Technical Starting Hilborn Mechanical Fuel Injection

There really shouldn't be any foreign objects in the engine. I'm definitely not arguing with you but there were caps on the stacks of the injection and none of the lines on the engine have been chewed. There's not even any evidence of droppings or nests. I 100% understand where you are coming from. We don't know what we are going to do just yet but if we do decide to start it we will check everything twice before we even think about turning the key.

 

I speak from experience... my ole man bought a complete drivetrain out of a 46 ford that a guy was streetrodding. pull the plugs and see shiny new exhaust valves... Score! just landed a never fired flathead for cheap money! lets fire it up when we get home! then we thought twice... pulled the pan to check things out.... HUGE rats nest in the pan... pulled the motor all apart... cleaned reassembled and it's still running 20 years later

edit: I also just found one in my clutch assembly on my 32... you never know where and how those little buggers will ruin your day!

 

Absolutely kee-rect! My '63 T-Bird was a white jewel, given to me by a nice older neighbor of my Ford hating friend. LOL
I trailered the gem home, (it was going to be the roommate for my white '63-1/2 Galaxie)
Jacked it up, dropped the plate below the convertor, RATS! Found the same thing in the oil pan.
Funny they'd hole up in there...

 

I hear you. There is plenty of room under the car so we might as well drop the pan to look everything over.

 

Alright guys, we took the firewall off and (you guessed it) found the pump mounted at the magneto. Can anyone identify it? Also posting a pic of something between fuel cell and pump, that can be turned from the inside of the car. Maybe a pressure regulator or a cut off valve?

 

Prescott all the parts are there for getting the injectors to work. The valve is used to shut off the fuel flow and that round part connected to the valve is a filter. To shut the engine down once its running you would kill the mag by grounding it and closing the fuel control valve. All those parts are excellent pieces very nice stuff for sure.

 

That is the old BL series pump. Hilborn went to the PG pump about 50 years ago. The shut off you already know about.

 

Wow!

 

When you say ground the magneto... There is only one red wire going to the battery in the trunk and there is no trace of a black. What does this mean?

 

There should be a wire going from the mag to one side of a switch. Then from the other post on the switch to a ground. Think of a old lawn mower that you pushed down on the metal tab making contact with the plug to kill the engine.

 

If you are determined to start the engine,.Do it outside away from buildings. And have several fire extinguishers handy. When the pump spools up,you run a risk of bursting a nozzle hose. You say you understand where we are coming. It seems to me you do not. I don't mean this as a personal poke at you. I'm concerned for your safety.

 

I appreciate your concern, we will not attempt anything until we are sure it is safe.

 

I was just thinking we should have a fire extinguisher, good timing! Seriously, though, safety is our biggest priority. I understand your concern, and we are somewhat concerned too, which is why we are checking absolutely everything, even though we only plan on running it for a short time. We are taking our time with this, everything will be done right.

 

where are you located some one here may be close to help you out. there are some legit concerns here.

 

Sorry if I'm sounding stupid, but does there need to be a black wire running to the battery?

 

no it can go any place. it just needs to go to a ground. the engine is a good place. follow the wire from the mag to the switch. from the switch to the engine that will work. this is one of the concerns we are talking about. if there is a problem you have to know you can shut off the engine. we all started in the same place were cars were new to us. we want you to be successful. we will get you there.

 

We are in Alamance County, NC. I know we keep repeating this but we do understand the concerns 100% and we are very far from even attempting to start it. It's not just me and my brother, though. Dad has many years of experience with engines and knows a lot, but not too much about Hilborn. It is also his car. Having said that, if we end up needing help we will gladly accept it. We still have a lot of phone calls to make and things to go over, but we are bound to hit a wall somewhere.

 

im not sure exactly were that is in nc. if its near mt airy look up hot heads hemi products. one of the most knowledgeable hemi guys around is in your state.

 

Alamance is pretty much right in the top middle of NC. We live in Burlington, about two hours from Mt. Airy. We have spent a lot of time browsing Hot Heads, so most likely we will be emailing/calling them in the future.

 

they are good people there. bob the owner is a hard core hot rodder. too bad you don't live closer i really like setting up inj. engines.

 

Definitely. We will be buying most of our stuff from them. It'd be nice to live close to someone who knows Hilborn injection. We will either end up getting it converted to EFI depending on price or go with carburetors, so the mechanical won't last very long.

 

Nice!

 

I personally would not fire a system like that until all the rubber hoses were replaced. you are talking about a fuel system that generates between 20-50psi to those nozzles. are you going to buy all new lines just to hear it run??

 

First warning I read; while setting up a 'modern' EFI...was have an extinguisher handy!
Fuel at 40 psi demands a close watch...and top-line equip to handle it.

 

Also- after sitting for so long, you may need to re-magnetize the mag. Most tractor repair places can do it.

 

No argument from me. I know from experience that any barrel valve on this type of system is high maintenance. Long term storage is best done with the system in pieces. Good luck with your engine start. Looks like a beautiful project.
edit: Those systems run best on alcohol or nitro. The fuel nozzles do not atomize gasoline very well.

 

I had a car I ran on the streets with mechanical injection...looks very COOL, but it is kind of a pain in the ass to drive around all of the time...I put a "Check Valve" right at the fuel tank so the fuel wouldn't drain back and cut down cranking to start. Now I enjoy electronic injectors run by a FAST computer with the same "OLD SCHOOL" look...more driveable and reliable.[/ATTACH]

 

Looks great! We are looking into getting the Hilborn converted to EFI, depending on the cost.

 

UN-FREEKIN-BALIEVABLE-!!!!
What a score!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I think that the point everyone is trying to make is that this is NOT the same thing as taking a junkyard SBC, throwing some gas down the carb, and hitting the starter with some battery cables "just to see if it will start". The potential for serious carnage is huge. The amount of work to fire this beast off properly is tremendous, especially considering that you are going to rebuild it anyway. Don't waste the time and money just for the 30 seconds of fun. Instead, invest the enthusiasm into getting the car back on the streets. That's where the real fun is!