Harmonic requires a 5/8 or 16mm. The outer bolts that you shouldn't be grabbing will take a 15. Grab the center bolt.

It makes me feel comfort knowing that I'm not the only one going through this

A couple of warnings about your video for the amateur. When you are talking about Top Dead Center (TDC) on cylinder 1 on this engine, starting at 5:25, yes, the harmonic balancer has two marks, but you misled your viewer by making them think that they only need to line up the marks. There are two strokes where the marks are lined up and only one out of every revolutions is TDC, the other is exhaust. I know that you know this, but for some reason you skipped over it. They need one of several methods. 1) If the engine is or has been running and the distributor is untouched, then remove the distributor cap and observe the rotor. If it is pointing at the "6" mark while the lines of the dampener or harmonic balancer are lined up, then you are TDC. 2) With the spark plug removed in cylinder 1, put our finger or thumb over the spark plug hole to seal it while someone turns the crank shaft. When you feel or hear the air coming out around your finger, then when the marks are lined up, you are TDC. 3) Find someone with a compression tester (hopefully the threaded type) and put it in spark plug hole for cylinder one, you will find perfect TDC when the marks are lined up and you get compression. 4) Some people on KZfaq show yo how to make a homemade noise or balloon indicators when compression is generated in cylinder one--but by the time you make that, you can find it with your finger over the hole, which if you use latex gloves like I do on engines, then I stick my middle finger in the hole to plug it and when the compression starts it squeaks past my latex glove anyway. I've worked on these 4.3L engines a lot and I played you back twice to make sure that I heard you correctly at 9:25, again, NO, you do want the oil pump slot to be in the "finished position," but, NO, it should be in the "inserting" position, perfectly vertical with the engine. That will make the distributor sit flush with the intake manifold for securing it, because the rotor at the top and the drive gear at the bottom will turn about 18-degrees as you insert the distributor to match the cam gear. What you call the "fin" on the bottom of the distributor will slip into the oil pump slot in the engine and it will turn with the distributor as it gets seated. Then, if it is flush mounted, you can tighten it down, but if not, you need to pull it back out and realign the "fin" with the oil pump slot. I use only a one-piece 10-12 inch screw driver. They will need either a flashlight with a mirror to see down in the hole or today we use our cell phone to view in it and set the oil pump gear vertically. Your mark on the extension or on a long screwdriver works too. Your wrench extension with a flathead socket may may not be good for an amateur, because they risk hitting it on the side of the hole when pulling it out and lose the socket inside the engine, then what will they do except tear the engine down to retrieve it? A one-piece 10 to 12-inch flat screwdriver is the best. I saw an experienced mechanic lose an 8" screwdriver in that distributor hole and he spent an hour trying to fish it back out with a strong magnet, but it all could have been avoided by not using a short screw driver, but in your case, the flat head driver could fall into the engine if bumped on the side of the manifold while pulling it back up through the hole.

You sir, are life saver! I thank you for your video. Spent many hours trying to time my 2001 Blazer the wrong way. I set the rotor on the six then dropped it in and needles to say, wouldn't start. I then watched your video and worked the first time! Thanks again for your information.

you area lifesaver and made me look like a genius to my husband and his friends thanks for the video

You are hilarious because you're telling the complete truth. Love your sense of humor sir thank you for sharing the knowledge

I rarely comment on a video but I do want to give him credit on how he describes how it all works in a sentence I've watched good bit of videos and you know they just Overlook the fact that some of us have to recap on topics that has not been recently practiced for example two days ago my truck just stopped running at a stop sign at 3 in the freaking morning and the temperature was like 11 degrees luckily in a place where I can leave it for a day or two to try to get it going so if this is the next step I appreciate the knowledge that he has given to the community

Thanks for the detailed instructions on how to change a 4.3 V6 distributor. I easily changed mine thanks to your video.

Thank you so much. I was about an hour into it with the hanes manual until I found you, 3 minutes later done. God bless you

It all kinda makes sense now. It was a little painful at first, but the tips and tricks worked as advertised. I'm not saying your video was perfect, but with a little patience and common sense, it got me through it. Thanks.

I would highly recommend anybody that puts a extension with socket into their engine use an extension with a lock ring just in case they hit the socket on something and drop it into the engine creating a new can of worms.

Thank you so much for passing on your knowledge. This video helped me replace my distributor, and fix my misfire.

Great video. Your relaxed pitch helped me to not freak out trying to get the timing marks all lined up. The 06 Silverado starts & runs good now.

Your video is very helpful and educational. Thank you for posting your video.

Thanks so much for the vid! Worked like a charm in 05 zr2 jimmy

Thanks Jamie, this helped a ton.

This was the final piece of info I needed to get this installed properly. Thank you!

Thanks for the video man!! 🤟🏾🤟🏾

I know this is an old video but man! You saved me so much time. Had to like and subscribe

Thanks Jamie. Do you have to make sure that the two sets of lines on the harmonic balancer line up with the marks on the engine at the same time? We lined up the first line on the balancer with the mark on the engine while looking from the top. At that time we also had air being forced out of the #1 cylinder should we have kept going until the second mark on the balancer lined up with the mark we could see from the top side of the engine compartment?

that flat head trick was a life saver cranked right up!! thank you! i used tape and a magnet flat so i know it wouldnt fall in the block kinda riskey

Thanks man great help!!!

Great video. Thanks for sharing your experience.

135 left 246 right put number one piston up set rotor to number one spark and drop shaft in so it right on number one

you are the man jamie

Thanks u helped a lot

Love ur cometary sites the best

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!

I like the way you explain sir

Thxx v much sir

Thank you awesome

Im selling the blazer for whatever i can get. Im tired of throwing money on it and having anxiety trying to fix myself. Just want a functional vehicle.

Good info, but I've changed numerous distributors on these engines and all I ever do is rotate the engine so the rotor is on the 6 marking, then note where it is when I pull the old distributor out, and install the new one the same way. If it's off a bit off, just pull it out a little, rotate a degree or two, and drop it back in. Usually takes one try, sometimes 2, and rarely 3. Never once had a 4.3 out of time doing it this way.

Good good good. Video.. thanks body ...no more head pain...

i changed my cam shaft position sensor and now my truck won’t start? on a 4.3. think you could help?

I went to Amazon and got my distributor for $37

I just had a question about the cap and rotor so about a month ago my truck wouldnt start everytime we got a good amount of rain. So one day i put hair dryer up to cap for about 15-20 mins and the truck started right up, so i bought new cap and rotor and also changed plugs and wires, but now my truck is just not running right... if im going around 55mph down hills and i let off the gas the truck seems to be missing or kinda like air bubbling from underneath gas pedals. Cant figure out what i could have done wrong.. never did this until i messed with it.... any ideas yall?

Thank you amigo

The piece with the 2 lines. On my truck I can move that with my hand. Should I be able to? My crank bolt won’t even move. Clockwise. But I can move that with my hand to line up the first line

Gracias amigo 🙏👍

Can you tell me why my truck lost oil pressure and after changing the sending unit sensor, then an aftermarket gauge, and we jusylt changed the oil pump but still no oil pressure?? Could be something eith the distributor??

Thank you sir

Ok but i already have a dizzy without the mark and i can't get it to line up at all the pointer on the dizzy button is pointing straight to the front of the truck instead of pointing at #1 on the dizzy ???

So I manually get a flat head and adjust the pump when I drop in the distributor it’s off a bit

Killer video. Just did the intake manifold gasket on my 4.3 thought I had it good but got a timing code I didn't have before. This will definitely be on my to-do list in the morning

I just went to replace the cap and rotor bug found mine to be loose and rusted just got it back after getting rid of it 5 years ago

If you are not at top dead center, the pointer will never line up with the 6 mark. turn the crank shaft over once back to the same mark and the distributor will fall right into place.

What's this a God is good and I got the truck started and it's running smoothly it was the coil over so I just wanted to say thank you to the KZfaqr that made this video and just want to say God bless everybody

5:30 is where this video should start.

What happens if you go counter clockwise because you missed it when bumping it by 1/2 inch

If u know it's timed right but won't engage pump u can put minute downward pressure, bump starter until it engages pump , (dist. seats down against block).

I am a noob and watching your video about top dead center . I’m confused because my pulley has to lines on it and don’t know which line I should be using to align with the underneath indicator.

I just turned over the engine until the rotor was pointing to 6. Pull the distributor and mark the out position of the rotor. Mark the new distributor in the same place and insert if you do it right oil pump will slide right in and rotor will line up with 6. 10 minutes. Done.

Thanks for sharing this video. here is my little 2 cents, when line up the timing marks on the harmonic balancer to the marks on the timing chain cover, the engine was still not at TDC on the compression stroke due to a defective balancer that spun. what i did was rented a compression guage from the parts store, pluged it in to the #1 cylinder and found the compression stroke, then use a small screwdriver to feel when the piston tops out. Then i lined up the distributor with the #6 on the housing. cranks right up.

Good advice from chuey 9313!

What a pain in the ass. Finally got it. Thank you.

Great video for people that just need to install and go distributor .Unfortunately for me it ain’t me being a good human being offered my help to a neighbor really old and never thought about what I was getting myself into..Distributor mark is all the way on the opposite and don’t know how to move this balancer I think is call ..You say that the mark has to line up but I know for sure is out of alignment Can someone please tell me how to move balancer the piece in the middle is way bigger than 16 and I don’t have any tools for that size do I have to take out fan ?

Did you ever heard of replace eing plugs wires and cap on a 4.3 in a 2001 Chevy S10 pickup you have to reset the computer please comment back in let me know thank you very much

Could have used a little more guidance with TDC. What marks where you talking about exactly? Thanks for the vid though

That thing that you talking about is extremely important that is how they drive your oil pump so if you do not get it aligned you will not pump oil

Your a god sir

Does this also apply to the 4.3 vortec distributor that the plug wire plug in from the top?

$100 forget that, that same distributor is on eBay for $40-45. I plan to get one my self because I'm getting tired of the plastic tabs for the cap braking off.

Hello Mr.Jones! I have one question for you. what are the big no-no when buying a car when you are in the flipping car business? for ex. transmission needs replaced,high mile engine ect

What year is this for ? I have a 06 4.3

My pinch bolt doesn’t go all the way down is that a sign it’s wrong

I installed my distributor with new cap rotor and a new cam sensor and it starts now but runs badly... i still get the P1345 code... could i have installed distributor wrong? it has a miss...but i am not sure my 4.3 2001 blazer would run at all if distributor was put back wrong...anyone Know? also when replacing cam sensor in distrib do you have to use a scan tool with relearn feature or not??? i do not own one...any help from someone that knows the answers to my questions is greatly appreciated..thax

jamime.. I've been trying to get into buying and selling cars.. I've worked at a a couple dealerships and I'm all about cars. I paid 1500 for a year to get a dealers plate and auction access card... I've been scanning run lists at the auctions.. mostly adesa in Long Island and new Jersey.. I live in nyc. I also have been searching craiglist almost everyday and I can't find good deals. this has been going on for 3 weeks now. can you make a video on how to find deals ? thanks.. Kevin

Can you explain a little better how you get it in top dead center? I'm not seeing where to turn the 15 mil socket

Thank you Lopez for insisting brother, i gave a lot of great ideas to build a business nut i have procrastinating.. I admit to it.. but listening to you right now you knock me in my head to wake up... And stop being an idiot for not utilizing my knowledge at this very moment! Thank you brother! Blessings to you

whats the connection for? whats that part called? (camshaft position sensor)?

I need help with a s10 4.3 please

If you buy the $100 car quest distributor from advance auto parts, you'll have to buy a new cap from a higher quality manufacturer such as AC Delco. The distributor itself works good, but for whatever reason the cap that it comes with throws out misfire codes.

All that bs and you didn't install it!

The best fuck the instructional videos , this dude is real lol

Thanks for the instructions. I used the top mark to set TDC on cylinder one, confirmed that the piston one is actually at the top. My problem is that every attempt to marry the gear and the pump flat drive, I end up few degrees off ahead or behind the #6 mark. Needless to say the engine won't start. Is there a possibility my cam is off?

This works just as he shows.

Be sure to replace the fuel regulator in the fuse box beneath the hood BEFORE you move ahead replacing other parts. Starts like new!

does it need to be tdc on compression stroke?

Try using chalk to high-light the timing marks.

Entertainment AND knowledge? Subbed!

This is a car man

this is crazy....whatis the name of the entire shaft? I've called auto zone and said the cam position sensor....they have it for $41.. .when I asked them if it was a shaft they said not really....wtf?

and what about the compression stroke

Might help if you were to point at some of the stuff your looking at cuz imma slow learner.

Don’t you have to first remove spark plug from cyl. 1, and check to see if the piston is physically at top dead center, by sticking a screwdriver in the spark plug hole??? The harmonic balancer could line up with the mark on the block, but the cyl. 1 piston may be on the exhaust stroke (screw driver goes far into the hole), and not at TDC.

I just replaced my intake gaskets and decided it was time to replace the distributor since plastic tabs in the base broke. the China replacement had a metal base. The first one was giving issue since the reluctor plate was pressed on the shaft out of position. The second one looked good but still had an issue with code P1345. My neighbour happens to be a GM mechanic and showed me how to calibrate a new distributor using my Tech2. He said this was usually the case after replacement.

You know I've done these many times but I honestly don't know what would happen if I didn't plug the plug back in if anyone does know tell me😂

Where was the mark on the bottom didn't see any thing

You should use a pointer stick to point out the things that your describing.

hello i find lining up the dimple to the mark always puts me out one tooth it is better if you only go about 75 % of the rotation and then install. and to rotate the oil pump just find a socket that just fits over the shaft and tape it to a screwdriver with a mark to show you where you are and it is easy to line up the oil pump this is a really big frustration eliminator thanks !

My crankshaft pulley/harmonic balancer nut/bolt size is 16mm...just saying!

Didn't think you'd film instalation lol

i set the timing chain but wount start

first off check to make sure your harmonic balancer (the thing with the 2 marks ) is not bad i was going replace my distributor got it all set right to TDC so i thought when i did my button was not on the 6 like it should of been so i thought hey maybe it off so maybe thats why truck been acting up did all this took distributor out it looked good no play and thought hell if it was out why put new one in just re-set it right so i did it ran but very bad so knowin i did everything right i went lookin for other problems thats when i found out the part with the 2 lines i lined up spins freely making it not on TDC its very stupid they put the lines on something that can turn if it goes out so know i have to mess with get that right then fix the harmonic balancer the problem is itll run fine around town but if i get it on interstate going above 80 itll start cutting out....so before doing this make sure yours doesn't spin

What are you showing ? I don't see any timing mark !

Now i thought you were going to put a sharpie mark on the hole edge on the engine, then lock the top to the 6 "V" mark by a rubber wedge under the rotor disk (or whatever its called). But i know im talking rubbish now lol. Its one of those things that you have to be there to see the positions. So did it fix the engine problem?

ummmm yeah what he said..

I was hoping to see you actually install it. And it would have helped if you had actually touched the marks under the hood to show us exactly where they are. This video leaves me nothing but confused.

Wow..use a long screw driver to turn your pump..inserting a train of extensions into your engine is asking for the tools to fall into your engine..