Rembrant

Hey Steve, I know that you mentioned you installed 10:1 pistons in the 302, but the actual compression isn't 10:1, is it? With the stock heads? I have flat-top pistons in my '84 302, and GT40 Explorer heads, and my compression is only around 9:1. Maybe the pin height in your pistons is different from mine. Mine are just a stock replacement, the same as what was in the truck factory, but for 0.020" bored over.

Awesome stuff! But how does it come apart?...I mean, how do you get the boot on there. I have two of these shafts, so I'll give the boot a try myself.

I remember seeing that discussion, but I didn't read into it. Is it in this thread below somewhere? http://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/Current-going-to-Blower-Motor-can-be-higher-than-Headlights-why-no-relay-mod-tp566.html

Do you know how many cc's the dish is in those dished stock pistons?

I don't know what's available in the aftermarket, but all of the 4x4 F150's I have looked at have had 3.08's or 3.55's (I'm referring to the trucks with 8.8 rear diffs...so, 1983-1996). I know with the 9" rear end they translate to 3.00 and 3.50, but the 2wd trucks had they even taller gears...the 2.75's and higher. I guess what I'm trying to say is that 3.00, 3.08, 3.50, and 3.55 are definitely available as they were the most common factory options. I have to ask though, why do you want it revving so hard on the highway? My 1984 Flareside, which has a 300HP 302 with a 5spd and 3.08 diff runs along at only about 2000 RPM at 65-70 MPH, and it would drive me crazy to drive at those speeds in the 2800 RPM range. The 1980 F150 4x4 I'm building is on a 1995 chassis with 5spd and 3.55 diffs. I'm running 31" tires on it, so it should cruise along alright. I don't really plan to be on the highway with it much, so it's not really a big concern with this truck.

Dave, I am absolutely no help, but I'm anxious to hear what others might have to say. I remember back in the day though...I was working pumping gas and a little in the bays at a Texaco on the highway. Late 80's-ish. The old Crown Vic's and Ford trucks at the time, the dipsticks and oil fill caps were always covered in white/grey slime. I could hardly check the oil on some of them. All I'm saying is, I remember it being fairly common one time with the Fords.

On a rust free truck or mostly rust free, I wouldn't worry too much about the frame that you can't see under the cab. With my 1984 Flareside, I painted the frame front and back, but I never did have the cab off it. I sprayed mine with a black rust paint, and it looks pretty good. It's a Canadian marketed brand paint, but as far as I know it is just Rustoleum, or whatever the common US brand is. Brushing it all is fine, and most of it will look good that way, but if at all possible try to spray (even with a rattle can) the outsides of the frame over the rear wheels. Maybe this is just me and a very local issue, but I go out for the cruise-ins and a couple car shows, and it surprising how many people look under the rear wheel wells to look at the frame...lol. I watch them do it all the time. In any case, it's very worth doing in my opinion. It will look like a million bucks all painted up under there.

Good question. I know that the common industrial A-B series V-belts are not the same as automotive V-belts, but I don't know what the difference is. I know the guys in the belt shops are always complaining about car guys coming in...lol. (Edit...I should say they used to complain...not many v-belt applications left on the road where I live. Just the classics in the summer, and none in the winter months).

So what wires did you cut? Do you mean the big EFI harness that passes through the firewall right behind the driver's side valve cover? If that is all you did, that is not a big deal really...the EFI system in that truck is pretty much a stand alone system. You would remove it if you were doing a DSII conversion anyway. Simplest and cheapest solution (imho) would be to go carbed and a DSII (Duraspark) conversion. The wiring for your gauges is not in the EFI harness anyway, so if all you gutted was the EFI harness, it's not that bad.

I've never had to buy a matched automotive set, but I know it is common in the industrial world. We used to buy matched sets all the time. Sometimes, it was a matter of the guy going through the belts he had in-stock to make-up a matched set. They get all mixed up in shipping, but it is often the case that they have belts from the same batch in-stock...they just don't know it until they look. Here's some reading from Gates: https://ww2.gates.com/IF/facts/documents/Gf000194.pdf

Just came across this '85 for sale in Canada. Looks like she launches hard. No details in the ad unfortunately. Besides all the power, she's quite a looker too. https://www.kijiji.ca/v-cars-trucks/portage-la-prairie/1985-f1-50-truck-for-sale-15-900-obo/1545594529

Ron, I know you're a stickler for Flareside details! Did you see this one below? Looks like they have the rear bumper on upside down lol. Maybe it was on purpose. https://www.ebay.com/itm/224297729429

Welcome Max.

This truck has been on Ebay for a while now they were asking huge money for it...like 40 grand or something, I forget now.

Great info Myrl, Is this difference is specific to the 2wd half ton chassis? I spent some time looking through the parts listings this morning while having my coffee (Both Rock Auto and Energy Suspension), and it looks like the 4x4 bushings were the same from 1980-1996, but that the 2wd bushings were specific to 1980-1986, and 1987-1996. Rock Auto must be full of mistakes, because their listings were all over the place for fitment. I was curious because I have to order pivot bushings at some point for my 1995 chassis, but I wanted to make sure they were easy to order.

Dave, I was just thinking the other day that it's a little bit quieter around here now that your project isn't a project anymore!! What have you been doing with all of your extra time these days? haha.

Funny story. This old 1980 had a vintage Kenwood cassette deck and an Alpine equalizer installed in the dash when I got it. The Alpine EQ isn't actually crooked...it's just that the faceplate is loose. Anyway, I was asking on Facebook if anybody had a nice condition black weave radio bezel with the "Custom" embossed on it. A guy happened to reply and said not to throw away the Kenwood deck or the Alpine EQ as there are people that will pay good money for them (He suggested $100 each, at least). I got them both cleaned up and listed them separately on Ebay. Darn it all if that Alpine EQ didn't sell for $99 USD, and the buyer is in Spain! The Kenwood deck didn't sell yet, so I relisted it at a cheaper price. Good info to know, I guess. I was going to toss them both in the garbage lol.

After I asked about the ignition switch (and you guys answered), I realized something. I remember checking the key previously and I thought that it did spring return...maybe not perfectly like new, but it did spring return. However, when I reinstalled the column I found one of the clips on the ignition switch plug was broken off, so I put a zip-tie around the whole switch and across the middle of the plug. I'm now thinking that this zip-tie must be over or under the ignition rod. Funny how your brain works...I didn't even consider it to be a problem when I did it, but in hindsight, it probably is...lol. Thanks gents.

Thanks Gary, that’s perfect. I didn’t know that adjustment procedure was in there. I just realized that I may have done something that is making it stick, so I should be able to get it fixed up quickly next weekend. Thanks again.

Gary, Noticed today that the ignition is sticky and doesn’t spring return properly. Is the spring in the housing where the tumbler is, or is it the switch at the bottom of the column that has a spring in it?

Lookin' good Shaun. That's going to be a nice looking interior.

Ha, I don't know I was just Googling reasons, and that came up a couple times...not about the 300 specifically, but other engines.

Ya, it's an odd one for me. I guess I'll wait to see what happens after I run it up to temp and it loosens up all of the old stuck parts...lol. I did some searching on the topic, and some people suggest that it might be that the exhaust valve is not opening up enough on that cylinder, due to a loose rocker, collapsed lifter, or worn cam lobe.

Oh, and a couple pictures of old crusty's engine bay.

OK, some actual news with data today! I finally got this thing wired up enough that it could be cranked over. As I probably mentioned before, the history on this engine is unknown other than it has been sitting for quite a few years. I sprayed some Kroil in the cylinders months ago and rotated it a few times by hand. I did that again later on...still months ago now, but I can't remember if I used Kroil or Fluid Film. Rotated it again a few times by hand. Today I gave the "new" junkyard PMGR starter a workout and whirled her over at cranking speed for a cold compression test. Here are the results: 1. 130 PSI 2. 168 PSI 3. 140 PSI 4. 138 PSI 5. 130 PSI 6. 130 PSI So, what are you thoughts on cylinder number 2 @ 168 PSI? I later tested it again and got the exact same number. I also cranked it over with no spark plug in case there was any oil in there to spit out. I've read that compression numbers for a 300 should be between 100-150 lbs, so the cold numbers look OK, but cylinder #2 is weird. Carboned up I suppose? Tested for spark (good) and gave her a spray of starting fluid and it flashed up instantly. Only ran it for a couple seconds. I won't try it with actual gasoline until next weekend. So far, it looks promising lol. I'm thinking that once I can run it and warm it up a bit it would loosen up and maybe given me some different readings/?