Help! 51 CJ3A

[SSG T]

First off i by no means am a mechanic! Blew a rod through the side of my block over the summer. Found a new motor off a 52 3A. put all new gaskets in her dropped it in only to find out the motor mount plate was bent. Had a hell of a time getting the timing gear off to get the plate off. I marked where the gear was pulled the replaced the plate and got the motor set in. went to the start it and it sounded like the battery or starter is dead. Both tested fine so now I�m at a standstill. Any ideas of what it could be? I was told it most likely is the timing? I don�t see any "dots" on either gear to line it up. My lack of mechanical knowledge also leads me to tap the gear on with a hammer lightly. Did I break something doing that? Any ideas??!! Thanks for the help.

[bretto]

What do you mean by it sounded like the battery and starter were dead?  Slow crank or no crank.  Did you get the spark plugs wires back in correct order?  Do you even have spark?
Ya taping that gear on was a bad idea, it could drive cam to push the welch plug out of the back end of the block causing a leak.  Alway use the bolt to pull the cam and gear together.

Welcome to the site.
Brett

[bretto]

Here is a good read on timing setup.
http://www.thecj2apage.com/forums/l134-ignition-timing_topic13819_post180513.html?KW=Timing#180513

[garage gnome]

Ditto on what bretto said. The cam could have gotten pushed in and is now locking the engine up. Look on the back of the block to see if that plug is pushed out. Pop the side cover off the side of the engine to see if the cam lobes are aligned with the lifters.

[athawk11]

SSG,

Lets start at the beginning...Do you know whether this new engine was a runner to begin with? 

Did you replace the oil pump gasket?  If so, were you careful to index the oil pump?  Read the "Timing" link supplied by Bretto.  This really helped me understand these engines, and timing them.

Before pulling the fiber gear, you mentioned that you marked the gears.  Did you make certain the gear was put back in the exact position it was in when pulled?

The light tapping may not have dislodged your cam shaft.  I was able to use this approach too.  I was just very careful and knew what could happen if I tapped too hard.

Tim 

[SSG T]

Brett, its slow crank and and now no crank. See the video. I was told it was a runner but we know how that goes.
Tim, I did not pull the oil pump and I'm pretty sure the gear up perfect.

[athawk11]

Wow, that is a slow cranker.� If battery is 6 volt, and checked out okay, then I would double check your 'ground' connections.� On a 6 volt system, they all must be spotless or you will have this slow crank effect.

Less likely if you had them checked out...You will have this symtom if the starter is a 12 volt and you are using a 6 volt battery to turn it.

Tim

[SSG T]

Like I said I'm no mechanic! How many grounds are there? I only saw one small black wire coming from the fire wall that connects to the same spot on the starter as the positive battery cable.
[And yes it is 6V

[Ryan_M]

I only saw one small black wire coming from the fire wall that connects to the same spot on the starter as the positive battery cable

That is not a ground wire. The other end of that wire should be connected to you Ammeter.

For proper grounds, confirm that:

The cable coming from the Negative battery terminal is securely grounded to the frame. You will see a hole on the front of the battery tray where it should be bolted too. Make sure that area is free of paint or grease. You want good bare metal contact.

Since your system is 6V make sure you are using heavy gauge battery cables. The smaller ones typically found on 12V systems will not work and may even melt (ask me how I know this).

You should also have a braided ground strap going from the engine plate to one of the motor mount bolts.

Additionally, you'll want to make sure that any of the gauges that require it are also grounded. Filing or sanding the paint off the insides of the dash mounting holes will usually do the trick.

I had a similar issue as you are having now and solved it by improving the grounding as stated above. I'll keep my fingers crossed that yours is as simple a fix.

[SSG T]

I have been hooking jumper cables right from the battery to the starter. Would that elimante the ground issue?

[Ryan_M]

I have been hooking jumper cables right from the battery to the starter. Would that elimante the ground issue?

Where is the other end of the jumper cable that is attached to the negative battery terminal? If it is not a clean solid part of the frame move it there (and then make sure the engine is grounded to the frame). And the jumper cables themselves may be a problem if they are too thin, regardless of how you hook them up.

I'm saying all this assuming your wiring set up is configured like a stock 3A. If not, maybe stop and post pictures of everything so we can better determine what you have.

Either way, keep a fire extinguisher handy......

[SSG T]

Haha I will keep one handy. I'll also get some pics tomorrow and am getting the starter tested again. Thanks for all the help. Have a feeling its something with the timing gear I took out

[athawk11]

The starter also has to make a good ground contact with the engine/bell housing. 

Follow Ryan's recommendations on grounding you system.  I can not stress enough how important this is.  A poorly grounded system reacts exactly like your Willys.

Tim

[Jeff_M]

I agree with the others on grounding.  I used to fool around with 6v Farmall Cubs and they were very fussy about having a good ground.

[SSG T]

So, I took a look at the timing gear and it was pushed up hard to the block. Pulled it off and you can see a deep scratch on the back of it. Would that make it crank slow?? Being on to tight? Check out the pic