Distributor installation

[PaulS]

Getting back to the jeep project after a winter off...

Finished rebuilding the distributor.  The new bushings remove all wobble in the shaft--I'm surprised the engine ran as well as it did before.

Now I want to put it back on the engine, but it won't go in!  (The darned thing didn't want to come out, either.  I never did get it out.  I sent the block to the machine shop with it still attached.)  I know the tang is offset, and I have that lined up right, but it just won't go in.

I even have a spare shaft, and I couldn't get it to go in either.

Clearly, I'm missing something stupidly obvious here.  Any idea what it might be?

Thanks,

-Paul

[1955CJ-5]

It's been a couple years but isn't there an anti-rattle clip on the bottom of the distributor shaft? A thin steel octagonal clip?

I bought a new clip and it would not go back together....I think I reused the old one and even then it was a struggle to get the distributor to seat....

Are you using the clip? Have you tried it without the clip?

Is it possible that the old clip is still in the oil pump recess and not allowing the tang to seat?

[1955CJ-5]

Here are a couple of pictures....I have my old dist and oil pump so if you need any other measurements let me know...