My 1910 will not start!

[ModelT46]

This summer, we pulled the engine on my 1910 Touring. It is a May 8, 1910 build. Open valve, original one piece pan, original head and trans cover. The transmission is a later non starter I installed in the 1960s and is tight and nice. The mag coil stopped working some time ago. I stored the T for 10 years, and used one of my 1931 Model As as vintage transpiration. The 1910 engine was rebuilt in about 1975 and performed very well. We pulled the engine to replace the field coil with one of the nice ones Mark Fleischaker rebuilt. New NOS band set installed and four NOS champion X spark plugs. New wiring. The coil box is one that was on the T when I bought it in 1946 and the box is a 1915 with four NOS coils from 1960. Hot spark and sparks nice and in correct order. The carb is a Ford NH (was NOS when put on in 1980.) The engine popped a few times when we tried to start it a few weeks ago. The head leaked water and we used helicoils on three head bolt holes and now is sealed okay. It will not fire at all. The timer is nice and the setting is correct. Sparks nicely at the pulgs and correct order. We jacked up one real wheel and put it in high. cranks well, sparked well. We primed each cylinder, we choked it, we spunned it over. No firing, no pop, nothing. When the head was off, the saw the the valves seated well.

Any comments?

Darel Leipold

[CudaMan]

Steve Jelf had similar issues with his fresh 1915 Runabout engine. If I recall, he squirted a little oil into each cylinder to help the rings seal better so that the engine would pull more vacuum through the carburetor on initial fire-up.

[George House]

I was going to say the valve(s) we’re sticking open until I read you viewed their operation with the head removed. That’s common on rebuilt engines that haven’t run for a long time. I would reject electrical as a trouble source. Compression per cylinder - wet ?

[HPetrino]

I agree with Mark's comment. Also, have you checked to be sure there's gas getting to the carb?

[Dave S]

Early cams can be 180 degree off because the pin hole goes through . Easy to check.

[ModelT46]

Yes, when we choked, there was gas by the inlet. Also we primed the cylinders. we did nothiung with the cam. we did not removed the front plate.

[ModelT46]

we did not use a guage to test compression, but with the sparks plugs loose, we put a bit of gas by each spark plug and the gas ran in. when we turned the crank, bubbles came up showing than the pistons were forcing air out.

[Norman Kling]

Have you tried pulling the car in high gear? Sometimes A rebuilt engine needs to be pulled for a while before it will start up. If that doesn't do it, I would suspect you have one of 2 things wrong. One would be the timing. Second would be fuel system not getting gas. If you get a pop when you choke it and some fuel runs out, you still could not be getting enough gas to keep it running after a few sputter.

Norm

[ModelT46]

SOLVED!!! yes we put it high gear. Did all the tricks and nothing helped. I am at my business and will need to correct the T when I get home. It has been 20 years since I wired a T and my 1910 is the only T I have at the present. I reversed the wires on the coil box. from left to right it should be 1234 and had it 4321.

[RajoRacer]

Firing order is 1243 !

[CudaMan]

True, but the coil box is indeed 1234. The 1243 wiring is done at the timer.

[ModelT46]

that is a great diagram. I should have had it before me when I installed the new wire loom last month.

[FreighTer Jim]

Darel

Sell that high dollar double head ceiling fan
and buy another T


FJ

[RajoRacer]

Thanks for the correction !