Howdy
I'm kind of stumped at the moment so any help would be GREATLY appreciated, crap, if you're in Santa Cruz, you may even earn yourself a beer.

So, here's the symptoms (I think it will be an easy fix, I just need a fresh outlook)
-Battery has 11.5 volts (not great, but enough to crank)
-starter is new, when I first heard the problem, I thought for sure that it was the starter--Nope, try again
-Battery terminals are clean and fresh

When I hit the key, it is followed by a loud click (Solenoid/various relays) and if I leave it on the start position it sounds like a machine gun--clickclickclick etc
But get this, every so often it will start and run just fine (every 15-20 tries)--even with the old gas (it has been sitting for 3 months) I drove it around to see if it was just needing a good run but it didn't fix it.
Anyway, it sounds like a relay or a solenoid is not working, but I haven't a clue where to look first. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks y'all

i would get a new battery and put new gas in and try and if that dont work get a new solenoid

it might now get gas all the time to

Check your engine to body and engine to frame ground wires. Most Toy pickups I've worked on had both. One is usually down by the pass side motor mount, the other runs from the head to the firewall. I accidentally left the engine to body ground off after an engine swap and had the same symptoms. I was surprised considering the engine to frame ground was tight.

Also check inside the insulation of the battery cables for corrosion.

Get the battery to full charge. If its only charges to 11.5 that might indicate that it doesn't have the CCA's it started out life with and that it is dying. That combined with a slightly weak ground or power wire can make starting impossible.

If the battery isn't maintenance free, then check the water levels. Also charge it on a slow charge setting because it is easier on the battery and it will make it last longer.

Did you clean your connections at the starter/relay, and make sure you have a good ground for the starter?

thanks for the help--
I did check and clean all the starter/battery connections, but I have not yet fully inspected the cables themselves.
That's a good point about the CCA's in the battery, they probably have something to do with it. Come to think of it, that makes a lot more sense, seeing as how it is more likely to start within the first couple of tries after I haven't messed with it. It just seems stranger than any other dead battery I've ever seen--but I guess it all makes sense.
I will also check the engine grounds.
Thanks again

Les Schwab will test a battery for free if it is removed from the car. That may have changed in the last few years, but when I used to work there we did it as a public service as long as the battery was dismounted and fully charged.

They should have a nice tester that will simulate a load on the battery to check the CCA's, and the batterys ability to hold a charge.

i vote battery. probably an internal fault. has the volts, but not the amps.

i vote battery. probably an internal fault. has the volts, but not the amps.

X2...sounds like you dropped some plates or have sulfating/mossing occurring inside your battery. Depending on the battery manufacturer, quality, and age I'd just get a new battery. I worked in that industry (designing automation production machinery) for about 7 years and I've seen the inside of most of the major automotive battery manufacturers facilities. I would recommend DEKA batteries, JCI, Hawker, and Optima first and foremost. Not to bash, but I would personally never buy an Exide product given what I've seen and know. Just my $.02.

Yeah,
this is coming together, I got a test done on the battery and it was only cranking out half of the specified CCA's--sounds like a likely culprit. That would explain its inability to crank but still give it the juice to power the lights/stereo etc (since it has 11.5 volts--sitting).
I'm always amazed at the amount of strange things that can come of a dead battery. You wouldn't believe the amount of crap I've heard at two of the local stores while trying to just buy a battery! In each case I must have answered at least three times that yes, it does have a new starter with good connections. I get no respect! :mad3:

another vote for bad battery.

I have in the life of owning my 4Runner, had the battery die on my twice... each time it was as you described like a machine going off...

Replaced the battery and all was fine.

just as a note, the newer computers on cars and trucks do not like low batterys, even when they are still good just getting a bit low on "juice" the computers start to fail.
run a two battery set up just to have the volts and amps to keep it happy.

Battery is dead. 12.6 volts is a 98% state of charge. At 12.0, the battery is dead. Yours is dead, and that is why it won't start your truck. That 11.5 volts drops to about 6 when you try to hit the key, I'm sure.

Alright-
Well, some new connectors and a new ground cable was enough to get it going. The ground cable looked fine on the outside, but a test cut through the insulation revealed a green mess of corrosion and rusted/decayed wires. Glad I checked before posting....I guess that's what the newbie forum is for.
Anyway, with the new connections I got the battery checked at Kragen (groan) and it passed sufficiently--it was taking a charge and my alt. was cranking out good voltage. So we'll see how it goes. I'm going to file this one under, "Learning experience"
Thanks a lot for all the help everyone!