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Cleaning and lubrication of centrifugal advance mechanisms should be a standard part of a distributor service. Make sure the weights are free to move against the spring, and put a drop or two of light oil on the weight pivot pins. Equally important is a couple of drops of oil under the rotor on the felt wick as this lubricates the pivot point between the distributor drive shaft and the cam.

Thanks Owen_Dyneto, I tried to move them with my fingers, but they were too stiff. I will try a screwdriver around to see if they are free once I figure out how they are supposed to move.

I also noticed a hole in the backing plate with OIL stamped above it. I suppose I should put some oil in there as well.

Last night I got a quick coat of paint on the parts so I hope to reassemble today.

I tried moving the weights with a screwdriver and could not get them to move. They turn with the shaft of the distributor fine. I found a clip on youtube showing a more modern distributor and the guy was able to move the weights easily. Maybe mine are froze up from lack of maintenance? That would help explain the lack of power I felt when I drove it, although it did not seem to run bad. Not my no start problem, but something to address while the distributor is out.

I checked the shaft and there is no wobble so the bearings must be good.

Clamp the end of the distributor drive shaft in a vise. Then grab and try to turn the rotor end or cam; In one direction is shouldn't turn and in the other it will turn slightly to spread the weights against the spring(s). If this doesn't happen your centrifugal advance isn't functioning; take it apart and clean/lubricate.

Thanks! That was very helpful. I thought the big metal pieces were supposed to move, but the weights are actually behind those. Holding the shaft and turning the rotor cam I could partially see things moving inside. IF I turned the distributor on its side so one of the weights was at the bottom, when I turned the cam (still holding the shaft) the weight would come out far enough to see it stick out about 3/8" on the bottom. The top weight would not show. If I rotate the distributor 180 degrees so the other weight is on the bottom, that one will pop out but not the top one. If I try it with the distributor straight up and down, I cannot see the weights pop out the sides but they are moving. I'm guessing this is correct.

I also read that to check the vacuum advance, you can suck on the vacuum end and put your tongue over the hole. If it holds onto your tongue, it is working. When I tried it, all I sucked was air. I blew gently into it and felt no resistance. Looks like the vacuum advance is not working.

10-7-14

Vacuum advance is bad so....take it from the parts car! A quick spray of paint and it is refreshed as new again. Hey, I need an insulating block. Take it from the parts car! This time, the insulating block is a little different on the '51 distributor than the '52. I was pretty surprised to see this. The stem on the '51 does not go as deep as the '52 to have the washer, nut, wire connection, last nut. Looks like I will be gluing the old one back together to reuse. Of course in the process of playing with the '51, I broke the bottom off! Need to fix that too.

10-9-14

Lubed and reassembled the distributor. The glued insulator block seems to be holding. Adjusted the points.

Turned over the engine until the pointer on the balancer was on 0. I did not check to see if it was on the compression stroke though. I had the rotor in 180 degrees off so I swung it around so it pointed at #1 on the distributor cap.

Cranked the car and .... no spark!

That's it...time to get the gas can and torch this piece of crap!!!

Better check the coil again. Pulled and pulled on the center wire in the cap. Finally came out. Looked at it and the tip seemed kind of short. I pulled the boot further up the wire and reinstalled.

Tried to crank the car and.... spark!

The car did not start, but at least I have spark now! The ignition wire must have pulled out some when I was messing with the distributor swaps.

If you didn't check to see if #1 was on compression stroke, on what basis did you decide to rotate the rotor 180 degrees? You had a 50 percent chance it was right before you moved it.

When the pointer on the balancer was a 0 the rotor was pointing opposite of #1 spark plug. I turned it so it would be at #1.

When the pointer on the balancer was a 0 the rotor was pointing opposite of #1 spark plug. I

That would be correct if it was at the pointer on the exhaust stroke; you either have to be sure it's on the compression stroke before you check, or just do "trial and error"- if it doesn't start move it again back to where it was.

The distributor makes one full rotation for each TWO full rotations of the crankshaft!