Okay it really has been a while so dont laugh(at least not in my face) witch way does the rotor spin on my S.B.C. engine? I know I can go look it up but I am here and I am sure you all will answer faster then I can search it....
Its been along time since I did one of these motors as well, I'm****embling one today and just finishing up when I looked at Gatz picture and realized at TDC mines pointing at number eight, thanks for asking the question.
301 is also clockwise, it depends on which side of the cam the dist sits on. All small blocks have the same dist position
Distributor rotation on any engine is usually pretty easy to determine if the distributor uses a vacuum advance. The trick is to note the orientation of the advance unit to the center line of the distributor shaft. As vacuum is applied to the advance unit, it will cause the breaker plate to rotate around the distributor shaft. For it to advance the timing the breaker plate must rotate in the opposite direction of the distributor shaft's rotation. As a result, if the breaker plate moves CCW, the distributor rotation has to be CW. And vice versa. After looking at the vacuum advance cannister on a few different distributors in different locations on different engines, the direction of rotation will become readily apparent.
Hmmmmn I got a 307 in under the hood of my Willys and it rotates clockwise. Someone must have put it in backward. Perhaps you should specify a year 301/307 as to turning counter clockwise.
Ok, I'm not a Chevy guy (I have raced a few, but no expert!) According to this site: http://www.mre-books.com/chevy/engines/firing_order.html 307 1986-1990 are CCW as are 301, I have never worked on a 301 or 307 so no idea, it would take a different cam gear for this to work or a relocation of the distributer. Anyone familiar with these engines to verify what is correct? Now that I think about it I did have a 307 in a boat I owned but I never paid any attention to the distributer rotation.
They have some strange dates in that chart ! I have built over 350 SBC's and about 25 BBC's and never encountered a CCW distributor ( this was before 1985). 301 and 302 are the same (4''b x 3''s). The 302 is factory and the 301 is usually a 0.125 over bored 283 or a s/j 327 with a 283 crank. I have a 301, and to be exact measure 301.642. JW
I think you're onto something here. For the range of years listed the 307 would have been the Olds built 5 litre. Used only in the Impalas and Caprices for Chevy I believe... possibly only in the station wagons. There was also a 301 Pontiac designed engine in the late 70s early 80s maybe. Think it might have been used in Camaros, maybe with California emissions. Also Firebirds and maybe a couple other GM models. The engine was almost universally condemned as a "weak*****".
The Jalopy Journal
