first start .as result of your pre lube with oil comeing frome rockers an that all y blucks have fulley groved main bearing you ar good to go . mix gas and 20%oil, give a smal shot down carb,then of coarce move gas out of the airia. this ensures lube for rings and valve guides,plus eases cranking. the rest of the so called came breakin could fill a book. my way is run at 600 rpm till you ar sure of no leakes and all the air is out of cooling system.If you lubed the new ,or reground cam with the moley past as i always do,next step is a nice leasurly drive down the road. cam isues are magnified with long run ins with no load as oli is not thin enough to splash the cam and lifters.with 10 30 oil and the molley past on the lobes, re cam suplyers recomendation you will be fine.now come home re check all fluids fine tune,go for a30 to 50 mile run. your 312 is now run in. just my experiance, i am sure ther will be lots of coments on my way but it workes. have yet to have a failure on re built y block startup.

Would it be a good idea to drizzle oil over the rocker arms before bolting down the valve covers? What about squirting oil down holes in the heads where the pushrods go? I would still appreciate answers to my questions on timing, vacuum advance and spark. Thanks!

Bud

When Injustice Becomes Law, Resistance Becomes Duty

I expect that would take ~1/2 turn of the crank to rectify. Otherwise, #1 will be back at TDC.

It is good practice to turn the engine over one complete revolution and prime a second time. On many engines, half of the oil passages from the mains to the rods are covered up at TDC#1.

Thanks for the advice so far. I've been doing some net research on starting a rebuilt engine and I have a couple of specific questions. Where should the timing be set for the initial start? Is the vacuum advance to the distributor hooked up or plugged? What is the best way to make sure that I have spark without spinning the engine? I want the engine to turn over once or twice and then fire and run smoothly at about 2000-2500 rpm for at least 20 minutes, varying the rpms occasionally. I may have a few more questions before Saturday. It is nerve-racking to know that you can destroy your engine in the first few minutes of operation if things aren't right. Again, thanks for any and all help!

Bud

When Injustice Becomes Law, Resistance Becomes Duty

make sure carb is primed/loaded with gas

read Y=BLOCK magazine july-august 2012 vol 19, no 4

put a rabbits foot in your pocket?

stuey

Holes in the head (on intake mounting surface, behind intake) should have short bolts in them or oil will leak. My left side had a wire clamp mounted there.

Rocker arms pre-adjusted (cold lash).

Check cam degree points.

Verify piston to valve clearances.

Initial (static) timing.

Water and coolant. Leave cap off until you see thermostat open and water being pumped. Then close.

Distributor clamp snug but just loose enough to tweak timing once started.

Fuel pump moving fuel. Fuel in tank.

Battery charged. Generator polarized if needed.

Fan belts tight.

Start, get timing right enough to run and follow cam break-in procedure.

The above is off the top of my head in random order.

Any other tips on firing a y-block for the first time after a complete rebuild??

When Injustice Becomes Law, Resistance Becomes Duty

If it is a new cam you'll want to follow their break-in procedures.

Yes, I am using Joe Gibbs BR-30 Break-In Oil.

When Injustice Becomes Law, Resistance Becomes Duty