i have a 305 chevy how do i find where spark plug wires go on distrib.cap?

[Bryan]

I bought a knew chevy 305 small block, i put a distrib. n and i dont know where spark plug wires go n te dist. cap

[RON BELSHE AMERICAN]

The number one position is marked on the distributor cap.
Crank the engine over to see which way the rotor turns.
The firing order is embossed in the intake manifold.

[Pedal2TheMetal45]

Hi
If this is an older car All would be good like Ron said if you put the distrib in right.. But I'm thinking you did not..
1) rotate the motor until the timing mark lines up with 0*
2) pull the cap off the distrib and see where the pointer (rotor) is pointing. That should be #1 or it may be 180* off, as the 0* timing mark comes up twice, once at the top of the compression stroke (the one you want for timing) and once of the top of the exhaust stroke.
3) if it is not pointing to the #1 spot in the cap or 180* off you well have to re stab the distrib.
4) if it is pointing to the #1 or 180* off try and start it if it don't run you may have to pull it and stab it 180* different.
5) once it is running you well have to use a timing light to bring it to the right timing.

good luck
tim

[Mr. KnowItAll]

It's not as simple as the other person said.
The distributor shaft needs to be lined up before installing is to TDC compression #1 Cyl.

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Find the timing mark on the harmonic balancer. You may need to clean the harmonic balancer to find it.
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Remove the number one spark plug. This is somewhat optional. If you loosen the spark plug so that air can escape from the cylinder, then you can hear the air bleed past the threads when the number one cylinder is coming up to the compression stroke. If you decide to completely remove the spark plug you can put a finger over ( not in ) the spark plug hole. This will enable you to feel the air being forced out of the cylinder as the piston compresses it. Using a finger to cap the hole does not work well when the motor is hot though.
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If you have a remote starter button, connect it to the starter terminals. One clamp goes on the starter solenoid's small wire terminal closest to the motor, the other clamps to the battery cable terminal on the starter solenoid. Use the starter button to crank the engine over in short bursts.
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If you do not have a remote starter button, use a small flat blade screwdriver to short the 2 terminals together. When you have the starter right in front of you, it can be rather loud so you will need to pay attention to the sound of the compressed air escaping from cylinder number one.
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If you use the screw driver method and completely remove the spark plug, you may need someone's assistance to either short out the solenoid or put their finger over the spark plug hole.
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Once you hear the air escaping this means the piston is coming up to tdc. The air does not escapse quickly, it tends to bleed out if the spark plug is still in the hole. Stop turning it over.
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Locate the timing mark on the harmonic balancer. You may need to crank the engine a few times to get it to come around to the timing mark on the timing tab. Don't expect it to stop at tdc, you will be lucky if that happens. You may need to turn the harmonic balancer manually towards or back to tdc.
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Picture of the timing mark and timing tab on a 64 Impala 283 engineBring the timing mark on the harmonic balancer in line with the 0 degree mark (tdc) on the timing tab. You will notice several lines on the timing tab. The thickest line is 0 degrees and each line represents 2 degrees. Clockwise ( looking at the engine ) of this line is past tdc which would mean your timing is retarded, and counter clockwise is before tdc which would mean your timing is advanced. Note how the picture of the timing tab on this 283 chevy small block denotes tdc with a "0" for zero degress advance, and an "A" so you know which side of zero is advance.

Most chevy small blocks will run just fine when initially set to 4-6 degrees advanced. Advanced means the ignition system will send spark to the spark plug before the piston reaches tdc.
http://www.classiccarauto.com/impala/how_to/find_tdc.shtml
Click this

[Joe]

Get a Chilton's manual, specific to GM/Chevy. The firing order diagram is there. Not sure you'll be able to find this online, if you don't want to buy a copy check the public library. Should be almost the same for any displacement of GM V8.