VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1929-1932 BATTERY TURNING ENGINE OVER

I HAVE A PROBLEM WHEN I TRY AND START THE ENGINE WHEN IT IS COLD. WHAT I MEAN IS, I KNOW WITH A WARM ENGINE IT IS SOMETIMES HARD TO TURN OVER. BUT I HAVE A PROBLEM WHEN IT IS ALSO NOT WARM, THE BATTERY IS FULLY CHARGED AND WHEN I TRY AND START IT COLD IT ACTS JUST LIKE BEING HOT AND I HAVE TO HIT THE START BUTTON THREE OR FOUR TIMES AND THEN IT WILL TURN OVER AND I CAN GET IT STARTED? I HAVE A GOOD CONNECTION AND A GOOD GROUND. WITH ONLY THREE HUNDRED MILES ON A REBUILT ENGINE COULD IT STILL BE THAT TIGHT TO START COLD. ANY HELP ON THIS. THANKS :confused: :confused:

Don,

Hey Chevy!! Been there!! With the help of people on this board got it solved. I know you think everything is fine - so did I -please go through the exercise anyway.
1) take off ground lead from battery and chassis -and sand the chassis where it bolts on - making sure the chassis at point of connection, washer and bolt that bolts it to the chassis is real clean and bright. Put a little Vaseline on the connection to prevent corrosion. Make sure the connection is tight. Clean the battery posts so that they are shiny. Again put on a little vaseline. Clean the battery cable ends until bright and re-attach to battery making sure connections are tight.
2) Take postive lead off starter and clean terminal and battery cable and re-attach and tighten.
3) While you have the positive cable off the starter - take the starter switch off with the two screws and clean the contacts and re-assemble switch making sure you have the two insulators in place.
4) Make sure you have the proper size positive cable - mine was for a 12v and the new one I got from The Filling Station was twice the diameter.
If that does not make the engine crank over - have the starter checked for worn bushings etc.
After I went through all the above - my problems disappeared and the starter cranks over like a banshee- hot or cold!! With mine - when the engine was hot - forget it - no start. When cold - sometimes started sometimes not. If your engine started when cold when you first got the engine re-built - and since you now have 300 miles on it - I would think the above should solve your problem. Oh - make sure you have a good battery with plenty of cranking amps.
The people on this site have greatly helped me - I hope I have helped you.
Maurice

Don, I just went through a similiar problem . After going all the proceedures as per moedip, if the engine didn't start right away it wouldn't even crank anymore. (by the way I'm using a #1 cable, battery fully charged) Voltage drop at the battery went from over 6 to about 3 or less. Turns out the starter needed to be rebuilt. And this is after I just had the brushes replaced and the field wires insulated. When I took it back he was able to replace the case with the fields and I think he put in another armature. (all no charge 2nd time). Now it works great, engine starts every time. Bob Wolf

Just keep those three guys (in the picture) near by .Look at all the work that could save(and Vaseline) Good Luck

THANKS RWOLF, MOEDIP AND CHEV NUT, ILL TAKE YOU GUYS ADVICE AND GO THRU EACH STEP AND SEE IF I CAN SOLVE THE PROBLEM. IS THIS VCCA CHAT SITE GREAT OR WHAT??WHERE ELSE CAN YOU GET THE QUESTIONS ADDRESSED SO QUICK FROM CHEVY NUTS WHO HAVE GONE THRU THE SAME PROBLEMS.

Hey Donald! Ain't this new gasoline great? It eats up everything! :eek: Keep your eyes on your fuel pump diaphragm because the gasoline will evenutally eat that up too. :( :(

Yep, Donald .....it will if it is NOS, sounds like you got a good start on your pump with the cork gasket going South. Terrill Machine Company in DeLeon, Texas will sell you a repair kit for arounf $15 or rebuild to original looks for next to nothing. I am sure that The Filling Station does the same thing, out there on the Left Coast.

Even brand new reproduction diaphragms are going "South" with this new gasoline. A lot of dudes are changing their diaphragms once a year because they turn to jelly. :eek: :( :confused: :rolleyes:

The kits Terrill Machine Company sells and pumps that they rebuild and their new replacement pumps are new material that is resistant to the additives in unleaded gas, in most places in Texas we don't have to have that weird additive that some states require!

(I don't know but Houston may require it.)

Been there and done that! The diaphgrams still go "South"! Ya! :( :eek: :confused: :rolleyes:

Well I have one that has been in only a year so I will carry a spare one, at all times, I don't like finger imprints all over my trunk, just think how much Bud or Coors all of that bunch of "pushers" will need to get back in shape and breathing steady!! :arrow: :arrow: :cool2:

HEY MR MACK, THEM DARE GUYS WERE REALLY PUSHING HARD, ESPECIALLY WHEN I HAD BOTH FEET ON THE BRAKE PEDAL????????

Donald, It is better to be safe than sorry, specially when you got all that weight, I mean Horse Power pushing you, it is best to not let them get up too much speed! and really if where you are is anything like here, Bud, is one of the most inexpensive thangs you can use for fuel!, just have to make several more pit stops. I don't think there is a Bud :arrow: :cool2: overflow recovery system that is kosher, do you?

Hey Don!
Thanks for giving me NO credit! When I fixed everything! I fixed the fuel pump! I fixed the Carb! I fixed the coil!

As for the fuel pump I have a material that will work that I've been telling the JYD about for years. I've built about 20 pumps with this material so far and everyone is still working. I'm going to rebulid Don's fuel pump and that should be the last time he has a problem. I know exactly what the JYD is talking about because I bought two diaphragms from him, one lasted about 2 months and the other about 2 weeks. I've had the current material in the 32 since 1995 with out a problem.

Also Don can I have the jumper cables back?

A while back I was able to get some high tech. material for making diaphragms from a friend of mine. He scarfed up some from the US Government and it is a special material that is used in the fuel cells of F-16 fighters. According to the government specs. on it, nothing can damage this stuff, including gasoline, so we made some fuel pump diaphragms out of the material. Tested it in some fuel pumps and also tested a few samples in a container filled with gasoline. All of the material turned to jelly within 6 months! So, either Brucie's fuel pumps don't have any diaphragms in them (and he thinks that they do) or he is using material for diaphragms cut out of grandma's corset! Ya! :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

Even the diaphragms that are advertised that are supposedly imprervious to gasoline only lasted a few weeks. :(

Hummmm..... my wife's diaphram seems to wear out too often.... any chance that.. ahhh.. nah! Nevermind!

Yes, we had a grand 'ol time in Victoria. And yes, good 'ol Bruce DeFord Junior was the MAIN MAN since he was the one who repeatedly took Don's carb and fuel pump apart. :o :p :p

Thanks Bruce. You dun good!

Hum.........who manufactured your wife's diaphragm? Maybe we should try some of that material for the fuel pumps??

Ya, old Donald said that Brucie even tried to take the seat out of Donald's coupe because he wanted to take that apart too! :( :(

HEY BRUCIE, THANKS FOR THE HELP?? NOW FOR THE JUMPER CABLES, I THINK YOU SHOULD GIVE THEM TO ME, BECAUSE YOU SAID YOU NEVER BREAK DOWN, AND YOUR BATTERY IS ALWAYS FULLY CHARGED? IS IT A DIEHARD FROM SEARS???? I TOLD SKIP ABOUT THE GUY IN SEATTLE WHO REBUILDS SIX VOLT PACKARD COILS AND I HOPE TO CONTACT HIM AND SEE IF HE MAY WANT TO START REBUILDING CHEVY COILS. LATER DON :) :) :) :)

Hey Donald: That dude in Seattle sounds very interesting. Be sure to give us a report as soon as you find out anything, because there are a lot of dudes out there that will probably want their original 1929-32 Chevy coils rebuilt if this fellow can do them.

SKIP, I WAS JUST THINKING, AND YOU KNOW THATS BAD?????????? WITH YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE, HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT ABOUT MAYBE STARTING A COIL REBUILD BUSINESS YOURSELF. WITH ALL THE HUNDREDS OF 29 THRU 32 CHEVY COILS, IT COULD BE A VERY GOOD ADDED INCOME. IF ANYBODY COULD DO IT, IT WOULD BE YOU.

Thanks Donald, and that would be a fun thing to do. If I had something that was solid state that I could install inside of an original coil, it would probably work. Hum.....let me know what you find out with the dude in Seattle, and get some kind of an idea of what he uses. In the meantime, I will do some checking and see what I can come up with. But first.......I gotta go get me some Coors!!!

I thought about talking to Mr Jacobs in Midland about that, he just sold his business Jacob's Electronics. I will heep you and JYD up to date via email. I am off to take pics of an old 24 Chevy sedan that sat 1n a small Chevy dealers showroom for over 65 years and is 100% original even still has the original pinstriping, manifold heater, and an od spotlight mounted thru the windshield, It was supposed to have been ordered for a city police car and the city went broke in 1925. I will try to send you all some pics.

Great Macky Wacky! We would love to see some photos of the '24 Chevy. Check out the engine color as well.

JYD, It was a Hoot looking back in time. A very unusual totally original almost no miles on the counter and quite a suprise as to the actual engine color, It spent 70 years inside and then was stored in a lean-to exposed to wind and rain but not too much sun. You will have mail shortly.