Timing questions

[Craig]

I have a Dyna 2000 ignition. It has the option to advance or retard the timing. I understand the concept of retard or advance as it pertains to when the fuel is ignited in relation to TDC. How does advancing or retarding affect performance and HP. I would imagine that you would need to be on a dyno to see any effects? Would advancing give better performance at higher RPM's? I saw a thread which talked about retarding a bike that was running a turbo...please explain. How would you pick the "curve" without a dyno?

Kind regards...Craig

[earlfor]

Re: Timing questions

Craig, I've been running a Dyna 2000 on my 1150 for a couple years.
I set mine up for the full 32 deg range specified by Suzuki. For the advance cruves, advance curve 1 puts in full advance at 3500 rpm. I found this did not work well and resulted in preignition rattle if I got a batch of gas that was lower than the required 89 octane, or if it was a particularly hot day and engine temp was high, or I rolled on the throttle in 5th gear with not quite enough rpm on the tach. Those quirks were solved by setting the Dyna to ignition curve 2. You will still have the full range of advance, but curve 2 slows the advance rate and doesnt reach full advance until 4500 rpm. You would only want to retard the timing if you were running boost. Advance beyond 32 deg if youre going to be running rpm beyond normal redline.

JUst dial in 32 deg total on the scale and set the advance curve to position 2. I think youll be pleased with it. :-)

Earl

I have a Dyna 2000 ignition. It has the option to advance or retard the timing. I understand the concept of retard or advance as it pertains to when the fuel is ignited in relation to TDC. How does advancing or retarding affect performance and HP. I would imagine that you would need to be on a dyno to see any effects? Would advancing give better performance at higher RPM's? I saw a thread which talked about retarding a bike that was running a turbo...please explain. How would you pick the "curve" without a dyno?

Kind regards...Craig

[SqDancerLynn1]

A lot of times the timing is retarded only during starting. Allowing the enging to crank better. It could also be used to retard the timing if you were to add nitrus

[isaac]

Advance it to the point where it starts to ping if you lug the engine, then back off a little - at least that's my experience with cars.

I've also built high boost turbo cars, and find that how much you have to retard timing is almost entirely based on the combination of boost and compression. A higher compression motor will have a much more sensitive threshold to how much timing it can take at high boost. They need more retardation.

The way timing advance/retard works in terms of engine power is: The more you advance timing, the better mpg and better horsepower, torque, and throttle response you'll get. You'll feel the difference throughout the powerband. That works until the point that the engine complains audibly, which means you've gone too far. Go too far in a turbo car, and you might be looking at new pistons and rods.