How do you guys set the distributor depth? Other words the proper gear mesh depth to the cam? Messing with shims etc.

I'd think you'd want 1/16 or so minimum oil pump drive end-play; with the pan off this is easy to check if not at least see if the dist will fully seat down without a gasket. Actually, this is usually pretty forgiving; as long as the mesh pattern is fully within the dist gear, raising or lowering the dist a tad will just cause the pattern to move up and down with it.

Use shims or double up the gasket. It is a fairly forgiving thing.

buy an adj.collar dist if you had your block decked and or heads milled. Doing one or both changes the intake angle and height and can make the dist gear sit up to high and not mesh and send metal from the dist gear being chewed up through your motor, and will cause the oil pump shaft to not fully engage into dist shaft. Ask me how i know.

Wooley I have doubled the gasket before. If I turn the motor upside down with the distributor bolted down,I thought about putting white grease on the gears and checking engagement. I tend to check little things more than most. Wooley did you do Reynolds this weekend?

Didn't get to race this weekend, had some dental surgery earlier in the week so best to pass.

If you have some gear marking compound that works. I usually use metal marking the aka layout dye. I can get that at Napa local.

I like to bottom the oil pump drive then raise it with a double gasket. Done.

If you have an adjustable slip collar, loosen it up, move it up about a 1/2". Install the distributor all the way down. Move the collar down to the manifold.
Tighten the clamp, remove and install a gasket. Reinstall.