2023: What are you doing today?

[Crosley.In.AZ]

O&S did a little today. I installed soft plugs, cam bearings, cam and crank. Then I bolted a bunch together and painted it. It got up to 74 degrees today. Lots to do still.

Only hit 68*F here in the valley of the sun.          We made the cemetery run today.  New flowers on the wife's parents graves and my mother's grave.

I warshed my F-350 yesterday.  Today I Waxed the front clip and 2 front doors.  Its task like this one , that I kinda wish I owned a Honda Ridgeline almost a truck that would be much easier to warsh and wax.  I use a Meguires marine wax on the vehicles.  Very durable here

 

[kb426]

O&S did a little machining today. It's common on these engines with high mileage for the front 2 intake manifold bolts to rust up in the head. The last couple of these I have disassembled have broken off. The last one had enough of the bolt left sticking out of the head that I was able to remove them. This pair of heads was almost flush with the head. Yesterday, I flipped the heads over and tried to level them where the bolt holes were vertical. I drilled a pair of pilot holes to see if I could drill to just inside the thread size to remove the remains of the bolts with a tap. That didn't go as well as I wanted. The 1st one I got off some so it was time for a different plan. I painted these parts yesterday so I was a little careful today in handling them. About 35 years ago, I made some crude tilt fixtures to work on my 426 heads. When I was finished with them, I realized that the whole mess was longer than the mill table. You'd think I owned a tape measure. LOL. This morning I went to the shed and dug them out. I used a da to clean up the surface rust and then measured everything to see if it would fit on the newer mill's table. Just barely is the description. I started on the worst 1st. I drilled and tapped it for a heli-coli insert. I have an assortment of those left over from alum parts on the race cars. I wanted to use and endmill to cut the hole. With the angle of the hole in the head, I needed an extra long one. I ended up cutting the tip off a drill bit and using it as an end mill. That left the hole 1/64" less than the drill size for the insert. I drilled successfully and installed two 7/16" long inserts. The next hole, I made a 1/4" end mill from a drill bit and removed the rusted bolt and then retapped the hole to 5/16" . Mission accomplished. I should have not tried to drill the bolts by hand. I'm successful with vertical holes but not angled ones. No better than I see, that's a mistake waiting to happen.

[enjenjo]

That has always been a problem with Ford going back at least 50 years. The 477 and 534 V8 engines were really bad for that. Of course the LS GM engines aren't much better.

[Crosley.In.AZ]

Helped my friend remove the Power steering box from his Studie truck.  It is a F-150 box of some year 2WD (I forget)..

The Studie  truck road wondered a bit. The steering box was worn out . 

[WZ JUNK]

I cut out parts for the caltrac style traction bars for the old truck.  I have wanted to remove the slapper bars and convert to these for many years. Mark with chalk, cut with an axe, file to size.

[kb426]

I like the Stude truck. I could get stupid with one of those. We are kind of coming back to life. Winter must be coming to an end.

[enjenjo]

Helped my friend remove the Power steering box from his Studie truck.  It is a F-150 box of some year 2WD (I forget)..

FIND out for me please

[idrivejunk]

The CAD board bumper thing was well recieved but I thought to ask passers-by if they pictured it as part of the truck or part of the bumper. Uh-oh, I must declare confusion once again. I thought it was part of the bumper but I was the only one. Can't picture the ends looking good that way unless they attach to fenders with no gap.

I haven't been given the task so maybe I'm not involved. I don't know what to build and my choices are wrong anyway. There was a huddle around it when I got there so I just sanded the other end until that cleared out. Then-

I reconfigured the inner rear bumper brackets to suit. They are tacked and its bolted up tight sitting where it should. That part I was clear on. Both bumper positions, check. The rest can work itself out.

Guy in the next stall about has his Stude gate together. Frank did you say you can pop out 'glass M series rear fenders? Might be a nibble on that if so.

[enjenjo]

I can't, no mold, but I bought some from http://classglassperformance.com/Stude%20Trk.html $250 each plus shipping and they are very nice pieces.

[Crosley.In.AZ]

Helped my friend remove the Power steering box from his Studie truck.  It is a F-150 box of some year 2WD (I forget)..

FIND out for me please

He said " 1968 to 1979 "  Ford F-100 & F-150. I looked on Rock Auto at several year applications, it looks like a wide use of the same steering box for many years of the trucks: F-100 & F-150.

A  RWD box fits on inside of the frame. 1 OEM frame steering box hole was re-used.  He cut tube spacers for between the box and frame.  His spacers are thin walled..  I would machine up heavy wall spacers or build a 3/16 inch bracket to mount the steering box and beef up the frame in that area.

There were turning radius issues on the Studie.  He found a longer pitman arm that was heated and reshaped to tighten the turn radius swing. 

He was saying saturday that if there was a next time , he would check into the electric steering assist units.  I am not sure there is room under the dash on the Champ - Lark trucks for the electric unit to fit?  The electric assist would clean up the engine compartment a little.

   

[idrivejunk]

Frank you, thank. 

More'n likely they will get a bite on those fenders, maybe boards too. 

Well I'll be. Like I like to say sometimes, five minutes doing trumps five hours speculating. Had no idea how to do this piece when I clocked in but about five minutes in, I "saw" it. And here it is. I'll pull the face bar off to finagle it into place and it will attach to one bolt on front of each pocket (see upright tabs). Then screws maybe, where it meets front of bed sill cross piece. Trimming is next and the idea is to have gap at fender with folded leading edge. 70" wide and the brake here is 48" so made it in halves.

I don't think anybody will protest it when done. Because it did indeed turn out to be a bolt on filler panel, not a bumper top.

[enjenjo]

He said " 1968 to 1979 "  Ford F-100 & F-150

My thought is to use a manual steering box, same application, With electric power steering.

[Crosley.In.AZ]

He said " 1968 to 1979 "  Ford F-100 & F-150

My thought is to use a manual steering box, same application, With electric power steering.

OK.. What is turns of steer wheel lock to lock of a manual F-150 box? Some of the old stuff was 5.5 to 6 turns lock to lock on manual steering. Quicker steering is always nice.

What type - brand of electric unit if you have that figured out?

 

[idrivejunk]

It was a day I can feel good about. Still some fine tuning, maybe trimming, and outer brackets to go but I'm happy with the tidying effect of the new filler panel. 

Meanwhile in the next stall, a glorious show Stude gate came together durn near from scratch. Flush smooth but kept the script and handle inside. He brought the pockets back flush with gate face and has roll pan yet to build, that will round off onto the pockets.

Sweet, sweet metal. 

[Crosley.In.AZ]

Pulled a small window off the park model we live in during the winter...This window was added some yrs ago to fill a hole  for a window A/C was installed. This park model Now  has a 2.5 ton heat pump plumbed in.

I cleaned , scuff'd , painted the metal frame white on the window.  Re-installed it with new screws.

This window is closed off inside the park model.  I placed the hard foam board in the hole, then sheetrock over that.  Kinda hard to remove the exterior window since the siding is thin metal