Hey Ya'll,

The truck was blowing out white smoke like crazy. Gps, and GPC tested out fine. It smoked on idle and was hard starting. Initial thought was injectors and fuel filter. Replaced both and it did the same or worse, in terms of smoking. My thought is that the IP is bad or needs timed. How does one go about timing one of these old girls?

 

I know , steady white smoke in a gas engine is a sign of 'coolant" leak.

 

I thought the same. We compression tested it and it was all 375-400. I've found how to adjust the IP through the door in the side. My idea is that this doesn't adjust timing, only increase fuel flow which we don't want to do right?

 

Check the link in the top sticky. There's a good article about timing. Click the thread "top dead center mark" and scroll down to the link "talk about timing".

 

thats not for dynamic timing though therifleman,like he's looking for.that's for setting the cam/crank/valve relationship.a setting that is vital and is not adjustable.something only used for when you mistakenly remove an ip incorrectly (or want to make sure someone in the past didn't mess things up.)

for timing the engine known as "ignition timing" in a gas engine,it's kinda done the same way,but we don't have a distributor to move which changes when a spark occurs.instead we turn the injection pump to control the fuel output timing which is then compressed.
for that,you'll need diesel specific timing equipment.
search ferret timing meter.try an advanced search using username: akamacgyver
with keyword: ferret
and you'll see some nice vids he did up.

ah what the heck lol here ya go:

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...ghlight=ferret

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...ghlight=ferret


before you get too concerned about white smoke at start up though,it's important to know without a computer controlled engine,this is perfectly normal......to a degree,and it varies with outside temps.
to help aid in a cold start idi,all we have is a timing advance solenoid,and a gp controller that cycles for a bit after you start the engine.
to quick easy basics to make sure each work;
when the WTS goes out.quickly start the engine right away.now notice the amp gauge...it should still be bouncing around for a few more seconds.this is giving the gp's some afterglow which helps reduce white smoke in a cold engine,and helps her stay running.
also just as important,you should hear the engine sounds as if it has much,much more "rattle" to it until coolant temps come up around 114ish? i think it is,then it quiets back down.
if you don't see either of those happening,then you should troubleshoot them and fix them.
you should really only have about 30 seconds of white smoke if both of these are working properly (and if your injectors are good) with temps down in the 20's.the white smoke may last longer if it's colder.
if the white smoke never clear's or you see white smoke on start up even when it's warm out,for more than just 5-10 seconds if these things are working properly,you could have a fuel injection issue.
white smoke could also mean burning coolant too.smelling the tail pipe when it's happening can narrow down which one it is a hurry lol.
when i had my original injectors,the thing blew lots on white on cold start,stank to high heaven of rich unburnt fuel and made me want to hold my breath loading tools in the morning lol.get to close to her back end before engine temps came up and the old gal made my eyes water lol.


your thinking isn't wrong.that is the internal fuel screw of the ip,and turning it up or down will in fact alter timing along with the fuel/air ratio,and a meter should be placed back on the engine to check it again after adjustments.this is another reason why really,that it's a good idea to just buy your own timing tools,so you have it on hand for tuning at all times.
this is a price we pay for not having a computer.
however you don't turn that screw for the purpose of timing the engine.

 

We drove the heck out of it today and put some new diesel in it. At first it was roaring white smoke and then black smoke (had the IP pushing too much fuel). When the motor got warm it went away. My thought is that all the times we had it running in the shop it never got hot enough to make the white go away. Furthermore, it is exacerbated by some bad gps and with it idling for 3-4 minutes in the shop it never got warm enough to remove the white. I think it really just needed to be drove too and force the air out.