Rembrant

The 4x4 might be a little sturdier with the heavier 3" wide leaf springs, and extra heft of the truck overall? I don't know how much that would account for over a 2wd, but it would be something. I know my little 2wd '84 was pretty "loose" feeling until I stiffened her all up. My '80 4x4 was quite sturdy by comparison, but it did have front and rear swaybars and quad shocks up front, so far from an apples to apples comparison. However, I didn't tow anything with either of them, so I guess it's a moot point;).

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.

Indeed I did. I know a lot of lower optioned Bullnose half ton trucks had no swaybars at all, and I have to say, I wouldn't want to tow anything with one.

Happy New Year to you guys as well! We got takeout (BBQ for me, and Mediterranean for her) and we were in bed by 10:30pm (which by the way was about 30 minutes later than usual, so we did stay up late lol).

I didn't see where anybody else asked, but does this 1984 F150 have front or rear factory swaybars? My 1984 F150 did not have any swaybars originally, and I found the truck to be really unstable even without pulling a trailer (the body roll was terrible). Combine that with worn spring bushings, worn twin i-beam and radius arm bushings, and a steering box with a ton of slop and these trucks are sketchy on anything but the best straight and flat roads. That '07 1500 would more than likely have factory front and rear swaybars. In the 80's they were still options, but they were mostly standard equipment by the early 90's. I would say that the 07 1500 is likely a much more stable truck.

I have done a couple M5OD hydraulic clutches with the concentric slave cylinders. I have a vacuum bleeder that uses compressed air, so it provides a constant vacuum and it's hands free, so I just hook it up and leave it pulling. I then pour fluid in the master, and keep pouring it in never letting it run dry. I stop every now and then and pump the clutch pedal 20-25 times, and then go back to pouring more fluid in. That seems to have worked for me both times starting with dry systems. I poured a half a liter or more though the system over a 15 minute period with the vacuum on and me randomly pumping the pedal. After that, I never touched it again.

Very nice Ron! I was just looking at buying a little table top unit myself (it started as a search for a drill press). It seems I am always having to drill out broken bolts from something, and after all these years of trying I still cannot do it with a hand drill. Good luck with it. Can't wait to see how it turns out.

Thanks Bill, I used that chart and another one online and my compression comes in right around 9.0:1 for this engine, and I'm fine with that. I had to make a couple of assumptions, like comb chamber CC size and piston valve relief size as I'm not going to go through the trouble of measuring them. Worst case it might be 8.9:1, and on the high side it might be 9.1:1, so either way it's fine for what I want to do with it. Thanks gents.

Oops...I didn't post this in the Marketplace area, sorry Gary.

This thing is a beast...for those of you that like single wheel 350's. Shaun, are you out there?? The GVOD is a nice addition...they're worth a few grand aren't they? https://www.ebay.com/itm/393794102899?mkevt=1&mkcid=1&siteid=0&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&toolid=20008&campid=5336658105&customid=

They actually did visit the forum a little bit earlier in their build. I don't think they stayed around long. https://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/New-Member-Almost-Finished-Restoration-tp32145.html

I had electric fuel pumps on my Bronco for a while. I don't know what brand(s) I've had, but I had two fail, so I went to the effort to switch back to a mechanical fuel pump (I had already switched from an EFI timing cover back to one with provision for a mechanical pump, so that effort was expended before I decided t go back to mechanical). In my case the pump was in-line, not in the tank. It wasn't below the bottom of the tanks but it was below the tops, so not as good as it might be, but not terrible either. I did have a switching valve between the tanks and the pump, so that probably didn't help me either. Anyway, I can't say that an electric pump won't hold up for you, because you have a better situation. But that was my experience. That's not a bad plan! Thanks for all the replies guys. I think rather than trying to redo everything to accept a mechanical pump, I am going to try an electric one for better or worse...lol.

I have another weird question... So I bought this 1996 5.0 engine as a donor for my project, and unfortunately the original dipstick tube was rusted out. I snagged another one today from a junked truck...not sure what year, but a 90's F150 5.0. I know the tubes sit in the block the same on all of them...my 1984 302 was the same also, but I was curious...is there supposed to be a seal or an o-ring or something like that on the dipstick tube where it enters the engine block? I'm just wondering if there was a seal there at one time and it rotted away, or are they simply metal on metal from Ford?

Gents, I need to pick up a set of head gaskets for my 302. I'd like to get it buttoned up this week. Does it matter if the gasket is 0.039", or 0.041", or 0.047" thick? Totally stock street engine, but bored 0.040" over. Heads have been resurfaced and block decks have been resurfaced. I don't know how much was removed between the two...I'm assuming somewhere between 0.005" and 0.010" based on previous experience. The Fel-Pro stock replacement gaskets show that they are 0.047" thick. From the little bit of reading I have done, it looks like the originals were 0.040"-0.041", but I'm only going by internet hearsay. I'm just curious how much it matters and how much I should care lol. If there's anything in-stock locally, it's likely to be stock-ish original replacements, and nothing more. I'll order something specific online if I need to, it's not a big deal, but just wondering what you guys recommend for preferred head gaskets and preferred thickness.

Thanks for the review John. I just ordered one. Merry Christmas to me;).

I guess that's where it gets murky for me...lol. Isn't the AODE-W and the 4R70W one in the same thing? I guess it gets more into what is the name (instead of the internals). I've read on forums where guys say that the 4R70W never existed with a SBF bolt pattern. If it has a SBF bolt pattern some guys swear they are an AODE-W. I bought this trans online, and it was listed as an AODE-W / 4R70W...lol. I know the W means they have the lower 1st and 2nd gears, which was done for the modular motors (4.6, etc) which had less low end power. In any case, I'm excited to get it bolted up and tested. I figured the lower first gears would be nice even with the 5.0, and then the OD will be nice with the 3.55 diff. My '84 F150 had OD (M5OD) and 3.08 diff, and while it was great on the highway, it was geared too tall for regular driving. Does the AODE-W and 4R70W have a lock-up torque converter? I'll have to go read up on that hgm compushift. Thanks for the info.

I lucked out by finding a pair from Green Sales Co. Pricy at $120 a piece but they are NOS. I did pick one NOS unit up off ebay for $30 but its a later replacement style that uses a T10 wedge base bulb for the side marker light and the one that Green Sales Co. had that I bought the missing side for is the original style that uses the 1157 bulb to light up the side marker. If I ever come across the replacement style NOS for the side missing I will be swapping mine out as I never liked the use of the 1157 bulb to light up the rear side marker. Hey Rusty, Both the original lights and the later replacements use the 1157 bulbs. It's just that the original light didn't have the little 194 style bulb for the side lens. Here's a picture of the newer versions along side my original 1984 OEM taillight. They're the same, except for the addition of the side marker bulb, which is a big benefit in my opinion...it really lights up the side lens. The 1157 carries two circuits...one for brake and signal, and the other for marker only.

Nice score. I was just saying the other day that I wanted a bench top drill press.

I finally pulled the oil pan off my 1996 donor 5.0 engine last night, and it had a set of these oil pan spreader bars on it. They're quite heavy at 3/16" thick. I don't think I even knew that these things existed, but when you Google them they are widely available. I assume they're something that a mechanic added at some point? This engine did have a newer oil pan on it (They rust out around here and leak after a while).

That's great, thanks for the reply. I'll be using a new trans cooler (built into a new rad I'm buying), as well as new lines. By the way, is there any reason why I couldn't run hoses from the trans to the cooler, or do they need to be hard lines? I guess there's not much I can do in the way of 'priming' a "new" transmission. Do I just fill up the pan, and start it up?

Good to know, thanks. I plan to use this controller below. They also sell a TPS kit that attaches to the side of the carb so there's no physical linkage between the throttle and transmission like there was traditionally. My brother in law is using this same controller, also on a 4R70W that he has installed behind a Toyota engine (in an 1930 For lol). https://www.usshift.com/usq4.shtml It is kind of an expensive way to go...these controllers are not cheap, but the 4R70W is a nice transmission with lots of aftermarket support. Most people prefer to go with an older transmission for simplicity sake, but then you have a linkage or cable to deal with. That in itself is not a big deal, but if you read anything about the AOD, you'll come across a lot of stories about getting that cable set just right. Having overdrive is a requirement for me, and in running a small block, that pretty much left me with the AOD-E, E4OD, or the 4R70W. The E4OD is too big, so that leaves the AOD-E and 4R70W. The more I read about the 4R70W, the more it seemed like the best choice...although not overly easy to find with the small block bellhousing since they only existed for a couple years. So I started out looking at an '83 AOD that I probably could have purchased for a couple hundred, and now I have a 4R70W that needs a controller and when it's all done will likely cost me a grand lol. Oh well, at least I'll have what I want.

The flex plate that came with the engine is for an E4OD. I had assumed they were the same, but I just looked on RockAuto and of the two brands listed on there, they both show different flex plates...one for the 4R70W and 4R75W, and a different plate for the E4OD and C6. Very good to know. Thanks for the heads up in this thread. I'm back digging into transmissions again...and Merry Christmas guys! As mentioned earlier, what I ended up buying was a 4R70W out of a 1996 F150 2wd. I guess there are some that still called it the AOD-E when they were bolted to an old pushrod SBF, but whatever...they're mostly the same thing anyway, just that the 4R70W has a little different gearing. The trans supposedly has about 80k miles on it, and it came out of a running and driving truck. What should I do to this trans before installing it? I haven't worked on an auto trans since back in the 90's (old 700R4 Chevy stuff...). The slip yoke or output shaft seal is a no brainer, I'll replace that of course. Buy a pan gasket a filter? I assume there is input seal behind the torque converter? Should I take it to a trans shop, or just install some new seals and go? What do you guys recommend? Any input is appreciated.

Thanks for the replies guys. The reasoning behind this is that I just bought a short block yesterday that is already all buttoned up with an EFI timing cover (and therefore no provision for a mechanical fuel pump that I had intended to run). I was thinking of a pump like this one below: https://www.holley.com/products/fuel_systems/fuel_pumps_regulators_and_filters/fuel_pumps/carbureted_fuel_pumps/carbureted_electric_fuel_pumps/parts/12-427 Dave got me thinking about Holley, so when I searched there they had all kinds of options. Below is another one...slightly less flow and pressure. https://www.holley.com/products/fuel_systems/fuel_pumps_regulators_and_filters/fuel_pumps/carbureted_fuel_pumps/carbureted_electric_fuel_pumps/parts/12-426 Would 4 or 7 psi psi be preferred? More of a carburetor question than a pump question. This is for my '52 Mercury pickup, so the current fuel tank is in the cab and will be by default above the pump. In the pump business we call this a "flooded suction". (I am in the pump business...but not really these kind of pumps). Positive suction pressure is a good thing. I could be way off base here, but for some reason I have it in my head that aftermarket external electric fuel pumps are not very reliable. I must have read this or heard it by word of mouth over the years, I'm not sure...because I don't remember why I was thinking this. I guess I'm kind of curious as to why even the little pumps above have such a high flow rating. A small block Ford would never be able to use 32 GPH of fuel...heck, it couldn't even use HALF of that. I guess if those little pumps are happy to run at 5 GPH, then all is good. They just need to be able to move enough fuel to keep themselves cool. At the end of the day, maybe I just need to order two pumps and keep a spare in the glovebox to ease my worry...lol.

I was thinking the exact same thing! It was almost as if he had it holstered like Wild Bill Hickok! I have to admit though, I carried around a couple 1/2" wrenches for quite a while after having the starter solenoid stick on a few times. They were laying on the seat beside me and I was ready for action. I carried a Leatherman on my belt for years, but I haven't been for a while now because my job mainly has me driving a desk these days. Surprising how often I used it.

Gents, The 'why' of this question is a separate story that's coming soon, but due to some recent events I'm curious about using an electric fuel pump for a carburetor. That carburetor will likely be a Summit 500CFM unit, linked below...which I guess was a Holley carb before it was a Summit, and maybe an Autolite? before it was a Holley. Anyway...curious about electric fuel pump use. Any good brand or model recommendations? No heavy HP requirements or anything, I'm mainly interested in reliability. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-m08500vs