i own a 86 f-150 xlt with a "supposably" 302 efi engine in it..my troubles all started when i had to replace the pick up coil in the dist. about a year ago...me and my bro in law forgot to mark the dist. like u r suppose to do and when after putting it back together couldnt get it to fire back up we relized what we had did...we called his cousin to come help since he knew more then both of us combined about this then we did to help us get it back in time...well knowing as little as i did i stayed out of the way and let them figure it out...the cousin had a hard time getting it to crank and finally found a firing sequence that allowed it to run but not as good as it did b4 replacing the pick up coil...today i grabbed my haynes book..*yes i already know that it is full of crap but i didnt know that when i bought it or used it today*..and checked to c if the firing order was correct on it...well he had the wires arranged that matched up with the 351 firing order and not the 302's but the #3 and #7 wires were backwards*i think* might have been a different 2 but thats not the point...well i rearranged all the plug wires so they were connected in the proper fashion but when i turned it over it wouldnt start...well not knowing any better i try twisting the dist...as i saw the cousin doing and when i did the whole housing turned without much force and without loosening the nut that holds it in place...well now that u know the situation my questions are there....

1. If it is a 302 would a 351's firing order allow it to crank?

2. If i need to find TDC and all of that other good stuff i know hardly nothing about how can i do it myself without it involving me to have to spend much money to fix it? (cause i am broke..broke...broke...broke....and if that doesnt let u know how broke i am...i am still broke even more...lol...seriously)..oh and keep in mind i have none of the tools that i hear ppl using like that vaccume thingy or a timing light and i am no good at mechanicing so no mumbo jumbo...lol

3. And does anyone know about adjusting the TV control cable so that if somehow someone accidently adjusted it...and it has never shifted right again...that it could b adjusted back out in a very simple manner?....oh alright yes it was me that messed the adjustment up...but i have a good excuse...i thought it was the accelarator cable..wooooops....now it wants to shift into overdrive in 2nd instead of 3rd like it use to

Please someone help!!!
TY

 

The Haynes manual gives the procedure for adjusting the TV cable and it doesn't require any tools, other than maybe a pick. You might need an assistant, though.

To find #1 TDC, pull the coil wire and the #1 spark plug, and bump the starter with a finger over the hole. When the piston is on the correct stroke, it'll blow your finger off the hole. (You might also use something soft like a drinking straw sticking out of the hole to watch the movement of the piston.) Use a light to see when the piston gets near the top, then use a wrench on the crank pulley bolt head to turn the crank so the piston stops exactly at the top. Then follow Haynes for realigning the dist to #1.

 

or u could look at the timing marks and when it says o that means its at tdc just jump the solenoid to turn it over and when u get close use a wrench i think its a lot eaier then the hole straw thing.

 

This method has a 50-50 chance of working, as the piston may be on the exhaust stroke. It could be used if you knew the timing was close, but with the distributor removed, you have no way of knowing what stroke the engine is on. I would use the thumb or straw method.