Hey folks, looking for a little friendly advice here..

78(1/2) F-150, XLT, Ranger, 400ci, auto...

Was really low on fuel, thought I ran out, dumped the jerry in and truck wouldn't start again. Thought maybe it was starved first, then flooded.. neither.

Buddy (awesome mechanic who knows his dentsides).. came out - figures it's slack in the timing chain. Rotor is slow to respond when I turn the motor (manually) and I have plenty of fuel at the carb and good spark from the plugs.

Had her flat decked to the shop at home. About to start pulling bolts, but just wondering if there is any way of being sure this is the problem withuot pulling the timing cover off and measuring the slack?

Just seems weird that it would stretch like that (all of a sudden), just running down the road, especially when it felt like I'd just run her out of fuel (bad idea I know)..

I know it's not broken because the rotor is still turning with the crank but it is a bit retarded when i turn the motor...

Any ideas may save me some dough at the performance center... and a whack of time...

Thanks.

 

If the rotor is not where it should be when you crank the engine you've jumped time, sheared a distributor gear. How is compression?

 

Same here, jumped tooth or shear pin crack or broke but is holding wherever it's lodged. Sheared the pin one time on mine and it sounded like I had run out of gas. Pull the dizz first and check the pin and gear.

 

coolness, i'll pull the dizz.

thanks guys, back in an hour or so... :{

 

pin and gear look okay - but i don't want to reef on it too much... would it have obvious movement? or should i try to move it with some pliers or something? cogs all look great....

pain - had to move a/c compresser out of the way to get at dist. bolt.. (no dist wrench) sure is dirty under the dizz... must be 33 years of gunk.. vaccummed as much as possible, but i'm afraid i may have got some ***** down the hole.... should i pour in some warm oil after all the work's done and drain it? Obviously be doing an oil change...

 

It would have pretty obvious play. If everything looks good and the pin isn't broke, then I'd be taking a look at the chain.

I would say you're right on with the oil.

 

thx sleepy,

yeah, the pin's in great shape...

got most of it apart now, just gotta find a puller for the pully. my chilton's manual is missing a few steps... lol

i suppose the best part is that if it's not slack in the chain the gasket set's only about $20 - and it's giving me the chance to play with the wrenches... and listen to some cool tunez..

nice to have a warm shop instead of a gravel driveway for a change

 

K, a little more advise please and thanks...

my buddy andrew brought me the puller and he's going to get me the parts tomorrow to put her back together. I've got the balancer off and about to pop the plate behind the water pump.. thinking I'll get her done tonite. what am I going to need to put her back together that you guys figure i might miss.. obviously i'm going to get the new chain set and gasket set. I have some rtv sealant that will probably be used i'm guessing and plan to clean everything before i put it back together. Oil flush, change and coolant, fuel filter, top things up, clean things off....

Am I going to need some special grease for putting that balancer and chain back on, or should i be using some gasket sealant that won't be with the set...?? Anything else I should be doing while I got it torn down like this?

Cheers,
back into the shop......

 

boy do i ever feel dumb about worrying re: "but i'm afraid i may have got some ***** down the hole...."

it's the chain, probably 1 1/2 inches of play....

just about all of the nylon is gone from the camshaft sproket, must be in the bottom of the oil pan I'm guessing. Wonder how long it's been there? Hoping the dieseling will be gone after this is done....

What's the best way to flush this block before I try to start her? Oil and coolant wise...

Starting to really love my block...

BTW, I bet you guys would love the Yukon, I'm four hours drive from Alaska.. Thanks for your help.

 

Yeah the original nylon toothed gears are POS. Very common to fail. The new metal gear will hold up indefinitely, that's why they come with a lifetime warranty. Coolant flushes have worked well for me. I stay away from oil flushes. They can break up deposits already in the engine and clog passages. I would drop your pan and clean that first, reinstall. Then get some regular oil and run that for 15min or so and drain pan. Change filter and pour in oil and your set.

Yukon territory eh? lol Out in the wilderness! That's just where a 70s Ford is at home.

 

yup, people tell me all the time up here what a nice truck it is.. used to get the finger for it in calgary.. haha when i got the mechanical done for insurance, buddy (andrew) was filling out 'body shape' and looked at me and said.. i can't write f&^%@ awesome can I?.. goin to smoke some tires tomorrow, if i can find a dry piece of hiway (I hope) i'll have to unload the 1/2 cord of wood first........