35 Tudor ignition issue

rgtharley

rgtharley

Senior Member
Hello All,

Finally got a battery in my 35 Tudor Deluxe. The car has not run in almost 20 years, yet still has great compression. I have rebuilt the carb, cleaned the fuel system, had the distributor rebuilt & timed , installed a new Tyree Harris wiring harness, flushed and changed the oil, coolant,etc. I have slowly and throughly gone through the car bit by bit trying to bring it up to great mechanical condition. So far, I feel good about what I have done. Before putting any fuel in the tank, I took my test light and checked some things out, and I notice that when I turn on the switch, I get a real weak test light indication at the distributor. Battery terminals are clean, the battery is brand new, horn blows, lights come on, etc. What am I not seeing to help me find this ground issue? I appreciate all and any help! Can't wait to hear this engine wake up from the dead!

Bob
 
just hit the starter it will start, i bet the test light is dim because of the Blast resister under the dash. it reduces the voltage to the coil to about 3 volts or so.
 
Bob, make sure you have some oil pressure first and then fire that baby up. Stop worrying about things ;). I'm not sure how you have that test light actually connected and what it would really tell you anyway. If it starts, keep an eye on the oil pressure and coolant temperature and let it warm up for awhile. If all looks good, take it for a ride around the outside of the garage or around the block and then report back to let us know how it feels :D

ps....if all continues to go well...maybe think about driving it to the next RG36 meeting in Sunshine, Md!! :)
 
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Hey Guys!!
Thanks for the input, and the speelin lession!! LOL!! John, I hit the carb with a shot of ether, thinking I would at least get a sputter, and nothing. It's my intention to drop the fuel tank before I put gas in, so even though I do want to hear it run, I just wanted confirmation that wiring and distributor was good, etc. And Dave, no, I did not replace the ground strap , but did clean all the connections. Brendan, thanks for the tip regarding the ballast resistor. I did not know that they reduced the voltage like that. That would explain the weak test light indication, but it still should sputter with starting fluid. John, I'm thinking you might want to do a road trip to Carroll County!!!
Bob
 
Bob, I'm always up for a road trip. Maybe I can get Henryat1140 to come along. Some times we make these calls at the drop of the hat if we know other fellow V8ers need some help :) It seems like just yesterday that we helped this guy put a rebuilt transmission in his '36. And then there was this guy who could not get his '36 Phaeton started after sitting in a garage on jack stands for many years. He was smiling from ear to ear as we drove his car out of the garage and to the end of his driveway and back. I offered to help another V8er friend put his rebuilt 21 stud engine in his '34 about a year ago. He said he doesn't want to rush things so that engine is still sitting there waiting to go in and come back to life. I think he just enjoys going out to the barn and looking at that nice clean rebuilt engine just sitting there ;)
 
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