Distributor Disassembly and Cleaning

I've been cleaning this distributor with WD-40 lubricant and a brass wire brush and I've been making good progress. I was thinking about getting a can of WD-40 rust soak/remover to really clean it in all the nooks and crannies. Will this damage the bushings?

They don't have any side to side play and I haven't measured the end play. It looks ok at first glance. I'd like to avoid any further disassembly if possible but I'm willing if it's needed.

http://youtu.be/oIWl2s4APXw

 

To do it PROPERLY it has to come fully apart. NO WAY to do it otherwise.

 

Ok, no biggie. I'll have to get a punch to drive the roll pin out.

 

A special waterproof grease goes under the plastic washer/cover in the bottom, under the points deck plate.
Maybe someone on here knows what off the shelf local grease will work for a repack in that little chamber. I think bicycle waterproof bearing grease?
Motor oil can be used on the remainder of the shaft, and grease on the weight pivots and weight pads.
I also believe the gear has a dimple that marks the location/direction to prevent reinstalling 180 degrees off. Take note of that before knocking out the pin. Otherwise the dimple points same as rotor tip? Chime in here guys, correct me if I'm giving bad advice.

 

I'm going to have to study my manual because I haven't found many resources online about rebuilding a distributor. Thanks for the heads up on the grease. I'll check my manual and see if there's a specification for it and report back.

 

Hey Dave,
I edited my post, adding another line or two.
That old Riviera is quite a unique body style and a boatload of class. You can be proud of that.

 

Thanks Gary!

The manual just says to "install felt washer over upper bushing and apply a few drops of light oil."

The other reference to grease is regarding the cam that the points ride on. It says "...high temperature cam and ball bearing lubricant (available through U.M.S.)" I've attached the text below. I saw that Napa has a replacement felt washer but haven't found anything about grease or lubricant. Any thoughts?

 

Yes, this is a 1112110 to replace the 1968 430 distributor that's on my 455 now (thanks to your input the other day).

 

I got the roll pin out but the gear is still stuck on the shaft. I'm soaking it in PB Blaster. Are there any tricks to getting the gear loose?

 

I would not use grease on the weights, weight pads, or pivots. I was taught to use a light oil like trans fluid on the pads and pivots. Not a lot, it will just sling around. Just a tiny bit on the tip of your finger + smear on the pad and weight where it contacts, and the pivots. Grease can harden, melt, or cause the weights to hang up. Once the dist is really clean, and if the advance is really free, you really don't need much lube to maintain it. The gear you could put like a junk open end or crescent wrench just over the teeth and tap it down with a hammer. It will come off....it's just gummed up.

 

I'll see if I can give that a try. I don't have a vice (yet) and I went over to the father-in-law's to use his for the roll pin. I'll have to see if I can rig something up. Thanks for the tip!

 

Man, PB Blaster is pretty good stuff. I just came downstairs and got a good, strong grip on the gear and it came off by hand. Nice!

 

I almost have this distributor apart but I can't figure out how to release the breaker plate. The manual isn't much help here. It says there's a retainer ring but I can't see it. I'm at a loss here...

 

Gary,

I found this document that references the grease in the two grooves at the top of the shaft. It references Plastilube No. 2.

http://restorecarsclassifieds.com/wiki/show_pdf.pdf?n=14770

I searched for Plastilube and found these. They are water resistant greases and sounds like what you described. The second one looks like it's used on aircraft engines to withstand large amounts of heat.

http://www.amazon.com/ATE-700015-Plastilube-Lubricant-75/dp/B003VXPY2M

http://m.skygeek.com/sulflo-804137330-plastilube-3-14-oz.html

This distributor did have grease in the two grooves to allow movement between the distributor shaft and the breaker cam for the mechanical advance.

 

I also found this but my distributor doesn't appear to have this visible retaining ring. It looks and feels like a rubber piece there.

 

This guy says it is paper thin and he had to get a magnifying glass to see it. This is something to check out.

http://www.earlycj5.net/forums/showthread.php?58415-Removing-Dist-breaker-plate&

 

That's it, it's a snap ring holding it on.

 

Success! I was able to get under the snap ring with a pick and pry it off. It is really thin and It got pretty distorted in the process. I'm not sure if it can be reused or not. Will have to research that.







The felt piece came out with the breaker plate so no problem there and it's easy to find on the Napa website.

The next problem was the grease seal. Being over 40 years old, it totally disintegrated.



I did find the AC Delco part number, 1950569, but it seems that they are hard to come by these days. In a hurry, I bought one on eBay. Then, I dug out the ancient grease. Imagine 40+ year old ear wax. Right.

The black looking stuff is the grease and the pieces of the seal are in front of that.