Stuck distributor... help!

Gentle taping with a rubber mallet on the metal housing near the vacume advance has worked for me... but I've never done it with a ford smallblock V8. Another idea might be a strap wrench. (the rubber strap that wraps around whatever you want to turn with a handle)

your best bet is to try and move the dist upwards first a small block of wood and a mallet. i know its tight in there. leave the locking tab and bolt inplace just loose. there is a slight tape where the dist housing pierces the front of the block. upward movement of a few thousandths should do the trick.

How about an oil filter wrench? ( the bamd type, of course)

IIRC, some of these distributors had a hex cast into the area where the bowl and the shaft meet. Sorry, I can't remember the size and the wrench you use will have to be cut down (got one in the "wierd stuff" drawer in my tool chest). This is likely the safest method.... the band wrench sounds OK if you can find a good purchase.... I try to avoid anything that involves striking the distributor or prying on it.

Put on some good penetrating lube on it for a few days. When I say good, something like P'Blaster or Kroil. WD-40 is good for drying out a distributor cap, not much more. Soak it down each and every day. After a few days get the engine good and warm and when you are ready to adjust the timing hit the distributor housing (near the hold down bolt) with something really cold. Environuts might freak, but some freon works pretty good. Or a CO2 fire extinguisher. That SHOULD be enough to free it up. The strap wrench is a good idea to turn it. Good luck.

A very common problem, and not that big a deal. Go out every day for a week and spray just a little bit of PB blaster around the base. After a week, it should come loose pretty easily just by grabbing and turning. Don't hit it with a hammer, unless you plan on replacing it. Some vice grips on the base may help. But they should be just tight enough to get a good grip, not gorilla tight.

Whatever you do, don't try to pry it up! I did that to my dist on a 5.0 liter Lincoln and it bent the shaft. Putting penetrating oil on the base is the way to go.