2 of my previous progress posts didn't persist, so there might be a hiccup with this forum s/w... Let me give all you all, as Paul Harvey would say, 'the rest of the story'.
Bottom line - The motor was mistimed. I mistimed it through a series of incredible mis-steps. I carefully measured (I'll post later) and established piston TDC last week and confirmed TDC corresponded with the timing pointer AND balancer. When that was done I timed the motor. It has 34 degrees total, 12 degrees initial and seems run much better as it revs. My idle (I think is around 600RPM...). My fault.
What's so bizarre to me, is the motor started and ran, so horribly mis-timed. We're not talking 4 or 8 degrees off, we're talking around 46 degrees MORE advance on top of 12 degrees initial, so nearly 60 degrees initial advance. This is by my calculations and measurement, but as we've seen can't always be relied upon. That's what I didn't understand, how could a motor start and run with so much advance. My erroneous conclusion was that my timing pointer and balancer were simply giving my the wrong information and therefore were incompatible with my engine. I had horrible thoughts that maybe the keyway on the crank broke and my balancer twisted and rotated on the crank, stopping at a random location.... Or I jumped a tooth of the timing gear, or the cam and crank were installed incorrectly ... etc. etc.
I'm here to tell you a motor massively mistimed motor WILL start and run.
By my calculations, at 12 degrees BTDC advance, I was advanced 23 degrees toward #3 plug wire. The distributor turns at 1/2 crank so that's 46 degrees further advanced... I started the car, just to prove I wasn't hallucinating with that timing. It started AND ran. Admittedly, it idled very high, around 950 but it ran and revved...
So how did I get here? I've wracked my brain trying to figure that out. Here's the series of errors... I assumed my pointer and balancer agreed when I initially installed the distributor. After the motor was installed I pulled the distributor to pre-lube the engine with an
oil pump tool and electric drill. But I didn't set the motor to TDC compression when I pulled the dizzy. I just pulled it, noting the position of the vacuum advance snout and rotor position.
I pulled the dizzy, primed the motor, and re-installed the dizzy. Well clearly I did that wrong and was off. I know, as I've seen, you can do that, just pull a dizzy and put it back with the motor stopped in any position, but unless you do that a lot, it's probably best practice to turn that motor to TDC compression, remove the distributor cap, and carefully mark the distributor's and caps position. Then re-install basically as a fresh/new distributor install.
I didn't and was off. Maybe just over confidence or maybe I was just being lazy. So I re-installed the distributor incorrectly. Next I formulated a belief system that since the motor ran, it was impossible for the timing elements to be correct and therefore, the motor was timed OK, but that it was the TIMING POINTER AND BALANCER that were in error. My belief system was that it was impossible for a motor to start and run if timing were significantly off. That is not the case. I was looking for a force fit explanation. (kind of like the astronomers in Galileo's time who plotted the movement of planets as erratic back and forth movements).
The REAL failure, despite the company that sold the motor to me and my procurement of a timing pointer from another company was not baselining the motor. Ultimately that was my fault. Sure it would have been way different had the company that sold me the motor had put specs for the balancer on their webpage (Or if their technicians/support people knew) the balancer was marked for 2 o'clock and 10 o'clock. How 'nice' it would have been to know that. Look at other popular parts websites. Balancers have better information, not just weight/imbalance, and diameter, but the location of timing marks. Mine didn't and I suspect that's simply because it was probably an "imported" part.... As a side note, you tend to get what you pay for and clear specs on a part, is part of what you pay for... more lessons from the school of hard knocks.
the next no-information element was the timing pointer. The company that sold the pointer is a MUSTANG parts company. They specialize in only Mustang parts and so people buying their parts specify the year and sub-model or motor option when ordering parts. The parts description didn't provide any information on the part other than it was OEM Ford timing pointer passenger side. How things would have been different if it would have indicated Passenger side 10 o'clock pointer.
Yep, then I would have had specs that said 'balancer with timing marks at 2 and 10 o'clock and timing pointer for passenger side 10 o'clock'. So it would have been way better information to have. BUT ULTIMATELY IT WAS MY RESPONSIBILITY AND FAILURE TO ESTABLISH THE TIMING BASELINE.
In 20/20 hindsight, I should bought the tools initially that I wound up buying anyway to set TDC. Yes I well remember as a teen 50 years ago, putting a straw into #1 cylinder and watch it get pushed out as I set TDC. Yep, what an idiot I am. Had I measured and confirmed TDC with my balancer and timing pointer, I would have established a KNOWN baseline and confirmed that at TDC the timing pointer and balancer marks were all in agreement. Then after screwing up the distributor re-install, at least I would have had a KNOWN baseline to work from.
So at this point I believe the motor is now, so far as I can tell, correctly timed. I'm so gun shy know I'm not jumping up and down, uncorking the champagne. Heaven only knows else awaits me or whatever incorrect belief system will send me on another Don Quixote mis-adventure. I'll send a pic of the motor if I can figure out how to do that!
Again, thanks to all for your tips, links, patience, and understanding.