Gary Lewis

Your cowl seal installation looks good! I'll bet it seals nicely w/o more screws. On the oil leak, I've read that the parts stores have a chemical you can add to the oil that glows with black light to let you find the leaks. But I've not done it so don't know.

Tire Rack gives you the rolling diameter on all of the many tires they sell. And you can compare several of the same tire sizes in order to determine which one to buy.

Wow! That certainly does look good. He didn't say what year it is, but I believe it is either a 1980 or a very early 1981 given the clear turn signal lenses. (Yes, it isn't an '82 given the grille.) And, since I'm tracking that stuff I wrote him this note:

It is certainly different. Unusual. BIG! As for the good MPG statement - perhaps they mean as compared to a 460. Here's what Wikipedia says about the 370: Hmmm, the 2-speed rear would certainly help. And a 460 would bolt in. Who needs MPG?

Glad the Permatex is working. But, I understand about the other oil leaks showing up - that's the onion effect. Pull one layer and there are more and more underneath. The oil dripping off the starter could be from the valve cover, rear of the intake manifold where it hits the web between the cylinders, or the rear main. Hope for the valve cover.

Yes he is... 😉 Gary put me down for a XL. I like the graphics! 🙂 Jonathan - You are on the list for an XL.

I don't understand why people don't put any detail on adverts. But the implication of a mechanic to make it great again implies it certainly isn't.

There's a guy on FTE that says if he EVER gets the desire to change a pan gasket in situ he'll just pour gas on the truck and light it. Seriously though, it is not a fun task. However, it depends on the engine and your 302 is probably the easiest there is. That's because it is the smallest, and room is the main issue. Brandon and I did it on his 351W, which is a bit bigger than your 302, and it wasn't fun. But we did get it done. The main things are to pull the exhaust, air cleaner, and the fan shroud. Then you'll disconnect the motor mounts and jack the front of the engine up as high as you can go. That should get you enough clearance to drop the pan and get it out. But, you are going to have a continual oil drip (rain?) that will make working in there a serious pain if you don't plan ahead. I think draining the oil several days ahead of pulling the pan would be a good idea. On the dip stick tube, where is it leaking? Dad's pan was leaking at the flange that was riveted to the pan. I drilled the rivets out, tapped the flange, used The Right Stuff as the gasket, and put it together with loctite to ensure the screws won't back out.

PV's, and fabric accelerator pumps, are the achilles heel of Holley or Holley-type carbs, and the 2150 is one of those. The original design was flawed as it allowed manifold vacuum or pressure to get directly to the power valve such that a backfire through the carb would frequently blow the PV. A fix for that error was finally applied to new Holley carbs as of 1992 and is available for retrofit to the bulk of carbs that don't have it. But I don't think it was ever applied to the 2100 or 2150 as they were out of production by '92. Sitting at the bottom of the bowl, as the PV does, when the fabric is blown two things happen. First, when the engine is running the vacuum usually can't overcome the spring and the valve stays open. At first blush that would seem like it just causes the mix to be rich by however much fuel can flow through the PV's orifice(s). But, the second thing is that there is now a direct path from the bowl of the carb, through the power valve & its diaphram, and into the intake. So, when the engine is running gas is being pulled directly into the intake. And when the engine is off gas runs out of the bowl into the intake and the bowl is dry when you try to re-start the engine.

Timing chain is almost new. But I might pull the cover just to clean it. There's been a lot of oil slung over and around it. And with the cover off it'll be easier to replace the seal.

That's a lot less $ than the Eastwood one.

Looks great! And it'll be very tight with the new rubber.

I have a very similar unit from Eastwood. Matches my new digital torque wrenches closely. If you don't have digital torque wrenches it works pretty well. But, it is awkward due to its size.

Basically, rebuild the front TTB (lots of bearings & seals) and related suspension/steering stuff; RedHead box; custom-made dual front shock mounts. $3500 in parts. He figured out my back brake problem; hardware was OK, but one side had both front shoes and the other had the rears. The guy who did the work is a friend of my engine machinist and runs a small shop where he usually works on medium-duty-size trucks, I wouldn't know who to go to once he retires. This was originally a project I was hoping to do myself one summer, but I've had the truck over 10 years and it still hasn't happened so I figured I need to either farm out the job or throw it away and get something that doesn't need so much work. Wow! Should be in good shape then.

Not for me. That's strange!

79 degrees here in 'took. And a t-storm. 6.5 is the point in inches of vacuum where the power valve opens. Above 6.5" it is closed, but below that it'll be enriching the mix for power.

Had your afternoon coffee, yet? Yes. Does it show?

Good find, David. If it was me I'd put together a table (spreadsheet) with the sizes and the various factors, including weight & cost. And, I'd consider new wheels as part of the package if I didn't have some I loved. To get those factors I would go to tirerack.com.

And that's my fault? If yours is the remote-sensing PV you can remove the hose from either the carb or the manifold after turning the engine off and see if the PV leaks. Hmmm, maybe that's why they went with the remote PV feed. They'd had so many of them blown they needed an easy way to test?

If the power valve is blown or its gasket is leaking the leak will be to the inside of the carb, and you'll get essentially the results you are seeing - wet gaskets and a dry bowl. Plus hard starting. Or, if yours has the remote PV sensing via a vacuum hose, it'll run into the intake manifold via the hose.

Bingo. If it was me, I'd be installing 31's. The only 33's I've ever owned were mud tires, and I'd guess that the extra weight and height of them would negate any savings of lower RPM's. (Then again, I had them on a Toyota, not a full size Ford). I think 31's look nice, and they'd give a little extra circumference, while still being mild mannered on the road. The other guys may have completely different experiences, so this is only my 2 cents;). Weight is certainly an issue, and one I forgot to mention. I remember comparing Dad's truck's tires, which were 29's, to those on Rusty, the 31's. And Rusty's were significantly heavier. Part of the difference was in the aluminum wheels on Dad's compared to the steel "saw blades" on Rusty. But the larger tires were heavier as well. And, when I put Dad's tires on Rusty the ride quality and the steering precision improved. Fast forward to the trip to FL to pick up Big Blue. My brother, who is stronger than I, came rolling the spare out. As I bent down to pick it up he was saying "No can do!" Yeah, right. Well, he was sorta right. I could have picked it up, but it was more than I should pick up. In fact, it was HEAVY! Granted those are BIG tires. But they are far heavier than they look. And they surely play a part in the poor ride quality of the truck. So, there's another factor or three going on as you go up in tire size. One is the weight of all of the un-sprung mass of the tire & wheel, which upsets the ride and the steering. Another is the inertia of the heavier tire, which reduces acceleration. Another is the width of the tire, which causes more friction and reduces MPG. So, it is a balancing act. 33's may be a bridge to far.

I'll check out the nickel/copper stuff. I didn't even know it was available, so the thought never crossed my mind. This is why I asked. I wasn't aware of it either. Here's an example of it on Amazon. Note the reviews - 93% 5's.

Was counting bolts and ran out of fingers and toes, so guestimated. Anyway, you suggest going with the later pump. But, if I remember correctly, I need to make sure the pump pulley is either drilled for the larger bolt pattern and shaft size or make it so before I powder coat it. Right? And, if going with a later pump I might as well go with stainless fasteners. But still no need to pull the timing cover. Right?

Ok, Mark is an XL and Chris is an L. Got it. Thanks.