Gary Lewis

Bob - I knew where it was, meaning in Big Blue's Transformation. But that seems to have more than a page or two () and it took some searching. But, the search function on this forum works amazingly well - if you find the right terms. And yes, the magic is in the smacks with a mallet. Then take up the slack with the nut and hit it again.

Yep! They are 1" thick. Scott doesn't think the holes are precise so I may get to drill them, but that will be easy. Probably couldn't have gotten the material for the $64 they cost.

Well, Scott just showed up with some tow eyes. Think they'll be stout enough? Bolted to the side of the frame and welded both to angle that's bolted to the bottom of the frame as well to the bumper, they should suffice.

I know where I hid the bodies.

That is great, John! Please let us know what you find out.

See if the comment on the first row of this snippet from the Master Parts Catalog, from our page at Documentation/Cooling System/Radiator Support, doesn't answer the question:

Yes, anti-seize now coats the back of Big Blue's spindles.

Well folks, Friday isn't here but I've decided the show must go on. I put up 48 flyers yesterday here in Skiatook, and have a few more to put up soon. So we are going to have a show!

It looks like today is our day to be moved. Don't know how long we'll be down, but I'm sure we will be.

Looking back at some of the previous drawing I found the one below and it shows a t-handled bolt with one piece of angle and a spring. Something needs to keep the bolt from coming out, but the angle could be spaced up enough that a nut could be secured to the bolt under the angle. Leave just enough bolt protruding to thread into a nut welded to the bumper and tighten the nut on the bolt down against the nut on the bumper. That way a tool isn't needed, but will that secure it tight enough? And, is the spring-loaded pin a good idea? At least I'd have a safety if the bolt wasn't run down.

I don't know how he found it as I left the truck with them and walked around town putting up flyers. Put 36 up on that trip and then came back to the shop and they said they'd found the leaks but not how.

Yes! I was worried about the insulation. This is an easy fix. As for the bumper, you can also discuss it with the other Scott at the dinner. Speaking of the bumper, I need to nail down the materials list. Hopefully I can do that today and get it off to him. And I'm going to go ahead and order the pivot and latch. On the materials, I'm going to go with his suggestion of 3/16" walls. While that was before the gusset, as I think about it that heavy tire will still be trying to twist the lower arm since it is suspended ~8" aft and ~14" above the centerline of the lower swing arm. Also I'm thinking about changing the lock-down bolt. RuffStuff STRONGLY recommends securing the arm for travel with a bolt, and as you can see below I have it on the left end of the swing arm with a spring that retracts it. But that ensures that water is going to get in that tube and I don't like that. So I'm wondering about welding two pieces of angle on the end of the tube so the spring would be out in the open and there's no easy access to water. (I'll still have weep holes, but there's no need to put an entry point in on the top of the tube.) Thoughts? Better ideas? (Disregard the weird joint on the top of the gusset. That just hasn't been changed - yet.)

Thanks, Bill.

Yes, been there, done that, have the scars to prove it. Start reading in Big Blue's Transformation here. Make sure your read Bob's suggestion here. And the upgrade. And finally the success story here.

I wouldn’t have slept well either. Those tests rule out other things, so it is carb time. Good luck!

Jim - Hope you got some sleep. And good luck finding it. If the engine won't pull immediately after filling the bowl I'd agree it probably isn't the fuel pump or a hung up needle. But it still could be a plugged passage in the carb, something that was in the fuel and go past the filter. How hard is it to swap carbs? And I agree it probably isn't a plugged exhaust given how large and open it is. So the "flat" sound may be a consequence of the way the engine is running rather than a plug. Again, good luck!

Personally I think it is wise to leave the vacuum on for quite a while to both check for leaks as well as boil off any stubborn moisture. But we were standing there and he probably felt a need to go quickly, so... I'm not sure how easy it is to find vacuum leaks, so we might have had to resort to charging it anyway. And it it is possible that the split happened later as the old hose gave up the fight against pressure. Anyway, DeWayne can find things. And he knows Fords. So that's a really good place to go for me. As for the spacer/adapter, it is Scotty's. And the injector bung plugs are just brass cups he sent with the adapter.

Hey, Matt! How's the UK? I'm reading that y'all are seeing a significant drop in COVID cases. Hope that's true and you are staying safe. On the tranny, I don't know as I've not pulled a governor apart on a C6. All I can suggest is that you read the factory shop manual section here: http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/c6.html And, I've tagged Bill/85lebaronT2 as I think he's rebuilt those transmissions. Let's see what he says.

E5TZ 18599-C 85/on F-U150/350 w/4.9 Located on thermostat housing 3/4-14 male conn, x 3/8-18 female conn. x 3/4" heater hose conn.

Ok, so bad fuel probably isn't the problem. And it idles ok, but doesn't have power. If there's no bucking, like the timing chain hasn't slipped or the ignition system is bad then I'm back to your idea about clogged exhaust. I once packed a header muffler on a 750 K1 so tightly with stainless steel wool that it did NOT want to pull on the highway. Ran fine at lower RPM, but under load it would not wind nor pull. However, it was QUIET!

Missed this post. I agree on the plastic caps, which is why I plan to weld end caps on. But there will be weep holes and I'll use plenty of that Fluid Film I bought - but not until the parts are powder coated. Speaking of that, I'm going to have to find someone to PC the bumper and parts. The bumper measures 76.25" and my oven is 72. And, there's a trolley that parts hang from, so I can't get the bumper in. John/Machspeed is looking for a place to do his wheels, so maybe I can follow his lead. As for the fit up, Scott is pretty particular about that. I watched him do a lot of work on the engine crossmember patch after I thought it was good. So I'm sure he will have a lot of guidance for me. I hope to get all the parts ready with the fit up I think he asked for, and then have him come inspect it.

I dont think I will really need sealant on the aluminum components. I would have to double check my intake manifold how ever when I get to that stage. I dont know if the Performer intake I bought has blind holes or not for the thermostat. But I will keep that in mind how ever. I need to make sure on this cause if I ever have to take this engine apart I dont want to be destroying threads in aluminum castings because I didnt put lubricant on the threads during installation. That's the issue. You don't want to destroy anything taking it apart. And it is so easy to do that on water pumps.

I don't know if they don't leak under vacuum or if it is too slow to notice. My nephew only pulled a vacuum for a few minutes, so might have missed it. The discharge line leaks at a fitting that is crimped on the line. The suction line has a crack in it that is leaking, about in the middle of the run across the firewall. DeWayne/93F3507.3 works at Skiatook Auto Parts and that was my next stop after picking the truck up as I was going around town hanging up my flyers for the show. (I put up 48 of them today.) The outfit that found the leaks and I agreed we'd both see if we could find the hoses as they didn't think it would be easy. So I asked DeWayne and his go-to company had none. But the 2nd place he tried had 67 of them. However, DeWayne wanted to make sure so he looked at Big Blue's lines to compare with what he was seeing on the screen. Fifteen minutes later we went back in the shop with him asking "What intake is that? Where'd you get the plenum-to-carb spacer?" And all sorts of questions. Anyway, the "assembly" is on order and might be here before the end of the week. If so maybe they can put it on. If not, I'm likely to add another can as I want to take the truck to the grand opening of a new business in Tulsa - Okie Overland. Says "A full-service overlanding and offroad vehicle outfitter."

I think you might be surprised what the 35's look like on/next to the truck. With your lift...

Speaking of fuel, how recently did you fill up? A rock-solid idle doesn't seem to suggest a wiped cam. I can assure you that a bad cam WILL show up at idle - to the point that I thought the mirrors might come off if I didn't shift out of Drive to Neutral. And even then it was rough. But, I did have two bad cylinders back-to-back in the firing order. Down on power sounds like something common to all cylinders, like ignition or fuel. Bad fuel.