Suck - Squash - Bang - Blow
When attempting to start a 1960s redblock, one of the prep steps I do is to prefill fuel into the carb bowls. After removing the tops, the bowls are filled about 2/3's of their capacity and the caps are secured back on. Assuming any fuel in the tank is old and unusable, a temporary fuel reservoir is created using a 1 liter plastic seltzer bottle. A hole is carved out of the soft plastic cap with a knife wide enough to insert the fuel hose into. The fuel line isn't sealed against the cap as this will allow the bottle to stay at a neutral pressure. If completely sealed, the vacuum created by the fuel pump will cause the sides of the plastic bottle to compress inward as it operates. This mini tank is nestled into the front fender pocket next to the radiator as this will keep the bottle upright and leak free. While securing the fuel hose from the temporary tank into the fuel pump is when I uncover a bit of treasure, an off-brand 5/8 socket sitting deep in the engine bay.
Now the engine has a fresh supply of fuel it is at the stage to see if the dormant redblock is ready to be awakened. About this time my friend Alex shows up. I wanted to get another person around as a second pair of eyes and hands are helpful in case anything goes south. Alex assumes the key turning and gas pedal role as I take position on the other side of the engine with a can of starting fluid. After a squirt or two into each carb throat, Alex turns the key and the familiar "chug-chug-chug" of a pushrod redblock fills the air. After cranking the engine twice for 8-10 seconds of duration, halt the process to look around the engine. There is fluid visible inside the fuel pump dome and the level has dropped in the mini tank so the fuel pump looks to be operational. The engine sounds like it is trying to start, slightly labored as the piston compress then evacuate the fuel/air mixture in the cylinders. With another squirt of starting fluid a third attempt is made and that is when the battery gives up the ghost.
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Operations go on hold as I dig out a jump pack and clamp the leads to the tired battery. Additionally I pull out a timing light to make sure the spark side of the equation is occurring. With a fresh source of electrons available to the battery, the key is turned and the engine starts to crank again. The timing light strobe stays dark as the starter rotates the pistons at a healthy rate. This is repeated several times and do not see any sort of flicker from the timing light. As I listen to the engine turn it still has an uneven tempo, as in something is happening in the cylinders. Not the even, consistent rhythm when removing the coil wire for a compression test, or when it is out of fuel. Ask Alex to turn the key again and the carbs are given a spritz of starting fluid. The starter engages and after a few seconds there is a few coughs and sputters then smoothing out as speed of the engine increases. Alex disengages the starter and "Hot Damn!", the engine is running on its own.
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Cut the engine to take another inspection around the engine bay. No dramatic leaks or issues are found so its time to start it up again. The engine rumbles to life, though running somewhat rough. Not unexpected after being woken up from hibernation, it does seem it may not be running on all cylinders. What is also apparent is the drivers side motor mount is pretty much at end of life with the amount of vibrations the engine is exhibiting. An unidentified periodic metallic-sounding scraping noise is happening, more so when the engine bogs down or stumbles. It doesn't seem to be related to the radiator or fan as that was the first concern. Run the engine several more times in 20-30 second stints for a total of 4-5 minute total run time. Somewhat amazed when looking at the dash see the temperature needle has moved to the right indicating the gauge is working. By now its evident there are several leaks around the fuel lines and the top of the carbs. Fuel is dripping down onto the shield below the carbs then creates a quick sizzling sound when it then lands on the exhaust down pipe flange. Amazingly, the mini fuel tank is pretty well drained and there is one last test to do.
Restart the engine and its it running more rough than smooth, start to feather the gas pedal to raise RPMs. At the same time I push the clutch in and shift the car into 1st gear. As I let off the clutch I can feel the engine speed start to drop and pressing the gas pedal down the engine speed picks up a bit. Let off the clutch and continue to feather the throttle and the car begins to move forward under its own power. Due to space constraints, the car has 10-12 feet of space in front of it. After going about 8 or so feet (slowly) press on the brake pedal and the car stops. The engine is killed and though rolling the car back to its original position, the 544 officially had driven under its own power. At this point, stop work for the day, though not before sticking the battery on a charger. All-in-all, very happy the 544's engine was able to be be coaxed back to life and was able to do a short test drive.
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