QuestionMr. Bahm, my car has been sitting a good 6 years, ever since I replaced a Timing Gear... I cleaned the gas tank, new gas valve, cleaned the lines,carburator,plugs & gapped,set points,set timing, and pulled No.1 plug to make sure piston was at Top,new coil/getting spark,horn blows, lights work etc.but I can't get her to fire. I know if marks on timing gear are off, she won't start. I'm pretty sure TG is fine... if not, I have to redo it. Any Information received, is Greatly Appreciated! Thank you, George
AnswerGeorge, I assume you did not run your engine after the new T/gear. So we don't really know if it is correct. If you lined up the marks on the gear and crank gear, it should be OK. I will attach a trouble shooting paper I wrote and that should help. If, when you got the pin in the timing gear notch and the number one piston was at the top, I have to believe you installed it right. Let's assume so.
Model “A” Tip Troubling Shooting the “A”. 1-2010
When I walk up to a Model A that won’t run, here are the first things I do to try to get it fixed:
We always try to figure out if it is spark or fuel.
I start with the spark, and use a simple test light. (I assume that the plugs are not fouled.)
Honk the horn; if it works, then you know that the fuse is OK and power is probably getting far into the system.
With the key off, check to see if you have power to the two coil posts. Both should be HOT.
If they are not, getting power to both sides of the coil should be easy to track down and fix. Look at the wiring diagram and do a little tracing.
Eye ball the point gap to make sure the points have not closed up too much.
Turn the key on and rotate the engine until the points are closed. Now check the two posts on the coil. The driver’s side should be hot and the passenger side, the red wire, should not be hot.
If the red wire is still hot when you turn the key on with the points closed, the points may not be closing, they may be dirty or worn out, or the ignition switch may not be closing the connection, (this is a hard one to find, but don’t assume the switch is good. Cars have been towed home because of a bad ignition switch that no one could find.).
If all of the above is OK, then the ignition system is probably OK.
If it still will not start, make sure that the point arm is not touching the cam. If it is touching, then the points must be changed, and make sure the arm on the new points does not touch the cam. If that was not the problem, then it is time to check the little wire under top distributor plate. It may have become grounded, (this is a common failure). This does mean that you will have to remove the cam, and later retime the system, unless you can manage to put the cam back very close to where it was when you removed it. I have seen this done. The timing will not be perfect, but probably close enough to get you home. If the wire is shorted to ground, tape it or replace it.
A quick review of the ignition system may help figuring out what is wrong:
The current goes from the battery to the left side of the coil, through the coil to the right side, up to the ignition switch, down to the distributor lower plate area, (but does not touch the lower plate), to the small wire under the upper plate, to the moveable point arm. All of this is isolated, and not grounded. When the points close, the circuit is completed to ground and the coil is charged. When the points open, the coil fires the high voltage charge to the center of the distributor cap, and on to the plug.
On the fuel side:
Loosen the gas cap and listen for a hiss. Sometimes the gas cap vent plugs up. I don’t know how, but it does happen. Leave it loose while you work on the car.
Try to start the engine with full choke. Feel the bottom of the carb. throat near the choke blade. If it is wet with fuel, then the carb. is getting fuel.
There is always the chance that the float is stuck in the “up” position preventing fuel from getting into to the bowl. Give a gentle tap to the bowl area to free it up.
The usual suspects are:
Dirt in the tank, out of gas, the gas cap, plugged filter, plugged sediment bowl, and the outside chance that you have some bad fuel.
Jack Bahm Oakleaf Region
Follow the above to make sure the opening of the points causes a spark. I think your points are just dirty. Check all this out and get back to me. I leave on an A tour monday to the amish country in Ohio for 4 days, but I should be able to answer you down there. Good luck and get that thing running. jack
