Thanks Bulley, Stuart.
I should offer this. The van is a '84 and I need to find TDC for #1 to put
the dizzy in correctly. Therefore I cannot use the dizzy to help me find
TDC.  Am I making a mountain out of nothing? The manuals would have  you
believe that you have to worry about TDC when you put the dizzy back in, but
it only goes in one way right? My admittedly naive logis tells me that if
the engine has been turned off of TDC for #1, you have to spin the dizzy
accordingly to get it to go in right(those 2 offset ears on the dizzy shaft
must match the grooves down in the hole). You can do this with your eyes and
hands without caring where or what TDC is yes?
I figure I will either be right the first time or off by 180 degrees since
you have to turn the motor pulley twice to make one complete revolution of
the dizzy rotor.
If I need to be set straight, please do so. Thank you for the explanation!
Jay Schmidt
Seymout IN

>Assuming you are looking for #1 TDC, remove the #1 spark plug, and the
>distributor cap. Roll the engine over by hand (using a wrench) until the
>dist. rotor points 'roughly' at the #1 quadrant of the distributor (where
>TDC should be).
>
>Wet your right pinkie finger, and loosely jab it into the spark plug hole.
>Roll the motor over in the proper direction (clockwise) with the wrench.
>You will feel either pressure or suction, depending on whether the piston
>is BTDC or ATDC. Roll the motor back and forth until you find the mid-point
>between BTDC (pressure) and ATDC (suction). Once you find the midpoint
>(your finger is still in the hole) curl your pinkie finger and attempt to
>touch the piston crown.