![]() ![]() A does not mean advanced - in fact, ‘After’ is the exact opposite. Sometimes the tab will be marked with a ‘B’ for before and ‘A’ for after. These tabs can also display timing after top dead center (ATDC). The tab will offer several hash marks indicating the number of degrees of timing before top dead center (BTDC). Most engines use a timing tab that is welded or bolted to the front timing chain cover. Upscale versions will also display battery voltage.īefore we get into how to use a dial-back light, we should run through why they are needed in the first place. The more sophisticated electronic dial-back lights offer aĭigital screen usually at the back of the gun that will display rpm and theĪmount of timing delayed. Originalĭial-back lights used a simple dial with a timing scale. Onset of the spark based on how much delay is dialed in on the light. These timing lights use electronics to delay the The next level up from a basic timing light is what isĬalled a dial-back light. The most common form of timing lights powered by a simple pair of clamps hooked to a 12-volt battery source. These lights use batteries in the body of the light that amplifies the signal from the inductive pickup on the plug wire. The simplest timing lights are self-powered. Timing lights can be described in a number of ways, so let’s go over that with a short description of each. All guns today use an inductive pickup that surrounds the plug wire and picks up the electro-magnetic energy that surrounds the plug as the voltage passes through the plug wire. Your grandfather might have one of those lying around his shop. In the old days, all timing lights used a small spring that fit between the spark plug and the plug wire that was connected by a clamp to send a high-voltage trigger to the light. That stroboscopic flash is intended to ‘freeze’ the location of the timing mark on the harmonic balancer relative to a timing tab usually attached to the engine’s front timing chain cover. A simple timing light is really nothing more than a stroboscope designed to flash when triggered by the spark from the engine’s Number one cylinder. ![]() We’ll start with the basic light and then move on to the more sophisticated dial-back versions and how they function. Over the course of decades of technical writing, we’ve discovered that not everybody understands how a timing light functions and the insights it can offer on the state of tune of your engine. ![]() But for the remainder of the performance world that does rely on distributors, a timing light is an essential tuning device. For example the Craftsman Digital timing light controls and wire harness is a dead ringer for the Actron digital timing light and the Matco timing light looks like a dead ringer of the Innova 5568.It’s a sign of the times when late model engines with distributorless ignition systems (DIS) no longer require the services of the ubiquitous timing light. The other brand timing lights are hit or miss, it appears some brands are just rebranded versions of either the Innova or Actron models.Head over to Amazon and pick up these great tools today. A quick video showing how to use the Innova family of Timing Lights.This is my first experience with INNOVA products, and it's most likely my last. The LaCrosse has DIS, but the manual for this light says it's supposed to work with DIS. I tried this light on my son's '89 Iroc-z, and my daughter's 2006 Buick LaCrosse. In addition, the light would sometimes skip flashes. So the lack of a trigger button is a BIG disadvantage, in my opinion. With a trigger button, you can simply get the light in position, hit the trigger for a few seconds, and then get the reading. As a result, about every 10 seconds it shuts off as if it has a Duty-Cycle limiter built-in. The timing flash is not controlled by a trigger - it's a push button below the screen. But I was very disappointed in the flash. ![]()
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