Rembrant

I stuck a "new" used fender on the Blue Mule last night. I didn't realize until after I cleaned it up that it's full of little dents...lol. Oh well, it will make easy work for the body shop next week when they remove it to install new ones. It fits OK at a glance, but it's a bit goofy where it meets the hood/headlight bezel. Just cheap repops that were on the '85 that I junked.

Lowered trucks are not my cup of tea at all, but I can still appreciate the time and effort (and dollars) one spends on making their truck unique. We all have different tastes. That thing has some big pipes on it.

Ha! No sir I am not. David is the king of finding the obscure NOS stuff;). I can only assist with questions dealing with rust, rust holes, broken frames and rotten crossmembers, etc, etc...lol. I love where I live, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a little bit of Southern Envy when it comes to rust;).

I was hunting for one of these crossmembers last year for a project that I ended up parting out, but didn't have much luck in finding one. There was a guy on Ebay I believe in South or North Dakota that was parting out some Bullnose frames, but he wanted a fair amount of money for the parts. Finding a non-rusted Bullnose that is being parted out isn't the hardest part...it's finding somebody that will take the cab off, and then drill all those rivets out, and then ship said crossmember...that's the challenge. Good luck in your search. I hope you find one OK. Edit: Here's a link to the Ebay seller I was referring to...he's still there, and he has those crossmembers...just need to message him and get a price: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Engine-Cradle-Frame-Cross-Member-Sectin-Ford-Truck-Bronco-1980-96-F150-F250-F350/163304671720?hash=item2605b789e8:g:vYoAAOSwlxxbvJY9

I more or less grew up around them, so Fords were sort of the defacto standard. My old man had a 1978 F150 4x4 while I was growing up. It was a regular cab long box with a 400/4spd, and blue with a white top of the cab. He skipped right over the Bullnoses and his next truck was a 1988 F250 4x4 with 5.0/5spd, also in blue...I think it was that Regatta Blue or whatever it is called. My grandfather had two Bullnoses and the poor bugger actually died in the 2nd one (heart attack while driving, around 1991). I don't remember what year it was specifically, but it was a silver F250 4x4 with a 351 in it. Due to my age, I was never allowed to drive any of them...haha. I was too young to drive the '78 F150 4x4, and when I finally got my licence in 1988, the newly purchased '88 F150 4x4 was too new to let me drive, although I did get to drive it a little bit when I had my learner's permit (with the old man in the passenger seat). When I got my licence, I started with a hand me down...my mom's bright red 1980 Pinto that she had purchased brand new. Then it was an '85 2dr Ford Escort, and then an '84 Ford Ranger...a plain Jane green 4cyl 4spd radio delete model. In the early 1990's, I bought a 1980 F100 Custom with a 351 2bbl and NP435 4spd. It had been painted already and the bed floor had been replaced. It was originally a 300/6 truck but had been swapped over to a 351 some years before. It was a bit beat up, but it worked really really well...I drove that thing like you'd drive a Mustang GT. It had a funky spoiler on the back of the roof, as well as other unique features like a red bench seat, and no passenger side mirror...lol. I don't have much for pictures. I had that truck for a couple years and really didn't do anything to it to speak of. Changed the starter a couple times, and installed new shocks and brakes. I went without a Ford for a while, and later bought a 1995 F150 4x4 with 300/6 and auto in 1999. I didn't really like that truck, and at the time what I really needed was something easy on gas for commuting, so I sold it pretty quickly. In any case, that old 1980 blue Flareside burned a spot in my memory that I was never able to shake and I always wanted another one, so here I am...lol.

The cap on my 84 302 still had a gasket on there when I bought it, but it was already broken and falling off. It was some kind of cork material and it was really thin. It may have been 1/8" when it was new, but it was all squished out flat by the time I got it.

You didn't mention the fuel filter...I assume you changed it? What about the fuel tank and sending unit? Have they been replaced?...Maybe the "sock" on the sender is plugged up? I know, I'm not much help...

Bricknose is '78-'91, Aero from then until OBS. Yes, I know. I was trying to confirm if the truck was an 1987-1991 model or a 1992-1996. It has the little "EFI" emblem below the headlight, and I thought that was only found on Bricknose trucks. (Edit, I just checked my LMC catalog, and it is listed as 87-91, so I guess that's a yes).

Well done David.

What kind of times does/did this thing run?

Thanks for confirming the hole sizes salans7!! I guess I'll need a hole saw...my stepper bit is max about 1" iirc. It definitely wasn't a Bullnose. My only confusion was on what year the truck actually was. It originally had "1995" written on the side of it and I ignored the truck for the longest time, but then somebody scribbled out the 1995, and changed it to "1991". There was no certification label, and I never did check the VIN. It has the EFI below the driver's headlight, and I thought that was a Bricknose era thing.

Gary, I won't be there, but I do have some miscellaneous Bullnose bits and pieces I could send. I'll have to review my stash and see what I can find that other's may want. I'm not looking for much these days, but I'd be interested in a couple things if anybody has them: Grey weave instrument cluster bezel with AC. A 1984 one would be ideal, but I'd consider other years if I could make them work. A nice condition coolant/washer fluid reservoir, with bottom barb (if such a thing even existed...I think maybe later on, in 1986?). If not I'll have to find a cleaner replacement of the one I have now, which I think is out of a ranger. That's all. I won't be there, but thought I'd mention these items if anybody is digging through their parts shelves and has these (and doesn't mind shipping).

Gary, I have now done it all...rebuilt steering column, all new ball joints and tie rods, tie-rod ends, etc. New axle beam bushings, new radius arms and radius arm bushings, and now a new tight steering box. The truck still wanders a little bit, and there is still a little play in the steering wheel. However, I don't think its the truck's fault. The wide rubber I'm running on the front wants to track with the ruts in the asphalt, and then a lot of the rural roads are excessively (and inconsistently) high centered, it makes the truck want to wander a little bit. If I was to switch from the 275/60/15 tires to something a little more road friendly like a 225/75/15 or a 235/75/15 (or the 215/75/15 that came on the truck) it would track much better on the road. Still, I did find some nice smooth and flat asphalt on the highway the other night, and the truck really did track/steer nicely with only one hand. I know a steering stabilizer is considered to be really unnecessary on a 2wd truck, but I'm wondering if it would help my truck be less sensitive to the ruts in the asphalt. For the price of a kit I may give it a try sometime...but it is low priority at the moment. The new rear swaybar has made some difference in the handling as well. The truck doesn't roll in the turns as bad as it did before. I think once the front one is installed it will help.

Yes and yes...lol. That old Flareside with the broken frame is still on my radar for the roll bar and the push bar, but it's a bit complicated as it is 120 miles away, and the guy doesn't have a phone, so I can't call in advance. On top of that, the bed is full of garbage...ugh...lol. Next time I go in that direction with work I'll check on it again Reamer;).

Do they look like these ones below? I removed these from a truck at the junkyard, but I don't recall what year it was. I thought it was a 1991, but it may have been newer. The holes are huge...2" on the cab side, and 2 1/2" on the door side.

Anybody know off hand what size the conduit hole in the cab is? I have a stepper bit but if I need a hole saw I’ll pick one up this week. Also. I have a conduit set that I pulled from the junkyard and I’m pretty sure the truck was 1991 f350. Will these be the same size as the bullnose conduits?

By the way, I'm really pleased with the RedHead steering gear. I got it installed yesterday and followed the instructions to the letter regarding the priming part. I was a little disappointed at first...I think I thought that the steering was going to feel like a brand new truck...lol (A 2019 truck). Now it feels like a new 1984 truck! Anyway, the steering is much tighter than before. Once out on the highway and on the back roads, it felt great. The steering in this truck is as good as it is going to get...there is nothing left to replace in the front end. I still have a swaybar to install, but I'm going to wait and leave it for a winter project. I tore the drivers front fender off the truck today. What a pita job that is when the majority of the screws are rusted/seized in place. Some of them were easy...the rest not so much. Pulled the fender liner to clean it all up as well. I have a new set of fenders and stone guard or whatever it is called I'm going to get it all installed before taking it in to the body shop for paint. If all goes well I'll be dropping it off a week from Monday so they can get started on it.

OK, good to know. I only came across new ones both locally and online, and none of them came with the RPV.

Under the tire to lift the side of the truck up?...Just guessing.

Thanks Rick. It's coming along, slow but sure. Yes sir, I understand about the master cylinder. I installed the later one solely to get away from the rusty cast iron original. It is pretty much a direct bolt-on. I was running all new brake lines anyway, so that part wasn't really an issue for me, but as noted above, the ports are reversed from the original Bullnose master cyl. As for the year, I believe I asked for a 1991 master cylinder. I did have to adjust the pushrod in the new booster slightly, but I don't think that had anything to do with the master cylinder swap. Couple small things to note: I also did away with the original Bullnose proportioning valve mounted on the frame, and therefore needed one of the integrated valves that attaches directly to the master cylinder. I went to the junkyard for this, and I actually grabbed two of them...one to use and one for a spare. I think they were only a couple bucks each. I also grabbed a couple plugs/pigtails from the later master cylinders. So, I cut the plug off that was on the original proportioning valve and connected the wires to the new master cylinder. With this my Brake warning light will light up if my brake fluid level gets too low. PS: Now that I think of it...you DO need the proportioning valve for the later master cylinder as without it the port will not be correct for a brake line fitting. I also went with the later style front left brake flex line, which causes the front hard lines to be routed differently. Overall I'm very happy with the swap. I have to give credit to Steve83 on this one since it was him that suggested it to me in the first place. I'm pointing at the proportioning valve here...in case anybody goes to the junkyard looking for one. They do not come with new replacement masters.

I've been wanting to do the same, just to have it for when I can actually go on a trip. I have a used spare from the junkyard but it is pretty crusty... Are they still available on Amazon at that price?

I don't know that it did, but it wouldn't hurt to check. I know with the 302 it is commonly assumed that change in the block showed up when they changed it to a roller cam (1985 for the Mustang, and 1987 for the trucks). However, my 1984 flat tappet block had open head bolt holes.

On today's to-do list!! Operation remove-sloppiness! I just removed the old steering gear, and man that's a heavy chunk of iron to lower out of there with a bum shoulder. This thing has been sitting on my bench all wrapped up in the original box since November, or whenever that last sale was...Thanksgiving I believe, or maybe Christmas.

Steve, That first push bar (or is it "bush" bar?) has been well used I see...lol. I always thought they were more of non-functional accessory...kinda like all the Jeeps I see around the city here with snorkels...haha...I bet most of them haven't been in water deep enough to hit the hubs;).

Just to add another product to the mix of suggestions, I have been using Ospho and have been pretty happy with it. http://www.ospho.com/ I tried POR-15 and to be honest I didn't really like the stuff. I found it too runny to use on anything other than a flat horizontal surface. Don't get me wrong...the Ospho product is runny too...it just like water (or solvent), but it's not paint...and you can wipe off the excess, and then leave it alone as it is, or paint over it.