I have a 89 f350 dump with 7.3. Has been starting with no problems other than the usual cold weather bad batteries. But the key has always been hard to turn to the crank position. Today in the worst snowstorm of the season, the starter wouldn't engage when I muscled it to the crank position. It would start by jumping the soloinold, thank God for simple technology. My question is do I have to replace the whole switch or just the cylinder. Or is it something else altogether?

 

Guess I forgot to shower.. Thanks anyways.

 

just to clarify ... the part that you are talking about is the ignition lock; the ignition switch is a separate entity, mounted on the steering column underneath the dash .

have you tried hosing down the lock assembly with wd40 or similar and then a taste of compressed air ? (cover with a towel first, otherwise messy). they can get gummed up over 25 years or so.

as for replacement, i don't know if you can even buy just the lock cylinder by itself . the whole assembly isn't that expensive anyhow.

 

Thanks for responding. I did squirt wd40 into the key lock and it freed up but still didn't work. So I took the plastic cowling off and saw the rod that went down the column. I couldn't see or feel anything I could do, but my fumbling around with the switch must have done something as it started working.

 

it is possible the lower ignition actuator is bent and ready to break.

it is a small aluminum piece that connects the "rod" that goes to the ignition switch to the the key cylinder

 

I think I'll have to disconnect the steering column to get to it. I'll have to wait for a warm day since I don't have a garage. Thanks for the advise. I'll post when I get it off.

 

it is a biatch to do the first time, it will take you around 3-4 hours to do it properly.
maybe a little longer if you have tilt wheel.
you have to take the whole top of the column apart.

here is a pretty good writeup on how to do it.:
Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums - View Single Post - help with ignition actuator

 

Nice link thanks!