distributor and lower shaft

[JayJay]

If this is a two piece shaft then the collar you see flush with the bottom of the block is pinned onto the short shaft that goes up through the distributor. The lower shaft it is a "slip" fit in to the collar. It's held in place at the top by a flange on the shaft, so until you can get the pin out of the collar you can't get the upper shaft out of the distributor. And you can't get the pin out of the collar until you get the distributor out of the head...

So keep trying penetrating oil and gentle longitudinal tension to remove the shaft from the collar.

But - if it's a one piece shaft then it won't separate at that collar. I can't tell from the picture whether it's one piece or two. (If it's a one-piece shaft that would explain why your efforts at heat won't work.)

The good news is that the shaft collar presses on the bottom of the distributor casting. So if you can get some gentle longitudinal compression pressure (as in, tap tap tap, not whack whack whack) you might be able to gently press on the collar (two piece shaft) or shaft (one piece shaft) to drive the distributor out. Big thing is, don't try to twist the distributor, it is held in alignment with a pin into the top of the head and you will break the distributor for sure. And be careful prying between the distributor and the head, that may also crack the distributor housing.

I agree that it would be a good idea to get everything freed up before reassembly (and when you get the distributor out, be sure to coat it with anti-seize where it goes into the block, including the alignment pin). But if all your efforts fail, is there anything that keeps you from just putting it back together the way you had it and calling it a day?