FuzzFace2

On low voltage ground is white, just look at trailer wiring as ground is white. But I do get what you are saying as all cars & trucks ground has always been black. Dave ----

I run mine on full bright and they are not too bright, I think just right. Dave ----

I have only had the truck on the road since Nov. of 2019. When I bought the truck (Nov 2015) I did a vary short test drive loaded it on the trailer, not safe to drive home so went back for it. When I got it home made sure the miss the motor had was not a motor rebuild and when I found it was good pulled the truck apart for the cab off frame rebuild. I had 1 test drive around the block, 3 miles, that was a failure lost brakes & clutch linkage broke. Got them fixed by next weekend and the test drive was 30 miles 1 way to work for a car show. Truck sat a few weeks till I got plates and that is when I started driving & started hearing the marbles and made adjustments to stop it. I was driving the truck almost non-stop up till it got to hot, no AC at the time. Now that I have the AC working I will be driving and enjoying it more. Dave ----

If it is the forum I think it is it could be the people that hang out in the 87 - 90 area just don't know? If you go thru the older truck areas you will find more & more know what works and what does not. I think a lot has to do with what parts they can get, have you tried to get parts for that FMX trans? and no computer to control anything. The 88 would of had EFI / computer. Also if the transmissions you wanted to use used a kick down rod / cable how do you hook that up to the EFI setup? I know on the 80 - 86 300's that had a C6 use all kinds of linkage & pivots from the carb to the trans that is a night mare. Now I am sure that 88 came with a AOD so parts would have been a little easier to come by and have over drive like that 5sp did and why I think they posted that, not that that helped you. Also if doing a trans swap why go backwards, no over drive, any why you may not of had a good answer. Just my .02 Dave ----

Cool I did the freeze plug because I thought maybe coolant could make its way up to that point. Because I use the EFI manifolds I run a water heat plate where the 2 manifolds bolted together. So where the exh gases would be in the intake manifold I now have coolant. Maybe I did not need to but better safe than sorry right LOL You need to leave the EGR plate as a spacer to linkage and etc. line up. I also left the valve bolted to the plate because I did not know at the time if I had to go thru an inspection and figured I could just hook a vacuum line to it to look like it worked But I don't have to. Others have cut the plate to remove the EGR valve but left the "spacer" and filled the holes with JB Weld to finish it off. Many ways to go about the EGR issue LOL Dave ----

It looks like I did not use a pipe plug in the EGR plate but it is blocked inside with the freeze plug. But I did remove the adaptor on the EFI manifold and used the pipe plug. I used an impac gun and 6 point socket to remove the adaptor. Dave ----

It's this tube that run into the bottom of the EGR plate IIRC. If you don't need the EGR and it sounds like it has not been working for a bit pull the adaptors out and use pipe plugs in the holes. I don't know if you have to do the EGR plate as mine is blocked inside with a small freeze plug. I did have to use the pipe plug in the exh. manifold of the EFI's that I run. As for timing once you have the EGR ports plugged go for a ride and give a listen for "marbles" in the motor. Mine only did it when at a steady speed and gave it a little more gas for a hill. I don't know where my timing is at as it starts and runs so I did not want to mess with it. Now the 300s have an adjustable vacuum can, at least mine was. A small allen wrench (3/32"?) fit in the vacuum nipple. Think I turned it 1/4 turn CC and went for a drive, if it made marble noise I turned it more. I also tried 2 tanks full of high test and that stopped the noise so I knew it was a timing issue. I have gone back to regular and have not heard the noise. I think because the truck did not leave the yard of the PO and now with me driving the truck it cleared out any junk it the compression chambers. I also had an issue with "milk shake" on the dip stick & oil fill cap and that was even with almost 4000 miles on it. I checked the oil the other day and no milk shake but I also removed & plugged the vacuum line to the charcoal canisters as a test to see if the PCV, vacuum is pulled off the top nipple, was the cause - more testing needed. Dave ----

I can also tell you if you are going to paint the needles to get the HiPo? paint. I used Testers orange and they look great in day light but with my green LED's I cant see them, they turn dark / black, but I can see everything else just fine. Just a heads up. I went with LED's I found off Ebay, cant remember if they dim or not but on high they are not over bright for me. I also used LED's for the warning lights across the top. I like the bright turn lights. The high beam light at first was too bright, most of my night driving is real early so I can run high beams most of the time, but it is ok now. Seat belt light is only on a short time and not a big deal. I used the stock bulbs in the lights / wiper switch, HVAC panel / ash tray & radio (that has stopped working) because finding LED's to fit them can be hard with the sockets & covers they use. Dave ----

Never Seize on the bolts exh. manifold to intake manifold and manifolds to head. On the red lock tight you know to undo it you have to heat it up right? I might use blue lock tight on the carb to intake nuts but not red. I did not use anything, nuts went on dry. First know it got bent up in the roll over. I started to "un-bend" it and in doing so the hinge welds were cut so I could fix the box side first then the lid and then put the 2 together using screws & lock nuts on the inside but being I did not need it I stopped working on it. I guess its for sale but would like you to look it over first then make an offer. If you are close to come check it out you are welcome to do so weekends are the best as I don't know what my work load is like during the week. Dave ----

I was told when I bought my parts truck the AC system worked and held psi but when they pulled the motor it hit the condenser and crushed some of the tubes and would not pass air when I tested it. I also did not have all the York compressor brackets, went with motor before I got the truck, and why I went with the Sanden compressor other wise I would have kept the York system & hoses as it held psi. Dave ----

So they are used to force all the air to go thru the condenser & radiator. I know our trucks have a "filler" that goes between the radiator support and the radiator on AC trucks at top. Dave ----

At that price I was thinking the same and stick it on the shelf but it would be my luck when I needed it in say 5 years, I got one that did not work out of the box If I needed one now I would go for it. Dave ----

Well rags / paper towels and then a fast food plastic lid, it is smaller and can almost see thru it, to hold them in place. Over the years I have been able to find all my vacuum leaks with carb cleaner with the straw to aim it. Dave ----

If you need to "tape off" the area around them sometimes paper & tape just don't cut it try tin foil. You can wrap it around things like wire & hoses and it will hold its forum. If needed could use tape here-n-there to hold it works great. My new / rebuilt booster was painted but not the master. Like you in my hast I forgot to paint it but I am not to worried its a driver not a show truck LOL Dave ----

I was already way over budget on my build and would have reused the R12 hoses. I had no choice on the 2 compressor hoses as my 81 came with a York compressor and I was using an 84> Sanden compressor so the R12 hoses would not fit. As it was I did have to reuse 1 because the new one I got had a wrong end and would not fit my system. BTW the new high side hose for an 84 truck did not have the right fitting for my R134A gauges so I don't know what year hoses you went with but if it was for our year trucks I think all the hoses would be for R12 and not R134A. Dave ----

I have not gone back a few pages but I get you are trying to find a vacuum leak and cant seal the carb. Someone said plastic wrap and then the filter base to hold it in place and you now cant see where the smoke is coming from right? Well I am guessing this is the 5.0 motor and IIRC there is an EGR plate under the carb and IIRC they like to "burn" a hold thru them and cause a vacuum leak. I think any way you look at it the leak is around or under the carb is pull it & the EGR plate and give a look see its only a few carb / EGR plate gaskets. Heck with the carb off you could make a wood block off plate to bolt where the carb / plate was, hole in the center for the smoke hose and fill the motor with smoke to check for any other leaks. Just my .02 Dave ----

Only the Ford six, 240 & 300, have I have the carb come loose on and I have had a Toyota F motor, Dodge 225 slant six and the old Chevy 250 six. Oh almost forgot the AMC 258 six. That one I had the exh. manifold burn a hole thru and cause a vacuum leak. On all of them not one did I ever have the intake / exh. come loose on them either at the head or the intake / exh. manifolds. Dave ----

You can still use the pipe as an ear and blow a little air in the tank, cap off, and if it bubbles the pickup is in gas, if it hisses then it is not. Dave ----

Yep they worked great till ABS came out and the 2 did not play nice together. Dave ----

IIRC they only adjusted how much pressure on the pedal was needed before the controller would move. Now if you found at 1/4 movement the trailer was locking up when empty you could adjust the resister under the hood. Now load the trailer and move it back and you were good. Now I don't ever remember it being adjusted with the camp trailer as it was loaded all the time. On my Dodge with my car trailer and the newer type controller I also have not needed to adjust it loaded or not? Dave ----

That coating is just to keep the manifolds from rusting. If I was going to remove it I would only do where the gasket is other wise it will burn off. No thread locker, I use anti-seize on all the bolts for the exh. I have EFI but if I was doing the factory setup anti-seize. Dave ----

Yep that's what it is. When I was a kid our tow car(s) had them for the trailer brakes. The controllers hooked into the brake line to apply the electric brakes and no way to "dial it back". If the trailer was empty you would slide the bar to the end away from the wires, less power to the trailer brakes. Then loaded you would slide it back to the wires, more power to the trailer brakes. The new electronic controllers you don't need this resister, it is all on the controller. Dave ----

Did you check to see if the pickup reached the bottom of the tank? If thepuckup did I would not worry on the gauge as it could read empty but still have 5 gallons in the tank. I was lucky on both of my tanks with 5 gallons the gauge did move up to the empty line, key off the needle is below the empty line. You may have to drop the tank to check what is going on. Dave ----

It looks like it is for a v8 (302?) so why do you think it would not cover all the years? Dave ----

I should have done that but I was following directions for a change. My mistake. Directions are the road to hell. Anyway, suddenly I'm finding retrofit adapters with schrader valves. Whatever. I'm gonna get one so I can get into the high side. Mark The way I looked at it and found each part held a little oil and why I added it to each part. I also felt the system would even the oil out but wanted to help by also adding to each part. I did see the post on the valve. Being my system is working I don't see the need to check the high said at this time. Down the road if I have issues I will need to check both sides and will cross that bridge then. Dave ----