i appreciate all the help, i have given up for the night but may try it a bit more tomorrow before work. my email is 1damnyankee@carolina.rr.com . i would appreciate any info you feel may help. feel free to email anytime convienent for you.
thanks again,
dallas

 

Sorry that I'm late coming to this thread, but it sure is an interesting one

What was the problem and how did you fix it?

 

(I musta pushed the wrong button, as that last post happened too quick.)

Just for clarification, is this a DuraSpark I or DuraSpark II System?

QUOTE=tex7569]have power at the coil, have correct power at the connection for control module ect..[/QUOTE]

(My experience is with my '79 DuraSpark II system, and I'm using my '79 wiring diaghrams, so there may be some differences.) If you are measuring the voltage at the coil with KOEO (Key On Engine Off - engine not cranking) the R/GR wire that feeds the coil contains a built-in 1.05-1.15 ohm resistance. (When the engine is being cranked, this resistance is by-passed.)

Do you know how much voltage the battery is putting out, and how much of that voltage is available at your coil with the KOEO?


And how much voltage is available at the ignition control module, which wire are you measuring, and which side of the two-wire connector?


When you say that you have no spark, where are you checking for spark? At a sparkplug wire, or at the coil wire?

And are you checking for spark by cycling the ignition key or while cranking the engine? (If while cranking the engine, do you have a DMM with the min/max function so that you can get a voltage reading at the coil while cranking?)

Did you try the 12v jumper wires that banjopicker suggested? (That should by-pass bad wires or connectors.)

 

May I suggest keeping all the pertinent info On this site rather than by sending info by personal messages,.

That just defeats the reason this forum

I don't know if this will help you in your quest ...but here you go.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...d=5951&width=0

 

Wiring diagrams can be found here:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/member.php?u=1811

A COMPLETE trouble shooting procedure can be found in almost any repair manual. I suggest you use it step by step to determine the problem. Shotgunning a system with parts is NOT the way to find a problem.

 

Sorry i havent had time to post but i have been working, and will be for the next couple days. i did try by passing with jumpers like banjopicker suggested and it did not work, i have not actually got the DMM out and checked everything that closely yet, i figured it was going to be simpler than that. that will probably be the plan for this weekend. as for the comment about trouble shooting procedure from a repair manual i dont know what manual you are using but the haynes that i have is just about worthless. i am smart enough to know that there is a procedure to this, if you would have read earlier posts you would have seen that no one is "shotgunning" parts, all the parts were already new because the truck is a resto. i had to replace a junk distributor when i first put the motor back in and figured that while i did that i would upgrade the entire system since it was so cheap..we were simply eliminating the possibility that i may have gotten a bad part off the shelf.
anyway, thanks to everyone for the advice, i dont have much time to mess with the truck until saturday so until then i guess ill just keep trying little things here and there before work and ill try to check in once and awhile.... thanks again
Dallas

 

Try a Chiltons manual or the OEM Ford shop manuals. These ignition systems are "rock simple" as in "stone fence" technology, nothing complicated or difficult about them just like the trucks they are on.

 

i know, thats why this is so frustrating. it has to be something really stupid that i just havent found yet, like a broken wire or something. could a bad ignition cause this? i didnt think it could but hey, you never know... where can i get an OEM shop manual? i know i can get a chilton but i havent seen the OEM ones anywhere..
thanks again,
Dallas

 

Ford Shop Manuals:

They may still have some Cdrom versions available left.
see the last post on this thread.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/4...100-302-a.html

Paper versions can be found at swap meets at literature vendors.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I still it may be the pickup module in the distributor even though it is New.


If you have power to the + terminal of the coil that means the ignition switch works to power the igntion system.

If the coil is good.
I hope you have done resistance tests with a multi-meter to verify that.

If the coil is good:
From there it is the secondary circuit.

This involves:
The Pick up module to detect the break in power.
The Ignition Module to receive and send signal for coil to produce large current for spark plugs.

 

The OEM ones are available on CD from some vendors here and are handy for printing out a page and taking it into the shop with you. Paper manuals can be found on eBay and at automotive book sellers on the web. Haynes manuals are "beginner's" manuals. Unfortunately it takes both Hanes and Chiltons to have a fairly decent set if manuals. The OEM manuals assume you are a professional mechanic but they have info that is not in the other manuals.

 

Dallas,
Just so I understand, what problem did you have when you put the motor back in? And has the motor run since you put it back in?

And what did the 'resto' consist of? Has the motor run since the 'resto'?

 

the problem i had originally was that the distributor was junk, when i replaced it i replaced the control module and coil also. the truck ran fine. the resto consists of a frame off complete rebuild/replacement of everything (needed..) the frame is painted, undercarriage painted and undercoated, trans rebuilt, (nothing special, just a shift kit), complete engine rebuild ( nothing spectacular,pretty much stock with alum intake, edelbrock carb, mild cam, headers, dual 3" exhaust shot out in front of the tires, custom dual bulb halogen headlights, a lot of little extras here and there. when i got the truck all that was left was pretty much a good cab,frame,and a drivetrain that hadnt run in about 8 years. i brought it down here and replaced all the rusted out parts (bed,doors,gate,hood ect...), and rebuilt it mechanicaly first. all it needs now is a little interior work and a paintjob.
sorry if this is more info than you wanted, but hey, you know what they say about asking a man about his project....lol.
thanks for the help, gotta work today but im gonna try to kill this problem tomorrow.
Dallas

 

Now I feel like we're going backwards

I thought we had all the pertinent info for the problem at hand ?


Tex's quote: anyway, i have chased everything down, checked all wiring and connections, have power at the coil, have correct power at the connection for control module ect... thats why this seems to be so confusing??? it just happened out of the blue...

 

Sorry Dennis. I was just trying to clarify if the engine had run since the "resto". I was thinking if the engine had not run since the frame painting, etc, and reinstalling the engine that perhaps there was a bad ground or missing engine to firewall ground strap.

Apparently the truck has been running fine and suddenly one day it wouldn't start. He checked for a spark and found none. If he checked for spark at the sparkplug, that leaves the rotor/cap/plug wires suspect. But if he checked for spark at the coil wire, that leaves the coil and stator assembly suspect.

Since he's swapped out the stator assembly, the coil, and the ICM, the only thing left is the wiring harness (am I forgetting anything?). I'm thinking that banjopicker is on the right track:

 

He said has power to the coil and power at the ECM.

IMO, the problem is the secondary circuit that is not allowing the "Breaking of current" (the job of the Pickup module) to cause the controlled spark event.



That's why I asked him to put a handheld tach on the negative (Tach) terminal of the coil.
That's also mentioned test the coil for resistance between the two systems...primary & secondary.

and to also check the wires and connection that feed from the distributor to the ECM.

The trouble with new parts is they are not always good

Tex ,seems to have checked out portions of the circuitries but not all of it.

I can understand his frustration though.