Will it start after 6 years? 69 F100

[Nate's69F100]

Hello everyone. I am writing this for my son, Nathan. He is a new member, 16 years old, and not ready to start posting. He's kind of bashful about doing that so I'm doing it instead. But I do hope someone can answer our questions. I am going to give him his grandpa's 69 F100 if he can get it running. He wants it very badly! The problem is that it has been sitting up for over 6 years. He's almost ready to to try start it and was wondering what else he should do before attempting it. This is what he has done so far......New battery, fuel filter, plugs, plug wires, coil, points and condenser, new oil and filter, drained radiator and added fresh coolant and water. The starter and alternator were checked at parts store and were good. He has been working on cleaning out the fuel lines using fresh fuel and an air compressor but they aren't completely clean yet as there is still a bit of sediment. He has been manually turning the crankshaft and it doesn't stick. The fuel tank will definitely have to be replaced since the old one is too nasty and it has been removed. The fuel pump will be replaced tomorrow and after a few more cleaning cycles of the fuel line we think the truck will be ready to start. My question is this...what other things should he do or check before turning the key? After 6 years do you all honestly think it will crank? Anything else I can do to make sure it starts so I see that big grin on his face when it hears it run? I'm a single mom with no father in the picture so this is a big deal for me and him both. Thanks to all of you for any advice. By the way, my other vehicle is a 65 Mustang fastback. It's going to be a much bigger project though because it's been sitting 18 years!

Thanks. Becky

[390F100]

Welcome Becky, please tell us about yourself in the welcome forum and welcome to this site. I have been a member for sometime now and can tell you from first hand experience that this site will be a huge blessing to you and your son and will provide you both with tons of information...

As far as the truck goes, what engine does it have in it? It sounds like you guys have been pretty thorough, I would inspect the carb as well and try to clean it out as best you can before starting it, I will bet that the accelerater pump will probably leak on the carb so depending on what you want to do, they are very easy to replace and it is good that he has been working the engine by hand and if it has been turning over with no problems then that is very good. I would turn it over and see what happens, you will have to fill the bowls on the carb with gas though before starting and be careful not to catch anything on fire as it is very easy to do. I'm sure others will post as well to give you advise but it sound like you guys are on the right track...also one last thing again, welcome and thanks for joining, look around there are some youngsters on this site and I know fordification runs a clean and well behaved site so let him on, were one big family on this site.

390f100

[kaptnkaos]

hi Becky,

Welcome to FORDification...
It sounds like you got pretty much everything covered...
I wasn't that thorough when I started mine after sitting for nearly 7 years...
You will probably be ok... These trucks are pretty resilient
I have been driving mine for 2 years now after letting it sit...
The resto is still a work in progress, but it has come a long ways...
All of us here are willing to help anyway we can to get yer boy's truck up and runin'
All we ask in return is that you post pictures of the project as it unfolds...
You see, we are all bump truck addicts... once bitten, there is no cure... but photos help keep the wolf at bay...

KaptnKA S

[fordman]

one thing to remember when starting it. it does take alittle time to get the fuel from the tank to the engine once all of the fuel has been blown out of it. priming the fuel pump can and the carb could help. mine sat for 7 years and i made the same mistake. i tried to start it with the bad gas. and it got junk in the fuel pump and ruined it. now i cant get the fuel up to the carb because i blew out the lines. of course my battery was dead also. so thatr doesnt help any either.

[fmartin_gila1]

Another thought is to be sure all the other systems, especially the tranny, brakes, and differential are full and as close to operational as you can get cause the temptation to move it under it's own power will be overwhelming. Good Luck with it. And keep the encouragement going, as it sure beats some of the other addictions out there. We are all here to help each other, when possible.

Fred

[fastEdsel]

First of all, Welcome to the Fordification site! These are a great bunch of folks but don't know what could really happen if we were all together in the same room!

So glad to hear you have a '69 pickup. Hope it goes well for you. There has been discussion on what to do to start an engine after a prolonged shut down. Drop the oil first! And change the oil filter. Water from condensation sinks to the bottom of the crankcase and it will be the first thing picked up when the engine turns over then starts. A costly crankshaft including all the bearings and a major overhaul will come next and that is certainly not what you need now. To check for water, simply loosen off the oil pan drain plug and just hold it back from the threads and if there is water there, it will show up right away but it probably is just as well to drain it.

Best of luck with your project and keep us all informed.

[sideoilerfe]

Remove the spark plugs from the engine and put a couple drops of oil in the cylinders for lubrication then re-install the plugs before you start it. It will smoke at first when it starts but it'll stop within 30 seconds. If it sat that long it might be a good idea.

Take the gas tank to a radiator shop and they should be able to clean it for you. Good luck,and welcome to the site .

[Nate's69F100]

Thanks to all of you for you helpful and quick replies. My son said that he will start posting himself so I can quit being the middleman! He replaced the fuel pump today, finally got the fuel lines clean, got everything connected and attempted to start it. It would turn over but just would not start so we had to give up. At one point the the solenoid popped and there was a spark from the negative battery cable. I have no idea what the cause is for that. Should we replace the solenoid? The oil has been drained and replaced. The gas tank is off but we have a line going to a gas can. I do know that fuel is getting up through the pump. He also put drops of oil in the cylinders before the plugs were put in. We added a small amount of gas in the carburetor and sprayed starting fluid but it just would not start. The choke is not stuck and it is working. I'm thinking it's the carburetor and that there must be old sludge in there. Should he try to rebuild it? Buy a new one? If so, what kind is recommended? The motor is 240 with a 3 speed transmission. Any other suggestions as to what the problem could be or what should be done next?

Here's how it went... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PP1bN-0B3O8 Sorry for the darkness but it was dark and raining a bit.

Again, thanks for the open and warm welcome. You have made me feel very comfortable here. He will post pics of the truck later. It needs a lot of body work!

Becky/Nathan

[SteveC]

yeah you want to probally try to first rebuild the carb first. Also check to make sure that you have spark. It should run a bit with starting fluid, but if not you will probally wanna check for spark and make sure the firing order is correct as well as the points are set correctlly.

One other thing to check is if you dont have spark start to suspect the coil... someone on here can explain how to look into that futrther if needed.

Never hurts to replace the starting solinoid

And btw welcome to the site and if it makes you feel better. My 67 f250 started up after setting for 7 years. all i did was changed the oil and clean the fuel lines, it took barly holding the key for 3 seconds and it started right up and ran.... though i had to shut it off pretty fast since the carb sprayied fuel every where since all the gaskets needed replaced.

That same engine is getting rebuilt by me during college right now. Im hoping it restarts that good as well.

[FORDification]

Any internal combustion engine needs three things to run: air, fuel and a spark at the proper time. Since you know you have the first two, I'd agree with SteveC.... I'd start off by checking to make sure the truck is even producing the needed spark. You said you replaced the points, but they're probably a bit out of adjustment. Pull a spark plug wire, stick a screwdriver into the end of it and then hold it next to (not on) a ground (almost anything steel on the engine will suffice, as long as it's bare metal and not painted) while someone cranks it over. You should see a good spark jump across the gap. If there's no spark, then it's probably the points that will need to be readjusted.

Also, take a moment to double-check and verify that the spark plug wires were installed in the proper firing order.

Follow these steps and report back. Good luck!

[SteveC]

Keith explained that pretty well. I;m in college for auto but any more my brain is overloaded with info and the mouth cant spill it out.

[fordman]

checking for spark is a good idea. maybe you put too much gas and starting fluid down the carb. and that flooded it. tey in the morning without the gas and just the starting fluid. if it fires and then dies you just have to wait on the gas to get up there to it from the pump. if it doesnt the spark could be the problem and the correct point setting could do the trick.

[td]

welcome to the site!! i bet that 240 will be purring like a kitten in no time.

[papabug71]

Welcome Becky! You came to the right place for help.

In 04' I pulled a 429 thunderjet out of my inlaws bird' that had been sitting since 1991. I did everything you guys have done, cleaned it up good, ect.ect. Primed the carb with fresh fuel all that jazz. Anyways, long story short it poped off on the first crank
As long as its not locked up, or has frozen bearings inside it, it should pop right off!

[willowbilly3]

Welcome aboard. Just fwiw, we have younger people than him on the board. We will take care of him, worse thing that can happen is too much information, .
Keith put is best and simple. If it has a good spark, you might want to pull the sparkplugs and see if they are wet, and do a compression test. It would need at least 80 psi per cylinder to run and that isn't a healthy number, you really want to see over 100.
If you have O'Rielly's parts stores they rent or loan many of the specialty tools, other parts stores may also. You probably have a favorite parts store and parts person, ask them.