Hi,

I'm new to this forum and relatively new to these great old trucks. I just got a 1949 Ford F-1 with an original flathead I6 delivered and my first issues have come up. The engine turned on before it was delivered and turned on to get off the trailer. Then we decided to take our new ride for a spin around the block (still running) and after driving for a few minutes the engine shut off and we haven't been able to get it started again. All you hear when pressing the ignition button is the solenoid clicking. The previous owner replaced the battery in 2015 with an 8 volt and it is positive ground wired. What are some steps I can take to get the engine running again? What should I check/ replace? Any help is greatly appreciated

Justin

 

Hello Justin, welcome to FTE.

You've come to the right place to lean more about your truck. Next I'll say that it looks very good and thanks for posting pictures - we love to see them. You get bonus points for posting them on her first introduction.

The picture of the engine bay is helpful. To me anyway, I didn't see any likely culprits except perhaps the battery cable ends could use some brushing to take away a little bit of corrosion and make better contact with the battery.
On the positive ground systems, it is doubly important to make sure each ground and power connection is very clean and tight.
You may have a different array of wire sizes from the previous owner. The wire size is important on the 6-volt systems. Although the wiring job looks neat, I see some wires that are older than others - it just might be a matter of replacing some of the oldest ones including the ignition wire going to your starter button? My next guess is that the generator isn't sending voltage to the battery.
I'd suggest going on E-Bay and buying a 1948-1951 shop manual (red cover) for about 35-40 dollars including shipping because it will come in handy many times for many reasons. The wire sizes are spelled out in the diagrams. Here is a link: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ford-f-serie...pXPhcF&vxp=mtr



It sounds like you have a uncomplicated starting problem, and this forum has a search feature that will lead to many threads on the topic for the 6-volt positive ground systems.

Again, welcome and as you learn more about the truck you'll find this place has everything you need to know. And lots of folks to support you.

Tom in Maine

 

Oh yes, forgot to mention...

These trucks like yours have an inline flathead six cylinder. So they aren't "V6's"

That engine configuration didn't come out until the 1960's. they did have V-8's when your truck was built though.
Just call yours a 'flathead six' instead and nobody around you will snicker.

I'm only saying it to save you some embarrassment some day soon - call it a payback return for posting such nice pictures of that black beauty.

It has an awesome rear bumper by the way. Don't see ones in that shape very often.

Tom


Tom

 

Justin, that is a beautiful truck you bought. I had run an 8 volt battery in my truck for some years but I converted to 12v a couple of years ago. Thats beside the point.
To get yours running I would check the voltage on the battery. It should be so something like 9 + volts if it is charged up. You can charge it with a 6 volt battery charger or a 12 volt one. Just don't leave it on very long if you use a 12 volt charger and set it on a lower setting like 10 amps.
If it is charged up, you should probably clean the battery cables as a start.
By the way, I switched to 12V because I was burning out 6 volt headlights and 12 volt headlights were too dim. My truck started and ran well with the 8 volt battery.
Well, you will need to find out if your battery is charged first.
Patrick

 

Tom,

Thank you very much for the reply, welcome, and clarification. I actually already got an original shop manual before the truck got here and it does have a ton of helpful information. Also, after the picture of the engine bay was taken I did brush the battery cables but it didn't help. Is it an issue that the battery is an 8 volt? I've also searched on other threads and I've seen people mention that it might be the starter. I just don't understand why the truck just shut off as I was driving.

Justin

Edit: I'm glad you liked the pictures!

 

Welcome to the forum. Beautiful truck. Eight volt batteries are usually installed to mask a problem and come with their own set of problems. You immediately have a mismatch of charge system and battery. I believe someone mentioned other problems. In addition to the shop manual, get a multi meter. Have fun with the truck.

 

Welcome, and that's a beautiful truck!

There could be a lot of things causing it to die, you just need to start with the diagnostic procedure listed in the manual, starting on page 336.

Solenoids go bad fairly frequently.

 

Patrick,
Thank you for the compliments. I checked the voltage and it was over 9 volts. We clean the battery cables and still nothing. We will eventually make the conversion to a 12V, too.

Justin

 

Justin, I see that the positive battery cable where it attaches to the cylinder head might need to be removed, cleaned till its bright and shiny, and then re-attached. Same thing with the black cable leading down to the starter. And again at the voltage regulator on the firewall, the ground to the firewall itself may need cleaning.

Check the voltage at the battery posts with engine off, and again 30 seconds after it is jump-started. You should see a rise of about 2-3 volts if the generator is working and the connections are good.

 

Wow! Great looking truck!! Welcome to the insanit....club! I'm new myself but been poking around here in my spare time. It's amazing how much knowledge you can find on here!

If it was running, and now is not, that's a good sign that it's (hopefully) not a huge ordeal to get it back running again. Have you tried pulling the spark plugs and cranking? I don't know if these engines get hydrolocked (anyone wiser care to chime in?), but cranking a couple revolutions and no plugs might clear out any extra fluids that got in there locking things up.

Have fun with that truck! Looks great!

 

Justin, The truck may have the starter stuck in the flywheel. This would not make it die but it can keep it from starting. If it is stuck, I think it can be popped loose by having the truck in 3rd or high gear and roll it backwards with the clutch pedal pressed down and then let the clutch out quickly. This will turn the engine backwards and pop a stuck starter loose from the flywheel. You need not roll it backwards fast to do this. If the starter in not stuck doing this will not hurt anything. If it is stuck, turning the engine backwards is a lot easier that removing the starter.
When I first had mine on the road I pulled into a friends driveway to show the truck and it wouldn't start. That is the only time this truck had a stuck starter. His driveway slopped toward the street so I let it roll back and popped the clutch in high and it popped loose. I had experienced this previously with my 53 Ford car so I was familiar with it. Patrick

 

Nice truck!

 

Welcome Justin!

Gotta love a black 49 - with the 226 I6 to boot!

I agree with Ross' comment about trouble shooting. Using a methodical approach will avoid the random parts replacement practice that is expensive and frustrating. From your picture, I noted that the condition of the original wiiring is typical - meaning in poor shape. The insulation for the 10 ga wires by the regulator looks to be cracked in several places. As part of your trouble shooting, I would suggest inspecting all the engine by wiring - with special attention to the ignition system. Ultimately, you'll need better solution, but using electrical tape to eliminate any obvious problems is a short term fix.

i'll also put my pitch in for cleaning your connections. The battery posts are a start, but the connection to the head from the positive post needs to be cleaned, as Tom (pineconeford) mentioned - and the same for the starter connections. These are simiple systems, the basic parts do need to be confirmed as functional - and not assumed as such - before getting all fancy with the diagnosis.

From my experience, you'll need to focus on the charging system. Use the manual to guide the steps, but confirming that the battery is good, the generator is charging, the solenoid works, and the regulator operates will be steps in your process. Remember, start with the basics.

 

welcome Justin. Great looking old truck. I'm hoping my 49 will look as good as yours when I'm done.

Your getting a lot of great help here. When you hit the key switch on any vehicle and it just clicks, 90% of the time it's a low or bad battery so this is what I do.

After I checked or had someone check the battery to see if it's good or not, I clean up the cables and make sure the engine is grounded to the frame and cab good and I make sure I'm getting enough volts through the solenoid down to your starter. It helps here to have a buddy around working the key switch and starter button in cab. If all good then move on.

next if it still doing it then I would move to the solenoid. They run $12 to $20 or so bucks for a new one. First of all I would take a big screwdriver and give the top of the solenoid a good couple taps ( with the handle of the screwdriver) This will free it if it's sticking a little. Then try to start it. Make sure it's opening when the starter button is pushed. Volt meter will help here or even a test light to make sure power is going to the starter. Test light wont tell you the volts, just if it's getting power through the solenoid. After that hen I would move on down to the starter

I'm not a starter guy so I cant help you there. There are a lot better old truck savvy guys out there that can help you than I can. These are just a couple things I do.

again good looking old truck. Keep us posted when you figure out whats causing the problems.

mike

 

By the symptoms you're mentioning I think you got a ground issue with your ignition wiring. Sounds like you were driving it and it grounded somehow shutting your truck down. The only part that confuses me is the "clicking" of the solenoid without the starter turning over. I'd do the cleaning of all ends thing, check battery/etc but also get up under the dash and check out the wiring around your key and push button. I had an issue with my 52 and found bad wiring (corroded inside the fabric) on a straight run back to my stop light switch on my master cylinder. I wouldn't have looked there because it was a straight run but that's where it was. I need to replace all my wiring on the 52 at some point. The stuff is just really brittle. Do keep us posted. I have a 50 F1 with the 226 that I'm restoring from the frame up so I'm very interested in your truck.