IMO, It's not necessary about the cost. It is having things work as they are supposed to work. I would not wire up a toggle switch to start my truck. Maybe if it was a trail only vehicle.

It may or may not start without the clamp tightened. It all depends on how tight the clamp is on the battery terminal. Sometimes I need to twist the clamp clockwise/ counterclockwise and try again. (The truck does not have a battery and I'll drop one in there just to move it around)

 

I didn't use a toggle switch. I used a starter button.
The toggles are for the power supply.

 

Local Napa carries the switch for $13.50 and Rock Auto



Both cheaper than what you paid and would have restored normal operation instead of the jury-rigged system you now have.

If it was the actuator that broke on yours (badaz4570), Napa stocks those too for

 

So after getting the terminals tightened on the battery, the truck still won't start. I don't have the horn on the steering wheel yet, but as far as I can tell everything else is hooked up.

Would keeping the steering wheel cover / horn wiring removed keep it from operating from an electrical perspective?

The other thing I thought of was perhaps the ignition actuator and the cylinder starter gear aren't actually connecting. In that case, the cylinder might rotate with its gear spinning appropriately but the actuator gear doesn't move forward because it isn't engaging the teeth properly.

Thoughts?

 

will the truck start if you manually move the ignition switch like when you first got it?
if the answer is yes, then try adjusting the switch by sliding it op/down on the column.
if no, make sure the trans in in park or neutral if automatic, or that the clutch is fully depressed if manual..
if no, try putting power to the small terminal of the starter relay. will the starter spin?
if no, try jumping across both large terminals on the relay. will the starter spin?
if no you either have dead battery, bad connections, or bad starter.

 

Actuator is shot, switch was fine, didn't feel like tearing into column, quick easy fix.

 

Hahahaha! I'm a moron. I was so focused on getting everything else connected I forgot I had detached the ignition module from the top of the column. Everything was set in place except the ignition actuator arm was pushing forward into thin air.

That's next on deck - I need to open up the bolts underneath the column again and put it back in place.

I used a screwdriver to activate the ignition module and it started right up. Battery isn't an issue.

That said, I've done something funky with the tilt wheel. It's adjusted wrong and the steering wheel is far too vertical.

And in learning what the hell I was doing with the column overall, I've messed up a few parts. The pin I mentioned above that got a bolt sheared off in it should be replaced, and the cross bar pin that goes underneath the tilt column in the center as a pivot point got beat up pretty badly from inserting & removing it improperly.

NOTE to self: don't do these repairs over time. I kept everything open while I waited for parts to be delivered and while figuring out each step as I went. I won't be doing that in the future. Even if I can't fix something, I will put everything back in place to avoid some of the Stupid(tm) creeping into the equation.

 

Got it working. Ignition now fixed - starts every time although I have to use the little button under the column to get the key to release. I assume this is normal. Tilt still not functioning right but frankly I'm not worried about that. Truck is at least now driveable.

BONUS - the turn signal in the cabin seemed to work again in both directions, although I neglected to see if that was true with the signal lights.

I over-tightened the steering wheel nut and made my wheel cockeyed to the right. I'll loosen it back and re-do it again.

 

Using the button is indeed normal operation for removing the key.

 

OK bit of an update here.

I thought I ended up with a battery problem but it's clear I have continued ignition issues AND a battery issue.

Short story - I replaced the battery. But I learned the ignition lock cylinder gear was trashed and potentially also causing issues.

Here's a photo of the gear once I got it out. Several teeth badly bent.


broken gear

And here's the part I ordered which appears to NOT be the right part whatsoever.


ignition lock gear

I think what was happening after I got BOTH parts of the ignition actuator replaced was that the new actuator & the old ignition lock gear were not playing nice. I thought it might be a gear timing issue on my installation, but with the gear as chewn up as it was I figured that was more to blame than much I could have done.

Now I need to find the RIGHT gear and get that installed. I swear weeks go by that I can't use the truck because of stupid little issues like this.

 

Finally got a replacement part that's correct. The gear I replaced was pretty chewn up on the inside as well as the teeth.

Going to try to put it all back together tomorrow. I'm hoping I can get it all good and tada this issue is finally put to rest.

 

And finally got the ignition cylinder gear piece in there right. Had to bring over a buddy who knows more about these old trucks to get it done. I couldn't figure out how to properly mate the ignition cylinder gear to the actuator gear to get the proper / full range of motion out of both. And I found zero online info about how to do that particular step of the gear replacement.

Now that I've seen how it needs to be set I'll remember it, that's for sure.

 

the only way i can explain it is to get the end gears on both to make contact and 99 % of the time it will work properly.

 

I'm a little late to the party on this one. I took some pictures of my '91 while I was working on it.
Ford Truck Picture by Bruners4 | 4666613 | Ford-Trucks.com
I spent hours working on it until I got it right. This picture was the key to getting it all back together.

 

@Bruners4
Those photos would have been VERY helpful. That's the main thing I couldn't find via Google or on the site. Between those & my friend helping I'm now good to go.