7.3 IDI 15 year first startup issues

[GateKeeper]

Hello all! Fairly new to the diesel world but im undertaking a project truck. The truck used to be my fathers, he bought it back in 1993, its an F350 dually with 185,000KM that he parked out in a field 15 years ago now. My goal is to get it started and running and work from there, probably wont pass safety anymore so i would put it back in service on the farm but not for highway usage anymore.
So, what ive done so far is bleed the air from the injector lines, oil change, replaced the fuel filter and bypassed the tanks for now. Ive got fuel to all the injectors and my mechanical pump is working fine it seems. Bunch of the glowplugs are no good but I can get it to start but only for about 2 seconds, during these 2 seconds the rpm just flies up to 2500 and she dies.....After shutting itself down it cranks FOREVER and will not start again (and i mean absolutely wont fire again) with just white puffs coming out the exhaust. Return lines down at the tanks are leaking diesel a bit but i don't think that would hinder it from restarting after initially running.
So i let it sit a week, come back and the whole process starts over. pops off initially rpm flies up there and dies....cranks for an eternity again but will not pop off and run at all.
Any insight on why it wont run would be much appreciated !

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Maybe the insides of your injector pump are sticky. You may need to take the top off of the pump and move the metering valve back and forth to free it up some.

 

[TexasTruck]

Mine did same thing. I had a stuck metering valve. Cleaned it up and got it moving freely again. Fired right up.

 

[aggiediesel01]

Next time you're there, take the mentioned cover off, fill it full of ATF and cover it back up. Also at the same time, take the fuel filter off pour out the diesel and fill it full of ATF as well. Try to get it to start and then if it dies, let it sit for a day or two with the ATF soaking in the pump. If that doesn't get it running, the pump will probably have to be removed and completely soaked and gone through to get it going again.

 

[GateKeeper]

Thanks for the tip! i'll check that out tomorrow, hopefully its not super involved.
Is it possible that the timing is somehow out?
I noticed when i press on my schradar valve at the fuel filter that a small hiss of air comes out even after the system has been bled? is this normal? I would have thought that fuel would squirt out. Cranked my engine while pressing it and fuel sprays out in about 1 second intervals.

 

[GateKeeper]

For sure going to check out the metering valve tomorrow. Thanks for the tips guys

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Is it possible that the timing is somehow out?

This has a "yes, but" answer. Yes it is highly possible that the timing is off. But it won't make your engine run for a few seconds and then die like your does.

I noticed when i press on my schradar valve at the fuel filter that a small hiss of air comes out even after the system has been bled? is this normal?

This is not normal. After the fuel system has been all primed, there should not be any air coming out of the Schrader valve.

 

[GateKeeper]

This is not normal. After the fuel system has been all primed, there should not be any air coming out of the Schrader valve.

Hmm, i have a leak of fuel on my return lines that run along the chassis near the fuel tanks. I did not reroute these into my jerry can im pulling fuel out of. Maybe thats why theres a bit of air?

 

[TexasTruck]

Double check your suction lines. If you have a pin hole on the suction side it will load the whole system with air and pile up in the fuel filter head space. I used a brake line on my jerry can and the hose clamp was leaking ever so slightly. But it was enough to throw a wrench in all my efforts. The metering valve is straight forward but pay attention to how you put the shut off solenoid back in to the case. If you put it in wrong you can get a run away engine with no ability to turn it off.

 

[GateKeeper]

Got out to the field today and pulled the cover off of the top of the injection pump. All the linkages moved freely, metering valve was not stuck, went ahead and checked out the solenoid while i was in there and it moved freely as well. Replaced cover and applied power to the solenoid and I could hear clicking and movement inside. I have no idea whats wrong with this truck

 

[GateKeeper]

Came back a few hours later after playing around with the linkages in the top of the injection pump and cranked the old girl over again. AND SHE FIRED UP AND STAYED RUNNING!!!!
I must've unknowingly loosened something in that injection pump!
Thank you so much guys for helping me come up with possible solutions to the issue!

 

[Stu Bailey]

Glad that old farm truck is running for you!

 

[IDIBRONCO]

I must've unknowingly loosened something in that injection pump!

Sometimes, a sticky part inside the IP may not feel much different when you move it by hand but all it takes is a slight bump and it's working fine again.