Rembrant

Excellent finds Jim! I did come across that same thread on FTE, but that blower motor is for what they call the "Non Magic-Air" style heater, and mine IS the Magic Air style. I thought I had read elsewhere that the motors between the two different heaters were indeed different. Now you've got me thinking...I really need to pull mine and measure it up. I would love to find a 12v motor that fits. Stay tuned for more...I'll pull the motor today or on the weekend and measure all of the dimensions. Thanks Jim!

So that's a gear driven sensor on the 1989-1991 E4OD, and then from 1992-up the sensor is still there but not gear driven, is that right? I thought the piggy-back sensors on the cable drives were only for cruise control prior to 1992. I guess that is why I was confused about the E4OD. Since the Quick4 controller can be used with both, I keep comparing the E4OD with the AOD-E or AOD-E/W (4R70W) that I have. The AOD-E only came out in 1992 and never did have a cable driven speedo. The E4OD did have a cable driven speedometer, at least from 1989-1991. So when the "VSS" moved to the rear differential in 1992, that was just for the speedometer signal, right? I was wondering why Quick4 for the E4OD needed a "VSS" signal input if the 4R70W did not, and I guess it just comes down to the terms being used. Don't mind me gentlemen...I'm just being confused with things I shouldn't even be involved in lol. I think I got it now, and I'll stay out of it.

Thank you gentlemen for all of the detailed answers. I knew that you guys would know what to do. Thanks for always being so helpful. Wiring this truck from scratch is going to be a bit of a task, but for the most part it will basically be wired up as an 80's pickup with a Duraspark ignition, a 3G alternator conversion and a Quick4 transmission controller, so if I run into any snags, I know where to go for help! Thanks again. Interesting point you make here Gary, and one I have to ask about out of curiosity. In my searches for information on this blower fan, I found a lengthy discussion on another forum a few weeks ago (Jalopy Journal, I think) where they were going over the options for running this 6v motor in a 12v system. Apparently some guys just run the motors at 12v. Since these are mostly fair weathered vehicles these days, I doubt anybody runs the heaters very often. The argument was over the amperage. Quite a few people said that if you run the 6v motor with 12v that it will only draw half the amps the motor would draw with 6v. The other half of the people said no way, that it would not only draw the same 10amps the 6v would draw, but that it would draw much more than the 6v. Anyway, I couldn't find much of an answer at the end of any of these debates, so I just said screw it, I'll run the motor at 6v and not worry about it. If you're around old cars and trucks or even car shows, etc any length of time, one thing you'll notice is a fairly common occurrence: Fires. I don't want to contribute to that, so I'll try to do the "right thing" wherever possible (and I have a high tolerance for the wrong things by the way...lol). PS: My brother in law suggested taking the motor to a motor shop and see if they would convert it to 12v for me. It said that it should be fairly simple. I think he said just remove one set of brushes and voila, it's a 6v motor.

I've only put a couple thousand miles on it since I got it, but so far it has been hitting 18-19 MPG. That's with a mix of city and hwy. With a full tank on the hwy it'll probably do 20 if I balloon foot it. I believe the truck has the MDS, or multi-displacement-system that deactivates 4 of the 8 cylinders under low load for saving fuel. Otherwise, I thought the Hemi's were PIG'S on fuel, but this one seems to be OK. It's a 2018 with about 40k miles on it. As for the kick me sign...hahaha...well, I'm not overly brand loyal to anything, but I have never owned or particularly liked Dodge trucks. I like the old tin grilled Power Wagons of the 1970's, but the newer ones not so much. It's a nice truck to drive and all, but coming from a Toyota Tacoma it feels a bit loose and clunky to me. I had a 2006 F150 company truck for quite a few years, and it was a decent rig. I'd prefer an F150 over a Dodge, but beggars can't be choosers as they say. If the company is buying I'll take what they're offering lol. As for the '52 Merc mileage, I guess we will see. Will it be more or less aerodynamic than my Bullnose trucks? It's about the same weight as my '84 Flareside was. I have high hopes for the 500CFM Summit carb on the basically stock 5.0 with the later F4 cam. The 4R70W has a taller OD than the M5OD, but this truck has 3.55 gears compared to my old Bullnose with the 3.08's. In any case, I'd be happy with mid to high teens MPG, and absolutely ecstatic if it hit 20 MPG, but I'm not crossing my fingers on that one. Gentlemen, I'm starting to do some preliminary wiring (RE-wiring) of my '52 pickup. I have completely gutted all wiring and I'm installing a new Painless Performance complete wiring kit. One little hiccup I have run into is the heater blower fan. The truck will be complete 12v now, but the blower motor will still be the original 6v (I can't find a 12v motor for it). There is currently only one wire going from the switch to the fan motor, and the motor is grounded to the heater housing via short wire (according to the diagrams). The truck was previously converted to 12v, but everything inside the cab was left at 6v, and I don't know what they did with the lights...most of them were burned out when I got the truck. The original starter spun insanely fast, so I assume it was the original 6v starter with 12v being supplied to it. Anyway...those issues are all gone now, and the blower motor is all that remains. There was one of these little aftermarket voltage reducers clipped to the dash, so I assume this was installed for the blower fan since the blower fan did actually work. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/smp-ru100 I could probably reuse it, but it is only rated for 4amps, and the blower motor draws 10amps according to the factory service manual. I was looking at this little 12v-6v adapter below...seems neat and tidy and cheap: https://www.amazon.ca/MGGi-Converter-Regulator-Transformer-Waterproof/dp/B08BXFC6MD/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=EYQog&content-id=amzn1.sym.b09e9731-f0de-43db-b62a-8954bcec282c&pf_rd_p=b09e9731-f0de-43db-b62a-8954bcec282c&pf_rd_r=ZYJD8HEKVNHE80N9WZE1&pd_rd_wg=f8zda&pd_rd_r=eafed8b9-f0b6-4e79-9571-a38335d54ff8&ref_=pd_gw_ci_mcx_mr_hp_atf_m&th=1 The truck also has the blower switch installed currently: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/smp-hs98 That's a lot of rambling, I know lol. I guess my question is...everything is currently set up for one wire operation. The voltage reducer, the switch, and the fan. If I buy the 10amp Amazon voltage reducer, which is two wire, what do I do with the 12v negative wire? I assume I would wire the negative wire directly to the fan motor, and bypass the switch (since the switch it setup for one wire operation only). Run the v+ through the switch...but would I have the switch on the 12v side or the 6v side? Does it matter? Probably confusing, I know. This is the one snag I have run into with my wiring so far.

Ya, and it is an issue with the steering box bolts. The threads don't have a 1/4" to spare, so you can't cut 5.5" bolts to fit 5.25". This is why I used a couple extra washers. You don't need to move it the full 1/4", but you do still need to push them out a tiny bit. I think I used a slot washer under each one...or at least that's what I call them.

Nice fab work! I like the install in the core support. What did you use for the lines from the transmission to the cooler? Did you buy a kit? I have to do the same with my 4R70W install, but I bought a Champion radiator that has an integrated transmission cooler (I'm assuming it will be fine?). I have already installed 6-AN fittings in the transmission, and will do the same with the radiator...I just need to order up some lines for it.

Yes, I believe so, but you'll have to confirm what year or generation your transmission is before ordering a Quick4 controller. They come with different harnesses for the different gen transmissions, so make sure you get that part right. They have a good picture guide showing the different connectors. I'm still a bit confused on the speedometer cable/VSS combo and why the Quick4 needs it. The E4OD should have a speed sensor already built in, and there's a plug in the Quick4 harness for it. Maybe there is something different with the 1989-1991 E4OD regarding this as it still used the cable speedo in those early years. I know the 1992-up transmissions will have an integrated speed sensor, but maybe the 1989-1991 E4OD does not, and the VSS is located in the cable. This truck is a 2wd correct? Does this E4OD have a speedometer cable drive in the tail housing?

Those plexiglass doors would be awful wouldn't they??...LOL. They'd get so scratched up and faded you wouldn't even be able to see out of them.

Pin 12 is a digital speedometer output though, not input. It's for connecting to a speedometer with a digital/VSS input. I plan on using this myself. You can input a tach signal though...it is not required, but it is optional. I'm not sure if it's beneficial or not. I don' t think there's any speed signal inputs required for the controller...not that I'm aware of at least. I don't know anything about the E4OD, so all I have been reading about is the 4R70W that I have.

I just installed my Quick4 transmission controller yesterday...and by installed, I mean attached it to the inside of the firewall...the truck is not running yet. I was reading the instructions though, and I didn't see anything about connecting to a VSS, but you definitely need a TPS. I have the 4R70W, 4R75, AOD-E manual though...not the E4OD, but the controller is the same regardless.

One has to wonder, what market were they thinking of when they designed it? Ford already had the full size Bronco, and the little Bronco II came only a few years later (although not really an offroad machine). Ford had obviously decided to get rid of the smaller Bronco for 1978. Jeep had just released the CJ-8 Scrambler in 1981...but it never really took off and ended up being fairly rare, even when it was current (1981-1986?). The thing kinds reminds me of an International Scout II...the Super Scout version...because of the doors, or lack thereof... Jeep CJ-8 Scrambler...somewhat rare, even when new. In any case, I think the Bronco Montana Lobo was ugly as sin and probably a bad idea, and I'm a big fan of the vehicles of that era like the IH Scout and Jeeps, etc.

I follow the Obscure Cars Daily page on IG and this popped up a few days ago. Though not a Bullnose, it fits within the Bullnose era and there could have been a page on this very site about it had it ever gone forward;). Pics below and copy/pasted wording from the posting at the bottom. Interesting. "1981 Ford Bronco Montana Lobo. The Bronco Montana Lobo was a concept that Ford had debuted at the 1981 Chicago Auto Show as their interpretation of a futuristic off-roader. In reality, this truck was just a standard 1977 Bronco that was adorned with a variety of entertaining options by some blue oval braggart. These included drastic changes to the bodywork in the form of a rooftop spoiler, louvered side rails, foam bumpers, and exposed side-exit exhausts that are utterly determined to burn the living shit out of the legs of anyone who dares to enter this beast. Its doors were detachable and constructed of plexiglass (likely to show the entire world the third-degree burns on your legs that you'd suffered from entering the truck), but the most intriguing features are the seats, which were crafted from hemp fabric. Honestly, you just can't do that to someone like me and not expect mischief and chaos. I'd be cutting off pieces of upholstery with my utility knife at any given point, then stuffing them into my hashpipe as I buck the Bronco wildly across the parkway, disregarding human life entirely, while the anemic 5.0L V8 bellows in protest, like some useless coworker who only shows up because he's out of PTO and he's invested too much into his pension to quit. Ford Bronco Montana Lobo; if the guy that stole your copper pipes could afford a truck, this would be it."

That Bullnose is a beast!

Merry Christmas to all of you from Mrs. Rembrant and I up here on the east coast! Hope you all have had a great day with friends and/or families. The wife and I went to a Christmas Dinner buffet at one of the local hotels and it was fantastic! We didn't eat before we went and we haven't eaten since LOL. Enjoy the day everybody;)

Ya, they're a really common swap on the 1973-1979 Ford pickups. They have a narrower frame than the 1980+ trucks.

133" is long wheelbase. This truck is a short wheelbase, so only 117". I really dislike these swaps, but like anything else I try not to shoot my mouth off too much as we all have different tastes and not everybody likes my ideas either;). Edit...screen shot below from Google shows that the 1999 Town Car chassis has a 117.7" wheelbase, which is pretty darn close to the pickup's original 117" wheelbase. Either way, it's still off by more than 3/4" in my opinion;).

The problem with the 5.5" ones I bought was that the threads were too short. If they were threaded all the way I would have cut them no problem, but in this case it was easier to add the washers. I've never tried to add threads to a grade-8 bolt, but it seemed to me like the juice wasn't worth the squeeze. I cut bolts all the time otherwise.

I would have liked to keep that truck, but it was time to move on and I can't keep them all;).

Hey John, What are the outside temps there this time of year? Just curious. 36F here today, and still no snow. We rarely have a white Christmas where we live. Years ago, I used one of these style portable electric heaters: https://www.amazon.com/Dyna-Glo-EG4800DGP-4800W-Garage-Heater/dp/B07FPNWB23?ref_=ast_sto_dp I don't know if it would heat your whole shop, but if it's fully insulated you might be OK. What I did at the time was make an extension cord for the heater that plugged into my 50amp welding receptacle, and I moved the heater around to wherever I was working in the garage. It worked fine for that. That garage was 24x30. I have electric heat in my current garage, and I normally keep it at about 60F when I'm working out there, and turn it down to 50F when I'm not out there. It is an attached garage, so I can't turn the heat off completely as there are pipes and whatnot out there.

Nice trucks Jeff! I love seeing the old pictures from back in the 80's and 90's when a lot of people first got into the Bullnose trucks. I bought a 1980 F100 Flareside back in the early 90's...I don't remember exactly what year, but I want to say it was 1992. It was originally a 300 six truck but the previous owner had swapped in a 351w. That truck worked really well and had oodles of power but for some reason it ate starters. With the 4spd it was fun. I always missed that truck and started looking for another one around 2015, and bought the '84 F150 below. Pics are after I finished rebuilding it. Then I bought this 1980 F150 4x4 and dragged it out of the weeds in pieces. It had a bad frame so I swapped the whole body on to a 1995 F150 chassis.

5.5" bolts work fine too, and they're a little easier to find. That's what I used with an extra washer or two. You don't need to make up the entire 1/4" difference, maybe only half of it.

Every time I see this picture it reminds me of Troy, so I'll tag him;). Cheers Troy, I hope all is well in cold north;).

Lookin' good. New paint is always so nice;). What did you do with the front ends of the frame there? I assume you raised the horns to account for a body lift?

That's a good question. I don't think anybody is reproducing them these days. The Flareside step bumpers were dealer installed aftermarket items, they were never sold by Ford. I'd try looking for them for the smaller trucks, like Rangers or Chevy S-10's.

Cool! There are people looking for these from time to time! I wonder if they're still good though...these things may not age well.