Gary Lewis

That's the way it should be. But I think the brother of sets the rules in Florida. Luckily the repairs weren't expensive, and in many cases they were in boxes that I had to go into anyway. For instance the kids wanted outlets with USB chargers built in on either side of their bed. And those boxes were mis-wired. And they wanted dimmers in many places, and all of those boxes were mis-wired - but wouldn't have been found in an inspection.

It was inspected. But obviously the inspector didn't do his/her job. There's no way it should have passed the simple test of plugging in the tester to the outlets. So that's some of what I did while there, and I found a surprising number of un-grounded outlets. I didn't get everything tested, but the ones I found to be bad have been fixed - along with a lot of other problems.

It looks to me like the wire is holding the shroud for the hot air to the air cleaner. In other words, I'm not sure there's anything wrong with the manifold itself. Or am I missing something?

Yes, the catalog says that all F150's take 11 x 2 1/4" shoes.

Congrat's!!!!!!!!!!!!! Well Done!!

They are in the Master Parts Catalog, and my catalog only goes out to 1989. But here are all 127 pages for 1987 - 89, including all of the "light trucks". (As you can see, for the website I extract the non-Bullnose ones, but this is quick and dirty, so....)

That’s an answer I can understand and accept.

At the risk of sounding like Jim (), I guess I don't understand "the risk is worth the award". A Powermaster 8-57141 is $207 and is rated at 140 amps. A 3G from DB Electric is something like $70 and puts out 130 amps - and over 100 amps at idle. I see a lot of risk, but where's the reward? I'm building my trucks so that my offspring, who are not into auto work, can maintain them. I grant that if you walk into a parts store they'll ask what the vehicle is and "a 1985 F250" as an answer won't get you a 3G. But, as Bill said, if you just say "a '95 Taurus w/a 3.8L" they'll hand you an alternator that will bolt right in.

Glad you'd left the window down, and that you got one set of keys out. Maybe you need one of the magnetic key holders and put it up under the truck in a hidden spot?

Good question. And since I have two Bullnose trucks: Dad's Truck: Nowhere near finished. Not even drivable. Taking a back seat to Big Blue. But the goal is to be a trailer queen that shows what Ford could have done. Big Blue: Not done, and probably never will be truly DONE. But he is now drivable after two years of transformation. Still a fair amount of things to do, like the security system, and on-board air, and bed cover, and this winter the EFI. But I use it for trips on country roads or Jeep trails or, hopefully, overlanding.

Thanks, Scott. I tried to put enough info in to be comprehensive but keep it short enough to be readable. But Bret's busy right now not only with work but with getting their new-to-them house remodeled. It is quite the challenge as everything they open up needs work. For instance, the exhaust fan in their bathroom didn't work, so he replaced it. Nada, in spite of the black wire being hot. So I checked the neutral and it was dead. Followed it back and it was hanging in the breeze in a junction box. But it came into the junction box under a snap-on cover instead of via a knock-out. had a field day on their house. Most of the boxes I opened up had a ground but it wasn't connected - and they are plastic boxes. Plugged the 'fridge in and it didn't work but the black wire was hot. Sure enough, the neutral was dead. Every single thing they open up is like that. We spent a week with them and ate out most of the time 'cause they didn't have a kitchen. No sink, no cook top, etc. They got a counter top and sink late last night, and maybe a dish washer today. So I'm not expecting anything from him very soon. But he asked for the info so now I've done my part.

Yes, the ammeter is probably just showing that the battery is getting charged back up. And yes, with a 3G you can walk into any parts store around and probably get an alternator off their shelf to fit. And if not off their shelf then they'll be able to get it very quickly. As for modifying the harness, yes it needs to be changed for the 3G and I'm pretty sure it does for the 1-wire. One of the reasons for that is because the shunt that drives that ammeter is not capable of carrying the amount of current the new alternators can put out. So you have to change the wiring so that the shunt isn't in the charging circuit. Go read the page I linked to above as it outlines what needs to be done.

I can't imagine that it was hot-tanked. Those are supposed to get really HOT, and the chemical is so corrosive it ruins the cam bearings. I'd think that would easily have taken the yellow yuk out. On the temps, what radiator are you running? I ask because I can take some inlet and outlet temp readings on Big Blue one of these days and we can compare. But if you are running a Champion 4-row, like I think you are, it'll be a better comparison 'cause that's what I'm running.

Scott - On the "rpm threshold" do you mean that you have to pick which alternator to use or which pulley to use in order to have the alternator kick in at idle? And on the harness, you are suggesting carrying a spare harness with you on trips so you can go back to a 1G when the Powermaster fails? So, you'd walk into a parts store and buy a new 1G and regulator? Or carry all that with you as well as the harness? (Jordan - Scott and I know each other pretty well, and I like to think we are good friends. So don't think we are mad at each other or something.)

Not a fan of those wheels and tires. But otherwise it looks good.

I really like the HIPO LEDs I'm using, although they are expensive. Have you read this thread? http://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/Instrument-Lighting-Paint-Testing-tp52526p52839.html

Glad the headlights are working for you. There is a lot of junk out there so you have to be careful. On the alternator, I don't know much about the 1-wire units. But I very much dislike the Powermaster brand. I have one in a box I'll give you, but it has something wrong in it and they don't sell parts. You have to ship it back to them. I highly prefer an off the shelf unit you can get at any parts store so if it goes out on a trip you aren't stuck. As for finding a 3G, you can order one from DB Electric. But you should make some wiring changes, as discussed on the page at Documentation/Electrical/3G Conversion. Which leads me to your question about the "voltmeter". It isn't a voltmeter, it is an ammeter. And my guess is that you pulled the battery down quite a bit during the installation of the stereo and the regulator is trying to charge it. But, it shouldn't do that for very long, and should only do that when the engine speed is above idle. So tell us more about what is going on?

That sounds like a lot of little things, which add up to PROGRESS! And, as Jim says, progress is GOOD!

Scott - That's ugly looking stuff to come out of a cooling system. Was the block hot-tanked in the rebuild process? I would have thought that would have gotten all of that out. But I sure understand the frustration with flush after flush after flush, so I can see the desire to run it and flush again later. You may have already cleaned out the majority of the yellow stuff, as well as lots of other yuk. As for the 'stat, I don't remember what I put in BB, but I'll be interested to see what you think of that one.

Jordan - Which LED headlights did you go with? Are you happy with them? Regarding Scott's suggestion of pulling the HVAC resistor, that is a MUST. But you might find it helpful to not only pull the resistor but also pull the motor. Just takes a few screws to get it out and it gives even more access into the innards of the plenum. I've forgotten what year your truck is already. So it would be helpful if you put some details about it in a signature, instructions for which can be found on the Bullnose Forum/Forum FAQ's page. But the reason the year is important is that the 1986 trucks came with the dreaded 2G alternators. It has been called the Firestarter by some due to a connection problem it had. So if yours is an '86 you should read 2G ALTERNATOR REPAIR: TSB 96-21-4.

I got the page on Big Blue (Documentation/Picture Galleries/Big Blue), which includes the writeup, done enough that I sent a link to it to my son last night. And I also asked for his help on picking the rack and tent, which is something he has been interested in all along. So we'll see where this goes. Thanks for the help getting it "there".

You are now on the map.

Yes, I REALLY need to put together a comprehensive list of what's in/on the truck. But this write up, and your suggestions, are helping. I think I'm pretty close to being "done". Might be able to embellish a bit more, add a few more part numbers, etc. But things are close. Please let me know where it should be fleshed out, reduced, changed, etc.

How 'bout using the FSM section instructions? Documentation/Body/FRONT DOOR WINDOW GLASS & MECHANISMS.

Welcome, Jordan! Glad you joined. Wow! That's pic's a beaut! The truck is great as well, but the picture itself is awesome! Are you sure you aren't a photographer? San Francisco? As in CA? Want to be on our map? You can see it at Bullnose Forum/Member's Map in the menu.