Gary Lewis

I put the horn pad in Big Blue today, and all the while that buzzer was going off. It was obnoxious. So, is that because the seat belt is disconnected? The headlights nor key are on.

The stumble isn't consistent? Did the consistency/inconsistency change? Have you tried enrichening the idle air/fuel mix?

Gary, I don't have them in a folder any where as I have them all on my web site. I don't think there is a way to grant access other than full admin. and then I don't know what that would do other than be able to add / remove / add information to the pictures. If there is something you want me to look deeper into let me know and I can see what I can do. Could also be I am stupid LOL and don't know what I am looking at also? Dave ---- Dave - On your pics, do you want all of them on? Or just some of them? If so, are they sorted that way? Concerning the knocking, it is really unusual for the 300 six to knock. What distributor did you use?

Thanks! I need to secure the batteries. That'll be easy on the aux battery as I'll use the same system as before. But the main battery will be a different story. We shall see. And while the electrical system is "hot", I need to work through the mess along the frame below the driver to see if I can find a problem in the Start circuit. I think I'll pull the power lead to the starter and listen for the relay in the starter to click when I turn the key. That way I can check everything but the starter itself w/o spinning the engine. And at about that point I'll call the electrical system "done". Yes, there's more to do like wire in the relay and switch for the OX locker, set up the LED and switch for the smart battery isolator, etc. But those aren't needed for starting it.

The stainless clamps came in today, but I didn't like where they positioned the wire run across the radiator support, so I used these. There were some holes in the support where I needed them, but where there wasn't a hole I added them and put 5 of them across there. Then I used two zip ties on each one, like this: Then I moved on to making positive battery cables. Here's the main battery with its #2 positive cable. Other than clamping the battery down, that side is DONE! And, the horn even works. And here's the aux battery with its #4 positive battery cable. (Turns out the big yellow wire coming across the radiator support is a #4, and that is the same stuff I used to make this cable.) Not that I have a Battery Tender attached to that battery. A few minutes after this pic was taken I heard the smart isolator click and the red LED on it came on. I watched as the voltage dropped from a bit above 13 volts to 12.9 as the charger struggled to bring the combined batteries up and hold the relay in. And, I checked between the two positive posts and initially saw 4.2mv, but it drifted down to under 1.0mv after a minute or so.

He checked out Paypal and they told him that regardless of whether I used friends & family or not, there will be a cross-border fee. So I'm sending him a check.

Gary, I figured the shipping would be as much as the book itself, so that isn't a big surprise. I've shipped a lot of stuff to the US, so I'm used to it. Sounds like he doesn't even use Paypal at all, or he would be used to it and understand the fee structure, which isn't much. If you want to Gary, ask him if he will accept an E-transfer from within Canada (email money transfer in CDN dollars). Tell him you have a friend that could send it. There are no seller ratings that I'm aware of. I see he has 190 items listed, has been a member for 5 years, and has a 96% reply rating. The fact that he's selling a lot of car stuff and old manuals makes him seem legit. I'd say he's pretty safe. I've ordered a lot of stuff from random people on Kijiji and have never had any problems. Otherwise yes, it's as simple as mailing a check. If it's a personal check, then just make sure it is clearly indicated or written that the amount is in USD. If I can help in any way Gary, let me know. Thanks for the offer. Let me see if I can get him to move into the 21st Century and take PayPal and let you know.

Turns out the shipping is as much or more than the book. We got the price, inc shipping, agreed at $50 US but he balked on Paypal. Said "Actually Gary, i'm not comfortable with Paypal, have heard of problems with user fees etc. Why dont you either mail me a cheque for $50 US, or, better still, send a USPS money order made out for $50 US." I don't see ratings on sellers on Kijiji, but maybe I'm missing it? If his ratings were good I'd push for "family and friends" on Paypal, but if he doesn't ship then I have no recourse. I'm not going somewhere to get a money order. But might send a check. Looking at the USPS site I find that mail to Canada is $1.20. Do I just put that much in postage on and send it? Anyone know?

I happen to have one dangling off the work table, but can't see the one on Big Blue as it is below the dash cover and above the glove box liner, IIRC.

Yes, he is. You can find his posts by searching for "First Today". But he just happened to either run across that one for me or had it on hand. Anyway, if you find one of his posts you can click on his handle and email him. But, he's in Louisiana and I think much of that state is locked down due to the virus. And he's not been on much at all for some time, so I don't know what's going on in his life.

Haha. I checked the current exchange rate and $35 CDN is $25 USD today. Shipping from Ontario to OK shouldn't be too bad. He's responded that he'll get a guestimate on the shipping later today. My hope is that this version of the S&UPC will have every fastener listed in the MPC for these trucks. The 2004 version doesn't, and I suspect Ford took parts out as they discontinued using them, just like they did in the MPC. If so, this could be very helpful.

If one of the idle air/fuel mix screws doesn't make a difference then you have a plugged passage in the carb. I've been successful pulling the screw out and squirting compressed air in there. Used my rubber-tipped nozzle and hit it with 120 psi. That cleaned out whatever passage was clogged. I wouldn't do this on a Holley or Motorcraft as there are diaphragms in there you could hurt. But it didn't hurt the Edelbrock as there are no diaphragms. And 4 psi should be plenty except maybe at high RPM.

That's $35 CDN, which right now is probably about $20 USD. Oh no! I was afraid it might be something like that. I joined and sent him a message asking about a shipping guestimate and how low he can go.

Well, I know where I'd be if my daughter was getting married. Maybe next year.

Allow me to clearify this, I only bypassed the high pressure pump, the rest of the system was connected to the factory harness and was working as it should. I had fuel to the HP pump but the HP pump wasn't engaging to build the pressure. So I disconnected the HP pump power and ground and connected power and ground by the battery through a toggle and had no issues. Ran good. So I will need to trace out the wiring for the HP pump and find the power loss. Right? Yes, you need to follow the wiring and find out where the power stops. And to clarify, if you have the wiring shown in the '86 EVTM then there is no resistor. So disregard what I said about that. Further, that diagram doesn't show the switch built into the unit on the frame. Just the switch on the dash. So it is less complex and should be easier to resolve.

That's a paper version of this: http://www.icsarchive.org/icsarchive-org/private/Ford%20Misc/2004-Standard-and-Utility-Parts-Catalog.pdf. I use it frequently to find out the dimensions of a bolt or nut, but the '86 version might have things that the 2004 doesn't. If this was before the crash I'd ask if that's Canadian dollars. And, I'd ask what the shipping might be 'cross the border. But, today I think I'll pass.

Maybe you could share a link for us to contact him. Or, have him join?

Sounds like a fun and productive day. But I wouldn't use WD40 on your speedo cable. There are two lubes I know of made for that - a grease pen/crayon and a graphite-based liquid.

That is really, REALLY COOL! If my son got me something like that I'd be pleased as punch!

Good idea!

I would have bet that by Sept of '86 they were producing 87's. Obviously not. I wonder if they shifted to the next year's truck on a plant-by-plant basis so they could still deliver some of the earlier trucks if ordered? Speaking of ordering, it was ordered by someone in the Seattle district. And they obviously wanted the looks of a Lariat XLT but w/o the optional things like A/C and auto. That is unusual.

Janey made her "Mexican Chicken" dish with the leftover broiled chicken from another meal and the few Doritos we had. Was good, but wasn't her normal. Anyway, you are getting there on the A/C. Once you find the leak you'll be "in". By the way, the longer you leave the vacuum pump on the more moisture it'll pull from the system. Obviously there's a limit, but it doesn't hurt anything to leave it a while.

When I was looking for one of those seat mounts I found one at a local salvage. They knew exactly what I was looking for, and apparently they are hard to find as they wanted over $100. Fortunately Kyle/First Today found one and shipped it to me for less. But the only place I know to look is at a salvage. Or, you might try some of the Facebook groups for these trucks. Those guys sell stuff all the time. Another option might be on eBay.

Scott - I'd like one of the junction blocks at some point. Maybe at the show - if we get to have it. But for now I'm going to pull the trigger to the original isolator relay as well as the ring-tongue terminal to the wire to the key-on relay, put a screw through the two, and heat-shrink them. Then, when I go to EFI I'll put the relay for the aux volt meter in the PDB, remove the original isolator relay, put the junction block there, and call it good. Jim - As usual. Bill - I'm using the '85 ground cable, which goes to the frame and then the block. But the trigger and positive wire run just as you described - under the mount and to the starter. However, the '85 ground cable wasn't long enough to turn the battery, so the positive is out and negative is in. And the "double fusible link to the large yellow wire to the PDC on the left side" is exactly the wire I have running from the battery side of the Megafuse on the passenger's side PDB over the radiator support to the smart battery isolator. But, when I go to EFI the PDB on the driver's side will be too far back for that wire to go all the way to it, so I'll probably have to have a jumper from the smart isolator to the PDB. Apparently either my passenger's side PDB is farther back or I took a longer route as the wire was just the right length to get to the smart isolator.

You had quite a day! It looks superb! and, I'll bet it is much quieter. Glad you figured out what we were talking about. And, I saw what you said about Dad's truck. Oops, forgot the air cleaner. Perhaps one specific to these trucks and that engine?