2001 astro fuel delivery issue

it may be more of an injector problem like sticking on their seats , maybe a shot of gas at intake and one crank it fires that shows the prime your waiting for isn't getting past the injectors till they jar loose just a thought try kreen from kano labs

This is a common problem. There is a check valve in the fuel pump that keeps the fuel from draining back into the tank. If the check valve goes bad there is no fuel in the line to pressurize. The 4.3 Vortec engines needed more than 60 pounds of fuel pressure to run. By cranking it you are allowing the fuel pump to build the pressure up to where it needs to be to run the vehicle. Try to cycle the key on, wait for about 5 seconds then turn the key off without trying to start the engine. Repeat this a couple times, then try to start the engine. If it starts without cranking a really long time. Replace the fuel pump.

Check fuel filter. If necessary Replace them . Then , Replace the check valve first . See how the fuel pressure level before and after the ignition. If it's starts that's good . After while , when you restart engines again if starts then you are fine. Don't just go straight to replace fuel pump. It's a expensive fix . Sometimes , shop just want your money and replace fuel pump and fuel check valve at same time . Replacing fuel check valve that hard . Even a amateur mechanic can replace them to trick fellow colleagues car while in a lunch breaks ... Lol it's happened on me