okay guys so awhile back my timing belt broke and i got a new head and everything is in working order but im still having problems..
the car idles very rough and when your just idling you can feel the motor wanting to die and you can hear a puttering sound from the exhaust
i know i did everything right and everything is dead on but i was explaining the problem to my dad and he is more old school but this is what he basically said...

well obviously you guys know the strokes and what not to keep the engine going. like intake stroke compression stroke power stroke and i forget the other one haha
but he said that possibly when i set the engine at tdc which i verified like 5 million times lol that it might not be in the same stoke as it was when it stopped working..so basically for example i could have the motor at tdc right now in the intake stroke but it should be at tdc in the compression stroke..does that make sense and sound correct to anyone?
he said he is pretty sure that when you time an engine obviously set it at tdc but then make sure its on the compression stoke
sound right?

so im basically just trying to figure out if it matters what stroke the motor is at when adjusting the timing..
please help asap HT as im hoping to grease up and go at it again tomorrow
so any fast honest reply/answer will be GREATLY appreciated
(oh and btw - its just a 94 honda accord f22b)

 

Yes it matters that the number one cylinder is set to TDC on the compression stroke. My guess is that since your car runs at all that you mostly likely were and that your timing marks were lined up correctly or at leased closed to it. You didn't say, but did you fine tune your timing by using a timing light and adjusting your distributor? Another thought, you said you put on a new head, did you adjust the valves?

 

whether it's compression stroke or exhaust stroke is all realative to how you've set the cam. with #1 piston at TDC if the cam is set right it's compression, if you have the cam 180° out you're on the exhaust stroke.

i agree with cctgene, if you're car is running at all it's not 180° out. if you havn't, check the ignition timing with a timing light. if it's way off and you can't get the adjustment in range you know you're cam timing is off by a tooth or two.

more can be checked too, like the valve adjustment as was mentioned, the condition of the plugs, the compression on each cylinder.. get an idea of your current parameters to see what is not in spec.

 

How did you verify #1 at TDC? By looking at the piston or using the timing mark on the flywheel? If you used the flywheel, it is TDC on the compression stroke. Along with everything mentioned already, check all your vacuum lines and double check the torque on the intake manifold gasket. As far as the exhaust noise, I just did a valve job on my 93 wagon and had all sorts of exhaust leaks at the manifold to head joint. I had to retorque the exhaust manifold nuts about six times before they stopped moving and stopped the leaks.