First time engine build won't fire

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nm9stheham said:
What does this mean? If it means that you take out a plug and the ground it and watch for the spark to jump the plug's gap, that is NOT a good test of spark. A spark that jumps a .035" to .045" gap in open air is in no way guaranteed to jump that same gap in a compressed fuel-air mixture. If it won't jump AT LEAST a 1/4" gap in open air, then the spark is not good enough. You have to test the spark right before you can rule it out as a problem.
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Pulled a plug it smells of gas and u could see black where it has fired so I'm thinking you're right it's weak spark. I am going to start by revisiting all my grounds.
 
Well guys I know this is super old. I’ve been in and out of town for work a lot. Finally got some down time and went back into the motor. Figured out the problem, I concluded I’m a big dummy and had put the timing chain on the wrong mark. Once I sorted that out it fired no problem. I have since been working gremlins out, after I did the break in it’s decided to leak under load when driving. I am not 100% yet but I think it’s coming from the rear of the intake as it’s not leaving a puddle under the car and it only does it under load it’s pooling at the top of the block and drips right onto the headers making it a very embarrassing drive lol. I appreciate the help and feedback. I’ll post a picture of progress once I get this leak, wheels and tires figured out and give it a bath.
 
[QUOTE="BOXHEADgumby, post: 1972395999, member: 38833".............. had put the timing chain on the wrong mark. ...........[/QUOTE]

Don't feel bad others have done this, and we had one guy who was sold a reverse rotation marine cam. On those multi-keyway advance/ retard timing sets it's easy to make a mistake.

So far as the intake leak, I do not use the front/ rear seals. I clean things really good and put a really thin coat of sealer around the water ports......frontmost and rearmost ports. I lay a "big fat" RTV bead across the front and rear. CAUTION........Some Edelbrock manifolds can leave a big gap in the front make sure you look that over. After putting it down and getting it mostly tightened down, take a towel/ finger and smooth the front and rear silicone beads, then let it sit unfired for at least 24 hours
 
67Dart273 said:
[QUOTE="BOXHEADgumby, post: 1972395999, member: 38833".............. had put the timing chain on the wrong mark. ...........
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Don't feel bad others have done this, and we had one guy who was sold a reverse rotation marine cam. On those multi-keyway advance/ retard timing sets it's easy to make a mistake.

So far as the intake leak, I do not use the front/ rear seals. I clean things really good and put a really thin coat of sealer around the water ports......frontmost and rearmost ports. I lay a "big fat" RTV bead across the front and rear. CAUTION........Some Edelbrock manifolds can leave a big gap in the front make sure you look that over. After putting it down and getting it mostly tightened down, take a towel/ finger and smooth the front and rear silicone beads, then let it sit unfired for at least 24 hours[/QUOTE]
Thanks ! It is an Edelbrock intake and I did exactly that in install with rtv and went back over it last night and sure enough solves both my erratic vacuum and the small leak. I now found it leaking at the oil filter lol. There isn’t supposed to be a gasket there right ?
 
? I guess that was a joke? Should be a permanent gasket between the adapter and block and a gasket "comes with the filter" on the filter itself
 
67Dart273 said:
? I guess that was a joke? Should be a permanent gasket between the adapter and block and a gasket "comes with the filter" on the filter itself
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Yeah sorry yes I’m just making light of the little things that keep popping up.
 
Okay guys this oil leak is getting tough to diagnose. It didn’t appear until much later than the initial break in and I thought it was the oil filter but an oil change and retorque of the filter plate I still had it so I got it running and warm and took it for a test drive it didn’t appear until I go from low speed 20 to 25 cruising to some real rpm 45+ and I have identified it to be coming from the top of the block and I’ve ruled out the usual suspect of sending unit which is a mechanical. It Almost looks like it’s coming from the distributor which I read on here of guys sometimes having rtv stuck under the distributor shaft where it mounts so I plan to check that. It’s running down the right side of the block and dripping onto passenger header making potential for fire not to mention I don’t want to run out of oil for obvious reasons. Do you guys have any suggestions to look for ? At one point I was worried my head was leaking at the back and it’s not a valve cover as far as I can tell they are actually holding oil well. I may also pull the intake and reseat it.
 
If the D is O-ringed and/or gasketed, and sitting flat it shouldn't be leaking. Weeping maybe. So if you don't find the problem there,then;
pop your CC breather out and make sure it is venting in BOTH directions. In order for the D to be weeping, CC pressure has to force oil up past the top bushing. If you have this much CC pressure,the breather should be flooding the top of your valve cover.
You can test the CC pressure with a low-pressure gauge; just flip the PCV out of the grommet, and remove the breather, and seal the two holes. Then plumb your gauge to the dipstick tube, and start her up to idle only. Watch the gauge and time how long it takes to hit 3 to no more than 4psi. Do not let the pressure increase past 4psi, as that would be risking blowing out a seal or gasket. While it's building, you can go check the D for leakage. I use a spritzer bottle with soapy water; it easily finds the leaks.
Unfortunately I don't recall how long it took for mine to hit 4psi, but it was quite a while.I'm gonna guess a minute and a half to two minutes would be ok. If like 30 seconds,then you have a problem!and it's time for a leakdown test. or second best, a compression test.
Happy hunting.
 
3 most common spots, valve cover, psi sender and distributor. I know you ruled out 2, check the bottom of the distributor where it meets the block, is it flat/true? Shouldnt make a difference if the oring is in good shape and doing its job.
O ring or distributor...
 
Got the oil leak sorted out . Took a step back and went at the basics, revisited my pcv valve situation and got it sorted out until it showed up again so I got out my trusty mirror on a stick and found the issue at the back of the intake there was a tiny pin hole in my rtv line that it was leaking from. It is now oil leak free. Starter died shortly after that due to some frayed wiring that I’ve since rectified and put in one of those handy mini starters from a Dakota that I found searching the forum. It now has a loud ticking sound and I’ve determined it’s not top end after running a stethoscope over the motor as I thought it would be either a lifter or exhaust leak forming. I’ve now narrowed it down to going away when I put it in drive when it’s cold but as it warms up I can hear it some even in drive but neutral it goes away for sure. My thoughts are after searching the forum is swell at the torque converter or my dust shield got bent getting the old starter and wiring out. Anyone have any other suggestions or similar experience ?
 
BOXHEADgumby said:
Got the oil leak sorted out . Took a step back and went at the basics, revisited my pcv valve situation and got it sorted out until it showed up again so I got out my trusty mirror on a stick and found the issue at the back of the intake there was a tiny pin hole in my rtv line that it was leaking from. It is now oil leak free. Starter died shortly after that due to some frayed wiring that I’ve since rectified and put in one of those handy mini starters from a Dakota that I found searching the forum. It now has a loud ticking sound and I’ve determined it’s not top end after running a stethoscope over the motor as I thought it would be either a lifter or exhaust leak forming. I’ve now narrowed it down to going away when I put it in drive when it’s cold but as it warms up I can hear it some even in drive but neutral it goes away for sure. My thoughts are after searching the forum is swell at the torque converter or my dust shield got bent getting the old starter and wiring out. Anyone have any other suggestions or similar experience ?
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it could be a loose converter bolt or something when you take the inspection cover off you should see where metal has been touching metal..
 
j par said:
it could be a loose converter bolt or something when you take the inspection cover off you should see where metal has been touching metal..
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This is super common after the initial fireup.
I really thought mine were tight when I swapped engines, but after a little running I had to go back and retighten them.
The fact that the sound goes away when you put it in gear is a big clue.
 
Sure enough that was it! Thanks ! Now I just need to fine tune my total timing and possibly up my carb size/ fine tune carb adjustments and she will be mechanically sound....for now. Next big move will be building a new dash cluster and interior work. Again thanks for all the help guys !
 
I would do a compression test just to make sure that you have the correct pushrods in it , your lifters are adjusted and your valvetrain is correctly set up.
 
Thanks for the two year update. lol Better than most. Most just get whatever fixed and forget about giving an update.
 
RichB said:
I would do a compression test just to make sure that you have the correct pushrods in it , your lifters are adjusted and your valvetrain is correctly set up.
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I forgot to mention I actually did end up finding I had too short rods and have since dialed all that in as well. Whole car has been a learning experience but loving every minute (even the cursing up a storm moments) lol.
 
BOXHEADgumby said:
Well guys I know this is super old. I’ve been in and out of town for work a lot. Finally got some down time and went back into the motor. Figured out the problem, I concluded I’m a big dummy and had put the timing chain on the wrong mark. Once I sorted that out it fired no problem. I have since been working gremlins out, after I did the break in it’s decided to leak under load when driving. I am not 100% yet but I think it’s coming from the rear of the intake as it’s not leaving a puddle under the car and it only does it under load it’s pooling at the top of the block and drips right onto the headers making it a very embarrassing drive lol. I appreciate the help and feedback. I’ll post a picture of progress once I get this leak, wheels and tires figured out and give it a bath.
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You kept us in suspense for 2 years. :poke::poke::poke::lol: Good you got it sorted out.
 
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