[shadysslim]

Hmmm there is a funny spark plug wire that's kind of crooked and won't click in to the distributor part, but its always been like that. It won't hurt to test another method on the spark plugs but my brother did it, he left the spark plug in the wire and had it hanging and cranked the engine over. I'm not sure how reliable that test is. I'm about to stick a screw driver in there and hold it close to the ground and see if it sparks like that. As for the igniter I had a test light and had one end alligator clipped to the body and stuck the test light into the negative on the igniter and cranked the engine and the test light was blinking. I did the same for the coil I held it close and cranked the engine and there was spark

[shadysslim]

Now one thing I'm not sure about. I did attempt to jump terminal 5 and 7 and the fuel pump did not prime. Would that be an accurate reading if the distributor is messed up? Or maybe I didn't jump it correctly. I had to kind of make a homemade wire thing I'm not sure if it worked though it couldve been my fault. But the fuel pump itself is fine. Right now with all this info I'm led to believe it could be one of 2 things. #1 the distributor cap and rotor #2 wiring to the fuel pump, since my attempted jump with a homemade wire did not work.

[shadysslim]

I'm going to go back to your earlier post and check for continuity in the main relay terminals now that I have a multimeter and can measure the flow better than with a test light

[shadysslim]

OK well I'm trying to test the relay terminals but I'm not sure if I'm doing it right because I'm getting no readings even with a test light. I clipped the alligator end onto the body and stuck the tip into the relay connector terminals but get nothing? The relay clicks like normal though. Ugh

[shadysslim]

UPDATE! I SUCK! Lol. Something is wrong I'm getting NO reading from any fuses anymore or points on the relay anymore with a test light. The test light is good I tested it on the battery terminal and ground the dash lights come on like they did before and the relay still clicks. I don't know what happened I was getting so close to figuring this out now I just feel like giving up

[TxGreaseMonkey]

Disconnect the negative. Battery cable and use your ohm meter to check each fuse. It sounds like a key fuse blew or the ignition switch is bad.

[shadysslim]

OK I will. The ignition switch wouldn't be my original problem would it keeping the pump from turning on right? Just an additional problem right? I see why people get so frustrated now trying to fix problems like these. Kudos to you sir for helping so many frustrated people. I want to smash my car right now lol but then id need bodywork done too

[shadysslim]

Thank you for your help tx you have taught me a lot about how to properly diagnose car issues and that's knowledge that will last a lifetime.the ignition switch checked out fine. Turns out my brother didn't test my spark plug properly. I AM getting spark. So now I have to figure out how to keep my distributor cap on tight because the bolts broke off inside when I took it apart. As for the fuses not checking out with the test light, I'm not sure what happened there because they are testing fine now again. When you originally told me to jump terminal 5 and 7 to start the pump I shouldve thought more about my fuel pump ground when the jump didn't work. The ground wire is cracked right at the base of the clamp. So when it is not so rainy outside I'm going to attempt to replace that and see if she starts. However I'm not sure what the lump is in the wire. It's a thicker plastic coating about an inch long in the wire. A fuse or something? I don't know what it is or how I would even replace that so I'm going to try splicing into the wire before the lump. If it works I will let you know. It won't be today unfortunately because it will be raining all day today. Maybe in a day or two or 3 when the weather isn't being crazy

[TxGreaseMonkey]

The lump in the wire is a fusible link. You really need to install a new distributor cap. A bad distributor cap and rotor can allow high secondary voltage to destroy the ICM and coil.

[shadysslim]

Ohhh OK I was trying to get around spending money I don't really have right now but I guess I will replace it if it'll cause me more problems in the long run if I don't. I guess I will look up what fusible links are and what I can do since there is one on both of the lines going to the pump

[shadysslim]

Thank you for your help again Tx after going through everything turns out all it was was the bad ground connection at the pump.Stripped the wire put a new eyelet on and sprinkled some magic dust on it and she started up. Now I just have to remove the screws that broke off inside the distributor housing and put new ones in and ill be back on the road. Sometimes the fix is so obvious its easy to overlook. Thank you again for helping me I learned a lot from you

[TxGreaseMonkey]

Nice job--I'm glad you got it fixed.