1972 360 FE resurrection woes

[wjstarck]

Hello-

I have been working to resurrect a 1972 F100 that day for 10 years. I have replaced the plugs and wires, starter, fuel pump, coil, distributor cap and rotor and the starter solenoid. Prior to changing the plugs I put some Marvel oils in the cylinders and turned the crank, and drained the gas tank and radiator and refilled with fresh fluids. I should mention that the previous owner replaced the stick carb with an Edelbrock 1405

I had a (very) brief moment of elation when it fired up and was running quite smoothly but the throttle was sticking somewhat so I got in the cab to step on the accelerator. This was a bad move as that was sticky as well causing the engine to race at full throttle. I got out to pull back the sticky throttle at the carb to idle and the engine just quit.

Now when I try to start I just hear the starter. The fan blade turns but I don’t seem to have any spark whatsoever.

Any suggestions on where to go from here are greatly appreciated.

[basketcase0302]

"wjstarck"Hello-

I have been working to resurrect a 1972 F100 that day for 10 years. I have replaced the plugs and wires, starter, fuel pump, coil, distributor cap and rotor and the starter solenoid. Prior to changing the plugs I put some Marvel oils in the cylinders and turned the crank, and drained the gas tank and radiator and refilled with fresh fluids. I should mention that the previous owner replaced the stick carb with an Edelbrock 1405

I had a (very) brief moment of elation when it fired up and was running quite smoothly but the throttle was sticking somewhat so I got in the cab to step on the accelerator. This was a bad move as that was sticky as well causing the engine to race at full throttle. I got out to pull back the sticky throttle at the carb to idle and the engine just quit.

Now when I try to start I just hear the starter. The fan blade turns but I don’t seem to have any spark whatsoever.

Any suggestions on where to go from here are greatly appreciated.

Time to start from the "beginning", (check to make sure you did not do any terminal damage to the internals of the engine by running it at WOT).

1) Check the initial timing, (bring #1 piston up to TDC on the compression stroke and verify the distributor is still pointing at the #1 plug wire terminal).

2) Run a compression check on all cylinders, (pull the plugs / install the compression gauge on each cylinder one at a time / turn the engine over a few revolutions to make sure each cylinder is within 10% of each other pressure wise).

3) Also check "minor" components such as points / distributor cap /rotor button/ battery condition.

What ignition does the truck have in it, (points / HEI / Duraspark / Petronix)?

Stop by the welcome mat and say hi to everyone when you get a chance:

http://www.fordification.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=1

[Ren]

Methinks the distributor stopped spinning or the points are no longer opening.

[sargentrs]

I had an '81 that just quit one day. Roll pin holding the distributor gear broke. Rotor wasn't turning when I tried to start it. Be prepared if that's the case. When I pulled the distributor, the gear came off and dropped diwn into the oil pan. Removed the pan, retrieved the gear, put it back on the distributor with a new pin. Reinstalled, timed, and drove it for 3 more years.

[redstone65]

My '65 240 just quit one day too. Was running peachy driving to work and just died. Couldn't get anything out of it. Swapped in new points, coil, condenser and got it to fire and run a little but would then idle rough and die very quickly. Ended up being a bad dizzy. The shaft had a ton of wobble in it. In that case, the points will never gap correctly. It's a losing battle.

[wjstarck]

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions.

It has points. Looks pretty fugly down in there.

A friend also suggested it might be a rotted vacuum line or the vacuum pump, so I plan to check that when I'm back in town (I travel for work).

Here's some pics:




i'll check that stuff and report back.

[basketcase0302]

"wjstarck"Thanks for all the helpful suggestions.

It has points. Looks pretty fugly down in there.

A friend also suggested it might be a rotted vacuum line or the vacuum pump, so I plan to check that when I'm back in town (I travel for work).

Here's some pics:




i'll check that stuff and report back.

Yeah those points have seen better days.
There is no "vacuum pump" on these older trucks to speak of but his suggestion is valid about going over ALL the vacuum lines, (including the one large one going to the power brake booster). Vacuum leaks can create many different symptoms.

[sargentrs]

Definitely needs some TLC. I'd take the rotor off, remove the points and the ground wire (see photo), spray it down with WD40 and work the breaker plate by hand to make sure it's nice and functional. Then wipe what I can reach with paper towels to remove excess oil, install new points and ground wire and try it again. Be careful removing those screws! They strip easily and you don't want to drop one down inside the dizzy. Use a screwdriver large enough to fill the slot, preferably magnetic, and apply substantial pressure when breaking them loose.