So i was looking through my chiltons manual and it says to set the timing at 5 degrees at idle. No prob.

i am unsure how to set the vacuum advance timing. At what RPM should i be and what should the degrees be? Also which way do i turn the allen key inside the distributor vacuum thing to advance/retard?

FYI, this is a 400 sbc with edelbrock in take and carb, and some longtubes, if that helps or matters any

If you happen to know the size of the allen key that would be nice to so i dont have to try a bunch.

 

5 degrees initial timing is a starting point, but I wouldn't stop there. For best performance, advance the timing a couple degrees more at a time, until you get pinging, then back it off just a touch.
The small block Chevy likes total advance in the 32 degrees range. But, unless you have timing tape attached to the harmonic dampener (and I didn't say balancer), you won't be able to read your total advance.
For the vac advance, that's something you're going to want to play with to see what the effects will be, such as one direction may give you an off idle stumble and the opposite direction may clear it up. Look up the specs of the brand distributor you have. They should give you a starting point (certain number of turns out from bottom) to adjust the vacuum canister.
Give this a read: Set your timing - for more performance!

 

Gotcha. Thanks