one notch on VW pulley.. TDC ?

You can get a piece of cardboard cut the same diameter as the new pulley and then use a protractor to mark degrees on it. Hold up that piece of cardboard to the new pulley and mark any degree spots you want including the max advance you want to run.

Not sure if you can print out a protractor in that exact size that you need from this site:

Hello all I found the answer on timing notches on Samba here you go Timing marks on stock Pulleys

A 'TDC FINDER' is a simple tool found in the toolbox of most mechanics.

It's an old spark plug. The rolled edge that secures the porcelain to the metal body must be removed. You can do it with a file, a grinder or a lathe.

Once the rolled edge is removed there is nothing to retain the porcelain and it may be removed.

Get rid of the ground tang.

Find a piece of aluminum that will fit into the hole through the metal body. It must be long enough to extend BEYOND the edge of the threaded end of the metal body by at least 3/4"

Clean the aluminum rod and the interior of the metal body. You want them grease-free.

Mix some filled epoxy such as J.B.Weld and glue the aluminum rod into the metal body. Allow it to cure for at least 24 hours.

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At TDC the piston will touch the aluminum rod. Approach TDC slowly. Too much energy here and you will damage the piston.

You may use other materials for the rod; even wood will work if you are VERY careful when bringing the piston into contact.

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Bring the engine APPROXIMATELY to TDC on #1 cylinder by watching the rotor in the distributor.

Remove the #1 cylinder spark plug.

Install the modified spark plug. If the piston is in the way, rotate the engine by a SMALL amount so the modified spark plug is fully seated.

Install masking tape across the pulley so as to cover the area of the TDC marks.

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To find TDC, rotate the engine until the piston touches the rod of the modified spark plug. Using a marking pen, mark the masking tape where it aligns with the parting line of the crankcase.

Then rotate the engine in the OPPOSITE DIRECTION... until the piston touches the rod of the modified spark plug. Using a marking pen, mark the masking tape where it aligns with the parting line of the crankcase.

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TDC is EXACTLY half way between the two marks with a precision of better than a quarter of a degree. This is called the BOLT-STOP method of determining TDC.

Position a Degree Wheel to align with TDC. Use the Degree Wheel to determine any locations of interest, such as 5 degrees after TDC, 7.5 degrees before TDC and so forth.

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If you do not have a Degree Wheel you can print one with your computer. Printable degree wheels have been posted many times; simply track one down and print it out.

If you are unable to come up with a degree wheel, measure the diameter of the pulley. Do this several times until you are sure you're measurement is correct. Multiply your measurement by pi. Divide the product by 360. The result is the length of ONE DEGREE. Multiply that amount by the number of degrees of interest (ie, 5, 7.5, 10, etc.) Measure that distance on the edge of your pulley and mark it. File a notch at that location.

To make the marks easy to read, give the pulley a spritz of black paint. Using a Q-tip or similar dobber, use WHITE paint to FILL the notches. Using your thumb or similar tool, wipe off any excess paint.

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Many after-market degree wheel pulleys are wildly inaccurate, being off by as much as five degrees.

The notch on the pulley is only an APPROXIMATION of TDC, provided as a convenience for ignition timing. It is NOT accurate enough for setting up your valve-train geometry.

Drawings and photos of this procedure has been included in articles in my blog. But the blog now has over 300 articles and I can't remember which ones addressed this problem

-Bob Hoover

Bob Thank You for sharing your wisdom through the years to keep our VW'S running and properly at that. The vacuum advance dizzy is great ! I found a Bruck German made SVDA repro part # VWC-043-905-205 same part # as the Bently manual has listed for my 1966 Bug , to replace that 009 ! What a great improvement much smoother and hope enjoy the improved mpg with these trying times .

Tony

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It's a definite help. If you haven't replaced your points with an electronic module that should be your next step. With mechanical points they start to wear from the minute they're adjusted. The electronic unit will stay in adjustment for 25,000 miles or more.

Toe-in is another big gas waster since the toe-angle is actually defining the allowable limit the tires can SCRUB sideways. Some toe- in is required for best drive-ability but for optimum economy you want to use the LEAST amount. This will add a tad to driver-effort -- you're going to have to steer the thing full-time -- but the reduced scrubbing means better mileage.

Valve adjustment, cooling and clutch adjustment all contribute to better mileage; far more-so than the Conventional Wisdom bullshit about keeping your windows rolled up and so forth. Indeed,ANYTIME the engine has to turn extra revs to get from Point A to Point B, it's costing you more fuel.

-Bob Hoover