Anyone have any practical experience of using the Tony Brancanto timing tool (see photo) Im having a little bit of difficulty in locating TDC, I’m using a bamboo stick and am finding it to be certain when I have reached TDC, the instructions are that you mark TDC with a sharpie on the engine casing , then start the engine to strobe the timing using Tony’s timing disc. The instructions included in the kit are less than explicit. there are a couple of marks on the engine cover, that look as if they might be used as timing marks, but they are a few degrees away from where I think they ought to be if they are TDC timing marks (see 2nd photo).
I would have said the casting marks are tdc for each cylinder. To get an accurate reading you really need a positive stop in the plug hole, especially as they are at an angle.
Just for your reference here is the horizontal timing mark on my square case. Vertical cylinder mark disappeared after having a oil inlet welded in
Screw-in indicator (Google found a Laser 2833) should take a little bit of pain away from the TDC hunt... Cobble a dial gauge onto it and away you go!
On a bevel twin, strobing ignition timing is problematic, to say the least. Since oil feed to the crankshaft is into the left end (opposite to all beltie Ducatis), the degree disc has to be driven by a contraption which stops oil from pouring out as soon as the engine is started, or worse still starving the big ends. Tony Brancato's device is designed to do exactly that, thus includes an oil seal. It is important to install it correctly, or consequences can be catastrophic. Incidentally the Haynes manual is completely wrong on this point - don't trust it. As regards a pointer, attach a length of stiff wire, say a coat hanger, to nearby frame tubes, and bend it so it curves around just above the degree disc. Stick masking tape to the wire. When you have established TDC (with a stopper down the plughole, approached forwards and backwards), mark the masking tape opposite zero degrees on the disc. Attach the strobe, switch out the garage lights, start the engine, and the rest should be obvious ...
Sorry if it is different on bevel drive Ducati engines (missed getting one when I could afford one…. Sob!) and I will take your experienced advice onboard if so, but the only way I know to correctly determine TDC on an engine is with a dial gauge due to the period the piston will dwell at TDC. I.e. mark the rotational point at which the dial gauge stops, mark the point at which it starts again, and divide the dwell angle by 2 to find TDC. You normally would not rotate any engine backwards.
Shock horror .... " Say it ain't so Joe , please say it ain't so " But joking aside , that's a good guide you wrote .... thanks ! BTW - Haynes state that on Showa forks , the torque for top-cap to damper rod is 32 Nm ....... but the threads will strip at about 20 Ask me how I know .....
Amazed. True one man band engineer. He made me some carbon hangers years back, cost a fortune as they needed a mould etc but he did give me the mould so I could get future ones done. Real gent
I would love to know what is the correct installation for the toolis, as Tony’s instructions are limited to a poorly photocopied extract from the owners manual………..showing a strobe with a pointer on the end of the crankshaft, nothing about the dos and don't of fitting his tool
The stationary part of the tool has to be screwed into the threaded hole in the outer cover in such a way that it is oil tight, i.e. with a good sealing washer. The rotating part of the tool has to be located in the end of the crankshaft in such a way that it is fixed to rotate with the engine, but without obstructing the flow of oil into the crankshaft hole. And there has to be a seal between the fixed part and the rotating part, so that the oil flow cannot escape. Attaching the disc to the outside is the easy bit.
You are right, in that the oil seal does not have to be perfect. If a small amount of oil escapes to the outside, that is acceptable since you will be running the engine in this state for only a few seconds. I hope the bolt which screws into the end of the crankshaft does so in such a way that the oil feed can still get past around the bolt, like a banjo bolt. If the bolt obstructs oil flow completely, your big end will be starved. Which could prove very expensive. And we don't want that, do we?
The genuine timing tool and I'm sure the Brancato one have a special Banjo bolt that allows feed to the crank. I've had my original genuine Bevel twin one for around 40 years now. I've also got a Brancato one for my single that (of course) doesn't have a banjo bolt, as the cranks oil is fed from the other side of the motor. You could phone Tony Brancato and get him to talk you through the use of his tool. Steve R
