CK5
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Help! Truck won’t start! Gas 350
- Thread starter GoGoGirl
- Start date
I'd say the battery is done...or close to it..probably craps out when the load of the starter is applied to it..
A good fully charged 12V battery will read closer to 13V ..
When the load is applied,it should not drop quickly to the lowest reading on the scale..
I get a lot of my batteries at salvage yards--they sell them here for about $25 if you have a junk one for a core..many they have come from cars that got wrecked and a few I've bought were less than a year old..beats paying $100 more for one at a store..they'll exchange it if it turns out to be no good--I have to bring my own load tester though--they use the "tire iron across the terminals" test..
A good fully charged 12V battery will read closer to 13V ..
When the load is applied,it should not drop quickly to the lowest reading on the scale..
I get a lot of my batteries at salvage yards--they sell them here for about $25 if you have a junk one for a core..many they have come from cars that got wrecked and a few I've bought were less than a year old..beats paying $100 more for one at a store..they'll exchange it if it turns out to be no good--I have to bring my own load tester though--they use the "tire iron across the terminals" test..
I've had a frozen bendix before (put the starter underwater). No matter how much voltage you put to the starter, if the bendix doesn't swing out the engine doesn't spin. My fix was to take the starter off and bring it inside for a few hours. After the water ran out the starter worked perfectly again. Even if the battery is weak, a jump-starting vehicle should be plenty to engage the solenoid and Bendix. I assume the battery terminals and grounds have been cleaned/checked - if so, just measure the battery voltage when the key is in "start" and will tell you if the battery is to blame.
T
tenderfoot
Guest
Yeah we need an update on this!
The update is that no news is no news unfortunately. Work took an unexpected but positive turn and I just haven’t had time to proceed. I plan to have Wednesday off and catch up at that time.
As it stands now the battery is in the house. I recharged it last week and will see what it shows for voltage this week. Plan is to recharge again and then put it in the truck to see what happens.
If the starter is the culprit, I have a working spare now. Fingers crossed that I can change it. I’ve done it before on an early 90s Bronco but on pavement and in rather nice weather. Right now I’m lucky if the air temp is ten degrees and there’s less than six inches of snow on the ground. Snow is packed down about 2-3” under the K5 which sucks as it makes crawling under there a real pain. Hence the crappy photos of the starter that I posted last week!
As it stands now the battery is in the house. I recharged it last week and will see what it shows for voltage this week. Plan is to recharge again and then put it in the truck to see what happens.
If the starter is the culprit, I have a working spare now. Fingers crossed that I can change it. I’ve done it before on an early 90s Bronco but on pavement and in rather nice weather. Right now I’m lucky if the air temp is ten degrees and there’s less than six inches of snow on the ground. Snow is packed down about 2-3” under the K5 which sucks as it makes crawling under there a real pain. Hence the crappy photos of the starter that I posted last week!
T
tenderfoot
Guest
Starters are a cinch. Yuh did it on a furd, it'll make this seem like changing an airfilter
.
Edit: I once had a furd I had to pull the engine to change the starter. Last one I'll ever own.
.Edit: I once had a furd I had to pull the engine to change the starter. Last one I'll ever own.
Lay down some cardboard under the truck it makes working underneath it much more bearable.
How many people on here wish they could just run over there and help her fix it?
Everyone on here appreciates your effort to try and fix it yourself @GoGoGirl
It's just the nature of this group to jump in on something and get it going.
Wouldn't matter if you were a man.
Everyone on here would still be the same way about it.
Everyone on here appreciates your effort to try and fix it yourself @GoGoGirl
It's just the nature of this group to jump in on something and get it going.
Wouldn't matter if you were a man.
Everyone on here would still be the same way about it.
Agree.
I'd probably not be able to speak properly in her presence.
But I'd gladly help.
I use one of those closed cell foam "exercise mats" to lay on when I have to crawl under my truck..and a knee pad made of the same stuff to kneel on,my knees kill me if I kneel on them for even a minute on cold ground..or warm ground..
If its real nasty out I put my 55.000 btu torpedo heater on and let it keep me warm..
I wish I lived closer to Go-Go Girl,or if she could come to my house,so much the better ,I have enough spare parts to get her K5 going and then some,and a garage to work in (if I push 6 garden tractors outside !
)...not sure if I'd be able to put a starter in outside right now,but I suppose I could if I had too ,to get my truck going..but I'd pay dearly for it later on..
I need to get a lift--wanted one forever,but never did,now I regret not getting one while I was in better condition--sucks lying on the ground,especially after you hit 45 or so...
If its real nasty out I put my 55.000 btu torpedo heater on and let it keep me warm..
I wish I lived closer to Go-Go Girl,or if she could come to my house,so much the better ,I have enough spare parts to get her K5 going and then some,and a garage to work in (if I push 6 garden tractors outside !
)...not sure if I'd be able to put a starter in outside right now,but I suppose I could if I had too ,to get my truck going..but I'd pay dearly for it later on..I need to get a lift--wanted one forever,but never did,now I regret not getting one while I was in better condition--sucks lying on the ground,especially after you hit 45 or so...
T
tenderfoot
Guest
Really sounds like the only thing holding her back is time. We're all in that boat from time to time.
The weather too,is a discouraging factor...bad time of the year to do anything,really..
Call a couple furniture stores, see if they have some old rugs. I just changed a starter in a dead plow truck the other day. Rug underneath and it wasn't like working in snow at all.
Only problem for you might be storing said rug
Only problem for you might be storing said rug
$120, new battery. May solve this. And it goes in from the top 
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Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached a verdict!
And the determination is...dying battery! Already ordered a new one from my friend’s shop. He said don’t rely on the battery I have anymore; he’s guessing at least one “cell” inside is dead/defective. Old battery still technically takes a charge but won’t even start the truck.
So...I have a spare starter that I obtained just in case. My starter has some weird problem that I think I’ve asked about on here before but I’ve never thought much about. After I turn off the engine, it sounds like the starter runs/spins for a few seconds. Sometimes preceded by the engine half-running in a sort of “chugging” sort of sound for a few seconds. Should I change the starter just because I can?
And the determination is...dying battery! Already ordered a new one from my friend’s shop. He said don’t rely on the battery I have anymore; he’s guessing at least one “cell” inside is dead/defective. Old battery still technically takes a charge but won’t even start the truck.
So...I have a spare starter that I obtained just in case. My starter has some weird problem that I think I’ve asked about on here before but I’ve never thought much about. After I turn off the engine, it sounds like the starter runs/spins for a few seconds. Sometimes preceded by the engine half-running in a sort of “chugging” sort of sound for a few seconds. Should I change the starter just because I can?
You may just need to shim the starter. It sounds like the bendix is hanging up a bit when you let off the key. This can happen if the tolerance between the starter gear and the ring gear is a bit too tight.
It would be tempting to see how it acts with a good battery. But I am suspicious if it is the starter still running after the engine is shut off. What you are describing sounds like the engine possibly "running on" or dieseling.
Usually, a starter staying engaged will cause some bad symptoms that you can notice when the engine is running. It will keep pulling power and make it not charge the battery well, if at all, or even make enough noise from the starter getting hot, that you will hear or smell a problem.
But on the other hand, if you can get the time, maybe just change the starter.
Usually, a starter staying engaged will cause some bad symptoms that you can notice when the engine is running. It will keep pulling power and make it not charge the battery well, if at all, or even make enough noise from the starter getting hot, that you will hear or smell a problem.
But on the other hand, if you can get the time, maybe just change the starter.
