Gary Lewis

You are now on the map.

I've done some research and am happy with what I'm finding. First, the tent in the above pic looks to be a Yakima SkyRise Medium, Red. And they, Yakima, have several roof top tents available. What I don't yet know is how many of them will attach to the crossbars, nor how much weight the crossbars can handle. Next, Leer makes a Pace Edwards Jackrabbit With Explorer Series Rails tonneau. And, they have one to fit our trucks, both with an 80" bed and a 96" bed. Plus, as the name implies, it comes with the rails that the crossbars go into. So, I have a lot of investigation to do, with questions like: Can I go with a unit for an 80" bed and butt it up against my tool box instead of the bulkhead at the front of the bed? Will it work with my drop-in bed liner? (I suspect not as most clamp to the inside edge of the "gunnel" if you will, and the liner hides that.) How much weight can the crossbars carry? (One of the Yakima tents is capable of handling 600 lbs, so can the crossbars carry that?) I have a lot to learn about this, but I'm happy to find that there are tonneaus that have tracks. So I could go with a tonneau now and add the crossbars and roof top tent later - if I get to go overlanding with my son. (Or grandkids????)

It was an interesting project. I jumped into it with little thought, which was pretty obvious part way through. The heat shield is captured between the bracket for the actuator and the aluminum channel that serves as the spacer to get the actuator away from the side of the frame. But as I was getting done I realized that there's no way to get a screwdriver on the Phillips headed screws. And I didn't have the right hex headed screws. So I got a short #2 Phillips bit, a 1/4" socket, and my 1/4" drive ratchet and reached inside the hoop to tighten them down. And somehow I got that done w/o cutting myself on the edges of the hoop. I'd spent quite a while on them w/a file, but they are still not something you'd want to play with.

Well done, Andrew. That is a strange noise! I'm going to embed the Youtube video here to make it easier for the folks. (I've ticked the "Message Is In HTML Format" box and am pasting in the "embed code" I got from clicking "Share" on your video.) The thing in your picture is probably the stepper motor that the computer uses to control the air/fuel mix on your carb. But it shouldn't sound like that. And I don't know why it would be doing that. I'm going to tag Bill/85lebaront2 as he's a guru on carbs and he may know.

Welcome, Andrew! Glad you joined. (And glad that you introduced yourself. ) Bay area? Would you like to be on our map? It is at Bullnose Forum/Member's Map in the menu, and we'd add you if we had a city or a zip. Nice truck. Now let's go troubleshoot the fuel problems...

Before we get into problem solving we need you to do as requested in the email you were sent. Please go to the New Members Start Here folder, read the guidelines, and then start a new topic/thread to introduce yourself. Why? Because that is where we keep the guidelines and it is important that you have an opportunity to read them since we hold everyone to them. So, once you've done that and the intro then we can start the troubleshooting here. Thanks in advance.

Bob? Is it Bob? Welcome! Glad you joined. That is a nice looking truck, and it must mean a lot to you to have it as it will always be special to you. So we'd like to help you get it up to snuff. However, the New Members Start Here isn't the best place to do troubleshooting as you won't get as many people seeing your post here as in the main section. So I'd suggest you click on Bullnose Forum at the top of the page and then click New Topic and start a thread about the truck and its maladies there. Here we typically do welcomes, and one of my standard welcomes is the "Where's home" question. That's 'cause we have a map (Bullnose Forum/Member's Map in the menu) and we could add you if we had a city or zip. Who knows, you may be a neighbor.

Well, I hadn't thought of that, but it does kind of look like a cup holder. Anyway, thanks! I just couldn't stand to put the thing in that close to the headers w/o some protection.

I'm in the market for a tonneau cover for Big Blue, something lockable so when we are traveling we can put our suitcases back there without worries. And I'm hoping that someone out there knows more about it than I do, which won't be difficult. I have a Retrax Pro on Blue and really like it. But on their site I can't find one for a Ford truck older than 1997. (If you put 1996 or earlier in you can only find GM trucks.) So, when did the beds change? Was it in '97? I'm going to put it behind the toolbox, so it only needs to be 76 1/2" long, which should mean I can use one for a 6 3/4' bed. But if the beds changed..... And later I hope to add a "roof top tent" to the truck, which will take a rack of some kind. But Retrax shows the picture below on their site for one of their high-end covers. But there is precious little info on their site, and I'm concerned about loading. Anyway, maybe some of you know of other covers that are lockable and either have the ability to put other accessories on their tracks or have cutouts for the stake pockets?

Forgot the fender liners I'm looking forward to how that works out.

Congrat's on getting the shroud, and especially for that price. I don't know what you could paint it with to protect it given the heat it sees. But maybe someone will know. On the bolts, I don't know if anti-seize will stand up to the temps, but Jim will probably know.

Bill - You are now on the map. As for Ford trucks, you are well ahead of me, and I'm OLD!

Welcome! Glad you joined. I like the truck. Not many with that few of options around, and many on here love their optionless trucks. And to get it from the original owner with only 52K miles is wonderful! What part of Michigan are you in? I ask because we have a map (Bullnose Forum/Member's Map in the menu) and we could add you if we had a zip or city. I hope you'll start a thread about your truck, either in the main section or in Projects, to tell us what you do to it over the years. We like to follow along and offer encouragement on the way.

Thanks, Scott. But for $33 + shipping I'll try the manual method. I did confirm with Colby that the unit will keep its programming if power is removed. And, according to him, the LED will flash at the same time the siren or horn chirps in the programming mode, so maybe I could just silence them to do the setup. As for what I did today, I made this. What do y'all think it is? Does this help? And, here's another view. That's .028" stainless serving as a heat shield for the actuator. That's 'cause the actuator is now only 3" from the headers, but this should prevent a meltdown.

I would have thought you'd have heard something hitting there as the bedside is a big drum. But hopefully you can straighten it out w/o damage.

Hadn't thought about the programming via a PC. What module does it take and how 'spensive is that? The manual programming is via lots of button pushes. Anyway, glad you like it. I think it is going to work very nicely.

Lots of work! But you are making good progress. And Jim is right, check out the frame where the steering box bolts on - Dad's was cracked there in spite of having been treated kindly all of its life from what I can tell. And on both trucks the huck bolt was loose.

Morning update. Talked with Janey about security systems and she encouraged me to get one on order. Plus, she said she thinks we need a tonneau cover like the one on Blue before our trip so we can put our suitcases in the bed w/o worrying about them. A bit of looking found that the Retrax I have on Blue fits down in the bed and has lips/tracks that sit on the top of the bed sides. So I should be able to put one right behind the tool box, and it is 76 1/2" from there to the tailgate, so one for a 6 3/4' bed would work fine. But, speaking of the tailgate, I'll have to install the Power Tailgate Lock I bought years ago and it'll be triggered with the door locks. (But looking at it now I'm not quite sure how it is supposed to work and the instructions are less than informative.) Meanwhile, back at the ranch/discussion about security systems, she convinced me to call Crutchfield. I'd been looking at the Code Alarm CA1155e Elite and the CA1055 but couldn't figure out the differences. However, Colby, my advisor at Crutchfield, said the difference is that the 1155 has a built-in shock/tilt sensor and the 1055's is an add-on. So I decided on the 1155 and they had one so I ordered it. Now to see what I can get done today....

Yuppers. And wait until I tell the latest. As for FB, there are many very nice people on there. But you are right, the SNR is low and you have to be very selective. I think I'd be very surprised at how many people I have blocked, never to see or be seen by them.

No, I haven't and I'm not going to figure out how much I have in my trucks. I don't want to know. It is my hobby and that's what I want to do. As for social media being "nothing but a hype machine", that is certainly true in some cases. However, I've seen many, many cases where people have helped others figure things out that they wouldn't have otherwise. And in that respect it can act just like a forum. Yesterday someone asked on Bullnose Fords 80-86 what SD springs people are using with SAS and RSK. I was able to tell him that my U-code springs are working out well and what I have "up front" in the truck. Very much like it would have been on here. And last night another guy asked me via FB Messenger if a D50 TTB can be put in place of a D44 HD TTB. I couldn't answer because the documentation doesn't tell if the parts will swap. So he posted on FB and a guy came back saying they won't. That the D50 TTBs are shorter and the brackets mount in a different place than the D44s, and the holes aren't there in the frame. So social media can be very helpful. But it can also be a real problem.

Basically this thread and Cory's Appreciation for hard work is fading, and old cars aren’t easy (Leno) thread are two peas in the same pod. It takes a LOT of work to put anything back in shape, and even more work to "restomod" one. Saying it another way, there are many factors that come into play with the rise of the popularity of our Bullnose trucks. One is that they were at a low spot in the price curve, so people could buy them to build up. Another is the rise of technology, like social media, forums, and websites, that let us share ideas, find documentation, and encourage each other to transform the trucks. And yet another is the likes of ICON which show the world what can be done with them, albeit at a major cost. Then there's the weird stuff going on with buying everything right now. Houses are going for more than the asking price in 24 hours. RVs & boats are selling like hot cakes. And apparently all of that has spilled over into automotive projects.

Don't forget the $400K ICON 1970 F-100. It is a very nice looking truck, and got all kinds of rave reviews, but I doubt it would do what Big Blue will.

Yup, I have some of that stuff laying around and use if every once in a while. And then have to sharpen the drill bits again. But it is strong, and your shelving should be stout.

Good going, Jim. But, what does "the UTS of garbage is garbage" mean? I assume auto-correct got you?

Yes, these day-trips are perfect for working out the bugs. And there are plenty of them given the number of changes I've made. While today did feel like a setback as I slogged through it, we are getting down to the little things. I won't know for a while if the brake line is still leaking, but tomorrow I will press on the brakes several times to see if I can make it leak. I sure hope that tightening it did the trick and I don't have to install a new line. Then I hope to move the OX actuator, clamp the actuator cable, make another 1" bump stop spacer for the passenger's side, and then install both of them. Maybe by summer and the hoped-for trip to Ouray I'll have this thing sorted and ready to go.