Big Blue's Transformation

[Gary Lewis]

Glad you have confidence in me, Jim.

Well, I got the case halves cleaned up and maybe half of the t-case together today. I have two of the three seals in, but only one of the two ball bearings and none of the needle bearings. So, maybe half way?

Having said that, there's a tool you are supposed to have to hold the sun gear (reduction carrier assembly in Fordspeak) in the neutral position as you install it. I don't have it, but I think I got the assembly in correctly. However, we aren't in a position to be able to shift yet, so I don't know.

Anyway, here's where I am on the left, and the tool I'm talking about on the right. Oh yes, I'm sure glad we have the Borg Warner instructions. They are far better than those in the FSM, which we also have.

Well, I only have half a day today, but I checked what I'd done yesterday and realized I didn't have the shift lever in correctly. It was 1/4 turn off of where they wanted it and therefore wouldn't shift into all of the gears.

I don't have the special tool that supposedly holds things in Neutral. And I've found it almost impossible to shift properly on the bench w/the back case half off. But after studying the instructions and diagrams I've realized the drawing below on the left, which is from Borg Warner's instructions, seemed to be the key.

As you can see, there are two rollers, circled in blue, that go in slots on the shift cam. And you want them to be in the positions shown when the shift lever is in the 11:00 o'clock position, which wasn't the situation before. So with quite a bit of playing I finally got the gears into a position that had the rollers in those places on the cam. And, sure enough, the shift lever went in and points roughly at 11:00 o'clock.

But then I consulted Ford's instructions and found the diagram on the right. In the text associated with that drawing, but after installing the gears and shift assembly, it says "Insert detent ball and spring in detent bore in case half (Fig. 19). Coat the seal plug with RTV sealant or equivalent. Drive plug into case until the lip of the plug is 0.79mm (1/32 inch) below the surface of the case. Peen the case over the plug in two places."

Oops! I don't have the ball & spring in, and I didn't drive the plug out. But, the good news is that it appears to be sitting such that if the detent ball were in there it would be in the Neutral slot. The bad news is that I think the spring is too long to let the ball sit in the bore of the case while the shifter is installed. So it'll have to be installed afterward.

[Gary Lewis]

Well, I only have half a day today, but I checked what I'd done yesterday and realized I didn't have the shift lever in correctly. It was 1/4 turn off of where they wanted it and therefore wouldn't shift into all of the gears.

I don't have the special tool that supposedly holds things in Neutral. And I've found it almost impossible to shift properly on the bench w/the back case half off. But after studying the instructions and diagrams I've realized the drawing below on the left, which is from Borg Warner's instructions, seemed to be the key.

As you can see, there are two rollers, circled in blue, that go in slots on the shift cam. And you want them to be in the positions shown when the shift lever is in the 11:00 o'clock position, which wasn't the situation before. So with quite a bit of playing I finally got the gears into a position that had the rollers in those places on the cam. And, sure enough, the shift lever went in and points roughly at 11:00 o'clock.

But then I consulted Ford's instructions and found the diagram on the right. In the text associated with that drawing, but after installing the gears and shift assembly, it says "Insert detent ball and spring in detent bore in case half (Fig. 19). Coat the seal plug with RTV sealant or equivalent. Drive plug into case until the lip of the plug is 0.79mm (1/32 inch) below the surface of the case. Peen the case over the plug in two places."

Oops! I don't have the ball & spring in, and I didn't drive the plug out. But, the good news is that it appears to be sitting such that if the detent ball were in there it would be in the Neutral slot. The bad news is that I think the spring is too long to let the ball sit in the bore of the case while the shifter is installed. So it'll have to be installed afterward.

Another short day, but I did get the shift linkage lined up properly.

But first, about the detent ball and spring. I couldn't find a way to put the spring in, then the ball on top of it, and put the linkage in w/o the ball jumping off the spring. So I finally gave up and drove the plug out.

That let me get the linkage in place, but only after quite a bit of fiddling. It is almost impossible to shift it when it isn't completely together so getting it into the exact position shown above, with both rollers in the right places and the detent ball in the right place takes some effort. But I think I'm there.

However, I haven't put the ball and spring in yet as there's confusion over which of the two springs to use. So I need to figure out where the other one goes and make sure I get the right one.

[Gary Lewis]

Another short day, but I did get the shift linkage lined up properly.

But first, about the detent ball and spring. I couldn't find a way to put the spring in, then the ball on top of it, and put the linkage in w/o the ball jumping off the spring. So I finally gave up and drove the plug out.

That let me get the linkage in place, but only after quite a bit of fiddling. It is almost impossible to shift it when it isn't completely together so getting it into the exact position shown above, with both rollers in the right places and the detent ball in the right place takes some effort. But I think I'm there.

However, I haven't put the ball and spring in yet as there's confusion over which of the two springs to use. So I need to figure out where the other one goes and make sure I get the right one.

Wow! It has been a week since I posted on this. But, there has been some progress.

First, the hoses for the Saginaw-driven hydroboost system should be in on Monday. And if you followed that saga I have the C-II bracket on the engine and not the Saginaw bracket. So it needs to be blasted and powder coated so I can start the steering & brake system installation.

Second, the headers are on order and are to be sent to Jet-Hot late next week, although I won't get them until about the Ides of March. That's the outcome of a bunch of discussion on the To Jet-Hot Or Not thread, and in the last week I've talked to or typed to seemingly a dozen vendors about that. But the decision has been made and we are moving on.

And third, I turned a corner on the t-case today. As posted a week ago I didn't know which of the two springs was to go with the detent ball. But today I installed a few more pieces of the puzzle and got to the step where the oil pump is installed. Turns out the spring that drives the pins that drive the oil pump has to be the smaller of the two, so that problem is solved.

So, maybe tomorrow after church I'll get the rest of the t-case together? Not many parts left now.

[Gary Lewis]

Wow! It has been a week since I posted on this. But, there has been some progress.

First, the hoses for the Saginaw-driven hydroboost system should be in on Monday. And if you followed that saga I have the C-II bracket on the engine and not the Saginaw bracket. So it needs to be blasted and powder coated so I can start the steering & brake system installation.

Second, the headers are on order and are to be sent to Jet-Hot late next week, although I won't get them until about the Ides of March. That's the outcome of a bunch of discussion on the To Jet-Hot Or Not thread, and in the last week I've talked to or typed to seemingly a dozen vendors about that. But the decision has been made and we are moving on.

And third, I turned a corner on the t-case today. As posted a week ago I didn't know which of the two springs was to go with the detent ball. But today I installed a few more pieces of the puzzle and got to the step where the oil pump is installed. Turns out the spring that drives the pins that drive the oil pump has to be the smaller of the two, so that problem is solved.

So, maybe tomorrow after church I'll get the rest of the t-case together? Not many parts left now.

Basically got the t-case done today. Didn't put the rear case half on as I'm still not 100% sure the shift linkage is together correctly. The Ford FSM section says "Check shift fork and planetary gear engagement. Unit should operate freely without any binding." But this t-case wasn't shiftable by hand when I pulled it out, although it shifted fine in the truck. So I'm going to check it out a bit before I seal it up since it'll be far easier to pull it apart now than later.

And it is interesting that the Ford FSM section says that 'cause the Borg Warner document doesn't. And there are other fairly significant differences 'tween them. For instance, the Ford section tells to put the clips on the 4wd shift fork spring right after installing the fork. But the BW one doesn't say that there - if anywhere.

Similarly the Ford document says to put the shift collar hub in as a logical step in the 4wd shift fork installation, but the BW one doesn't. Presumably it says to install it at another juncture, but ...

Anyway, just about "there" on the t-case.

[Gary Lewis]

Basically got the t-case done today. Didn't put the rear case half on as I'm still not 100% sure the shift linkage is together correctly. The Ford FSM section says "Check shift fork and planetary gear engagement. Unit should operate freely without any binding." But this t-case wasn't shiftable by hand when I pulled it out, although it shifted fine in the truck. So I'm going to check it out a bit before I seal it up since it'll be far easier to pull it apart now than later.

And it is interesting that the Ford FSM section says that 'cause the Borg Warner document doesn't. And there are other fairly significant differences 'tween them. For instance, the Ford section tells to put the clips on the 4wd shift fork spring right after installing the fork. But the BW one doesn't say that there - if anywhere.

Similarly the Ford document says to put the shift collar hub in as a logical step in the 4wd shift fork installation, but the BW one doesn't. Presumably it says to install it at another juncture, but ...

Anyway, just about "there" on the t-case.

Ok, I am "there" on the t-case. Save for torquing the nuts on the yokes and filling it up with fluid, it is done.

And, it does shift fairly well. It dawned on me that in the truck you have 2' of lever, so that 2" lever on the side of the t-case isn't going to make it shift very easily. But a large Crescent wrench did the trick.

However, today was not all peaches and cream. As explained in the Hydroboost Planning thread, I still have a hose to figure out. I pulled the nice powder coated C-II bracket off and put the Saginaw bracket on, bolted the Sag pump in place, and played with hoses. The Superduty hose from the booster to the steering gear fits, but needs bent a bit for some reason. But I still have to find or make a hose with the right fitting to go from the booster to the pump.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Ok, I am "there" on the t-case. Save for torquing the nuts on the yokes and filling it up with fluid, it is done.

And, it does shift fairly well. It dawned on me that in the truck you have 2' of lever, so that 2" lever on the side of the t-case isn't going to make it shift very easily. But a large Crescent wrench did the trick.

However, today was not all peaches and cream. As explained in the Hydroboost Planning thread, I still have a hose to figure out. I pulled the nice powder coated C-II bracket off and put the Saginaw bracket on, bolted the Sag pump in place, and played with hoses. The Superduty hose from the booster to the steering gear fits, but needs bent a bit for some reason. But I still have to find or make a hose with the right fitting to go from the booster to the pump.

That's WAY too pretty!

I think I'd have to make a bash plate before I started dragging it over rocks.

[Gary Lewis]

That's WAY too pretty!

I think I'd have to make a bash plate before I started dragging it over rocks.

Thanks, Jim. It actually turned out better than the BW1356 on Dad's truck. I didn't powder coat that one, just painted it.

I do have a skid plate. Big Blue came with a homemade one, but Dad's truck came with a factory one and I'm thinking about using that one on Big Blue. Don't want to hide all the pretty on Dad's truck.

[1986F150Six]

Thanks, Jim. It actually turned out better than the BW1356 on Dad's truck. I didn't powder coat that one, just painted it.

I do have a skid plate. Big Blue came with a homemade one, but Dad's truck came with a factory one and I'm thinking about using that one on Big Blue. Don't want to hide all the pretty on Dad's truck.

That certainly looks good, Gary!

[Gary Lewis]

That certainly looks good, Gary!

Thanks, David!

As for what I did today, I got the power steering cooler on. You can read all about it on the Hydroboost Planning thread if you want. But let's just say that I think I have a plan that will work.

[Gary Lewis]

Thanks, David!

As for what I did today, I got the power steering cooler on. You can read all about it on the Hydroboost Planning thread if you want. But let's just say that I think I have a plan that will work.

I haven't been very diligent updating the check list, but I just did. Feels very good to tick off several boxes, but there are several more that are poised to be checked soon. Like the brake system, the hydroboost system, and the Saginaw power steering pump.

And, speaking of the Saginaw pump, as posted in the Hydroboost Planning thread, I think I got the last issue sorted today, which was the pump-to-booster hose.

After that, I moved on to the firewall brace. Got the truck back far enough that I could get in fairly easily and looked up under the dash and found this. Note that the bolt holes to the side aren't being used. In fact, the only fasteners being used are those of the clutch master cylinder.

Here's a comparison on that brace to the Terrapin one that is going in. Which is stronger?

And here's the Terrapin brace in place. Note that there are tabs on the top and side which have backing plates to go on the other side of the cowl and transmission hump. I'll use them, but wonder what the best sealant is for the plates? I'll use Loctite on the threads, but what is best between the plates and the body?