[71 Ventura II]

The more I look at the picture the more it looks like the crank keyway is pointing closer to 1 o'clock. Man it's hard to see.

First and foremost you need to verify how many markings are on your crank gear. I "think" I see a *(star), a rectangle, and one more I can't see.

We need to verify the markings to make sure which symbol is straight up. If your not familiar with Pontiacs it's easy to get confused. A traditional Pontiac V8 timed at TDC #1, no additional advance or retard of the cam, will have both "dots" at 12 o'clock. AT THIS TIME, if you rotate the engine 180 degrees it will then be at TDC #6 and the "dots" would be facing each other.(Facing crank 12 o'clock & cam at 6 o'clock)

Keep in mind we aren't able to see if the correct mark is being used on the crank gear. But by observing the "perceived" timing "dots", their orientation, and crankshaft key way we can guess.

It's possible you may or may not be using the correct mark on the crank gear. JD