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She won't start

davidb56

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Bonners Ferry Idaho
Also, after prolonged sitting with the fuel shutoff pulled, the shutoff in the injection pump can stick.
Verified by opening the square cover on the IP. Shutoff lever should point to 7 o clock position when released. If not, spray the heck out of it with wd40, move back and forth until free and willingly staying open.
Replace cover, activate accessory switch, count to ten, cross fingers, hit start button.

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As you pointed out....a COMMON problem that is more often than not, overlooked, and usually the last step taken to remedy the problem.
 

Lax

Member
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Upstate New York
UPDATE:
Per post #9 I pulled the IP cover off and the Shut Off was at the 7:00 position and freely moved by finger pressure. There was a little fuel inside. No rust and the inside looked brand new.

crank, crank crank. No start. Could it be electrical?

Before I changed the filters and with a shot of ether (I know) it would at least fire and burp once or twice. Now (no ether) and not even one burp.
 

cattlerepairman

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UPDATE:
Per post #9 I pulled the IP cover off and the Shut Off was at the 7:00 position and freely moved by finger pressure. There was a little fuel inside. No rust and the inside looked brand new.

crank, crank crank. No start. Could it be electrical?

Before I changed the filters and with a shot of ether (I know) it would at least fire and burp once or twice. Now (no ether) and not even one burp.
The engine will fire on ether because ether replaces fuel and you already have air and compression.

No, it cannot be electrical. The multifuel needs fuel, air and compression to start. Your issue is "no fuel".

Next check....loosen one of the injection lines at an injector and wrap a paper towel around (to prevent fuel spray. Now crank for 5 -10 seconds. Does the towel become wet with fuel? If so, the IP delivers fuel to the injectors. If the towel stays dry...here's your next clue to investigate.
 

cattlerepairman

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In case you do not get fuel at the injectors, check the fuel delivery from the tank forward.

- get a cheap pressure gauge that screws into a 1/8 in NPT port. There is a square plug on top of the tank where the fuel pump sits. You can put the gauge in place of that plug. With the accessory switch on and the in-tank pump running, you should see around 7-9 psi there.

- put the gauge into the port above the secondary fuel filters on the driver side on the engine. With the engine running, you should see around 70 psi. Not sure what you should see with the engine merely cranking. Probably less but the pressure should be way up from the 7-9 that the in-tank pump delivers. You did say earlier that you get fuel at the secondaries...good, but is it at pressure?

If there is not enough pressure at the secondaries, take the primary filter off (passenger side frame rail, underneath the alternator) and replace. Also, if you see any gunk at all in the fuel lines when you take plugs out, it would be good to blow the lines out with compressed air. Blow them from the front to the back...gunk should go towards the tank, not into the injection pump.

Now what?

If you have pressure at the secondaries when cranking at a good clip and she still does not have fuel at the injectors, the next step is the hydraulic head of the injection pump. There is a hex plug in the top of the hydraulic head. When you take that out, put a pencil or wooden dowel into the hole. Pencil/dowel should move up and down at least 1/4 inch when the engine spins over. That means the plunger in the hydraulic head is indeed working and not stuck.
You said that you verified the shutoff to be working; the next suspect is the "button" at the bottom of the hydraulic head that might have fallen off. To check that, the hydraulic head has to come off.
 
Last edited:

M37M35

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Update.

First the "flipper" I was referring to is actually on my John Deere tractor... Not on my deuce. Sorry.

Today I changed the primary and secondary filters and cleaned the canisters. They were pretty bad! A little embarrassed.

I cranked and cranked. Nothing. Then I opened the petcock between secondaries and flowed fuel and air until what looked like a solid stream of good fuel flowed out. About 10 seconds worth. crank, crank, crank. Not even a fart. So now what??? Any thoughts?

Thanks.
So is your in-tank pump running and pumping fuel?

With the in-tank pump running, can you remove the fuel tank cap and hear/see the fuel returning to the tank?

Did you change the fuel filter on the passenger side frame rail under the alternator, or just two on the driver's side of the engine?
 

M37M35

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Per post #9 I pulled the IP cover off and the Shut Off was at the 7:00 position and freely moved by finger pressure. There was a little fuel inside. No rust and the inside looked brand new.
Good news.

crank, crank crank. No start. Could it be electrical?
If the in-tank pump is running and engine cranks over, then it's not electrical.


The engine will fire on ether because ether replaces fuel and you already have air and compression.

No, it cannot be electrical. The multifuel needs fuel, air and compression to start. Your issue is "no fuel".

Next check....loosen one of the injection lines at an injector and wrap a paper towel around (to prevent fuel spray. Now crank for 5 -10 seconds. Does the towel become wet with fuel? If so, the IP delivers fuel to the injectors. If the towel stays dry...here's your next clue to investigate.
In case you do not get fuel at the injectors, check the fuel delivery from the tank forward.

- get a cheap pressure gauge that screws into a 1/8 in NPT port. There is a square plug on top of the tank where the fuel pump sits. You can put the gauge in place of that plug. With the accessory switch on and the in-tank pump running, you should see around 7-9 psi there.

- put the gauge into the port above the secondary fuel filters on the driver side on the engine. With the engine running, you should see around 70 psi. Not sure what you should see with the engine merely cranking. Probably less but the pressure should be way up from the 7-9 that the in-tank pump delivers. You did say earlier that you get fuel at the secondaries...good, but is it at pressure?

If there is not enough pressure at the secondaries, take the primary filter off (passenger side frame rail, underneath the alternator) and replace. Also, if you see any gunk at all in the fuel lines when you take plugs out, it would be good to blow the lines out with compressed air. Blow them from the front to the back...gunk should go towards the tank, not into the injection pump.

Now what?

If you have pressure at the secondaries when cranking at a good clip and she still does not have fuel at the injectors, the next step is the hydraulic head of the injection pump. There is a hex plug in the top of the hydraulic head. When you take that out, put a pencil or wooden dowel into the hole. Pencil/dowel should move up and down at least 1/4 inch when the engine spins over. That means the plunger in the hydraulic head is indeed working and not stuck.
You said that you verified the shutoff to be working; the next suspect is the "button" at the bottom of the hydraulic head that might have fallen off. To check that, the hydraulic head has to come off.
Next steps are to do what cattlerepairman said.
 

cattlerepairman

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UPDATE:
Per post #9 I pulled the IP cover off and the Shut Off was at the 7:00 position and freely moved by finger pressure. There was a little fuel inside. No rust and the inside looked brand new.

crank, crank crank. No start. Could it be electrical?

Before I changed the filters and with a shot of ether (I know) it would at least fire and burp once or twice. Now (no ether) and not even one burp.
Nitpicking, I know, but did the fuel shutoff plunger that connects the cable outside and the lever inside of the IP also move freely? That bugger can rust and stick as well.

Sent from my SM-G950W using Tapatalk
 

Lax

Member
335
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Location
Upstate New York
Sounds like I have more work to do. Just a quick summation.

1) In tank fuel pump works (I can hear it clearly)
2) Primary fuel filter changed and canister thoroughly cleaned of any gunk.
3) Secondary fuel filters changed and canisters thoroughly cleaned of any gunk.
4) When open, the petcock between the secondary filters flows a fuel stream approx 12"-18" into the air when engine is cranked.
5) The fuel shutoff plunger is in the correct position and moves freely with light finger pressure fore and aft.

Crank...crank...crank... but no happy black smoke to let me know she's happy and ready to go like old times.
 

M37M35

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So you can check a few more things off the list.


Just to clarify something...
1) In tank fuel pump works (I can hear it clearly)
The in-tank pump running is good news, but are you sure it's actually pumping? There's been cases of the bottom coming loose from the pump causing it to run but not actually pump fuel. There's also a rubber hose in the tank that connects the pump to the fitting on the top. If that hose deteriorates, again the pump will be running but not pumping fuel.
4) When open, the petcock between the secondary filters flows a fuel stream approx 12"-18" into the air when engine is cranked.
Do you have decent fuel flow from that petcock with just the in-tank pump running, not cranking?

I'm beginning to suspect the hydraulic head button came off, but go through the rest of cattlerepairman's list before you dig into that.
 

V8srfun

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Location
Altoona pa
I would crack the wheel née toe lines and see if you have pressure at the injectors. If you do then I would be looking at possible stuck injectors.
 

V8srfun

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Location
Altoona pa
When I open the petcock with just the the pump running I get about a 18" stream. If that helps.
That only proves that the in tank is working but if you have pressure at the injectors you know the whole system is working.
 
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