increace the vacuum can sping pressure changes the rate of advance.not to jack the thread but what does turning your mechanical advance with an allen wrench all the way clock wise or counterclockwise do?
how do you know if its really kicking in? with a vac guage in th car?
A number of convenient factors. Oil pump and pickup location for rear-sump pans, less clutter where the water crossover, thermostat, water outlet, coil, front dress and everything else is. Not a big advantage for either end. I prefer front mount for distributor access myself in a car with a hinged hood or zoomie headers. Front distributor mount makes it tougher to do blower drives, some creative intake manifolds, Monte Carlo bars, and anything else that wants to share the space.As long as we're asking questions... What was the advantage of putting the distributor in the back of the engine? Seems like a bad spot.
Convenience for certain things (such as the goods for a rear sump pan). But, front mount is superior for accessibility, as well as reducing torsional load on the camshaft as the oil pump drive is located up front by the camshaft drive, vs. the rear. But of course everyone has their quirks (what's up with the reducer on the brake-tee on the rear axle of Ford trucks? Why not have it machined for the same size line for both ends?).As long as we're asking questions... What was the advantage of putting the distributor in the back of the engine? Seems like a bad spot.
3000rpm is a good place to start but a small light car like yours with a manual transmission would likely be ok at an even lower rpmWhat RPM should you set full mechanical advance? Its the motor in my signature.