Gary Lewis

I see what you are saying, and agree. I was in a rush to get it in this afternoon so the seam sealer could set up over night. Had hoped it would be closer to "right" than it is, but obviously it needs a bit of "help". We'll see how it goes tomorrow. Was just working on the check list. It needed a LOT of re-organization, upgrading, etc. But, I'm starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. Just might get this thing started before summer.

I'll check tomorrow. As you say, it is hard to tell from the pics. But the brace can come out pretty easily. May have to bend it a bit to get it to go up, but I did some of that today and may not have done enough.

I can always pull the bolts and move it a bit and tighten them down again. I think the seam sealer will have the backing strips anchored well enough for that. I guess the best way would be to loosen it, put the screws in for the steering column, and then tighten back down. Yes?

It is going to be a lot of work, but it'll be worth it. You can't get that kind of patina with new stuff.

You can see the bumpers and brackets here: Documentation/Exterior/Bumpers. And I think you'll see that the non-step bumpers take different brackets. (Which is a pain 'cause I have a non-step bumper for Dad's truck and don't have the right brackets. )

It really is looking GOOD, Alfie! And you are right, drilling is lots easier when the parts are separate. Good plan. And you are going to have it chromed or powder coated?

It IS nice to have good friends! And you obviously have at least one.

Wow! Looks GOOD! And more sound deadener to come? Cool! Yes, it is amazing how much better things drive when all of the noises are eliminated. I've noticed that many times.

Did some checking today and confirmed that these are the fitting sizes: Early Saginaw ('78 Lincoln): 5/8-18 Late Saginaw ('95 E350): 16mm-1.5mm Note that I may have previously said the early fitting is 3/8" pipe. It isn't. The male fitting measures .580" in the grooves and .613" on top of the threads. (The grooves may be smaller but my calipers won't go down in to the bottom.) And 5/8-18 is supposed to be .555 & .625". But 3/8 pipe is supposed to be .675" on the top of the threads at some point, so this isn't 3/8 pipe. Given that, I've opted to not go with the Dirty Dingo part as they say theirs is 3/8 pipe. I doubt it, but why take the chance. So, I ordered these from Summit. One is the right size and the other is the next size larger. And they have good reviews, for the most part.

It does cover them a bit, although it isn't as bad as it looks in the pic. It may take some work, but it'll go in there.

Ok, let's see if these pics load faster. They are 1/2 the size of the others. Today I got the monstrous firewall brace installed. Lots of work, but it is in. Plenty of seam sealer on the backing plates. But I didn't get Loctite on many of the bolts because the seam sealer got there first. I had to thread the bolts in first to line up the backing plates, and when I pulled them out to Loctite them most of them were coated with sealer. So I'm sure they are sealed. Anyway, here's the inside shot, and you can see the two G8 5/16" bolts in the top and three of them on the side. And here's the backing plate in the cowl area: And the backing plate on the firewall. The firewall was at a bit of an angle so I installed longer bolts initially that let me get them started and then tightened them down, which bent the brace and the firewall to match.

Steve - Well done! So you think it is just the plastic bushing? What's the plan?

No need to remove a plug if you have a spare. Colors are white/blue is good, yellow/red is poor. But any spark is better than none.

I don't want to assume anything. So you have two jets of gas squirting into the carb when you move the throttle? And, when you are trying to start it the choke is coming almost closed? If so, have you confirmed that you have spark? Take an old spark plug and pull the wire off a plug, stick the old plug in the wire, and lay the old plug on the engine where it'll be touching metal on the outside shell. Crank the engine and see if you have spark, and what color it is.

Let's make sure you have the basics going. First, is the choke closing? If so, peer down the throat of the carb and briskly open the throttle. You should see two streams of gas shoot into the carb. That will tell you that you have fuel in the carb.

How 'bout checking the voltage drop to the motor with the switch vs with the relay? That will tell us how much it helps.

Summit has these for $16. But I'm drawn to this one from Dirty Dingo Motorsports via Amazon. Perhaps it is because they show the pic below. But I need to verify the fitting sizes as they don't give the metric size. I'm liking the external ones as they are somewhat obvious when you lay a new pump beside the old one. But the internal one isn't as obvious. Anyway, this looks to be the better approach rather than modify the pumps.

I got my senders from A1 Auto years ago and with 5 gallons in the tanks the needle come up to the E mark and when full is over the F mark and I am happy with that. I did have the rear float sink shortly after I put them in service. I used the old sender float and has been good since. I did match each new sender to the old ones to make sure they were close to the same. I was sure the old ones were factory senders. I don't see why you could not measure from the tanks flange to the bottom of the tank and do the same on the sender(s) to see if they reach close to the bottom. Did you install the filter sock? Wonder if that could have something to do with how low the level gets before it will not pull fuel? I thought both new senders had the filter socks but when I pulled the rear for the float it did nothave the sock on it. Because I did not drop the tank all the way out I had no way to look inside to see if it fell off and was floating around inside or not. Dave ---- When I get the Arduino going for Big Blue so I can use the later senders with Bullnose gauges it will have a table that translates resistance on the sender to current to the gauge. In other words, I'll be able to tune it so the gauge reads what I want it to read. And, since it is a computer it won't know if we change out the table and put in Bullnose resistances. So, if y'all want we'll have a way to calibrate the fuel gauges.

Man that is the truth on the onion! When I nut & bolted the truck I did not even think of the little plates on the AC bracket That is the wrong picture as my setup is for the 83 or 84 setup IIRC think it is this one. Part 2888 or 19D896 I do have one I can use as a pattern to make one if I have to. I also see the hose support 19B890 that I do not have that might be nice but it is that plate bracket I need more to hold the compressor. The compressor also has what Ford calls manifolds that I for got the part numbers for. I need to look into getting the AC working before it get too hot here. Thanks Dave ---- Ok, lost one of the 2888/19D896's. Maybe someone has one.

BTW the 390 / 428 full dress motors were no fun doing water pumps on either Mom / dad had a 68 wagon with one in it they used to pull the travel trailer and I had to do the WP on took 2 days to do. I told them never again! Dave ---- I remember in '65 hanging out at a station. One afternoon folks came in with a Ford wagon with a water pump leaking. The guy at the station set about changing it out and it took all evening. Just about the time he was done he discovered he'd left the backing plate off. I left about then.

My opinion is that you are right when you said "ultimately, is just putting the hot relay in at C603 BR/O and making no other changes an acceptable, safe, worthwhile modification". It won't increase current through the switch as the relay will carry the load in High.

As I think about it, I'm not liking this approach. I want Big Blue to be maintainable, and that means my offspring should be able to buy parts off the shelf for it. And having them buy an E350 pump and swap the back off a Lincoln pump to it doesn't fit the theme. However, all I need is to adapt 16mm x 1.5mm to inverted flare. One approach is to use an adaptor, similar to the one below, although that one is to 6AN and I'm not sure that's the same as the 5/8-inch-18 inverted flare. (Nor am I convinced that the Lincoln pump is 5/8". I thought it was 3/8".) Another even simpler approach is to use one of these from someone like Speedway, which slips into the o-ring and presents the inverted flare: That way I can use the E-350's pump and can replace it w/an off-the-shelf unit when needed. Thoughts?

Bill - Let me see if I understand. You are saying that a snubber diode would or could be used across the motor's terminals? So if/when the polarity of the motor's output reverses it'll take it to ground? Why would the polarity reverse? I thought the motor just became a generator. I'm missing something that is probably obvious. Also, I'm wondering if a High relay wouldn't increase the voltage to the motor significantly, thereby getting more flow of air. I'm not sure it is worth the hassle, but I'm just thinking.

Well, the plot thickens. I've been doing some research and from what I can tell there were essentially two pressure settings used: ~850 psi for rack & pinion setups, and 1200 psi for all others. But, I did find an article on Hemmings that details things fairly well. Here are some takeaways from that: Units built before 1975 had a 5/8-inch inside diameter slide-on pulley assembly that was held stationary by a keyway and shaft nut. Two versions were used after 1975, both used a pulley that was pressed onto a 3/4-inch shaft with no keyway. The first unit was used from 1975-’79 (and some 1980 cars) and can be distinguished by the USS threaded holes on the front of the pump for the mounting brackets All pumps used from 1963 to 1979 used a 5/8-inch-18 inverted flare nut on the end of the power steering hose. Most of the hoses used in these cars were built with 7/16-inch tubing ends crimped on them (7/16-inch tubing uses the 5/8-inch-18 flare nuts). Pumps used from 1980 to 1996 looked identical in outward appearance to the earlier units; however, the mounting holes on the face for mounting brackets were metric. Another way to determine the SAE unit from the metric pump is by the internal thread of the pressure valve retaining nut. The metric 1980-and-up units used a 16mm x 1.5 o-ring thread on the pressure hose. The newer versions also have an “X” cast into the mounting face of the pump and require a wider square-cut o-ring to be used on the reservoir mounting bolts or studs. Many different pressure valves were selected by manufacturers to match the gearbox setup, and the ratio they wanted to use. These valves screw into the back of the pump unit and are part of the retaining nut. A pressure spring is also located just behind this nut. When substituting between units, it is recommended whenever possible to use the original valve and spring out of your car, rather than from the donor car. This will ensure that the new pump assembly has the proper pressure for your gearbox. If you do not have the old valve for the pre-1975 units, there is a work-around to modify the pump to the correct pressure. If you remove the retaining nut and spring, some of the pressure valves have a threaded shaft with a nut on top with a series of washers. These washers help determine the pressure setting for the pump. Carefully hold the valve in a vise, without damaging the outer bore, and take off the nut. You can then change the number of washers. As you remove washers, the pressure setting of the valve (and pump) will increase. More washers equal less pressure. However, it should be noted that with less pressure, you would be able to get a better feel in the steering wheel for the condition of the road. Overdoing the pressure could also lead to early pump and/or gearbox failure, so don’t over-pressurize. The above is consistent with what I've found on the mounting bolts and the pressure fittings. But, with that info does it still seem like swapping the ham can is all that is needed? IOW, put the earlier ham can on the later pump, retaining the inverted flare fitting and the mounting stud, pressure valve and spring, etc?

I remember acoustic couplers. So yes, I remember the 56k warnings. I've been maximizing my picture size to get max clarity. But, I'd forgotten about you being on limited bandwidth. I'll cut the size back on future posts and lets see if that helps. Yes, the brace may be overkill, but it is what I have and I might as well use it. The HD clutch that's going in will add some strain on the firewall, so it is good insurance. And it may add some rigidity to the steering column, which won't be a bad thing given the overlanding I hope to be doing. Speaking of which, I was worried about people using the steering wheel to hoist themselves in and breaking, again, the part in the tilt column. (I've had to remind myself about that problem every time I get in.) But I hadn't thought about the driver using the wheel to hang onto in overlanding. So that pretty well cinches it - I think the fixed column needs to go in.