thisisthewayilive

The truck...a 1989 F-150 4x4 w/the 5.0 302 and about 130,000 miles.
When I got out of the Marine Corps in March I was driving back to Michigan from North Carolina towing a u-haul trailer. No problems till the mountains in West Virginia. I was just drivin it too hard and smoke started pouring into the cab. I let the truck cool down at a truck stop for a while. Looked under the hood and oil had, what appeared to be, sputtered out of the breather and soaked my whole motor. Basically stranded, the truck ran well enough to make it home. Poor truck.
Parked the truck and drove my car around until a couple months ago when I started getting ready for a Michigan winter. Peeled the intakes off, then the valve covers. It wasn't until I made it to pulling the head off that I found the perpitrator... a dime sized hole in ol number 8.
Two months later I've had the motor pulled, tore apart, changed the piston and everything else pretty much, and got the motor back into the truck. Truck runs pretty good but I think I grounded out and blew a fuse or something. I had the hood off and one of the hood brackets was laying on what I think are the fusable links or something like that. When I fired the truck up the first time a loud crack and sparks flew from it. Now anytime I set the timing the truck lights right up and runs good. When I shut it off, whether it be a few seconds of just running or a half hour of driving around, the truck just rolls over and power drops like it's got a dead battery. I mess with the distrubutor again and it'll light right back up, but has the same problem.
I've learned a lot over the course of this rebuild (most importantly to pay attention where things are coming off and where they go for reinstallation...just seems like it's one thing after another.
So, question is, does this sound like a problem with the fusable link (or at least what I believe is the fusable link)? Any feedback would be appreciated.

Just call me Sean

It could be a fusible link. It may be partially fried and isn't letting full voltage through it, or it could be cut but when it wiggles around it comes back together enough for it to run.

__________________
"Fights begin, fingerprints are took, days is lost, bail is made, court dates are ignored, cycle is repeated."
Early Cuyler

thisisthewayilive

I'll have to check that out when I get home. I have been stumped so far and didn't get the fusable link idea until I got on here and saw some other guys talking about it in other threads.

1996 Redneck F150

yea, just think about what my truck goes through every single day of its life haha

__________________

"It doesn't have to be fast. It can run you over"

ymeski56

A fuseable link wire sounds the most logical. I was reading an article on spark plugs and it stated that Motorcraft stock plugs are actually designed to Burn out prior to piston damage. I don't know if the same is true for their 2x plats.

__________________
"Saving the World.....One Ford Truck at a Time!"

ymeski56

Probably kill.....a "mere mortal" truck!

__________________
"Saving the World.....One Ford Truck at a Time!"

1996 Redneck F150

thats why my truck gets extra special maintenance care sometimes i like to let it suffer lol

__________________

"It doesn't have to be fast. It can run you over"

ymeski56

Thought that was what wives were for?

__________________
"Saving the World.....One Ford Truck at a Time!"

thisisthewayilive

well what i thought i shorted was the solenoid for the starter i guess. changed that and the problem persists. back to the drawing board i suppose. what and where exactly is the fusible link?

Just call me Sean

Most are bolted to the solenoid, and they melt when there's a short so the whole wiring harness doesn't burn.

__________________
"Fights begin, fingerprints are took, days is lost, bail is made, court dates are ignored, cycle is repeated."
Early Cuyler