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My truck was overheating. I figured I just didn't have enough fluid in the radiator and decided rather than just adding fluid I'd drain it and put in a fresh 50/50 mix. Went to the parts store, bought three gallons of coolant (to mix with three gallons of water) a big funnel and a drain pan.
As I was getting ready to drain the radiator it occurred to me that the problem might be something with a more simple solution...
Turns out the adjusting bolt under my generator had come loose, the bracket slipped down and none of the belts were turning. You'd think I would have looked before I spent my time going to the parts store. I never learn.
At least you figured it out before you did the whole drain/refill routine with $25 worth of antifreeze! Spend that money on a frosty malt beverage and pat yourself on the back!
Sometimes it seems like the easiest thing is the last thing to check. My charging system wouldn't work so I changed generators with one out of my parts cache. Still no charge. I talked with Dmptrkr about it and he set me straight on how the system works (it's all stock, nothing fancy). Now I got the generator generating but still no charging. I cleaned the contacts in the regulator when I started working on it. After a lot of head scratching and voltage checking I pulled the regulator off of the firewall for a better look. When I looked closer at the Field contact I saw there was some crud I didn't catch the first time I cleaned them. Now it charges just fine!
Dirty contacts will do you all of the time. I bought my F-4 from a guy who said he couldn't get it started. I bought it and after I had it a while I decided to try to start it. It wouldn't fire. Pulled the distributor cap off, all burned up inside. I ran a piece of emery cloth through the points, dumped gas in the carb and it fired right up. Best running engine I ever had even with the hard wires and bad cap.
LOL....it makes me feel good to read posts like this because I know that I am not alone in this world. I spend alot of my time recovering from my one goofy mistakes.