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Ugggh, I’m lost in this world of GM “innovation”…from the 70’s. Day 2 of no-spark condition, think I’ve got it narrowed down to some combination of a 4-part problem.
A) A possible “Missing” wire going to the Ignition Coil on the +ve side (from the Starter solenoid?) I have faith that the new coil is nto defective out of the box, but currently it’s only getting 5-6V to it from the Toyota Tach wires. My limited research today tells me that I need 5-6V in RUN, and 12V in CRANK positions of the ignition, just a little extra juice while cranking.
B) Distributor needs points cleaned up /gap set / replaced. (Steve had suggested swapping in an HEI distributor, but I’m not sure if it’ll clear the firewall)
C) Old crunchy wires being poor conductors
D) Hidden kill switch??Tomorrow hopefully my neighbour will pop over during the day so I can try to test problem A with the missing wire. I want to measure the voltage output to the coil while CRANKING, by myself I can only measure with the ignition in RUN. If it still isn’t seeing 12V during CRANK, I’ll run a short wire directly from battery +ve terminal, and touch it to the coil only while cranking the motor. Fingers crossed I can get a little cough outta the motor, or at least my timing light to blip on once.
This afternoon I had a 45-min conversation with the guys at the local parts shop, they’re glad that after 6-years of coming in there, I’ve finally brought them Domestic problems. I’ll go back tomorrow with a couple pictures of the 350, and hopefully they can narrow down a decade from which it was originally built, and start to understand how to get it up and running.
SUCCESS!!! Redee is alive!! and spun 180 degrees in the driveway for the next phase of poop cleaning.
Cross one item off the list though. Chevy electrical refurb = DONE-ish. I’ll put some more effort in cleaning up the routing of all the wires under the hood over the winter, but for now it’s good enough to maneuver around the driveway and into the shop (once I get more $hit out of there). Overall it cost me about $130 to replace the following parts;
- Spark plugs + wires
- Distributor cap + Rotor + Points + Condensor
- Ignition coil
Unfortunately because I’m running from a Jerry can, I can’t reap the benefits of the excess fuel return line back into the tank. In about 90 seconds, Redee chugged back and re-directed more than 10L of fuel at barely an idle. All that excess which was re-directed back into the tank is gonna get drained as part of the fuel system refurb. Oh well, worth it! Redee is a lot quieter than I thought, nice little rumble. I’m sure the dB output will be significantly different under load and at varying throttle angles. A good day today.
My computer crashed super hard while trying to upload a short video to youtube, sorry no soundtrack guys. My 9 year old laptop might just be dead, hopefully my buddy from work can sort things out.
Congrats my friend, that’s a huge step forward. I remember screaming at the top of my lungs when my truck started for the first time. My wife came out and said “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy, even when we got married”
😐
Thanks guys, real satisfying to hear it rumble to life.
I’m glad your wife understood the level of excitement, some victories are harder won than others. Sam was inside when it came alive so she missed the extreme fist pumping in excitement.
The shop is now 90% cleared of clutter, and I just have to rearrange a few heavier items to get Redee parked inside for the winter. Hope to get my neighbour to pop over tomorrow while my girls are at school.
Not sure which task to undertake first, a tossup between a full brake system overhaul and full fuel system overhaul. I’ll prolly flip a coin for it, either way I’ll be spending a fair bit of time under Redee, and that’s A-OK with me.
Where should I bring the gas tank with 30-60 litres of varsol in it for proper disposal?
Where does one buy POR-15? Figure I’ll give the frame a coat while I’ve got all the fuel and brake lines off. Spend some hard hours in the name of Preservation, before I have to put in longer hours cutting & welding frame and floors.
Got Redeee parked inside with help from my buddy. Without brakes, I’m glad to have a spotter while pulling an Austin Powers-esque 19 point turn. In Redee’s current spot, there’s a minimum of 3ft walk around space on all sides. hopefully enough working space for the time being
Pretty sure I’ve decided to refurb the brakes first. Too sketchy working the throttle, steering, e-brake and B&M slap shifter at the same time during my 19-point turn. Untill I start spending money on brake parts, I’ll continue removing the HVAC to sanitize it. Nearly there now.
Also pulled the Canback off, and will hang it from the rafters another day.
HVAC has been removed for un-pooping
And these blend doors are stuck, the door for the “feet” air flow won’t budge. I hope the old plastic will seperate without too much fuss. I remember “Slacker” from the SONTT board had an awesome HVAC refurb on a project truck, complete with new foam filling the gaps.
hey tom, if you fook up any of that housing, get ahold of me as i’ve got 2 or 3 in the stock pile. one thing done at a time is another step closer to drivin’ it. keep at ‘er dude
Hey Mark, thanks a bunch for motovation and parts offer! I’m interested in the defrost venting for the windshield. I was planning to epoxy or Gorilla glue two mounting tabs back on, but having a backup will ensure I don’t have a dash rattle worthy of pulling hair out. I’ll snap a picture of the vent and broken tabs tonight after the girls are asleep.
I’ve been attacking the hvac and dash area trying to get it clean, tidy, and protected from further damage.
The hardest task I’ve accomplished to date is cleaning a nest from the cowling, where the HVAC airbox draws fresh air from. There are so many nooks and crannies, and one requires a hand without knuckles and an extra wrist to get up in there effectively. A solid two hours of BS, but I’m pretty confident the nest is gone.
Moving inside the truck, On the passenger side I’ve cleaned the firewall down to the floor pans with Spray Nine to kill germs, then scuffed up and primed a couple spots with surface rust. Pretty much ready for the HVAC to go back in, once I finish its refurb.
HVAC refurb is in process too. I’ve almost completely disassembled it (exception to blower motor housing which appears to be plastic welded sbut?). I’ve scrubbed and rinsed it all, now its air drying. I’ll have to replace all the foam seals, and lubricate all the pivot points. But so far, I’ll claim to have the upper hand on this task. Perfect time to replace the broken blower motor resistor as well.
And I dug out one of the goodie boxes of parts I’ve had stashed since UPS dropped it off in April of 2012. All-Pro T-case e-brake and a manual proportioning valve. Ahhh yeaaa.
Mark, here’s the defrost vent piece I’d like to get from you, rather than gluing mine back together. 3 of the 4 mounting tabs are broken at the far edges.
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