Hello all,
newbie here, Thanks in advance for any wisdom I can absorb from you all!

Here goes: The truck is an 01 Ram2500 with the 24 valve cummins.It has automatic trans and is a long bed extra cab with 4wd. It has around 110,000mies. Ok, I drove to town and all was well with my truck.I shut the truck down, did some shopping then on returning to the truck went to start it and nothing. dash lit up as normal but no click or anything from starter.I knew my bat connections were good, and the bat. had plenty of juice, so I thought it might have something to do with the neutral safety switch. I jiggled the gear shift in Park with the key in the crank position and she fired right up.
Ok so I need to check that switch when I get home... So I make it home, truck ran normal all the way. So the next day I get in it to check if it's going to start and......Nope. Well flash ahead 4 months. I had to go work a job out of state where I wouldn't need my truck, so I left it sit and figured I deal with it when I got back. I did disconnect the batteries.When I got back yesterday I went by napa on the way home and got a neutral safety switch from them. i arrived back at the truck and connected batteries and tried to start it for the hell of it and lights came on but nothing. So I changed out the switch and tried to start it again.Ok the truck turned over,I could tell the batteries were a little low but she sounded like she was about to fire so I cranked on her a couple of times.I know enough about these things to know that you can fry stuff out with low voltage but i felt like a crank or two couldn't hurt.Anyway she turned but did not fire. One thing i noticed was the dash lights were blinking on and off while I cranked. Never saw that before. Well I figured I"d put the charger on her and see what happens. Well, the next time I tried to start her, lights came on but nothing.... just like before I put the new switch in.. Now I figure The switch is just a ground fault switch and that there isn't current going through there to fry the switch out so I'm sort of stumped here. I checked all fuses and made sure I have full batteries with tight clean connections. I tried jiggling the wires on the switch and jiggling the gear lever as well as the ignition switch to no avail....I'm guessing there is some electrical problem going on but I haven't a clue as to where to look........

Sorry for such a long winded account.I tried not to leave anything out.
Is anything jumping out at anyone out there?

Thanks everyone
and Cheers,
Pelican

 

double check the fuel pump and fuel filter, also if its cold where you are you should have it plugged into a block heater over night.. the oil is thick and can sometimes be hard on the starter or not even crank.. by plugging it in itll keep the oil inside the pan warmer.. there should be a plug up under your bumper passanger side.. also.. make sure your fuel is not gelled up. you could also go to auto zone and buy a little additive that is made by stp or lucas for diesels that prevents gelling of the thick fuel.. otherwise im stumped too if these lead you no where.. you might want to try the diesel section of this forum..

 

Sounds more like the starter to me. I now that most times when the starter starts to go, you can fiddle with the ignition a little and usually get it to crank. The next time it happens crawl underneath and tap the starter with a hammer and see if that helps.