You are right that if you shut them down as soon as you noticed you were running out of fuel it wasn't that bad. I was still driving 150,000 miles a year in the 60's and 70's, mostly with a Cummins, but I saw lots of jimmies on the side of the road that drivers had run completely dry. Also, in those days our shop was the only one around. We were located on the crossroads of US 87 which was a major route from the Valley and the Gulf Coast to Denver and on up to Canada and US 290 which was a major route from Southern California to Florida. This was before the interstate system. There was hardly a day we didn't have a road call to start a Detroit. And yes we did use an electric pump rigged up to prime them. However, I don't think Robert is really prepared for this and there is always a possibility of a runaway if an engine that has been out of service a long time. I still think he should get someone with Detroit experience to help him start it
