Gary Lewis

A couple of you have pointed out that some custom things we had in the forum have gone away. That included our smileys, returns at the bottom of some pages, and font sizes. And there may well have been others. I'd made an error in a macro that appears to have been causing this. That's now been fixed and it appears to have fixed the problems. But if you see other changes like that please let me know.

Yes, it is both a good idea and a great offer. I just wish I had a truck that was going to be sitting out. Mine seem to have taken up permanent residence in the shop.

It is always good to follow our mate's suggestions. However, you are restoring the outside, with no patina - right? So is the bed with patina going to be in keeping with the theme? And if you don't have a "theme" then how do you know you are doing it correctly? People are going to say "It is your truck, so do it your way." Good advice. But, how do you know "your way"? My theme on Dad's truck is "As Ford could have done it." The implication there is that they had this technology or these parts so could have built the truck as I'm doing it. However, I've taken some rather big liberties there by using technology they only developed later, like the E4OD transmission and EFI. But other than the heads and cam, all else is from Ford. (So far, but I'm not done.) Anyway, I'm just suggesting you have a theme for the truck.

I wish I did. Can't help.

My favorite engine. I really like under dogs. Everyone thinks the 460 is the way to go, but the 400 has a slightly longer stroke and plenty of breathing capacity in the heads. Hope you'll document it, Angelo.

Yes! It is important that shields be grounded at one end only. Else there's a current through them and that induces voltage on the wiring within.

Yep, it is a great price.

I don't think I'd drop it down. I think I'd wrap it around the headlight and come in that way.

Does this look like it belongs? If so, you can read about how I did it here: http://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/Big-Blue-s-Transformation-tp28014p55302.html

Well, that's an even easier solution. Well done!

83/86 F100/350, U150 E2TZ 6754-B block mount type

1984 only: 84 F-U150/350 E4TZ 18552-A

I've not used anything but round collets. But I can see that a 6-sided one would be very handy. Anyway, the $64,000 question is exactly that - can I get the heat shield tab and a nut in there? I don't want to bend the heat shields up too much, so it is questionable. But I'll see what I think is possible tomorrow. I have a piece of all-thread and I'll run it in there and see if the heat shield will go on. If so, then put a nut on and see. It is gonna be CLOSE! But that begs the question of how necessary the heat shields are. Didn't have them before and the wires survived. How badly do I need them?

The advert says "1984", but Ford says 1983 only. 18552 CABLE ASSY. (HEATER AIR CONTROL) 83 F-U100/350 E3TZ 18552-B

I think you are saying the heat will cause the Loctite to release. Right? As for milling a hex on the stud, I have the equipment to do that, but have never done it. Basically you put the piece in a rotary table, mill a flat, turn it 60 degrees, etc. But that means a lot more work than just threading the ends of the stud as you also have to do more work on the lathe to create the ring that you then mill into a hex. How 'bout Plan C - I have stainless wire and the right gas. Why not weld a stainless nut on? Run the nut down and weld on the bottom side But I don't think I could get nuts down a piece of all-thread and clear the headers. The clearance is so small that it takes those special 12-point headed bolts to clear. I'm thinking the stainless nut and double-ended stainless stud is the way to go. I'll do more checking tomorrow to see if that approach looks like it'll work, and if better ideas don't come in I'll make one and see.

Looking great, Ray! Yes, insulation can make a huge difference. HUGE! You'll be so happy when you get it done.

I don't know why, but they are not only limited to 2wd, but they are limited to only those with the forged axle: 80/on F150 — 2/W/D forged E4TZ 3K064-A twin-I-beam

Ok, got y'all a proposal on the joining process and then took a look at the plug wire shields. Houston, we have a problem. Please read to the very bottom for a proposed solution on which I'd like your input. This pic shows the left shield laying in place. Looks like some minor bending will be needed to get it down in around the plugs, but no big deal. And, bolt just right of #5 plug clears the header enough that I can probably get the stud in there. However, what you can't see in the above pic you can see in the pic below. The bolt just left of the #7 plug is one of those that JUST clear the header, and there's absolutely no way that a stud is going in there. So, I have two ideas, and want your thoughts on them as well as additional ideas. Studs: I could buy the studs Jim provided a link to and turn down those that will hit down in the lathe. But that doesn't make much sense. Stainless: I have plenty of the 3/4" stainless and could turn four pieces down and thread them on each end. I'm leaning strongly to the stainless approach as I'll have to turn the studs down anyway to clear. And I doubt the studs are the right length as they were intended for the much thicker manifolds, so the threads on the inside end may be too long and there may not be enough length to get the shields where they need to be. So I might as well make what I need. Oh, and I plan to run a nut down on the stud to torque them down. Which means there needs to be a shoulder to run the nut down against. And I'll probably use red Loctite on the nut. Here's a rough sketch of what I'm talking about. Thoughts?

Excellent! You might check U-techcenter as Jim suggested.

Yes, but for the little trucks: 85 B-R 6 cyl 171 ci E5TZ 9A837-B #E5TB 9D809-CA

Jim & Bill - Am home and see that you've added a link for studs and pics of the shields. Thanks. Need to work on the joining process a while and then hope to get to the shop to see that the shields will work with the headers and that I can put studs where they are needed. If so I can order the studs.

Chad - It does sound like the choke may be set too rich, and coming on too soon and/or far while the engine is too warm. That’s what David was suggesting re the seasonal adjustments. However that doesn’t account for it stalling when being driven. That does seem more like vapor locking. Take a look at the Hot Fuel Handling tab here: http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/460-fuel-systems.html. Your ‘83 may not have that. In fact, I’m not sure yours will have the in-tank pump as the early ones frequently didn’t. If your insulation doesn’t solve that problem you’ll need to determine if it really is a fuel problem or ignition as the ignition systems can fail when hot. But if it is fuel and if you don’t have the Hot Fuel setup then you might consider creating your own - a return style regulator.

Rusty - I can’t wait for the thread when you install that system. Jim - I hope you get it on the road today. 👍 But tell me more about seeing a pic of the mail. How do you do that?

Hey Gary, that guy looks enough like you to be your brother! Lol! Yep, but he got the good looks. 😉