[DeTomaso] Not running ...

[JDeRyke at aol.com]

In a message dated 7/25/10 12:04:46 PM, eanderson at geotracinternational.com 
writes:

> I've had the gear pin go before. The car wouldn't start in that case.
> 
Sometimes, if your Italian car feels neglected and bitchy, the drive pin 
only partially shears, allowing the gear/shaft to retard maybe 15 degrees. 
This happened to us at a track event with Richard's pre-L, and the resulting 
exhaust heat from retarded timing nearly burned the rear of the car up! 
Note this can only be checked by removing the distrubutor and looking thru 
the pin hole. If you cannot see thru the roll pin hole, you have a spring 
pin, not a roll pin; change it now before it cracks. Then you can get onto 
your starting problem. FWIW, I've also seen 351-Cs that skipped a single timing 
chain tooth in a chain that only had 20,000 miles from new, and one tooth 
also retards about 15 degrees. Good luck- J DeRyke