Hello everyone,
I just rebuilt and installed a 1.6 bottom end with a 1.3 head. The head has an isky 266 cam installed.
Went to start it and nothing so I adjusted the distributors teeth a few times. All I got out of the motor was a fireball out of the carb. After deliberation I decided to take the valve cover off, spin the motor with a wrench and watch the cam. Presto, after TDC the intake valve is opening.
The isky cam has been used in a 1.3 that I have. For the life of me I cannot remember 180'ing the cam in that motor. The cam isn't more than 8 months old so I think I'd remember having to 180 it if I had to. By 180 I mean the timing mark on the 1.3 cam gear would be facing down not up if it were being used.
The only reason I can come up with why I'd have to 180 the cam would be due to isky drilling the cam gear guides' hole 180 degrees off. But if that were the case I would have had to 180 the cam with the 1.3 motor. The cam has been in 1 head all its life.
I've given myself headaches trying to think of reasoning for the 180 flip. I haven't finished putting everything back together on the motor so I can't say 180ing the cam is my trump card; but now after TDC no valves open and the exhaust valve begins to open further along, so hopefully vroom vroom.
Any ideas as to why I have to 180 the cam?

This problem is very common on 1.3/1.6 Suzuki engines and is generally attributed to confusion in how the Factory Service Manual/Haynes/Chilton manuals are written.  Often the confusion arises from whether the cam/crank arrows/marks are supposed to  point up, down, at each other or away from each other...

The bottom line is this (assuming one of the above cam/crank relationship states exist):

Turn the Crank until cylinder #1 is at Top Dead Center Ignition (all valves closed).

set up the distributor so that the rotor is pointing to the #1 cylinder wire.

Attach the rest of the sparkplug wires in the proper firing order.

Button everything up and watch it run!

I hope that this helps!
 

It is confusing, especially since there is what appears to be a notch
in the backing plate behind the cam sprocket, one would think that
it should align with the notch on the cam sprocket, but it does not,
that is if you time your engine for firing #1, if you do that the notch
on the can sprocket needs to be down, if you use the notch on the
backing plate, you need to time the engine to firing cylinder #4.

And that's the way it is

ACK's method also works just fine, but if you are not watching, you
could get the belt off 1 tooth either way, not a big deal, the engine will
start like that just fine

Wild

Sweet thank you guys.
I put drove a pin into the isky cam that aligns the cam gear. I would recommend doing this.
I just got a ruler and a marker and found 180 degrees. After marking it I counted 19 teeth on both sides.

Started right up!

Great That you got it running !!

CAPT