FuzzFace2

I got to give Gary a I tried the "hook the 2 springs together and pull and see what one moves first" test and found the Mr. Gasket spring was weaker than the factory spring I pulled out and why it pings more now than before. I tested the other springs and found the blue springs harder to pull than the factory spring and that big heavy spring I could not really pull it apart. So from weak to strong: Mr. Gasket / Factory / blue / heavy When I pull the dist. apart I will check the factory heavy spring to the heavy spring I have in hand. Then decide if I want to swap them. I think I will swap the 2 slots from the R13 to the R18 as Bill posted and see how it goes. He posted I should be able to bump timing up to 16* BTDC where it started better than the 10* BTDC it is at now. I hope later today if I feel better after my eye shot and its not to cold to pop the dist. out and do the changes. FYI the blue & heavy springs are from MSD Dave ----

It healed it's self It could be when you were checking you moved some wires and it made a better connection is all I got. Dave ----

Hmmmm well I looked up the freewheeling package "A", and I have most of those things. Still unsure of what the sport wheel thing is - at first I thought it was the wrapped steering wheel (which i have) but it is more likely something to do with the 4 wheels now that I think about it (times like this and a Marti Report would come in handy). The PO "upgraded" to hideous rims so I dont know what was original for wheels other than they were 16.5inch. It's like peeling away the layers of an onion haha. Dont know if it is right for my 81 Custom or the 81 Ranger but I did my doors & grille in dark cast iron To me it looks like the Argent grille color. Dave ----

I would have to look up you Swagelok fittings but I was thinking the same thing about DOT and your fittings. As for nothing for Bronco I would get a kit for the F-series truck (F150) in either short or long bed if looking for a full kit. My reason is the Bronco is a F-series truck just a little shorter. Everything up front (master / axle) and out back (axle) would be the same and the line along the frame rail would be different. That is what I found between my 2 81 F100 trucks - 1 SB other LB. Dave ----

Whisler thanks if what I have dose not work I will look into what Crane may have for the 300. Dane, thanks I couldn't remember who bought what Dave ----

:nabble_smiley_blush:I guess I did not read your post more than 1 time So what did you end up doing / using to re-curve yours? Dave ---- I miss stuff all the time! I’ve got the recurved distributor in there with the vacuum advance disconnected until we get some warmer and dryer weather, then I’ll get an adjustable vacuum can in there and replace the thermostat with a 180°. I thought it better to have a 195° thermostat in there too. But now I think I’d rather have some “milkshake” than knocking. Did you do the re-curve or someone else? If you did it or know what springs were used and where did you get them? The MSD springs look good side by side but till I do the"pull test" like Gary posted I will not know if they will work. I also picked up the new vacuum advance can it is a Standard product #VC-210 and it is adjustable other wise I would have left it and looked into if Crane Cams makes one. Dave ----

I plan on starting with water/Simple Green HD as that is what I've read online is effective for carbs. I've also read about people using Pinsol and rinsing really well. If I didn't use the heat option I'm sure I could use mineral spirits, but the heater increases the effectiveness a lot apparently. Think I also used Simple Green & water for what ever I was cleaning as I dont remember what that was at this time I also heard of SG turning some types of metal black. Dave ----

Unless going for a show truck and want the brake line to stand out I would not go SS. The reason is SS is vary hard so unless you have the big dollar tool to flare SS that would be the first thing. Also and the big one for me,because SS is hard you cant get the connections to seal right. The flare crushes a little to make the seal and the SS will not crush. I dont remember who I used for my 70 AMC Javelin but I found https://classictube.com/ with a Google search just dont know if they have anything for our trucks? Dave ----

That hose / fitting in the valve cover is factory and is the fresh (clean) air supply for the PCV system. The factory air filter had a fitting on the side of the main housing and on the inside has a little "breather filter". Because you have that aftermarket open air filter they put the supply for the PCV on the bottom. If you have the factory air filter housing you could put that back on, it should fit the Holley carb, you could use it and not have that issue you have now. OR Get a longer hose, just make sure it is rated for oil & vacuum, and turn the base so it clears the linkage. A picture of mine would not really help as I have a 300 straight six motor but it dose have that same hose from valve cover to side of filter housing. Dave ----

Carl, Yes you did post in the wrong area (not many would see it here) but its not the end of the world. It should be out in the main area and a Admin may move it there? when asking a question it helps use to help you if we know what it is you are working with. List the year / model / motor size / transmission as different years / models / motor sizes / transmissions use different things to make them work. You can also make a signture with that information in it and this way we will see it and work off that. Only time that may change is if you have more and 1 truck or working on something else then list it. As for that part I really dont know but a WAG it is a temperature switch of some sort. When the temperature gets to a set point it either starts something or turns it off. Dave ----

On drum brakes most if not all stores will ask for the size: Dia. by how wide the shoes are. Front pads you may not have but 1 to pick from on a 4x4 but I am not sure as I dont have a 4x4. I can tell you on the 4x2 F100 trucks of the same year (1981) and even the same GVW (4700) can have 2 different drum brake sizes and 2 different pad / caliper sizes and to top it off 2 different wheel bolt patterns! Dave ----

Looks like the one my son bought. You can set the temperature and how long it cleans for IIRC. I have only used it 1 time and it did ok on what I was cleaning, don't remember what it was now What do you use for liquid? Dose it change for what you are cleaning? Dave ----

I don't have an answer for you but the drivers side, never tried the passenger side, belt is short. Bench seat back all the way, belt checked in I can just reach the Ebrake release because it dose not have enough slack. If I was shorter, 6 foot even, and seat moved up I don't think it would click in? Dave ----

I dont remember seeing the paperwork for the MSD dist. and setting up the curve in the pit box where the springs were You are most likely right on the weight of the MSD weights and used with their springs. I will do your "you can test springs by hooking two together and seeing which stretches first" between the blue & the old removed spring to see what one takes more pull. I dont know if I want to replace both springs at the same time just yet. I know if just the blue dose not work I will need to do it all over again but what if it did not advance at all? Think Friday will be the next time I will have time to work on it and it will be cold in the garage got to make sure I had LP for the heater. Thanks Dave ----

:nabble_smiley_blush:I guess I did not read your post more than 1 time So what did you end up doing / using to re-curve yours? Dave ----

Ok this is what I have to work with from my MSD dist. From the bottom up: Rusty (1) spring is the old factory spring. Silver (1) Mr Gasket kit spring you can see it is a thinner wire now side by side. Blue (2) MSD springs look to be the same wire size as factory with fewer loops but the hooks look to be in the same areas as the other 2 springs. It also feels harder to pull it apart than the factory spring. This may be the one to try? Silver (2) MSD springs as seen are heavy wire and I cant pull it apart. I dont know if this is the same as the factory heavy spring or not? The loops on them are just like the other springs shown, no big loop as Bill pointed out with the factory spring but looks to be a little longer loop to loop? It would be nice if I had a scale like Bill posted about and will see if I can get something before I do this party again. So I think I may try one of the blue springs and see what that gets me as I got to start somewhere and if that dose not cut it I will put the stock spring back in as pinging was not too bad with timing set at 10* BTDC. What you guys think? Thanks Dave ---- ps: Just went back over the above posts and see Gary posted "And you can test springs by hooking two together and seeing which stretches first." I wil give that a try now with the above springs. It pays to read posts a few times:nabble_smiley_blush: Thanks

Now you tell me after I did the spring swap I dont remember who told me of that kit number and why they are so light? My Factory can uses a 1/8 Allen wrench and I put it back on just so I had something and was thinking if the spring worked out I could see about adjusting the vacuum side and if it worked great. I do have one on order and should be here later today. I dont really want to go colder on the stat because I am getting a milkshake in the dip stick tube and under the oil fill cap and if I go colder it might get worst but I dont know. I am lucky that I have my garage with all my tools, Javelin is in the house garage now truck in my garage. Friday I have my monthly eye needle and after I rest some I may go back out and see what I can come up with. What you are not on here 24 / 7 Another one that did not tell me not to use Mr. Gasket kit I did not check if Crane had a kit as I figured the Mr G kit would have worked, oh well. When I checked the on line speed shops they kept showing springs for GM dist. not even Ford v8 dist.? I mat have something I can use, stay tuned. On the R13 / R18 I can put the old spring back in and change the slot and see what it dose. I dont want to change to a different spring and the slot at the same time. You know 1 change at a time. Its just a pain as the dist. needs to be pulled, taken apart for changes, put back together, installed and tested. I know its not a high RPM motor as I shift at or just below 2000 RPM and most of the time working range is between 1000 & 1800 RPM that is low to a v8 working range LOL I dont have or know anyone that has a fish scale. Wonder if HF would have something like that as I pass one on the way home from work. Also have a Northern Tool across the street from HF I can check with. I did see the heavy spring was loose and know the weak spring works to the point of tanking the slack out of the heavy spring then the heavy spring kicks in, is that right? Right now it looks like the weak spring is letting it advance just off idle RPM (1000 RPM) and by 1500 RPM all advance was in. I have been testing advance up to 3000 RPM but just to make sure I ran it up to 3500 RPM with no change in timing from the 1500 RPM reading. Thanks guys for all the help. Dave ----

I like to share Our weather person said the snow would not stick as the ground was to warm. Right now I got to get up and close the blinds to see the lap top as the sun is so bright and temp is now 39* I will send you this in a little bit Bill Dave ----

Good day David, Funny to compare, but I'm 1850 miles Northeast of you in Canada (by road, a little shorter as the crow flies) and it was 50F here yesterday, and there's not a flake of snow on the ground. It's down to 25F today, so a little more crisp, but still no snow. Winter is kinda wonky where I live. We don't get much snow, and when we do it is almost always followed by rain. My winter is more freezing rain and black ice than snow. We did however get a big dump of snow in November...a full 12" or more came down overnight. Then it rained for 3-4 days straight and it was all gone. Last few days it was in the 70's here just out side Raleigh NC. Yesterday it low 70's cloudy and rain on and off just enough where you could not plan to do anything out side. I was told the rain came in about 10 pm as the dogs did not want to go out before wife came to bed. When I got up at 12 am ot was 60°, got to work at 2 am was 57° and raining. By 3 am it was pouring rain, wind kicked up and had flash flooding and talk of snow later. I was waiting for a customer from 6am till 8am temp went from 55° to 41° and still raining. They wanted a load of cement by the time I got back and started to off load it was snowing and temp was 36° So midnight was 57° rain and at 11:30am was 36° and snowing. It was not fun being out in all that Dave ----

It was last year since you posted It is nice when things just pop up like that, I am not so lucky. As for the pilot bushing in the crank its not the flex plate you have to worry about but the converter. The snout on the front index into the crank and sometimes a bushing will keep the converter from fitting in and touching the flex so you cant bolt it up. Before you fill the converter and install it in the trans I would mount the flex and then fit the converter up to see if it will sit flush to the flex plate. With AMC motors that might have come from a Jeep with an TH400 auto you have to check the crank for a thin spacer before using that motor with a TF904/999/727 auto. The snout on the TH comverter is smaller in dia. than the TF and the TF converter will not slip into the rear of the crank with that thin spacer. Thing is you want to try and save the spacer as no one makes them and there is always someone who needs one. Dave ----

As said fill it back up and have a helper push the pedal while you look under the truck for leaks. Where both sides of the master empty? I dont think I have seen both sides empty from just sitting? If no leaks then the fluid went into the booster and that is not a good thing. Could pull the booster off and see if anything drains out of it. Masters have been known to leak into the booster. Dave ----

I pumped gas at a Texaco back in highschool, and I remember really disliking having to fill up the old 70's cars with the filler behind the rear plate. Clicking the hands free on the pump in these cars and leaving them unattended was pretty dangerous lol. Had a timing re-curve party that was a flop Can read all about it here https://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/It-s-all-in-the-timing-td109581.html Dave ----

Well the re-curve party was a flop Only thing worst is if the cops showed up .......... ok maybe not that bad but was not good either. The Dist came out of the motor easy enough and even came apart easy. Got it all cleaned up and checked over before I started to put it together. Part 1 of the flop is the Mr. Gasket kit (925D) springs felt lighter than the light spring I removed in the "pull test". But figured what the heck lets go with it as I had rubber gloves on. Part 2 of the flop was before I went to install the new vacuum can I tried to see if I could adjust it. I tried both SAE and Metric keys and many different sizes and none would fit or adjust. So back in the box for returning and cleaned out the working factory one. Got the dist. dropped back in and set by ear was at 14* BTDC not bad in my book. With help from my son and grand son I did the curve test and will post it later. Took it for a test drive and had to turn around with in 1/4/mile to kick the timing back more! I set it to 10* where it was before I started the re-curve and only had a vary slit ping. Next test drive was to the parts store, also 1/4 mile the other way from the first test. Well it still pings worst than before this re-curve party started. Re-curve, no vacuum timing at 14* BTDC @ 850 RPM idle speed *1 *2 idle - 14* 1000 - 14* - 16* 1500 - 25* 2000 - 27* 2500 - 27* 3000 - 27* *1 I used a different dial back timing light, Snap-On that has a better scale than the HF one I used the first time. *2 the advance limit was in slot R13 the other was R18 of the 2 to pick from What it was before the Re-curve timing at 16* @ 800 RPM idle speed idle - 16* 1000 - 18* 1500 - 24* 2000 - 24* 2500 - 24* 3000 - 24* It looks like by cleaning it I got more advance total even with the timing set to 14* over the 16* of the first test. I also bent the spring post out a little but it looks like I need to put the old spring back in or find 1 a little stiffer than the old spring. The MSD springs I have I think are to stiff when I looked at them but will check them again. So where to now? I am open to suggestions and help. Dave ---- ps the Crane Cams adjusting said to bump timing up 2* to 4* from factory. The sticker on mine is 6* BTDC so 10* would be the max 4* Crane said to go for testing. I am at 10* now and the pinging is worst with the Mr G spring installed. Thaks

Yes, it is a normal amount of bend. It was cast that way from Ford, although I don't know why. Maybe one of the 300 experts on here can enlighten us as to why. Yours is upside down in the picture, but here is a picture of the intake on my 300, and you can clearly see that the front intake ports go level/straight into the cylinder head, but the rear end of the "log" curves upwards, and the ports are curved downwards. That's not warped, that was made that way...but I have no idea why. You've probably already found this, but on the two 300 intakes that I had to work with, both were cracked in two places. See the arrows below...both front corners of the intake "box" that serves as the carburetor heater. Each corner was cracked at least an inch long vertically, creating pretty nasty exhaust leaks. I welded mine up, which was a slow and tedious process (welding cast iron) but I did get them sealed up in the end. I only have limited experience with the 300, but I would say that even if that intake isn't 100% flat where it bolts to the cylinder head, I wouldn't worry too much about it right away. The bolts will suck it in tight, at least a little bit. And by a little bit, I'm talking maybe 0.020", not an 1/8". If there were two intake runners side by side that were off significantly I would be concerned, but if the intake is off by a few thousands from end to end, I wouldn't be worried too much. Use all new gaskets and all new bolts (make sure you have the original thick washers), and tighten it all in evenly and slowly. I also pulled this from your long post: It is one thing to check if the sealing edge is flat to seal but another that the ports on the intake line up to the ports on the head. If you get the 2 end ports to line up the center ports may be to high. If you get the center ports to line up the 2 end ports may be to low. I would take that straight edge and check the head at the top or bottom of the ports or both to see if they are straight across then do the same on the intake. Think before I even did that I would take the gasket and lay it across the intake and see if it lines up as it may show the ports to high or low too. Good luck. Dave ---- Cory, I had a AMC 258 six that also had a large crack in that area. I replaced the donut for the head pipe and still had a leak. Digging in deeper is when I found the exh manifold was bad. I was lucky that the exh manifolds were the same on the 258 wither it used a v1 or the rare v2 intake, that mine had, and the parts car one worked. In my case the leak was so bad it caused a vacuum leak and once replaced it ran like a new motor. Dave ----

It is one thing to check if the sealing edge is flat to seal but another that the ports on the intake line up to the ports on the head. If you get the 2 end ports to line up the center ports may be to high. If you get the center ports to line up the 2 end ports may be to low. I would take that straight edge and check the head at the top or bottom of the ports or both to see if they are straight across then do the same on the intake. Think before I even did that I would take the gasket and lay it across the intake and see if it lines up as it may show the ports to high or low too. Good luck. Dave ----