ignition problems (non Z)

[SBC_400]

i am working on a 64 chevelle 2 door wagon, and it recently developed an ignition problem. the original engine has been switched to a later model crate 350 with an HEI ignition. i did not do the wireing so i am haveing some trouble tracing the work.

 

any way, the engine will fire and start, but as soon as the key is returned to the run position, the engine cuts out.

 

originaly the car had to be towed to the garage it is currently in due to rough to non existant idol and could not be driven home from where it was parked, even though it had been running fine a half hour before. after i started to work on it, i deteremind that problem to be a fuel problem, and discovered two plastic caps in the carb, one hung up inteh ventury and the other about ready to pass teh secondary butterflies. after removing the caps the engine ran fine, but not perfect, so i wanted to tune it. after a couple of very minor adjsutments to the carb and timing (the owner thought it was the timeingthat was making not run and had doen some small ajustments him self) and restarts the battery did not have the power to crank fast, and the car started experiancing the the current problem, but i was out of time to work on it.

 

fast forward 3 weeks the owner went to try to start it, and the battery was totaly dead so he jumped it, but he hokked up the jump leads in reverse, positive to negative etc. (in his defence the guy he bought it from switched the wires so the positive lead was dark blue and the ground was red) needles to say the did not work. so i pulled the batter and hooked it up to a trickle charger, and last night we re-installed it and tried to start the car.

 

it cranked a little slow (with 5deg advance) but fired and ran untill the ke was returned to the run position when it imediatly stopped. i tried retarding the timing a bit and it did the same thing (but cranked faster) so i set it a the stock spec of 4 deg advance and it again started and ran until the key was returned to the start position from the run position.

 

i checked the in line fuel pump and filter and it seems to be getting fuel fine, so it seems to be an igniton problem. now on a stock 64 i might think that it was the ballast resistor, but isn't that removed or bypassed when you switch to an HEI? could it be a bad ignition switch?

 

i did not have any test lights with me last night so i could not check the leads. what coudl it be and what all should i test so that i make sure i bring eveything i need with me next time!

 

thanks in advance

scott

[Mike kZ]

Sounds like a bad ignition switch to me also. There should be no ballast resistor with the HEI

[Pop N Wood]

You need to make sure the separate run and start circuits are not still wired up. On a points type car the ignition is run off the S terminal of the starter when the car is cranking, but switches to the separate run circuit via the ballast resistor when running. The PO may have removed/bypassed the ballast resistor, but that doesn't mean he combined the start/run circuit into one.

 

Try running a jumper wire straight from the battery to the 12 v lug on the coil. This will bypass both circuits. If it runs with the jumper in place but dies with it removed, then with the key still in the run position hook a volt meter up to the coil and start working your way backwards until your find the open/short circuit.

[SBC_400]

Thanks guys! I found a new ignition switch for $20 shipped so i think i will buy that and give it a shot, and i will check the wiring on the run circut again too!

 

but with this set up there is not seperate coil, just the ignition pack in the cap of the distibutor, where woudl i hook the 12v feed in this case to test it?

 

and could there be any problems casued by the owner trying to jump it wiht the wires reversed, other than the alternator?

[SBC_400]

ok, I got my new switch in the mail and I am going to work on the car saturday, could there be any lingering problems from when he tried to jump start it with the leads swithced (other than the alternator might be burned out) that might keep it from running right?