If you want it done right, you have to do it yourself!

"Who needs sway bars anyway" (Astonman) 01/06/2014 at 09:34 • Filed to: None

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So as some of you may know, my brother and I recently ventured to Georgia to purchase a 1976 Ford F-100 that was found on craigslist. As the journey to Georgia from Boston is long and expensive the proper steps were taken prior to traveling down to make sure that the truck wasn't a dud. Between 30 and 40 pictures were exchanged and 2 videos of the car starting, running and driving were exchanged to be absolutely positive that the truck was as much of a gem as we thought.

Once things were clear we took a 5am flight down ( my first ever plane ride!) , drove a rental 2 hours to his house and when we got there we arrived to a particularly disturbing sight. The hood was popped, the front was on jacks and tools were scattered everywhere. Our hearts sank and I am pretty sure my brother puked a little seeing the disaster that trip was likely turning into. We approached the scene cautiously and after talking with the seller we found out that when he came out in the morning to get the truck ready for us it wouldn't start. In a panic he switched out the solenoid with a spare he got from the original owner to no avail and was just finishing swapping the starter motor with a brand new unit in hopes that was the issue. We let him finish, put the truck on the ground and went to go start the truck and..... nothing!
By this point the seller was frantic. After a new minutes he explained that the solenoid that he swapped might not have been brand new, so we told him we would go explore Athens for a bit and come back after a new one had been swapped to see if the trip could be salvaged. Two hours of anxiety later and we received the call that the solenoid had been swapped and it still wasn't turning over. Disappointed and dismayed I told him that we would return, I would look over the truck and see if I could find the issue. Once we returned I checked the voltages from the battery and the solenoid and upon seeing that everything seemed correct I jumped the solenoid and got the truck to crank! Good news! So after a few minutes of quiet contemplation I decided to start from the beginning. I jumped in the drivers seat, jiggled the column shifter and not only did the truck start, but she roared to life with such gusto the owner and my brother nearly collapsed.
The whole time it was the neutral safety switch keeping the truck from starting. By this point I'm pretty sure my brother was just going to throw the stack of cash we had at him and get the hell out of there, but we took if for a test ride like what we drove and bought the truck. So remember kids, never assume that someone has taken the right steps, until you have done them yourself. Now, my brother, proud new owner of a 76' F-100 thinks he is Biff Tannen, inviting people to try and start the truck, and giggling like an idiot when he is the only one who can....

offroadkarter > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 09:37

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So how is he bypassing the NSS?

CalzoneGolem > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 09:45

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I love it!

Who needs sway bars anyway > offroadkarter 01/06/2014 at 09:47

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He just positions the column shifter in such a way that it can't be started unless you put it all way to park. As old as it is there is enough play in the action where it doesn't take much more that a tap to go from switched to on.

offroadkarter > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 09:49

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I kind of figured it was something like that. On my marauder you can bypass the brake pedal switch which will lock you out from shifting by turning the key half way between acc and on (I think), put the car in N, then start it.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > offroadkarter 01/06/2014 at 09:51

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On my '97 Jetta I had to wiggle the gear lever to be able to start the car.

offroadkarter > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs 01/06/2014 at 09:52

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That sounds like a safety switch issue. On my car every once in a blue moon I have to tap the gear shifter up, even if its in park, just to remind the car that its in park, so it'll start . Thats only happened maybe 3-4 times in the 6 year span I've had the car.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > offroadkarter 01/06/2014 at 09:56

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Yeah, that was pretty much the case with me, I just had to remember to put into park with AUTHORITARRR and then I wouldn't have any trouble, must be the cable got worn/stretched.

liquid_popcorn > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 10:04

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Beautiful truck!

505Turbeaux > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 10:16

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that is a gorgeous truck man. Love that bodystyle

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:12

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great looking truck

Cyfun > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:36

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He started replacing parts before testing basic electrical connections? For shame!

And those vehicles are ultra-easy to hotwire the starter because the relay is usually mounted up on the fender, just takes a big pair of pliers.

elbart0 > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:37

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but we took if for a test ride like what we drove and bought the truck.

I assume that's supposed to mean "we took it for a test ride, liked what we drove and bought the truck?"

How was the drive home? GA to Boston in a 70s era 150 is a long trip. Which route did you take?

Torquewinsraces > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:38

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You live in Boston too :0 !?

drdude > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:39

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I once was given the "If you can start it, you can ride it" talk from a guy with a CR500. For those of you that dont know, a CR500 is a 500cc single piston two stroke dirtbike. Its hard to kick over, and theres a trick to starting them.

The trick is simple, you have to prime the piston with a good fuel charge (by either slowly kicking it over, or rocking the bike back and forth in gear) and knowing where to put it before kicking it.

What the guy didnt know, is that I already owned a CR500. I put my gear on, and sat on it, rocking back and forth like I didnt know how to put it in neutral.. what he didnt know is I was priming it. I put it in neutral and rocked the kickstart just past top dead center... and kicked it with full follow through. It started first kick and I hauled ass away.
From what I was told the dude freaked out, he seemed kinda tweaked when I got back, but apparently at first he was convinced I was going to wreck his bike into a tree. He calmed down some when someone told him I rode my CR500 all the time.

ScreenShot > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:40

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Rookies....the whole lot of you...

Takuro Spirit > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:40

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Now, my brother, proud new owner of a 76' F-100 thinks he is Biff Tannen, inviting people to try and start the truck, and giggling like an idiot when he is the only one who can....

I love that. Cool truck, and story, bros.

cazzyodo > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:41

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Two things:

1) Hi from Boston! Haha.

2) I have the F-100 on my short list of vehicles to own someday. My search history for CL is littered with them.

Adscrub > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:46

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Those trucks can be found in almost everybody's backyard in rural Utah.

Who needs sway bars anyway > elbart0 01/06/2014 at 11:48

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Yes it is. The trip back was really nice actually, The truck was really comfortable and we never really got tired of it. The main issue was the ride back was through the Ice/ snow storm that hit the east coast mid December so that made it even more fun. it added a couple hours to the trip but it was well worth it. We took 85 from Athens to 95 in Richmond and rode that all the way home.

GodBlessTexas > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:51

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My uncle used to live in a truck like this

mandy's mimosaaaaaa > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 11:53

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Absolutely handsome!

I hope old pick ups become more popular to own and enjoy without causing their prices to inflate in the same manner that pony cars have in the past decade.

Anyway, ya'll done good!

AspenRS > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 12:08

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Been looking for an old truck for a while now, an older C-10 or an F-100 like that. Very awesome

daybonay > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 12:09

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Glad you got to visit the best city in Georgia.

Remember dialing "popcorn" for the time? > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 12:17

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I was just talking the other day about my first car. 1966 Pontiac Catalina. A carburetor (for you youngun's that's a real primitive fuel injection system ...). Especially when cold, there was a specific sequence of presses and holds on the gas pedal to get it started. If you didn't do it right, it wouldn't start. Great non-electronic anti-theft device!

Driving-ms-paisley > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 12:18

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Thanks for posting the picture at the end. I know some people from outside athens who have a truck of this vintage and I was reading the article in fear that they had sold it without giving me a chance to buy it. Thankfully your truck is not ford blue, so i can rest easy.

Still, small world.

elbart0 > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 12:22

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If you find yourself doing the drive again, 81 is a good route. (though everyone should drive 95 up the east coast at least once, just for the sheer insanity of it).

Since it was your first flight, was this also one of your first extended road trips? All car people should try to do the cross country drive at least once. Other I40, its a pretty great drive as well, especially if you're from the North East (as am I).

Jumbojeepman > elbart0 01/06/2014 at 12:43

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I used to have a 78 F-150 4x4, and it rode surprisingly well on the highway. The coil spring front end really helps, but other than schlorping prodigious quantities of fuel, it was nice to cruise the highway in. One other thing that helped was people tended to get to heck out of the way when they saw it in the rear view mirror.

vicali > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 12:44

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My Parents bought a 72 Sport Custom the year after I was born, I've spent a long time sitting on that bench seat. It was yellow above the trim and black below..

Thanks for the pics and story, made me smile.

stumpmonkee > elbart0 01/06/2014 at 12:54

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Yeah,just watch out for the massive revenue generating Wyethville area speed-trap extravaganza ,north of Richmond before exit 52.

bottsdotts > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 13:08

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My second car was a 1972 Dodge Charger (in 1991) and it had an intermittent no-start condition, to the point where my gf named her Christine because she would usually start for me. Turned out to be a loose bulkhead connection where the harness met the firewall. Usually by jiggling the battery cable, it would move the harness enough to start. Gotta check connections before you start throwing parts at it.

tennispro602 > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 13:32

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What engine and transmission? I'm going to guess A/T by the story....

I have a '73 with a 390 2-barrel carb, so it's nice to see an oldie on here.

terpsman65 > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 13:33

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It's a Ford thing. We had a 69 Country Sedan and the NSS wouldn't engage in P unless you pulled up on the shifter when starting.

NipperDawg > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 13:52

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Try neutral as that always works with a bad NSS unless it or the linkage is really worn.

NipperDawg > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 13:53

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What, no road trip report?

LocalSP > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 14:10

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Jiggling the shifter would have been the first thing I would have done if it didn't turn over, especially on something that old.

Cavey > cazzyodo 01/06/2014 at 14:17

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You are not alone. My grandfather had one of these and would use it to take me to school when I missed the bus. Even though I was the last stop and he lived 10 minutes away, we always made it to school before the buss got there. If I get one, it will be only have to be green to make me happy.

Spec-n-zie-996 > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 14:18

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This is a common problem with these old Ford trucks. I bought one for my dad last year and had the same issue.

Jays81DMC > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 14:51

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Reminds me of that part in Slingblade. No one could figure out why the lawnmower wouldn't run...

Froggmann > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 16:11

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Good lookin dentside. I've always been partial to the bumpside though. My un-official first car was a 72 F-350 plumbing truck. But my official first car was a 63 Thunderbird that had to be started with the shifter pushed into Park.

It won't be long until your brother knows the full startup sequence of that truck. For mine it was Warm: just click the key over, the old 390 would catch on half a revolution. Cold: Press the accelerator 3 times then 1 full revolution of the engine and it would catch, continue feathering the gas until the engine got to temp (Choke was disabled). After a long sitting spell: 5 revolutions using the starter then continue with the cold start routine.

That 76 should serve you guys well. My 72 was a damn tough truck. Got me though all of my High School escapades including getting jumped close to 8 feet into the air and being driven through 2 walls, a Honda and a Buick. Later on the only reason why I junked "The Beast" was because I trashed the transmission.

BTW one tip, Sleeve the fuel line coming from the fuel pump to the carb as well as the line under the manifold with some flexable aluminum electrical conduit. It'll help a lot with vapor-locking during hot days.

ranwhenparked > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 16:59

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That was one of the best eras for the F-Series, love that grille.

MrEvil > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 17:53

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It's a common issue on Dent-side Fords. Also if you have a fair amount of keys on your keyring you'll end up with ignition switch issues. I once had to drive 15 miles to rescue my dad in his '78 F350. The truck kept dying on him while driving on the highway. Thinking it was an ignition problem we went to the nearest Advance O'Zone and bought a distributoru. We replaced it on the side of the road only to find out dad's big fucking keychain was to blame. You see, my dad's keychain was so burdened with every goddamn key known to man that it was turning the worn out ignition switch to off as it swung side to side.

parkrndl is enjoying his midlife crisis > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 18:09

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Nice ride. For a very short while I had a '78 F-150 with a big stonkin' 460 in it. It had to go because it only sat 3 across and we were thinking about having the second kid. That, and single-digit MPG figures...

parkrndl is enjoying his midlife crisis > parkrndl is enjoying his midlife crisis 01/06/2014 at 18:10

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Also, you have to check this out.

Bad72AMX > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 22:02

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That happens a lot on older fords. The column bushings need replaced. It's a pain in the ass. If you can find a used column for cheap it's a better route.

Hi there > parkrndl is enjoying his midlife crisis 01/06/2014 at 22:37

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Nice scale Ford.

StayPutReachJump > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 22:40

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Similar (sort of) thing happened to me with my first car.

I "inherited" a 1967 Pontiac Firebird convertible from the original owner. The only catch was I had to fly out to Custer, South Dakota to pick it up, where it had been sitting in his garage for 4 years. Before that, it had sat in a storage locker in Wisconsin for 5 years. I was to fly out there and then drive it to college in northern Idaho.

Skip over the mechanical drama of getting the car running in a day (it involves a dead mouse, nailed tires, dead battery), and the drama of the first day on the road (which involved overheating a lot), cue me in the parking lot of some small town motel in Montana. I get into my new car, proud its made it this far, but apprehensive about what the day is going to bring, put the key in the ignition, turn it, nothing.

Check the battery, jiggle wires (this is my first car too, so my mechanical knowledge consists essentially of knowing there's engine oil, spark plugs, mice don't belong in the engine coolant, nails don't belong in tires, and batteries need electricity), try turning the key again, no joy.

I closed the hood, put the top back up, rolled up the windows, locked the car and walked backwards back to my room.

I then walked back out to the car as if the past 20 minutes of fiddling hadn't just occurred. I unlocked the car, got in smoothly without jostling the car too much, put the key in the ignition, turned it, and NOTHING HAPPENED!

I turned the lights on, yep, they're fine. Honked the horn. Turned on the radio (quiet static, the antenna was long gone), flipped on the windshield wipers, they all worked, just not the FRIGGN DAMN IGNITION.

At this point, I just started moving everything. I took the emergency brake off, put it back on, stomp on the accelerator, turn the high beams on, moved the seats forward and back, as if this would actually magically make the car start again. I shifted out of park all the way down to 1 (which was past R, N, and D, it was a 2 speed automatic. Take that, technology!), then shoved it back into park and VROOOM! The car started!

Now I'm happy/pissed. Part of me wants to turn the car off and figure out why the F*CK it just started, another part of me wants to just hit the road. But then, a rational, thinking part of me says, "W-w-w-waaaait, judging from yesterday, how far down the road do you expect to get before you have to stop and let the car cool off again? Do you want to not be able to start the car wherever that is, or here in this nice, quiet motel parking lot, where there's a breakfast cafe across the street?"

I turned the car off. I turned the key and it started right up again. Turned it off, jiggled the gear selector and tried starting it. Nothing. Solved. Bad lock-out switch in the transmission.

This was my first car, and my first automatic. I had started manuals accidentally in gear with the clutch out. I knew they jumped forward (or back, depending on the gear they were left in). I just figured automatics would probably try to do the same thing, particularly a car from the late 60s. Something as clever as a switch to disable the ignition if the car wasn't in Park (or neutral, as I also quickly learned, yes, I tried to start the car in each transmission setting).

Whew! Relief. I checked out, got breakfast across the street, jumped in my now-reliable, new-to-me car and made it about 70 miles down the road before overheating for the first time that day...

i-do-strange-things > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/06/2014 at 22:57

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I take it you're young. (not that theres anything wrong with that.) Anyone "of a certian age" that ever drove and 60's-70's Ford know you take your left arm over the top of the steering column, grab the stifter-and pull slightly to the left before attempting to turn the key. They all had this problem. I had to move an old Ford truck a few weeks back. I climbed in and without even thinking about it , assumed the position. Just one of those things....

Who needs sway bars anyway > i-do-strange-things 01/06/2014 at 23:48

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I used to have the same thing with my old jeep and an 86' Country squire that was my first car to drive. You don't really have to hold the shifter to get it to start, its more just checking that its properly seated so that the switch isn't activated. That's why I knew what it was once I jumped in, because that was the first thing that I had to do when I started my jeep was check the shifter to make sure it was seated.

Buick Mackane > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/07/2014 at 06:42

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What does Biff Tannen have to do with the story?

Buick Mackane > offroadkarter 01/07/2014 at 06:44

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Many old Fords from the 60's and 70's had a problem with the neutral safety switch. It is a common thing to jiggle the gearshift while turning the key to get the car to start.

George McNally > Who needs sway bars anyway 01/07/2014 at 13:18

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My party trick is that I can pull the key completely out of the ignition on my 2000 Saturn SL 2 and it continues to run.

You just have to pull it straight out (without twisting it to shut it off like normal)...it's great in the winter when I stop at a convenience store-I just pull the key, hop out and lock it.

Unfortunately, no one has thrown a rock through a window to steal it yet.

MacGyver1138 > Buick Mackane 01/08/2014 at 16:23

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Biff's '46 Ford Super DeLuxe had a trick start that only he knew the trick to. It was part of the way that his future-self convinced him to listen about the Sports Almanac.