1. How does one tell if the outer ring has slipped?

2. Can it slip out just a few degrees?

3. Is there a mark between the inner and outer ring that one can use to verify the two parts positions in relation to each other?

4. What about the crank keyway, does that line up with the mark on the 0 mark on the outer ring?

Im workin on a 350SB doin a timing chain. I have the balancer off. When I view the balancer from the front, the 0 mark is slightly to the left of the crank keyway. Does this sound right? Heres a pic. Click the link to see and tell me if you think it looks right or not. The keyway and 0 mark are highlighted with white paint. Thanks.

http://members.aol.com/youngjd/balancer.jpg

 

There is no marks that align to tell if it has slipped. It can slip a small amount. For a 1973 balancer the timing mark should be 10 degrees before the keyway. Yours looks close but you whould have to put a degree wheel on it to be sure if it is exact.

 

Thanks Pete. BTW, this crappy looking thing is not from my vette. The vette has a one piece Fluidampr. This one is from my K5 Blazer. The engine is a 1970 model year. Considering that, would your answer be basically the same? 10 degrees before the keyway?

 

1968 and earlier had the timing mark 2 degrees before keyway centerline. 1969 and later had the timing mark 10 degrees before keyway centerline.

Pete

 

:lol: Best and only way to verify is with a piston stop on #1 cyl. This will correct for any manufacturing/machining errors on crank slot keyway, dampener ring, dampener marks, and timing tab. To verify TDC marks is really a peace of mind thing when tuning.
Tool is fairly cheap but you really need to turn engine carefully to prevent bending tool or even holing piston. Instructions are usually included with tool and be sure to repeat measurement for verification. Expect to use up most of a day with this. :yesnod:

 

Jvette -
It's very common for a SBC balancer to slip. It starts with a few degrees and keeps getting worse. The keyway is not lined up with the "0" mark so you have to determine TDC in order to verify the balancer. I have a tech paper in the Forum Tech section on how to do this. If you want a clean MS Word version of the paper just drop me an e-mail request:
V8FastCars@msn.com

 

Thanks for the responses everyone. i doubt im gonna go into degreeing this balancer and engine on this old Blazer. Ill probably just slap it back togeather and wind up selling it for cheap or donating it or something. Just gettin frustrates with the poor mileage and stinkin exhaust. Its a real monster. It has served me well. its got serious cancer though. The brake lines are rusting and some have been replaced and I had to replace a section of rusted fuel line the other day. The tailgate is ready to literaly fall off and the the rocker panels are almost non-existant from rust. I can see the pavement pass by thru the floorboard as I drive down the road. It needs tires. The windshield is cracked bigtime. I could go on and on and on. But you get the point. i just wanted to make sure this balancer wasnt too far out of whack. With your help I have determined that. anyone wanna buy a 84 Blazer?

I think Ill look at used Jeep Cherokees. Ide like to spend around 5k. Not a Grand Cherokee but the boxey base Cherokee. Anyone got any input on those? I like the inline 4L engine. Anyone have any expierences with the Cherokee? which years are better? What systems to avoid? Anyone know what year they started with fuel injection on those? ide like to get a inline 4L fuel injected Cherokee.

 

One easy way to check is to get a balancer cover like the one in my sig pic. It bolts to the center of the balancer hub so it can't change position. It's made aby Proform and usually runs $30 or so. The cover also makes it very easy to set up your timing because it's degreed up to 60 degrees and also has marks every 90 for setting valves.