Injectors and glow plugs are out, need to replace both, but should I do a compression test while everything is out? The engine seemed fine so I do not suspect any issues with it. But thought it would be a good time to do it. But have to find a compression tester that will work. Does the Harbor Freight one work good? Does any place rent a diesel compression tester?

 

Well, you'll have to put either the injectors or the glow plugs back in, and use the compression tester in the other hole... got to have both openings plugged up

 

who doing dat? what doing?

 

Charles is correct.

I don't know of any compression tester that connects to the injector port. The HF kit works ok. It has a small adapter that fits the glow plug hole. I bought the HF compression tester when the Lang TU-15 I bought died after testing 3 cylinders.

 

Did the gauge break, or just the usual valve core spring breaking in the adapter? I bought a few replacement "heavy duty" valve cores since the stock ones seem to break each time I use an adapter.

 

I know, I have to replace at least some of the injectors anyways, that is why i took them out.

 

so you guys been having good luck with the HF compression tester?

 

I personally have not used it yet, have not even bought one. Hopefully can pick up one this weekend.

 

You can still buy the Ford Rotunda Compression Tester on ebay every few months. I picked one up for a reasonable price on ebay, and the adapters are still sold at places like Jegs IIRC.

There is one guy who's been trying to sell his overpriced Rotunda Compression Tester for over a year now and he will NEVER budge on the price. His loss. If he had sold it to me for $75 two years ago, he wouldn't have had to pay all those relisting fees. I bet he's paid more in relisting fees now, than the price of the tester.

 

How much is the Rotunda worth? A lot of good quality compression testers I've seen are 300-400 dollars. I guess this one is used so shouldn't be worth anywhere near 300-400. Still the more expensive tester from HF is around $150.

 

If you spend $150 on a Harbor ***** Compression Tester, you might as well just burn your Benjamin and Grant. It's a single use tool. It's effectively disposable. Try to find a decent used tester instead, and buy any extraneous parts that might be broken or missing. Like the nozzles. It'll last you a lot longer than that chinese Harbor ***** garbage.

As for that ebay sale, $150 might be tempting, but the kit is incomplete. Hence the reason why I thought the guy needed to come down on the price. But he didn't answer any of my messages. In the meantime, another identical Rotunda Tester came up with a more complete kit, and I worked out a good price with that seller. If you wait long enough, another Rotunda will appear on ebay for under a hundred bucks and I recommend you ****** it up. If we all stopped buying that Harbor FRIGHT garbage, maybe they'll go out of business once and for all.

 

Ok sounds about right, I'm tired of the cheap Chinese junk too, been taken too many times by the cheap stuff lately. Are the 7.3 IDI adapters available through Navistar or Ford? I don't know where to begin finding them if, for example, I found a used Rotunda or other good quality kit that was missing the 7.3 idi adapter.

 

Here's where I bought mine: https://www.handsontools.com/OTC-310...er_p_8349.html

Just look for OTC 310832. I called the company and asked them for the serial number for the adapter, because it's not on their website. Their customer support emailed me a few days later with the proper part number, and using the Googles, I found a few places online that still sell the IDI adapter.

It always erks me when people defend Harbor Fright. Even though you save a few dozen dollars now, you end up replacing it with another cheapo tool 2 years later. It would have been cheaper just to buy the right American made part from the start, instead of buying 2 or 3 HF POS's. Also, it keeps Americans employed, instead of outsourcing our manufacturing to places where their conditions are so crappy, that they are committing seppuku or jumping off tall buildings to escape the nightmare.

 

Apex tools has the adaptor for the Fords.
https://www.apexinds.com/tools/ATCL-TU-15-1A.html

Click on their catalog and they have a bunch of tools.

Mytyvac also has adaptors
Diesel Compression Test Adapters | Mityvac

In my Google search found this on OB.
https://www.oilburners.net/threads/d...success.69771/

Is it possible a old fuel injector could be modified to work. Rip out it`s guts and screw some type
connector on the top?

Charlie

 

I bought the HF compression tester kit that was about $40. I wouldn't have bought the $150 kit.

The Lang tester I bought online died after using it to test 3 cylinders. It may have been a valve core, I had to replace one on my gasoline compression tester. I didn't bother trying to fix the Lang tester. I just sent it back since I bought it Amazon Prime and went and got the cheapie HF tester to finish the test that day. Suprisingly, the HF tester seemed sturdier than the Lang tester.