Kind of funny to me that John mummert of y-block fame has less posts then me.  I cant believe that I am able to say, welcome to the site and cant wait to hear what info you can contribute.  I will say I love your website and have a list of things I want from it. 

1958 F100 292

"Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs."

"Chop your own wood, and it will warm you twice."

-Henry Ford

Frank, Light trucks used the same dampers as cars from '56 on so they can move around.

BTW I finally got an internet connection fast enough to use the web.

Now I can annoy you on your computer.

No time to work on my own stuff!

http://ford-y-block.com 

20 miles east of San Diego, 20 miles north of Mexico

What you need to do now is pull it out of the block and turn the shaft one tooth in the direction of rotation.Put it back in and reset your timing.That will allow you to advance the timing without hitting the block.If you want to "cheat" you can move the ignition wires one place over in the cap.just remember #1 on the cap is not #1 anymore.

  

If that distributor has not been touched in a long time it may well be stuck in the block.Try soaking around the base with penetrating oil(reapply) for a few days and then carefully tap on the advance and see if the distributor will break loose.I had to do the same with mine.

  

So I went to do as Mark suggested and my new problem is that when I tried to do what Mark said I could not advance the distributor because the vacuum canister was hitting the block. The second I turn it in the other direction it loses vacuum and starts to die. How do I continue to advance the distributor past this point?
Thanks
Cbass

1958 F100 292

"Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs."

"Chop your own wood, and it will warm you twice."

-Henry Ford

Did you loosen the clamping bolt?



It is entirely possible that the distributor is stuck in the block and will not move without some coercion.


Lawrenceville, GA

Ok guys, at risk of sounding dumb do I have to do anything to the distributer to get it to turn because mine doesnt seem to want to turn and I have to lean over the hot engine to do this and I dont really want to burn myself?
Thanks
Cbass

1958 F100 292

"Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs."

"Chop your own wood, and it will warm you twice."

-Henry Ford

Can the marks move on the truck damper? Or are the marks on the ridgid portion of it? 

Frank/Rebop

Bristol, In ( by Elkhart) 

The timing marks on the damper should be in two degree increments.  You might be able to see a “10” at the fifth mark.  And as Mark has brought up, a slipped damper ring is definitely something to watch out for.

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

Another item I meant to point out-the timing marks in the damper can change position over the years due to slippage on the damper.Just because the timing marks match up when you set the timing with a light doesn't mean it is accurate.Thats what I think happened on mine.Using an alternative like the vacuum gauge can give better results with old motors like ours.Use your light to check that the timing is advancing as the engine rpms go higher.Also disconnect the vacuum line and plug it going to the dist.advance unit while setting the timing.