HELP!!! at a huge loss

BANoriega

New member
it is a 75 IH 150 pickup with a 345. I just cannot get it to start... It started out as just an ignition problem. It had a 2 wire distributor in it and I didn't want to mess with trying to trouble shoot it and I had a points type distributor sitting around so I got new points cap rotor plugs and wires. It has plenty of spark now but it doesn't even act like it wants to start. So it can only be timing and I have spent over 20 hours messing with timing and ignition and nothing. I have tried timing it off of cylinders 1 and 8. Moved it 180 out on either hole even pulled valve covers to confirm tdcc on both and nothing. Nothing nothing. I've never had a vehicle I couldn't start. The only thing I can think of is the cam and crank slipped timing, but I don't know just how possible that is... I don't know I really don't and I have messed with timing enough that even if I didn't know what I was looking at it should have started by now. Please help


if you have any ideas or something to try that I haven't please call or text me any time at 928-951-4983 and ask for blake


First off, this is a procedure for correctly installing any distributor in an sv engine application:

http://www.forums.IHPartsAmerica.com/ignition-tech/4130-installing-distributor.html

These engines won't/can't "jump time" as occurs with engines that use a timing chain to drive the camshaft from the crank gear, these are gear drive timing sets and unless the front cam bearing is toast which impedes the lubrication of the #1 cam journal, the distributor drive, and the camshaft drive, you do not have an issue in this regard, most especially if the engine was running before you decided to do the distributor swap.

Next...the '74/'75 pickalls were oem with electronic ignition system, since you said..."two wire distributor" that tells me this vehicle originally had a Holley gold box system. That is...unless,...sometime in the past someone has performed a pertronix conversion on whatever distributor you had, if that is the case, then the "two wires" coming out of the distributor would be black an red. If that is the case, then the entire wiring system for that conversion had to have been changed....so all bets are off until I see exactly what you have in pics of your system.

A breaker point distributor requires a totally different wiring scenario as compared to a gold box system. You cannot simply stick a point distributor in the hole, connect the single black wire to the coil negative terminal, and then fire it off as if it is an oem breaker point distributor installation. However, the ignition coil for the gold box and the points system is a common part and can be used with either system if wired correctly. The breaker point system requires two ignition-switched feeds to the coil positive, one from the starter relay which provides b+ during the start/crank phase only, and then a second feed through a 1.6>1.8ohm ballast resistor or resistor wire that becomes active when the ignition switch is released to the "run" position.

I have posted schematics for both the breaker point systems and the gold box systems several times in the "electrical tech" sub-forum. Review those and you will see the wire runs needed to make a breaker point distributor work properly. Attached here is a typical gold box wiring schematic.

While it May appear that you are currently getting spark, I really doubt you are seeing a spark that is sufficient to ionize a plug gap with a cylinder under compression pressure.
 

Attachments

  • Gold Box Ignition Underhood Schematic.PDF
    1.6 MB · Views: 325
Last edited by a moderator:
This is a typical breaker point-equipped schematic:
 

Attachments

  • 1973 1010 Schematics.PDF
    2.8 MB · Views: 401
When I did the cut and paste, I must have deleted your original post??? Don't know...but your original post is included in my response, I've changed your original issue to a red font for clarification.
 
I have seen timing gears break,slip, wear and shear but not in a gasoline application, so I really was not too sure. I do have it entirely wired correctly tho. I am fully aware that the voltage drop accross the starter motor can lower voltage enough to not allow enough spark to ignite. A balast resistor is used, and it is getting plenty of spark like previously stated. It did use the gold box module and distributor but one of the components failed so there was no spark. I had a known good points type distributor laying around threw it in and could never get it to start despite having good spark and confirming timing. I am going to look into the condition of damper today and hopefully come up with something
 
Pulled no. 1 plug today and confirmed no. 1 tdcc and nothing... I can smell gas at the exhaust and well nothing. The only thing possible that I can think of would be if the cam is out of timing. I have no clue.. Please help
 
Did you review the thread mm directed you to re: distributor installation? You need to forget about #1 and stick with #8. IH v8's can't be timed off #1.
 
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