Aligning the ignition timing, crank, and valve gear dots?

[desmorider450]

To remove the oil pump gear you have to remove the bottom bevel gear from the crank.
Even if you haven't taken that off, it doesn't mean that the oil pump gear is correctly meshed as it can slide out of mesh and the timing dots can become misplaced.
To re-set;
Align top and bottom bevel dots correctly.
Pull the oil pump gear out of mesh and turn until the LH upper dot lines up with the dot on the crankshaft.
This dot is behind the bottom bevel gear and marked onto the end of a tooth on the crankshaft.
It is not easy to see.
Once the oil pump gear is in the correct position, fit the points drive gear dot in line with the RH dot on the oil pump gear.

Jon

That hidden dot was what I was missing. Greatly appreciate it. I pulled the oil pump large gear out of line and turned it a few notches and now all the dots line up at once. This means that the valves are timed, correct? It seems to take a lot of turns to get them all to line back up again (as in I turned it ~20 times and I don't think they ever lined up again). Now, I go to check the ignition timing with a degree gauge on the left crank plug. I found top dead center (without a piston stop, so very rough but best I could) and then set the gauge at 0 degrees. I hooked up a volt meter to the points to see when they open or close. Then the manual says to go 60 degrees before TDC and then rotate the engine slowly till the points go to 0 volts (open) and this should occur at whatever the correct advance degree for the 450 is. I found that the volt meter went to 0 volts 90 degrees after TDC... Then they close again and the volt meter reads the voltage at 0 degrees on the paper dial gauge after going a full revolution. Does that mean 1) I am doing the process wrong? 2) I assembled the timing gears wrong? 3) something else.

Thanks again for all the help. Hopefully she'll be running tomorrow...

*the slash mentioned below may be the solution to the timing being off

[desmorider450]

Don't forget that 450's use the slash "I" and not the dot for setting the points gear.

I did remember there being something in the manual about that on the 450. I just looked at the ignition timing (points) gear and couldn't see a single thing that resembles a slash or anything that was purposefully indented into the gear besides the dot and then theres the yellow painted large dot. Where is the slash? Do I just not have it on my points gear?

[graeme]

Looking at the gear that drives the points it's the next tooth (female) clockwise from the dot.

[graeme]

The slash doesn't matter if your 450 has the points or electronic ignition timed using the dot.
I have a 450 that is timed at 0 TDC using the dot. But there's not much adjustment left on the adjustment plate on the Ducati Electronica plate. (A points adjustment plate should be similar I would think)
But if your 450 has been set using the slash, setting it to the dot will be incorrect.
Graeme

[desmorider450]

Looking at the gear that drives the points it's the next tooth (female) clockwise from the dot.

And she runs! The magic was there today

[JJJ12345]

This thread has been helpful to me. I found my oil pump gear and points drive gear were out of sync. Now all the dots are lined up. My question is which way do the points fit onto the drive shaft? I would think that 180 degrees off would make a big difference. Thanks.

[Jordan]

Check that points open (or look at points cam) on the compression stroke - finger over spark plug hole.

[joe46ho]

many people skip over this (from the 450 owners manual)

"Engine timing-
The timing gears in the crankshaft and on the camshaft, are provided with reference marks on the toothed periphery A point (.) for all the gears except for that of the ignition coil which bears a line ( I ) ATTENTION- The gear of the ignition coil has also a carved point (.) that in the 450cc motorcycles is not to be taken into consideration"

As has already been said, you can use the dot instead of the line on the 450 engine BUT you will have much less of an adjustment range when you go to set your points...

joe