OldIHC

Does anyone have a source for the distributor felt washer on the 214 engine?

Go to your local sewing store and buy a piece of felt. Punch out the size you need for the distributor.

You will never find one on it's own, would have to buy a gasket kit for whole engine. Just make one, super easy.

Speaking about distributors; yesterday I checked the timing on my KB1 with a 12v timing light hooked up to a remote 12v battery. I felt quite a zap through the fender metal while leaning against it. I wore my usual thin rubber gloves and was able to successfully set the timing but I don’t have a clue as to why I received a shock. Maybe something to do with truck being positive ground and the light being negative ground? Or maybe a defective light ? Any ideas ?

Bobby K1

Polarity has nothing to do with it, more likely it was the remote battery that wasn't connected to the truck. When useing the light with the trucks battery, the high voltage is between the spark plug cable and the trucks "ground" to which the timing light is connected. When a remote battery is used, there is no "ground" connection between the timing light and the truck, and high voltage that leaks into the timing light has no path to ground, so it flows thru you and you feel the "bite". A likely fix would be a jumper cable between the truck and the - terminal of the remote battery. Any high voltage that leaks into the timing light will flow thru the neg cable back to the truck frame, copper is a better conductor than human skin, and the charge will be dissipated.
Another possibility is the HV clamp and wire to the timing light is getting "full jolt" from a bad spark plug wire.
I am assuming you are useing a modern timing light with inductive hook-up.

Thanks CB. Yes I am using a Penski/sears timing light which I’ve had since the 60,s. This one has a metal housing. Next time I use it on the KB I will run a ground from the remote battery to a truck .

I meant to say to THE truck .

Does it use a little spring that you put between the sparkplug and the wire, that the timing light connects to? That would do it, 60's were pre inductive pick-up I think. I have an early Sears that does have the inductive pick-up that I use and haven't had a problem without the ground, but one that "sees" full spark voltage would most likely give a jolt if not "bonded" to the vehicle.
If you do ground, and esp if you ground the neg of the remote battery, do no lay the light on the metal of the truck in question. I would advise grounding the neg of the remote battery if the timing light is neg ground only, if it is ok with either, then ground the + (same as the truck).

Well, the connection to the spark may be my demise. Instead of placing the alligator clamp on the red (insulated) part of the pigtail I clamped it directly to the metal where the pigtail connects to the plug to insure a good connection.

I found felt at Michael's three colors so I used green. Thanks!