Gary Lewis

That's a really clean, and nice, truck! Looks like you could fly out and drive it home.

I remember going through this on BB's door. Never did find "the right stuff", and wound up using weatherstripping. Not saying it works well, just that it worked. But I didn't do any leakage tests. So if you find "the right stuff" let's document it.

Yeah, it looks like the foam might be a bit thin. Is the foam on the door actually touching the housing?

Looks like we need to update the 3G page. Please keep track of all you find and I'll update it when you are done.

It is Blue Top. Supposedly run by a guy that worked at Red Head but didn't like they way they were treating people so started his own company. The way Ford designed the box the front of the shaft uses the cast iron of the box as the bushing. And it wears. When someone reman's the box they just check to make sure the wear isn't beyond their tolerances. Not factory tolerances 'cause by definition it will be. So when you buy a reman'd box it is not as good as new. Cannot be. Red Head and Blue Top bore the box out and put a bearing in. Now you are back to factory spec's and it'll wear a lot longer. I put a Red Head in Dad's truck and am thinking of a Blue Top for Big Blue since his steering isn't as good as it should be. I won't be buying any reman'd boxes.

Bill - That makes sense. So the air filter housing sensor is the best, and that's what I have. For others, the sensor looks like the one below.

I will look into this further and keep you in mind.

I'm sure you mean 460. It's setup to run with DSII correct? I have done near zero research, but would it be compatible with aftermarket EFI or no? That alone largely dictates whether it would work for my application since I intend to run aftermarket EFI. Sorry, I did mean "460". But it is DS-II. However, I don't know for sure what is compatible with "aftermarket EFI". I say that because there are systems that have no connection to the ignition, so DS-II would be perfect. But there are some systems that can control the ignition, and I doubt DS-II can be controlled externally. I've not researched any of those systems, but I think you'll have to check into it and decide. Anyway, this dizzy isn't going anywhere soon, so...

Well, there were several blues. The 1984 interior color was called "Dark Blue", and the '85/86 color is "Regatta Blue". And I can't tell you what the difference is.

While I agree with your logic that on a perfectly-tuned engine the extra air from an open vacuum port should slow it down, my experience has always been that it speeds up. I can't explain that, but it happens. But I don't like to tune for max RPM. That always seems to leave the engine slightly lean. So I find max RPM and then open the screws 1/8 - 1/4 more to give just a bit more fuel. That helps on the transition from idle to acceleration.

Shaun - I have the dizzy I am taking out of Big Blue that should fit your 400. It is from Scotty and was curved to match this engine, but I don't know if it is on a Motorcraft base. I could make you a good deal on it if you are interested. It may have 5,000 miles on it. Bill - The '96 CA-spec harness I have connected right up to the sensor that goes in the filter housing. But now that I think about it, I have two sensors that I tagged as coming out of the upper plenum on the F450. And I haven't checked to see if the wiring is the right length to go to the plenum or the air cleaner housing. So, where in the "intake" are the later sensors? I would think that having the sensor in the plenum would be more accurate, so maybe I want to go that way? On the MAF, I'm hoping to get a legitimate F5OF as planning to tell the kids this is a '96 engine. But whatever I get I'll make sure to get the right curve in the ECU. As for the throttle body, you do remember that I have the larger BBK throttle body. Right? (Yes, that's not stock, but no change to the ECU needs to be done to accommodate it - as you know.)

Oops! Too late! I've already ordered the new Cardone unit. So, you think a rebuilt unit might be better? I guess we'll find out.

Scotty got back with me today and said "Suppliers are out of Motorcraft distributors, Gary. Go ahead and pick up one of the Cardone units." I asked if there was any way to give him credit for an order and he said there isn't at the moment, so go ahead and order from Summit. So I've now ordered the 26# Accel injectors and the new Cardone distributor. The injectors are in stock and I should have them next week. The distributor comes from Cardone and there's no date given. So I have several days before I get the injectors, and during that time plan to: Figure out exactly what connectors go to the various sensors so I can order the right sensors. I say that because in looking at inlet air temp sensors on the RA site I found that there are at least two styles, which I think equate to the 49-state EEC-IV system and the CA-spec EEC-V system. I'm not sure if that is the case for any of the other sensors, but feel compelled to find out before ordering. So I spent most of today checking out the CA-spec wiring harness and labeling connectors. My new label maker sure helps with this effort and at this point I have 28 things labeled to this point, but still need to do a few more. Get these sensors on order: throttle position, MAF, inlet air temp, coolant temp, MAP, & O2. Plus, I need to order the adjustable fuel pressure regulator Scotty recommended, 180F 'stat, and anything else I can think of. Prep the engine for the injectors. That will include pulling the plugs in the lower plenum that block the injector ports & installing the fuel connectors on the injector manifold. Then, when the injectors come in I can install them awa the injector rails. Prep for the new ignition system by turning the engine to 12 BTDC & removing the distributor awa the DS-II ignition system and associated wiring harness. That should put me in good stead to drop the dizzy in when it gets here. And many of the sensors & parts should be coming in about then, so I can install them as they arrive. That will position me for all the wiring that needs to be done. I've already realized that there are things in the engine harness, like EGR wiring, that I want to take out. Ditto for other harnii - like the headlight wiring, horn wiring, etc. So there will be a whole lot of harness work to be done - in addition to actual wiring.

I know that question wasn't to me, but I went with 208 - Madrid. The blue I wanted wasn't available at the time, but this one worked out well.

I’ve never had a 3rd person in Big Blue, which is why I’m happy with the bucket seats - and the massive console. Don’t get me wrong, the Classic Consoles unit is far, far better than nothing. You are going to love it.

Dad had those on his truck. Very useful.

You are going to love it! It looks great and is so useful. 👍

Can you be there when I'm there and get me in? I'd LOVE to see the Hunley! Oh yes, and meet you. Anyway, at our ages we have to plan things so others can pick them up and continue them. That's why I'm trying to keep Big Blue reasonably maintainable. Basically I can say he's a '96 under the covers.

That's exactly what I was thinking. The carb doesn't cover the exhaust port, but the plate does.

Bill - I can always update the s/s and it'll show up here. So send me whatever info you get. As for the passing elephant, a 2015 F150 wearing Blue Jeans will show up in Charleston in March. Is that big enough? Are you going to be down that way any time soon? Anyway, I'm not looking for the absolute maximum power. I want the truck to be strong, but be maintainable by my kids. So I think I want to put the specs into the ECU for a stock MAF sensor and be able to tell the kids it is a '96 CA-spec engine. That way they can get parts for it off the shelf and not have to worry about the ECU not matching. Does that make sense?

Bill and I've been having an email discussion that I want to document here. Most of this discussion is regarding the mass air flow sensor. And to that Bill said "I am using the F8LF-AA on Darth, I think the F5OF-AA was the one that went lean when it got hot." In addition we talked about the CFM capabilities of the MAF sensors. I'm assuming that the stated CFM of the MAF sensors is just what they flow at 5.00 volts. But at 90mm, which is what the MAF sensor I have measures, I'm betting they'll flow far more than 540 CFM for the F5OF. Does anyone know? In addition Bill added "BTW, I just found the picture I was looking for, (cold air) duct is F3TE-9A675-BB, upper radiator hose is F5TA-8B274-VC, and F6TE-9600-HB is the air filter housing." As it turns out those are the things I have, save for maybe the upper radiator hose, which is F5TZ 8260-A, and it fits perfectly w/o the hump. As you've seen, I asked the engine builder, Scotty, what he would recommend for a MAF sensor, and he doesn't have a recommendation. Last, here's Bill's spreadsheet that shows several of the sensors, their output at various flow rates, and then a chart showing their rates together. The output voltages & flow rates have to be put into the ECU so it knows what sensor it is working with.

Well done! That should make a huge difference.

Want a couple more? For $89 I'm not going to mess with it. Now, here's something strange: Cardone 842886 @ Summit: $89 Cardone 842886 @ Rock Auto: $89 Cardone 842886 @ O'Reilly's: $207

I think you'll like that sealant. And especially if you put a stainless nut on a stainless bolt. I had a new, dry stainless nut seize on a new, dry stainless bolt before I started using that stuff. I never put stainless on stainless w/o the stuff now.