Gary Lewis

There's synthetic manual transmission lube that might be a good solution for you. Here's a Google search for that, and you can see several options. Royal Purple is a well thought of option. But I think you may be also asking about synthetic engine oil. I like it, and I usually use Mobil 1. But I stay with 10W30, although I doubt 5W30 would hurt anything. The t-case uses ATF, and all you need to do is to drain it and then refill. But again, break the fill plug open before you drain it. Here you can use synthetic if you want, but ATF is pretty thin, so I'm not sure it is worthwhile.

Looks like it'll work.

Time for an update here. The ball joints are in the knuckles and the knuckles are installed on the axle. And the tie rods are installed. Here's a shot of the driver's side knuckle on, although you can see an ear of the passenger's side knuckle to prove it is there: And here's a shot of the steering linkage on, with all new components save for the one adjuster sleeve: And, here's a shot of three of the adapters I used on the ball joints. In the middle is the 1 3/4" long one that came with the HF ball joint kit, and the one on the right is the 3" long one I made some time ago to remove the lower ball joint. And the one on the left is the one I made today that is only 3/4" long, used to install the lower ball joint. (Boy, is it good to have a stash of tubing, a band saw, and a lathe!)

I don't think mounting a winch on the front of a Bullnose is going to be a quick solution. The issue is that there aren't many new winch bumpers being made for these trucks, although I did see one recently so maybe you can find it by searching. And the old Warn bumpers are sought after and are pretty rare. Another option I've seen on Facebook is to cut an opening in the center of a standard Bullnose bumper, mount the winch behind the bumper, and pass the line through. But that requires fabrication and will take even longer. So, let's talk about the winch on trailer, which should be faster. You'll be tempted to bolt it to the floor/deck of the trailer, but then your line will always drag across the deck. And, the winch won't be helping you get the log onto the back end of the trailer. Instead I'd put the winch about 12 - 18" above the deck on a stand of some kind.

Hey Rick, Wasn't this trim also on 1986 models? If you look on Craigslist or wherever, you will see 1986 trucks with the trim...unless there was a different trim used from mid-1985 until the end of 1986? Can't say about 1986 trucks, but the chrome with a black vinyl insert is on Big Blue, which is an '85 with tutone paint.

Matt - Good questions. Let me try to answer them. The lubricant specs are shown in Specifications/Lubricant Specifications. You can see the Ford spec for both the manual transmission, transfer case, and the differential. But, there are a number of different manual transmission lubes. And given that you are in the northern reaches of Kansas, you might want a synthetic lube to make shifting easier. As for changing that lube, I'm pretty sure the transmission has a drain plug and a fill plug. But before you pull the drain plug, make sure you can get the fill plug out. Then, when you drain and replace the drain plug you fill up to the level of the fill plug. Yes, you should replace the coolant. It needs to be done every three years or so, and you probably don't know when it was last changed. As for the diff's, unless one of yours has limited slip, both take the same lube. By "struts" I assume you mean the shocks. Yes, you may want to change them, but I'd do a bounce test to see if they appear to be working. And, look to see if one is leaking. But probably no need to replace the springs. Yes, do the t-case. On the oil pan, check to see if the bolts are loose. BUT, they shouldn't be really torqued down with all your force. They are small and should only be a bit past "snug". Belts should be replaced if they are cracking. Roll them over and look at the sides for cracks. On the parking brake, sometimes the cables themselves rust up and won't slide. Sometimes people put the brakes together incorrectly. Check the cables first. Did I get them all? What did I miss something?

See what you think of this: Documentation/Emissions/Thermactor Systems and then the Part Numbers tab.

I think we are using two terms that are not defined: popularity and rarity. And each of us has our own dafynitions for those terms. To me, rarity has to do with how long it was available from Ford. And I suspect that was determined by popularity with those buying trucks. In other words, the two terms are mutually dependent. If few bought the trim then Ford would drop it. Or, maybe there was a technical difficulty with the trim, like maybe the supplier discontinued it? Anyway, if I use those terms with my definitions I'd say the 1985/86 pressure sensitive trim is the most rare. And the type in Jonathan's pic, which is on both Dad's 1981 and Big Blue, the 1985, might be the next most rare. But I do think we need to determine what definitions we are using for those terms when we state our positions.

ECU ID# E6TF 12A650-AAA cross references to PN E6TZ 12A650-AAA. And I find that ID# and PN used only once in calibration codes, but this one doesn't match your truck as this one's an F250. And these match the description of your truck, but don't use that ECU. I'm lost, but it looks to me like you may have the wrong ECU. However, the reason we were trying to drain this swamp was to find the thermactor pump #, and all three of these use the same one.

My favorite line is that these trucks are like onions. We peel and cry, peel and cry, but soon we have a mess of onion rings.

Welcome to the forum! Glad you joined. Glad to meet you. Don't miss the request to create a signature that outlines your truck. That way we can answer questions more accurately, and w/o having to ask each time. And, adding your name makes chatting with you more personal. Where are you in Alaska? I ask because we have a map (Bullnose Forum/Member's Map in the menu) and I'd be happy to add you if I had a town. As for adding 4wd to an F350, I think that is an undertaking. Yours should currently have coil springs, and a 4wd F350 has leaf springs. And, as of 1985, a solid front axle. So my guess is that finding a donor 4wd F350 would be a good investment. Anyway, start a thread about your truck in the main section. Post some pics. We'd love to see it and to help as best we can.

That is a good price. And, it would be fun to have a truck with one of those and have people drop their jaws when they saw it.

Bill - Right on! It is a quagmire. Nathan - There was originally a label on the valve cover as show here: Documentation/Specifications/Calibration Codes. But if you have the info from the ECU I might be able to get there that way.

The dowel should strengthen it quite well. But there is a lot of force on that thing. I hope it holds.

Ok, with 33's and 3.50 gears you'll be turning 2300 at 65 MPH with a 1:1 top gear like the NP435 has. That is faster than I'd want to turn. But, I have to remind myself that you have a 302 and I'm used to at least a 351 if not a 460. The HD tranny with an overdrive is the ZF5, and with it you'd be turning 1760 at 65 MPH. If your 302 is pretty strong it'll probably pull that fine. And that would give you a much more relaxed cruise as well as better MPG. But, the ZF5 is a HD truck transmission and cannot be shifted rapidly w/o hurting the syncros. So if you are looking for something sportier then maybe the SROD or M5OD. They can be shifted more quickly and are very capable for most applications.

That's what I'm thinking as well. But wanted others opinions.

UPS delivered the rest of the parts today, as well as a bunch more French Roast. The first thing I noticed was that the boxes the tie rod ends were in were quite different, even though the parts themselves were identical. That led me to check all of the boxes, and I got lucky - all of the major parts were made in the USofA. The only part from elsewhere was the adjuster sleeve, which was made in China. But, it appears to be fine. So, I installed the tie rod ends in the adjusting sleeves and onto the tie rods themselves, and adjusted them to the same length as the originals. And, here's a before and after pic: So, tomorrow I'll install the eccentrics, ball joints, and knuckles. And, maybe see about the axles and the spindles. But, I do have to think about the dust shields, which were the worse for the wear after getting everything apart. How badly do I need them?

Jeff - You are on the map. As for the transmission, the recommendation would depend on what you are going to do with the truck. You have a 302 with what appears to be 35" tires. What axle ratio do you have? I ask because the 302 has the least amount of torque of the mainstream engines and yet you have tall tires. So if you also have tall gearing, like 3.08:1, then you are going to need low gearing in the transmission if you are going to do any towing. I just did a bit of playing with the calculator (Documentation/Driveline/Calculators) and I dialed in 35" tires and 3.08 gears and find that you'd be turning 1922 RPM at 65 MPH with a 1:1 top gear. That's not bad RPM for cruising, and you probably wouldn't want any taller gearing, assuming you have those tires and 3.08 gears, with a 302. Anyway, please tell us what you have and what you want to do with it and then we can discuss the options.

I agree. And that begs the question of how badly one wants to restore his or her truck using this trim. Even if you find the last piece in captivity, how are you going to replace it when/if there's an accident? But, the beauty of this trim is that it is pressure sensitive and it can be removed w/o having to fill holes or take off studs. Like I'd have to do on Dad's truck.

Yes, there is something wrong. And I'm going to suggest some things, but if there is a vacuum leak then you need to fix it before you "fix" it by changing something else. You say the AFR is "OK", but that's really a moving target. At idle you should be able to go so rich with the AFR that the idle slows down. If you can't then that is proving there's something wrong, like a vacuum leak. At cruise it should be around 14.7:1. And as you slowly open the throttle it will go more and more lean until the power valve opens, which should bring it back to around 14:1. And I agree with Jim - put a vacuum gauge on it so you can see at what vacuum level the power valve opens. If there really isn't a vacuum leak you probably need to rejet slightly richer. And/or change the power valve to one that opens slightly sooner. For instance, if your PV opens at 6.5" try one that opens at 7.5". But, before you do that watch the vacuum gauge to determine where in the vacuum range the problem happens. At WOT you should have an AFR of around 12:1. Regardless, I think getting the AFR correct will have the engine running smoothly in all situations. And a carb can do that - but you have to be the feedback loop. Run the test and modify. Run the test again and modify. Etc.

Nathan - I looked it over, wondering why I hadn't already done this, and finally figured it out. There are two parts that aren't generic - the air pump and the valve. Said another way, the only way to find the part numbers for the pump and valve is by calibration code - and there are 713 of those. So, if I had your calibration code I could get the part numbers. Or, if you don't have the calibration code give me the year, model, transmission, engine, carb, and anything else you can think of and I'll try to figure it out.

Jeff - Welcome!! Glad to meet you! Nice looking truck. Going to be great when you get things squared away the way you want them. Are you "restoring" the truck? I ask because while the NP435 is tough, if you are going to drive the truck very much one of the transmissions with overdrive might be a welcome choice. We have a member's map (Bullnose Forum/Member's map in the menu) and I'd be happy to add you if you'd like.

Amen, brother! That's me. I think I said it elsewhere recently but I've had Turkish coffee in Istanbul, Greek coffee in Athens, Italian coffee all over that country, French coffee all over that country, as well as Nicaraguan coffee in two separate coffee plantations where they roast and brew it. Oh, and coffee laced with chicory at Cafe du Monde in the French Quarter in New Orleans last weekend. And when I get home I go straight for the Starbucks. Verona is my first cup of the day, and French Roast is the second. Then in the afternoon, like 30 minutes ago, another cup of maybe Verona.

The AOD has a TV linkage, which I think means "throttle valve". The C6 has a kickdown linkage that only is used to drop the tranny down a notch. But since the E4 and 4R are electronic, I don't think they have any throttle linkage. And calling a reputable company is a good idea. I called a few and found that they build really STOUT transmissions, far more than what I thought I needed. So wound up using a local transmission company that seemed to know what they were doing.

For the same engine, yes. There were different "levels" of either transmission, meaning that a transmission for a 300 had different components than one for a 460 or the diesel. Different clutch packs and even different sprag clutches if I remember correctly. So if you have a very mild 300 you wouldn't have as much to do to the tranny as if you have a beast of a 300. I don't know what parts interchange, but it would make sense that the gear sets do.