timing lights ,any prefrences and why????

so i bought a cheap timing light ...real inexpensive at a "freight" store and it's strobe kinda shows up inside my timing housing ...but kinda does'nt ...which is not so good when your a low skill level mechanic like i am, i would dig a btter /stronger pulsing light.....

Do folks have any favorites and can you give names ,reasons ect....or will any old timing light work as well as a fancy more $ one??...

I plan on buying the best one i will ever need for cars and bikes and want to get a good sturdy one and a one time purchase.....

Oh and i want a carb sync sticks too...any tips there would be helpful ..thanks ,,,craig..

trianglelaguna wrote:

so i bought a cheap timing light ...real inexpensive at a "freight" store and it's strobe kinda shows up inside my timing housing ...but kinda does'nt ...which is not so good when your a low skill level mechanic like i am, i would dig a btter /stronger pulsing light.....

Do folks have any favorites and can you give names ,reasons ect....or will any old timing light work as well as a fancy more $ one??...

I plan on buying the best one i will ever need for cars and bikes and want to get a good sturdy one and a one time purchase.....

Oh and i want a carb sync sticks too...any tips there would be helpful ..thanks ,,,craig..

craig,
i m a knuckle-dragger and the "freight cheapy" gets the job done.....as far as carb synching, i bought a set of guages off ebay,i think it was like a 100 bucks....i m all for z-1 , and have bought a LOT from them, but when it s the same set for a lot less, well, the loyalty is in the wallet.......just my .02......

I use a 40 year old el-cheapoo passive timing light that fits inline with one of the spark plugs. Seems to do the job for me but then again I have never used one of those cool, expensive, chromed jobbies with built-in power and all. :dry:

However, I did buy a new chromed 4-Gauge set of Vacuum Gauges. They worked very well for me and I found them easy to use. The results were beyond my expectations.



Best of success.
Bill

For carb synching I use morgan carbtune. Bit pricey, but more than worth the price. Just have a cheap timing light

Get a set of these carb synch Guages, I have seen em on sale at over $200 for the exact same ones.

I had a set before they were stolen and they even have
an adjustment to slow the vac pull down so the guage dampens and doesnt fluctuate wildly.

the best set I have ever used. well worth the $100

cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Carburetor-Synch...5fAutomotiveQ5fTools

Martynbiker wrote:

Get a set of these carb synch Guages, I have seen em on sale at over $200 for the exact same ones.

I had a set before they were stolen and they even have
an adjustment to slow the vac pull down so the guage dampens and doesnt fluctuate wildly.

the best set I have ever used. well worth the $100

cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Carburetor-Synch...5fAutomotiveQ5fTools

same set i have from the same place...that guys prices arent too bad...i bought 3 or 4 things from him...

Was it an inductive clamp-on type?
Sometimes those types care which way you clamp the plug wire. If it doesn't work one way, flip the clamp over.

I use a Sunpro timing light with a built-in timing knob. For most old cars and KZs, you don't need the timing knob, and in fact, it can mess you up if the knob gets bumped without you knowing it.

Also, the degrees on the timing knob do not correspond to crank degrees on the KZ.

I use a morgan carbtune and it works well. Fast shipping too.

x

Timing light:


Actron Digital - love it.

A Morgan Carbtune Pro for syncing.

There's no subtitute for either in my mind.

time it the old fasion way,put front wheel against a wall and put a load on the motor to see how it does! :laugh: i knew a drunk idiot years ago who used to scrap cars.he had a rod running through the firewall of his old chevy towtruck clamped on to his distibutar so he could adjust his timing by how much of a load he had on the truck while he was going down the road. the guy was a hell of a bodyman/painter but hed get all f'd up on booze and become a total a$$hole to be around,i saw him take a sledge hammer to a 63 fairlane he spent 2-3 years building just needed paint! :S :blink: :dry: :huh: :ohmy:

i still have a 30 yr old craftsman timing light....the kind that has the battery terminal clamps and a home made set of vacuum gauges with dampers...both still work like a charm

Morgan Carb tune & Gunson Color Tune... Can't get any better results than that...

I started with the analog gauges but the fluctuations caused concern.... Confirmed with the Morgans, yup, where not to spec as expected.... Pay the extra $50 and you'll see the difference...

Timing lights cheap or expensive, will work fine... I use the HF tools with Advance feature... $30 You can set the light for accurate advance degreeing.

"Set timing advance without a degree scale on your engine. Simply set the advance on the timing light and align the timing mark to the TDC indicator on your engine."

www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=40963