kramttocs

Jim, good question. I've always assumed heat was their only kryptonite. I've only ever had one go out on me. It wasn't an all or nothing thing in that case. The truck would just die randomly. Fortunately it would also start right back up and since the truck (the 80 1 ton) is a manual it wasn't a huge problem. My plan is: Active DSII (right side up) ==================1/4 aluminum plate Backup DSII (upside down) I will drill out the threads on the active unit and sandwich it all together using bolts coming from the top and using the Backup DSII's threads. The Backup DSII will only be used for short times until I get the Active one replaced. Or life happens and I forget to replace the top one until they both go bad... Ether way the aluminum plate ought to help dissipate some heat even though the bottom one won't get much airflow. ...... On the GVOD. Turns out I wasn't working with all the right information. I didn't have a manual with my unit so I purchased one awhile back. It is for the current control box whereas mine is the 'analog' model with a build date of '95 Your thoughts Gary aren't all that far off for some functions of the unit. I was trying to test the controls/lights but nothing was working. Turns out they don't work unless the solenoid is hooked up (had to call tech support on that one). That stumped me for quite awhile. I was afraid I was going to have to go the route Dave just mentioned. Where I would have a NC connection that would be for the power to the whole unit and upon being grounded (via the 4x4 switched ground indicator) it would kill power to the whole unit. Fortunately that turned out to not be the case. The manual I have states that "The lockout is designed to lockout Gear Vendors until the ignition has been cycled. If the truck has been shifted into four wheel drive, the vehicle must be shut off and restarted in 2 wheel drive, in order for Gear Vendors to be operation again. To test whether this feature is working correctly. Turn vehicle ignition on, shift transfercase into four wheel drive. Once the 4x4 indicator illuminates on the dash board, shift transfercase back into 2 wheel drive. Now depress Gear Vendors foot switch while looking at Red Autodrive light. Nothing should change. If the red light turns on and off with the foot switch, something is not correct. If everything is wired correctly, the ignition must be shut off and turned back on in order for Gear Vendors to work." Some notes on that- The Red Autodrive light is on IF the unit is going to go into OD automatically. This means either Launch (1st over) if in Manual mode or 4th gear in Automatic mode (these modes don't refer to the transmission type). Whether in Manual or Automatic the foot switch can be used to toggle the Red Autodrive light. When the unit is in OD the Green OverDrive light comes on (and the Red light goes off) - it's either one lit, the other lit, or neither. My moment of panic was that even when grounding the 4x4 lead and then disconnecting it, I was still able to toggle the red light with the foot switch. My next test, thankfully as it explained the whole 4x4 issue, was to see if the solenoid actually engaged. Hooked a drill to the end of the speedometer, put the unit in Manual mode with the Red Autodrive lit since this is Launch and means the unit should engage OD at a lower mph, and started the drill. Sure enough the red light went out, green light came on and I could hear the solenoid click. Put it in 4x4, did the same test and, phew, the red light always stayed on - no OD engagement. Put it back into 2wd, did the same test and the OD kicked in. Huh? The manual says it should require an ignition cycle Well after a number of tests in all the various configs and the different mph engagement thresholds with, I have to assume that the analog unit doesn't require that power cycle and is simply interrupted by the presence of ground. I actually prefer this as having to kill the truck seems a bit of a pain but I do see the safety in it. That may not mean anything or matter to most but I hadn't come across that information before so maybe it will help someone. Doing those tests and routing the wires is about all I got done today. I did get the tailgate installed last night. Never realized how many alignment points there are with it. Everything looks good except it's too close to the passenger side. Will take some photos and post a question about that in the main forum later. On another note - I first learned about Big Blackie when it was put up for sale the first time. Found the FTE thread at that time but admittedly never read beyond a few posts here and there because all of the photos were missing. So all I'd ever seen were the eBay listing photos (which were impressive). Well this afternoon I was googling something and that thread was returned, clicked on it, and was surprised to see all the photos showing up. That led to reading the vast majority of the thread Wow! Incredible work. Knowing how much work was involved between each photo update is crazy. There is a ton of good information and tips in there that everyone should read. Part of me wishes I had before I started but the other part is afraid I would have been scared away .Now I entirely understand the references when you guys mention that truck and what it sold for.

Looks great!

Thanks, good to be back! Not that I'd ever really left...and I have been reading up on some threads periodically. But with one thing and another the truck has taken a back seat for a while, so not a whole lot of cause to post here. Although now that spring has arrived, I expect that to change somewhat. And it was definitely a lonely ride to the wing joint to pick up dinner, but the truck *has* made some new friends recently. At the last robotics competition before the season got cancelled, the organizers gave us half of the competition carpet, on the condition we could haul it home that night: Are you taking classes from home? Nope! Those of us who have finally graduated have no need for online learning. Hey! Like was said by others, good to hear from you and see the truck.

Mine had the same and was against the Canadian border with 120k so I assume it's factory. Definitely sticky, gooey stuff. I used some Eastwood string putty since the black stuff had crud all in it. Clamped it down for awhile.

I like the attention taken with the dash gauges. They may not really fit the classic look of the dash but they were well done.

Happen to have a photo of yours?

I knew the measurements beforehand but it was still a lot bigger in person than I expected. The original onboard charger that came with the truck was mounted in the same spot but on the drivers side. It was a much smaller unit and only did one bank. Had the day off so spent part of it working on the truck. First was trying to get an understanding of the GVOD wiring. Didn't pay a ton of attention when it was removed from the original truck as it is color coded but since I am integrating it into the custom dash panel I need to understand the wiring a bit better. Think I have everything figured out but having some issues with the 4x4 lockout (blue wire with a male spade). Figured it had to be scotchlok-ed into the 4x4 indicator down by the tcase which means it would be ground switched. Chatted with support but they weren't sure since the unit is an older one. Fortunately Jonathan (F834) had a better diagram which confirmed the scotchlok. So now I know the blue wire is looking for ground. Great. The problem is what when I checked that wire it didn't have any voltage. Not sure what is going on there. Tabled that for the moment but welcome any suggestions on tests I can perform. I don't care for scotchloks so made a jumper to go in the 4wd wire that is on the engine side of the firewall. Moved on to the interior. Cleared all the tools out and did some cleaning/vacuuming. Installed all the seat/seatbelt bolts and then installed the carpet. I talked about the carpet back when I bought it but this is the mass backed essex. Right now I would say the fit is ok. The material quality is great but it isn't quite fitting like I expected. I haven't installed a carpet since the 65 Mustang in high school though and I've slept since then. Hopefully once I start working it around it will fit better. It was also in the 30's in the shop so no doubt that made the mass backing a bit less pliable. Did some more work on the drivers side platform. Originally this platform was going to be for a fuse box, the duraspark, and the battery charger. Since the battery charger was way too big for this I gained a spot for something else. The threaded rods will be cut off. Due to the overflow tank hose and the washer fluid pump wiring, this platform has to be raised higher than the passenger side one so the rods were used with nuts underneath to find the right height. At this point I am thinking a second ssVEC might fill the empty spot. I don't have a need for it now but want to plan for it. I was going to place it in the spot near the firewall but with the cruise control there isn't enough height for it, let alone room to raise the lid. Now the plan is to place the duraspark in that spot, the fuse box will go where the duraspark is in the photo (near the motor), and the ssVEC will go in the corner near the washer fluid. I was planning to stack the durasparks for a backup but since the cruise control prevents that I am thinking I will throw the spare directly underneath the in-use one and bolt them together. It won't get much air there but would last long enough until the top one is replaced.

I was going to stack them like that but things changed today although it may change again tomorrow... - I'll explain in my build thread shortly.

Those are a neat idea on the wire ties, especially as a temp holder to get the wires laid out. On your earlier question about updating the posts - eh, I think it is entirely up to you if you want to spend the time doing it. Forums are littered with wip and evolving ideas that in a lot of cases, updating earlier posts with the final version would cause a lot of confusion since the discussion would no longer fit the post. Simple example - me suggesting to change the fuse to X wouldn't make any sense to readers if the diagram shows X now.

Having the sealant just stew in there vs leaking all down the liner is appealing though!

Thanks guys. Haha yeah, I knew it wouldn't affect the electronic functionality of - it was more a question of the sealant and if it got to the fondue stage would it cause any issues going 'up' vs down. I think I am over the idea now though Was working on the platform for the drivers side fender liner and the thought just crossed my mind for space savings. The pain of changing it out on the side of the road plus the airflow reduction makes it not worth it.

Any reason the duraspark couldn't be mounted upside down? Still horizontal but flipped over. I know the sealant in the back leaks/melts sometimes but don't know if being upside down would impact or be impacted by that.

Gary - this shows for an 86 4wd? I thought by that time they all had the vss down by the tcase.

1. YH-362.Mine had a rusted hole in the bottom and I didn't readily find any online so I pulled a nice one off a jy truck. I did find some later year 1 port ones that might fit or be made to fit. Planning to head to the jy tomorrow to pull a couple connectors so can keep an eye out for a good one in case you don't have any luck. 2. Yes, well removed at least. I pulled mine out to powdercoat the rod. It isn't terrible to get out and in although took a little work to get the rod back into the clip on the door. Not sure about recovering it though. That one is thick (hence why the mice go to town on them) so wouldn't be as easy as putting foam tape on it like the other doors. 3. - 4. Definitely can tomorrow if someone doesn't have one handy 5. -

Been working on the dash controls for awhile since the weather hasn't been great but did get a few minutes to install the battery charger. The 1/8 aluminum plate is mounted to existing holes on the core support braces and I tapped some holes to mount the charger to the plate. It's pretty close to the battery tray at the bottom but angles away at the top.

Ah, I follow now. Yeah, I was picturing something like a folded up map (or small book ) in of those adhesive-backed plastic sleeves stuck inside the pdb lid. Having them labeled by application would be nice.

Interesting thread. Glad you recently referenced it Gary. Does it? After seeing the side marker and drl page both reference the same module (DRL-1) I assumed you could use one for both purposes but I haven't drawn out the diagrams to see where they overlap. Hard to flip between the two pages on my phone. If it does and there is no need to buy two, that makes it a lot more tempting. Wrong thread from where you referenced them, but please post a photo of the ceramic sockets when you get them. Really interested in those and if I place an order for the module, might as well get those at the same time.

Great ideas! Never even thought about clear heat shrink. Going to have to get me some of that. Your plan sounds ideal to me -do the heat shrink on less than obvious things like the diode itself but put all the detail in the laminated schematic. The schematic will be the most useful part but having points of reference on the actual components as you navigate along the wiring would have some benefit.

Just to wrap up my previous posts- Got the 3A diodes in today. Since I am using metri pack 280 connectors between the driver's side headlight wiring and the wiring that will go to the dash switches, decided to make a jumper that I could easily swap out between them. Also trying to avoid any hidden fuses or things like diodes tucked up in the dash if possible. Made 3 identical length short pieces- two with the diodes and the pass through ground. Snapped them into a male and female mp280 connector so there was barely a gap between where they butted up against each other and then taped the together. This will go down near the drivers side turn signal bulb. Don't figure the paint will last too long but since I had it handy...

That dash looks great.

Nice finds!

Haha it'll scare you if you aren't expecting it to come forward that fast! And that stop cable better not fail Here is what I did for the bumpers: https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1589626-bucket-seat-rubber-bumper.html (I wouldn't go out of my way to find Ford ones again but would just use normal hardware store ones)

I know, right? I have an overwhelming urge to do so...lol, but must hold back because I have parts now that I don't need;). Gary, are those high back bucket seats factory? There's a switch/lever on the seat down on the bottom... The factory captain chairs are really comfortable and the arm rests are great. Both driver and passenger have the lever on the side that tilts the back. The passenger side has a lever on the opposite side that launches the seat forward for rear seat access. The drivers side has a lever on the front that slides the seat forward/backwards.

I didn't realize they made ceramic ones. What is the benefit in them? Yeah, the smart isolator. Granted I needed to put mine there since I am keeping the factory trailer wiring (for now...) and it only reached that location.

Of the Wet Bandits, Daniel Stern? I wouldn't think twice about using the Dorman brand of those. Can't believe there would be any brand difference in a socket like that. I mounted my solenoid where factory did (and the junction was). It's nice and out of the way but that also means it take a few extra feet of cable vs if it was mounted on the core support or somewhere closer to a battery.