Once upon a time there was a rig hand...

He bought an E350 with a 6.9 diesel. The rig hand was sooo happy because he always wanted one... and also he knew that he could pinch the odd tank of fuel from the rig.

This rig hand failed to notice the electrical fans had burned out/failed, and one day hauling several thousand kilos on his trailer, he over heated the motor. This caused his water pump to fail. The ignorance of this also caused his fluids to drain and since it was winter and quite cold he plugged in his block heater for the night, and went to bed. Much to his supprise the next day there was a pool of methanol under his stone cold motor. The rig hand was sad. He replaced the water pump and carried on with fresh fluids. It was the day after that that he realized his block heater wasnt working.

Today the rig hand drained his rad and dropped his starter to investigate a no start situation. The rig hand could see his burned out heater clearly and with no obstructions happily set about removing it. It was stubborn. He pried and pulled. The space was small so he wedged himself under the van and wormed his body into the niche, and pried harder. With a pop the heater sprang out of its receptacle... bathing the trapped righand in a shower of methanol that he couldnt escape... He saught refuge under the frame, in the wheel well, but allas the gush of fluids found him everywhere as he couldnt get away. Emerging filthy from rushed contact with the motor and frame, methanol dripping from his hair, clothing soaked from the way it ran along his body on the ground, the rig hand vowed never again to let his motor over heat, and to always ensure his fluids were well maintained, in order to never be soaked in this crap again.

the end

 

ROF LOL..... Been there done that hand....

 

Went about the above while i charged my batteries. The first charged normally but the second behaved strangely. Took it in to get it tested and buy a new clip for my starter wire. It came back hooped. Bought a new one with allot (850) of amps. Cleaned the oil and grime off the mounts using electrasol on both sides. Reattached the new clip and installed the charged and new battery. Had the ignition wire on the wrong pole and put it on the "s" pole (I jumped it back and forth over for days till dave told me where it belonged).

IT STARTED LIKE A CHARM.

The only thing i can think of is when i installed the new one (3 drives ago) i never cleaned the mount on the block. Perhaps it wasnt grounding properly with all the crud in there? The old battery was still giving out about half its rated amps so I dont think thats why it wouldnt even crank.

Thank you dave for the help on messanger so far.

And now:

no glow plugs when i turn the ignition... i will do away with all the electrical stuff... and go to a manual pull switch... If I have any trouble finding a controler in the wrecking yard... ideas?

 

i think your control is the same as the 7.3 if so go to your local parts store and have them cross standard ign. ry 316 or borg warner gpr8 thats the whole control cost about 120.0

 

Well i have be chatting with "He who keeps the chillins fed"...

Ive cross referenced this amazing dialogue with whats been stated by other knowlegeable folk from all over the country. And I've come to a conclusion. While I have relatively easy access to the Glow Plug Controller due to the presence of an engine hood. Im going with the manual controller. I dont need to mess with my engine head should i break the mummified "thingy" off. Tomorrow i start. I have been provided images and descriptions (some actually on the images themselves for clarity). I will take this on when the sun rises...

Naturally i will attempt to post the images and all descriptions here to help any other mere mortal like myself navigate this experience.

This site and its patrons is the best thing ive ever found for both my truck and... well... lets just say... when it actually started... after everything i spent in time and money...

well...

that was forgotten...

I might just be allowed to keep the ol van for a while yet...

 

Well it worked. The control module bypass worked! Today for the first time in over a year... I USED GLOW PLUGS TO START THE OL ETHER JUNKY...

Of course she needs a bit of rehab after an ether binge like that... The folks here are an invaluable resource of tips, pics (for newbs like me), and even the occasional encouragement...



Trying to figure out how to post the essential pic and dialogue...

 

I've found that the 2 most useful functions on an electrical tester are DC voltage and continuity. Everything under the hood is DC. The positive terminal is normally the live current source. The negative terminal is hooked to ground which in this case will be the vehicle chasis or the engine block. Wires back to the battery aren't necessary as anything running to ground (metal frame or motor) will complete the circuit. There is enough power (watts) in the battery to melt the wires down if the positive wire runs directly to ground. Watts = amps X volts. Since the voltage stays about the same for a charged battery amps are the biggest variable. Fuses melt at lower wattage so if too many amps try to pass through the fuse the fuse sacrifices itself to keep the wire, motor, etc., from melting down. Switches connect the current from the hot wire (the one connected to the positive terminal) to the driven device ( solenoid, motor, light, whatever?) If you read voltage potential between the end of a wire and ground it's hot. Continuity tests whether the connection is continuous so current can flow through a wire or device. If you don't have continuity the switch, wire, light, whatever won't work because the circuit can't be completed to ground.

 

Your enthusiasm to learn will pay bigger dividends if you read some books to learn the basics. Books like the Haynes Diesel Techbook, Chilton's Ford models, basic home wiring, etc. will not only answer a lot of your questions but will help you learn the names of parts so the folks here can understand your questions and provide better answers.

 

Don, I will be sure to get the manual. My oil rig is down for repair/inspection so I'm head down @$$ up to get the long range bomber back in top shape.

The learning curve is steep, and getting steeper... I continue knowing I need the manual... guns blazing...


Glow plug relay:



This image shows the relay in all its glory... wires intact... and labeled! Youll find it on the driver side... The E350 stashes it between the battery and headlight...

I went to napa and bought a two pole 25 amp push/pull switch for $10 and a coil of 12ga. wire for $7. Its over kill, but if your gonna kill something... I believe you should kill the heck out of it...

Find a fuse in the box that isnt powered when the key is off (kids, and i have two under 5 years, like to pull switches and you dont want them cooking your glow plugs [it only takes 20 seconds to char them into something that is useless/so crooked they wont come out without breaking off in the motor].

I believe i chose the radio fuse. I ran one length of wire from that to the pull switch. Then from the remaining pole on the pull switch I ran a length of wire out to the control relay seen above. Removed the controller wire (the little purple one on a small pole) from the relay, and ran the wire from my new pull switch onto That pole. Leave the controller wire off. This takes approximately 16 minutes to do a tidy job.

Turn key... pull switch... loud click up front... count to 6... push switch back in... turn key... admire running diesel...

now place obsolete ether can on dash, against winshield... nozzle pointing at driver seat... The next bump in road will help with:
a) lost sleep over why this wasnt done earlier...
b) or quitting smoking...

 

While I sat in my glow plug starting ol van having a smoke... I noticed an unbelievable diesel stench... While the charm of warm diesel fumes and a lit smoke is something everyone wishes they could experience, and perhaps even prolong... Being a typical Canadian of Scottish desent... I thought to myself:

"ach Deano, perhaps the fuel puking out of the tops of the caps on your injectors could actually be saved and sent back down your return lines at percievable savings (im inherently cheap im often told by the missus). Not to mention the environmental impact of spilling the nectar of the gods all over the the place."

I considered duct taping an ice cream pail under the motor and rigging a sump pump to sent it back to the tanks.... but allas... the wife told me im not using any of her hundreds of perfectly good empty pails for THAT...

Then it struck me... why not seat belt my shop vac into her chair and rig that to suck the odiferous amber off the motor, and just pour it into jerry cans to use as needed! Pure Genius! She has to sit in the back with the kids, and the sound of the vac will drown out her complaining about how loud/stinky/expensive my parts are! I wept with joy. Then I wept with sorrow when i realized the vac hose was to short, and ive only got a 200 foot radius driving range using every extension cord I own.

And so its off to the part store for a new fuel return line kit. Caps, plugs, T's, rings, and hoses included. Part #DPE69120 ($51.50).

 

Must be the wine that washed down the salmon but I must exit laughing now. Good luck kid, You'll be ok!

td