IP question, and start and die question

[AZBLACKSMOKE]

First off, this is the best IDI forum ive found....so I joined. Actually, I followed Jon over from Binder Planet.com. I have enjoyed reading and searching in here sometimes till my eyes bleed. I am not new to IDI's, I have had 2 other 6.9's in the past, but never had them long enough to play with them.

I just aquired a 1986 F250 from my nieghbor. Her husband, the original owner bought it new and babied it ever since. He passed away 1 1/2 years ago and I offered to buy the truck 6 months after his passing.....she told me she wasnt ready to sell it yet but would let me know. Well, a year later she calls me up and asked if I was interested and here we are.

The truck is a cream puff. Everything but the lift pump, starter and water pump are original to my knowledge. 108,000 on the odometer. Original upholstery, hub caps, digital cassette radio, etc. Ice cold R12 a/c and an original AZ truck. I plan on keeping this truck for a very long time.

I could go on and on, but I will get on with my questions. The truck was sold in Springerville AZ which is 3 hours north of me and it is above 8500 feet in elevation. Did Ford calibrate for High altitudes? I am at 2600 ft. and the truck runs good, but there is not any smoke when Im getting on it. none. Would it help to turn up the pump? My static timing marks are set at a dimes width to the drivers side which tell me it is retarded. Im not trying to make a smoker....it just seems low on power and I feel it should have more compared to other 6.9's I have driven. I can testify no IP settings have been fiddled with since it left the dealers lot.

My other problem is first thing in the morning it will fire up very well, in fact, half a revolution of the starter is all it takes. It will run for about 3-5 seconds and then die. Then it takes 10 seconds of cranking to restart. Almost like it lost prime overnight.

Also, when you unscrew the fuel filter, shouldnt fuel pour out? I barely had any fuel in the filter when I changed it. Just seems to me thats not right.

I have a stinkin feeling the IP is getting worn out, but wanted to see if you guys think it could be a simple calibration adjustment or what. I have many other questions, but Ill save them for later. Thanks in advance and im glad to be here.

 

[TWeatherford]

Starting then dying is truly your system losing prime overnight. The problem is the return lines getting old and dried out. They will allow air back in which allows fuel to drain back toward the tank. They can allow air in when they hold fuel in as well. Typ4 sells them here or you can get them on ebay for under $40 delivered.

I have no idea how your truck is calibrated. Probably nothing special for high elevation, but I don't know. At 108,000 you are getting to a pretty good number of miles on a fuel system. Might be a good time to replace both pump and injectors and it'll run a lot better. Or you could just see how long they last, they may last a good while, but I wouldn't want to risk a long trip on them.

 

[gatorman21218]

What he said. Ive bought a return line kit from Russ and it cured my morning start problem. BTW the return lines are the rubber lines in-between the injectors. If they are painted grey its time to yank them out.

As for "calibration" I would get that thing timed properly. Dynamic Timing tends to retard as the pump/inj wear. And as for turning up the pump, I wouldnt even think to touch it if you dont have a pyro.

 

[AZBLACKSMOKE]

Thanks for the replys, and I will start there. The start then die is getting pretty annoying. I came across the injector install kit thats on sale here:

http://www.swdiesel.com/injectorinstallationkit73lididieselinjectorsnonpower-p-985.html?cPath=12


Also, I think I will install a pyro temporarily just to see where Im at. I think this truck needs a bump in fuel and timing. I can not get it black smoke at anytime.

 

[gatorman21218]

If you dont have a turbo, there really is no point in black smoke. A welll tuned NA idi shouldnt smoke all that much or at all. on a turboed diesel however, you will see more black smoke if you hammer down, because there is not enough boost to completely burn all the fuel.

 

[gatorman21218]

Also go out and look at your return caps. the 6.9 is different from the 7.3. a 6.9 looks like --O-- while a 7.3 looks like __O__

 

[AZBLACKSMOKE]

Thanks so much for the tips. Last night I replaced my IP and all my injector return hoses and fittings. Its runs soooo much better and I did not have the start and die problem this morning. Started right up with half a crank and ran perfect and didnt die. I have much more power now too. The original IP was definiatly getting worn. I also found where one of my return lines was leaking at the rear of the engine. All the o rings and lines were hard as a rock and still had gray paint on them so it was time.

I wish I had the budget to do the injectors too, but will have to do them later.

I did order the wrong return line kit but SW diesel sent me the right ones the next day.

Thanks for leading me down the right path. Apppreciate It.