Rembrant

Hi Randy, Greetings from the Maritimes! I'm in NS, just outside of Halifax. I lived in Alberta for a couple years back in the mid 1990's, but I eventually drifted back east. My little brother is in Edmonton somewhere. Welcome aboard.

Would there be any issue with cleaning the reservoir out with water and degreaser, as long as I let it dry out well?

David, I enjoy seeing at these pristine NOS parts you find, even if all I get to do is look at them! Besides...that bezel would cost me $500 bucks, and it just wouldn't seem right to install a $500 bezel in a $500 truck, haha. PS: I just located a decent black 1981 bezel this morning semi-locally for $40, which is much more my speed. I'll have to swap some of the indicator lenses around, but I'm OK with that. Decent 1980 bezels are really hard to come by. These things are now 41 years old, and the ones that are left that didn't go to the crusher are often cracked, broken, or have holes drilled in them.

Oh wow...nice piece! And a one-year wonder being a 1980. I would love to have that for my 1980 project truck, but the price is way out of my range.

Yes, watched a couple videos too! I had to adjust the rod out on mine a little bit as well when I installed the aluminum master.

Nice wiring supply! I wish I had that.

I'm a big fan of Fluid Film as well, and it certainly wouldn't hurt to wipe it on. I will probably do the same. Here is the aluminum master cylinder out of the 1995 F150 that I junked for the frame for my 1980 F150. It appears to have been fairly well preserved under all that gunk. I just cleaned it up last night. It seems to be in OK condition for being 26 years old. Piston cups and bore seem to be OK. It was pretty dirty though, inside and out. Would I be crazy to assemble it and use it as it is, or should I just buy a new one and be done with it? Comments good or bad?

They look to be, yes, for a 2wd. I have the exact same set in my garage, waiting to be installed.

Nice find also. Those straight-up end links mean it was on a 4x4 pickup. 2wd end links are different, same bar though.

Nice. Always seems to be somebody looking for them. They will fit Bullnoses too.

Ya, my thoughts exactly. I looked this morning and I don't have the parts, I must have gotten rid of them when I scrapped the 1980 frame, and when I sold the 1995 cab I think the front cable was still attached to it. Anyway, I'll order the 1995 equalizer and the 1980 adjusting rod so I can run the 1980 front cable with the 1995 rear cables. It will either work or I'll make it work lol.

Cool Gary.

Hey guys, Just doing a little research and I'm curious if anybody happens to know what the difference is between 1980-1991 cables, and 1992-1996 cables. What I'm wondering is, can I connect a 1980-1991 front cable to 1992-1996 set of rear cables. What it comes down is the differences between items #8 and #10 below: I actually should have these parts to compare, but I won't know for sure until the weekend or maybe earlier. I took apart the 1980 and 1995 F150's, but I can't remember if I saved these parts from either one. I should have, but don't know that I did.

Ha! Notice I even said wire wheel and not sand blast? My method is just a quick and dirty way to make a scuzzy old part look like new. The engine paint dries quick and lasts well. It double the price of a regular spray bomb, but worth it.

I would probably keep them clean if possible, although I have never cleaned mine...lol. My truck only goes out in the nice weather though, so it doesn't see any kind of daily driver type usage. All of our old toothbrushes go to my toolbox and they're great for cleaning stuff like a master cylinder. PS: While on the topic of cast aluminum, I have refinished some of my other cast aluminum parts using cast aluminum engine paint: https://www.napacanada.com/en/p/NPOCDE1650 I find this stuff to be outstanding! Paint everything with this stuff in cast aluminum or in the different versions of black, and so far it has been standing up quite nicely. Here is my power steering bracket as it was when I bought the truck: And here it is after I cleaned it up (wire wheel in my drill) and cast aluminum paint with a new pump: I didn't take any pics, but I also painted my old 34 year old alternator (now 37 I guess). Just wire wheeled it, and spray painted and it looked like a million bucks. Here is my aluminum cased 5spd before and after: Anyway...sorry for the long thread. I haven't really put much effort into keeping new aluminum clean, but I've spent a lot of hours making old cast aluminum look new again.

Welcome aboard, and nice truck. I think this link below is the bulk of the available info on Bullnose chassis dimensions: http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/1985-body-builders.html

Oh man that truck is gorgeous!

Yes, currently rebuilding an old 1980 Flareside 4x4. I haven't gotten to the bed yet...still a few weeks away from that. I had a bunch of extra Flareside bed parts, but I sold them locally to clear up some space. I had too much stuff laying around the shop lol.

I agree, cool truck. I'd rock it just like it is.

Haha, what? I’m not sure I’m picking up what you’re laying down Jim. He probably couldn’t find a used running 302 on the island, which doesn’t surprise me much.

/\ /\ That! So a little news...that is probably only interesting to me...lol, but when I dragged this old 1980 F150 home there was a bunch of paperwork in it and Bill of Sale from when a guy bought it in 1995 over on Newfoundland (Island Northeast of me, where Vinny is from). Over the past couple weeks I did a little bit of digging and reaching out on Facebook and finally talked to the previous owner on the phone this afternoon. What I was really curious about was when did the truck get swapped over to an auto with a 300 (It came new with T18 4spd and 302). Apparently the original owner was a mechanic at the Ford dealer where the truck was sold, and he swapped the T18 4spd for an auto sometime back in the early 80's because all of his driving was in the city and he didn't like the 4spd. The guy I talked to bought it in 1995, and a few years after that the truck was run dry of coolant and the 302 was fried. He said he searched all over the island and couldn't find a 302 for it, so he stuck the 300 in it. He said that the 300 didn't have any miles on it...maybe 40k miles or so. He later sold it to his nephew, at least 10 years ago and he is the one that drove it over here to NS back on the mainland. What happened after that is kind of unknown...but the nephew did drive it, at least a little bit. It must have quit for whatever reason, and was parked and turned into a parts truck. Sold to another guy for parts, and then I got it when it should have gone to the junkyard...lol.

Gary, Somebody mentioned it on Facebook the other day and it caught my eye. The more I thought about it, I realized that it was true with all of the Burlwood pieces that I have found/bought/sold. Anecdotal evidence, I know...but there seems to be a difference in how they stand up between the two years. It might not apply in AZ or SoCal where the sun burns everything, but as a general rule of themb maybe it is true.

That front bumper though...this thing is all business! Nice truck.

Boom, that was quick, and for good money too. I just found out the other day...and it had never occurred to me previously, that of the 1985-1986 factory Burlwood bezels, it is only the 1985 ones that fade so badly and turn a dull pinkish / purplish color. The 1986 ones seem to stay in pretty decent condition, so they are easier to sell and for good money too. I had a nice set from a 1986 and they sold instantly. All of the other Burlwood parts I have are from 1985 trucks, and they are all faded and pinkish in color. So if you see a set that looks to be in pretty good condition, there's a good chance that they are from a 1986.

It came from the factory with the "Sport Instrumentation", so it has factory tach and gauges. I charged the battery up with a bench top charger, and it was reading only 12.54v while running, and 12.75v when I shut it off...lol. The only consumer after starting it would be the DSII. Lots of corrosion and old wires too though...but I just want to make sure the thing is a dead duck before I replace it. I'll swap out the Voltage Reg and see what happens. I'll also check the wires for continuity between the alt and the battery.