I have a 1968 with a 360 in 100% stock. I am having trouble starting on occasion. It simply won't start, both times this has happened I have been parked on a hill facing upward, if that counts for anything.

I put brand new plugs in gapped at 34 last night, it ran good then. Today I started it up and ran it till it was warm. Then later came back and went to move my truck out of the way so the in-laws don't get mad and it won't start. I wanted to see what the plugs looked like after this ordeal and pulled one, it looked terrible for a brand new plug!

This is a project truck that I drove home when I got it but want to get it running good before I take it back out on the road. It fires up for a couple of seconds when I spray a bit of starting fluid down the carb with the throttle open. I know it is not good to do this too much....

What should I do wait a day for it to un-flood itself? Or is it even flooding?

I have a new fuel filter to put in.
The mechanical fuel pump appears to be new
Should I get new points? I am sure the ones in are original, havent checked the gap but the original spark plugs were at 44.
Timing issue? It runs good overall, shakey at low rpms
Carb rebuild...I hope it is as easy as my jetski carb....

Thanks!

 

i'd start with rebuilding carb , check the float for gas inside .

 

I'll check the float tomorrow, I know a rebuild is probably a great idea, but it was running the best it has since I got it yesterday, still gonna order a kit. I think I should be able to get it to start up? I am almost thinking there is a lack of spark now, my coil has a dent in it.... I tried one more time tonight and it would just turn over. I am going to check for that too in the morning.

 

Start with a tuneup and basic systems check. Check/replace the plug wires, replace points and condensor, check/replace the dist. cap, pull the coil and have it tested at the parts store...replace if its bad.
With the motor NOT running, remove air cleaner and crawl up on the radiator support...shine a flashlight down the throat of the carb and work the throttle arm. You should see two good squirts of gas down in the carb. If not, rebuild it. If you see two good squirts, check the fuel pump by pulling the line off at the carb, put it in a jar and crank the motor...a good pump will fill a small jar pretty quick.
To check the timing chain, pull the dist. cap and rotor and check the dist. shaft for play...shouldn't move side to side (no slop) and should only rotate a little back and forth when you check it by hand. If it's sloppy, pull the fuel pump and shine a flashlight in the hole...have a bud turn the engine over by hand using a socket/wratchet on the crank pulley nut...if the chain/timing gears are toast, you'll see a lot of slack in the chain and a missing tooth or excessive wear on the teeth of the timing gears.
If your carb and fuel pump check out and the dist. isn't sloppy, I'm betting it just needs a good tuneup. Never know till you check...you can finish a basic tuneup that you started with the new plugs for less than $50.

 

I will check all that stuff today, the cap and rotor were a little worn, I forgot to change those out. I looks like the previous owner took a wire brush to everything inside, it is all scratched up. It is going to be my first experience with points, but they cant be that difficult.

 

Autolite carbs are very simple. Only a few pieces to them.

After shutting it off, look down the carb throat and see if it's dribbling gas. That is a sure sign of problems. If the float is set too high, it will basically boil over(from heat soak) and flood the engine.

What kind of choke? Manual or auto? If automatic, make sure it's opening fully when warm.

 

The truck is a manual choke, pulled it out a little to start it, and push it almost all the way in when it is warm. A carb kit is only like $15 I think I am going get one. I opened the distributer and there was a broken ground wire, completely severed, fixed it but still have the same issue. I am replacing the points and condenser right now. The truck is getting spark, I checked

It is really hard to see down the carb, I looked and could not see anything spraying or dribbling when I manually hit the throttle with the truck off.

I am dreading the checking the timing gear by pulling the pump off....

 

Well I found something interesting out. I pulled the fuel filter off, the one under the hood, not sure if there is another one. There was no fuel in it! I am used to my jetskis and they always have fuel in the lines. There was no gas in any of the lines coming from either tank, so I don't think I flooded it, no gas seems to be getting to the pump even.

So I assume this means my fuel pump is bad? or clogged fuel lines maybe?
I cannot get it to fire up even with spraying gas down the carb now though....

I replaced the cap, rotor, wires, plugs. Not sure how to do the points correctly so they are still in the box. Not sure how to gap them, meaning where do I stick the feeler gauge? .17 is what the manual says the guy at the parts store told me .30

This has been a workout! My in-laws don't want my truck by the garage, until we finish fixing my brother-in-law's 78 truck. So I have to walk a 1/4 mile down the drive way with the tools and to keep recharging my battery. Guess I don't need to go to the gym today.

 

If you haven't pulled the old points yet, pull the dist. cap and rotor and look at how the old points are arranged and bolted down. Two screws/bolts hold them to the base plate and they snug up against the distributor shaft. The condensor and coil wire connect to the one connection and are held tight by a small nut. The dist. shaft is not concentric...it has high spots and low spots. When the points are correct, the high spots on the dist. shaft rub up against the points to open the gap between the points contacts...the contacts are spring loaded...they snap closed unless you hold them open.
So...unscrew both hold down screws on the old points...connect the two wires to the terminal on the new points...put the points on the base plate and get both hold down screws in but not tight. Push the points toward the dist shaft and tighten the hold down screw closest to the radiator. Disconnect the big coil wire from the top of the coil so the engine won't start...bump the ignition key and watch how the dist. shaft high spots rub the points. Keep bumping the key until the points arm rests exactly on a high spot on the dist. shaft. Now loosen the hold down screws just a little and scoot the points closer or further away from the dist. shaft to get the right gap between the points contacts.
When I get to this point, I put the .017 blade of the feeler gauge between the points contacts then snug down the hold down screws...tight enough that the point gap doesn't slip or change...you want a gap just big enough for the feeler gauge blade to fit into. Then tighten the hold screws again. If you've done it right, the points will hold the gap between the contacts when you slip the feeler gauge blade out.
It's tough the first time you do it, but you'll learn it pretty fast and it gets easier each time you do it. One good tip is to have two good screwdrivers to work with when tightening the hold down screws...one to keep the points from slipping on the base plate and the other to tighten the screws.

 

Sweet that is exactly what I needed to know about the points, the manual has a lesser quality sense of direction than yours. I am gonna make another attempt on the truck Sunday if the sun is shining, seems all to rare here in Seattle.

Talked to a few local folks and they suggested replacing the fuel pump, due to the lack of fuel in the lines. The manager at the parts store told me my lines were clogged coming from both tanks, but that feels like an amazing coincidence that both would clog at the very same time. He also said no fuel pressure from the pump would make it so even if I dumped gas down the carb nothing would happen, not really sure on that one?

I guess after today I have narrowed my options to carb kit, timing kit, fuel pump, points, and the lines of course....

 

Check the fuel pump by pulling the line off at the carb, put it in a jar and crank the motor...a good pump will fill a small jar pretty quick. Pull the tank line at the pump and see if it's getting gas...gravity feeds gas from tank to pump. Since you have two tanks, make sure the tank selector valve is set to one tank or the other...on my truck the valve is on the cab floor, drivers side...visible when you open the door and look down. I had my truck towed once cause it wouldn't start and the valve was closed. When you prime the carb with gas it'll run til it burns up that gas, then quit unless the pump is feeding the carb.

 

My 71 f250 had a problem similar to this.

After the truck was warmed up then shut off the carb would begin to boil over into the cylinders. I believe its just simply called boiling over.

What thi would do is flood the engine momentairily flood the engine. So the next time you started the engine you would have to crank it for 15-30 second while pumping the gas.
You can fix this by taking the carb off of the engine and making some sort of shield/bucket forthe carb to sit in. I made mine out of header wrap and aluminum foil. This makes it so after a while of the engine running the foil will insilate the heat and let the carb stay cooler.

Hope this help!!!

--lil smokey

 

I read nowhere where there was a compression check advised; I'm advising you do one first. In a tune-up it's always the first thing to do. If the engine isn't in good repair the rest of the tune-up does no good; it's never going to run right. Another thing is to adjust points correctly you need a dwell meter. You can get it in the ballpark with a feeler gauge but to make it run correctly a dwell meter is necessary.

 

I did a compression check the other day worrying that maybe the motor was just dead, everything is okay in that department.

I am really starting to think it is a fuel issue, I am going to check the timing chain when I pull the pump off. First I am going see if I can find the fuel pump switch/valve. I just seems strange that there is no fuel in either of the lines but gas still in the tanks.

is this the tank selector valve or a electric fuel pump?
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I am going to try pouring 2oz of fuel down the carb, I have just been pouring a few drops like I do on my jetski, I don't think that is enough. I still haven't gotten to the points, had to fix my brother's truck this weekend.

I can't wait to get this thing back on the road, It is not so fun doing "needed" repairs vs fun/restoration/performance repairs!

 

That's an electric fuel pump. The selector switch, if you have one, will be on the floor on the left of the drivers seat.