I just finished rebuilding my motor (all new bearings) and I'm just trying to get the best practices on starting the motor. Your steps leading up to the first crank and what kind of things did the motor do during and after it started (hard to start, sputtering, weird noises, etc.). This is taking in consideration that everything is hooked up properly.
Also opinions for motors that have sat awhile or used.
Maybe this topic could be archived?

 

for it's 1st startup, pull the plugs and disable the fuel pump and just crank it over a couple of times. this will get oil where it needs to be before your 1st startup. then, put the plugs back in and enable the fuel pump and fire her up. if it's a total rebuild (rings and all) you may get white smoke on the 1st couple startups.

 

I'm quite sure you don't want to pull the spark plugs to start the motor.... (unless, of course, you enjoy watching fuel come up out of the plug holes ). Leave them where they are (plug wires and all) and just unplug the distributor from the harness, then turn over a few times. Plug it back in, prime the fuel system 2-3 times and start it. Also, there is no need to disable the fuel pump. Good luck!

 

uhh why do you think i said disable the fuel pump? disable as in pull the pgm-fi fuse or relay.