getting my 235 started

[Midgets50]

ive been working on my 49 lately and have been trying to get the motor running but it turns over slow and doesnt want to start. it is a 235 from a 55 chevy that came in it when i got it. the PO said they drove it to where they parked it and it sat since 1989. So far i have new battery, battery cables, starter, coil, condenser, points, rotor, cap, plug wires and plugs. i have good compression. when there are no plugs in the block the motor turns over fast and easy, but once i put the plugs in the motor gets sluggish and seems like it fights to turn over. not sure what else to do for work on the motor to try and get it started. What do you guys suggest?

[OrrieG]

Back to basics, one thing at time. did you pull the valve cover and make sure the valve train is ok (no sticky valves, worn cam, etc.)? You know you have good compression. You know it turns over. Now check the power circuit at the coil during start and run. Check the inside of the distributor, on those it is easy to ground out the internal wire to the points on the housing or breaker plate. did you replace the condenser? Did you set the point gap with on the high point of the distributor cam lobe? check for power thru the coil and distributor. Pull a plug wire and hold it with insulated pliers just off the head to make sure you have a good blue spark. Recheck the timing, if its off engine will turn hard. Did you pull the distributor? If so check to make sure you got in back in correctly. Once you have confirmed you have spark look at fuel. Does the choke close (assuming manual) and does it open freely? Pushing the throttle should give a shot of fuel in the carb. If not, accelerator pump cup is probably dryed up or not sealing, even when they are driven daily you end up replacing them about every 3-4 years. Did you pull the top off the carb and clean out the gunk in the bowl and check the needle, seat and float level? Fuel getting to the carb? If it has set that long crud in the gas tank may have ruptured the fuel pump or clogged a line. Once you know you are getting fuel and power it should at least try and start. Since it is not even trying I suspect a loose or grounded wire in the power circuit. I learned this process at the side of my grandfather Orrie when we would drag $5 auction cars back to the shop in the 50's to try and get them running. Good luck!

[mr48chev]

The starter not turning it over fast enough when the plugs are in is an indication of a weak starter or cables that are suspect or not making good contact. I'd think cables as the starter seems to spin it over pretty well when there isn't a load on it. Check to see if you have a bad cable and clean and tighten all of the connections along both the positive and ground leads. Make sure all of the leads are on too as a lot of those trucks had a ground strap from the battery to the frame and one from the frame to the block. If you haven't pulled those ground straps off I'd pull them off and clean the ends and clean the contact areas that they fasten to.

[Midgets50]

Thanks for the suggestions guys... i cleaned all my grounding points a little bit ago using a wire brush on the end of the drill to make sure it got clean. the gas tank is out of the truck. im just spraying a lil ether in on occasion. i know the carb opens and i can get whatever i put in the carb into the cylinders. Im going to try and get my father who was a mechanic for over 10 years to come and help me. he is pretty good at making things that have sat for a long time run. Im just amazed at the car shows where they will go find a car from the 30's or 40's and spray a little ether or carb cleaner in the carb and itll fire right up. wish they were all that easy. Ill try the timing this afternoon. As always thanks for the help guys

[OrrieG]

Originally Posted by Midgets50

Im just amazed at the car shows where they will go find a car from the 30's or 40's and spray a little ether or carb cleaner in the carb and itll fire right up. wish they were all that easy.

They do not show what went into that "a shot of ether and it started" video shot. I watch for things like shadows and clocks in the background to see how much time passes between just found it and look it started right up. Also the reason the deadlines always seem to be at night.

Not saying it doesn't happen but we are in week two on my kids 65 of getting it running, ended up getting a new carb ordered.

I would like to know if GasMonkeys Ferrari was really rebuilt in 6 weeks...

[OrrieG]

Originally Posted by Midgets50

Im just amazed at the car shows where they will go find a car from the 30's or 40's and spray a little ether or carb cleaner in the carb and itll fire right up. wish they were all that easy.

They do not show what went into that "a shot of ether and it started" video shot. I watch for things like shadows and clocks in the background to see how much time passes between just found it and look it started right up. Also the reason the deadlines always seem to be at night.

Not saying it doesn't happen but we are in week two on my kids 65 of getting it running, ended up getting a new carb ordered.

I would like to know if GasMonkeys Ferrari was really rebuilt in 6 weeks...

Also with the gas tank out if you have been running the fuel pump dry, you might have a problem with it when you do get it hooked up.

[Midgets50]

how big of a battery do these inilne 6's need. ive got a battery with around 550 cca. it turns over slow, but when i put the charger on it with a 200 starting amps. it turns over like it should normally now. i think it might be out of time because when i get it going it sounds like it tries to kickback on a few cylinders

[OrrieG]

Here is a link to the original battery specs. They were rated differently then. I did a quick search to see if I could come up with any more info. I did find that the 6 volt requires larger size battery cables than 12. If you look at the starter specs is show 525 "locked" test amps, that might be a clue that your 550 CCA may be a little small considering that is the amps at the battery, not at the starter after cable resistance. Go over to stovebolts.com, they are more resto stock orientated and ask or search for what size battery and cables you need.

http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com...resto/4990.htm

[mr48chev]

Even with the fuel tank off you can fill the float bowl on the carb by putting gas in the bowl vent tube at the top of the air horn.


One of those vet syringes that people use for jello shots would work perfect for filling it if you didn't trim the tip off or a squeeze bottle with a tip that allows you to direct gas into the vent tube. That should allow it to be able to start on gas and run for up to possibly a minute.