I know I should be posting this in a technical thread but you all have been pretty good at giving pointers so I thought I would toss it out in here first.
Well, I spent the day working on the M817. I don't know that I gained any ground. I will definitely need a new overflow tank. Mine is rusted out and leaks. I am definitely having fuel delivery problems and I fear I made it worse... Here is where I am with my mess.
I replaced the shut off valve with a new unit today. When I acquired the truck, the previous owner or someone working on it had partially tackled this and the old shutoff valve was in pieces.
The fuel line runs directly from the left tank to filter and then to the pump. Lines look to have been recently replaced and are in good condition up to the pump. Initially, I was able to use the primer pump to build up pressure. I noted pressure would bleed off somewhat quickly and started tracking the fuel lines. I opened and closed the petcock associated with the primer pump (made a small mess). I also pulled the fuel filter (screw on type) and found it was full and naturally, the fuel up to the pump drained. Now I can't build up any pressure with the primer pump on the dash at all. The truck is not getting any fuel which is the entire reason it was not being driven in the first place.
I bled the brakes out with a power bleeder. Initially, the pedal would go straight to the floor with no resistance at all. Now, it has a little pressure but I can still push it to the floor. The reservoir was nearly empty when I started. Surprisingly, I didn't pull much air out of the lines other than the left front wheel. I have no experience with air over hydraulic brakes and am unsure how much resistance I should have at the pedal without the engine running building air pressure. Also, pretty sure I will need to flush the entire system anyhow because the old fluid in the truck does not appear to be Dot 5. That said, I would like to get this thing home sooner than later where my tools are.
The truck is very clean underneath and it appears to have been well maintained by someone and I think it is well worth saving, I just need to get her moving and stopping. It will start with ether, but I am trying to avoid using it.
If someone in Arizona has an overflow tank, I would be interested in buying it. Any other pointers, please let me know. Thanks in advance.