Big Blue's Transformation

[1986F150Six]

David & I were talking about this via email so I thought I'd post the plans here.

Janey and I are hoping to have a BIG day on Friday taking Big Blue to Kendall's Restaurant in Noble, Ok. We've been drooling over pictures of their chicken-fried stakes, and now that BB is together and needs an outing......

So in the interim I'm hoping to get several things done on the truck, including:

• Front driveshaft installed, which will require installing the new u-joints on it awa fixing the leak, if the t-case is still leaking

• Have the alignment checked and, if needed, fixed

• Align the headlights

Here's the planned route, which is essentially all back roads, including as much of Route 66 that we can.

That will be fun! And, being back roads, perhaps you can drive for the best gas mileage?

Have a great time!

[Sac79]

That will be fun! And, being back roads, perhaps you can drive for the best gas mileage?

Have a great time!

David, I'm sure Gary would prefer to continue seating those rings... Although maybe not with his better half in the truck?

Looks like a nice trip Gary, I look forward to seeing pics of BB out and about!

[85lebaront2]

David, I'm sure Gary would prefer to continue seating those rings... Although maybe not with his better half in the truck?

Looks like a nice trip Gary, I look forward to seeing pics of BB out and about!

Gary, here are the two ducts I had pictures of back in 2015 on FTE:

Upper one is E8TE-9C675-BA, lower one is F3TE-9A675-BB. Differences are, early duct has a bracket to the radiator support and a flex section into the bend before the air filter, later one is smooth and slips into the radiator support opening.

One item, I found both had the section that goes into the lower air filter housing to be partially collapsed. I used a few (3 or 4) small sheet metal screws to hold the bottom flat so there are no leaks or obstructions.

[Gary Lewis]

Gary, here are the two ducts I had pictures of back in 2015 on FTE:

Upper one is E8TE-9C675-BA, lower one is F3TE-9A675-BB. Differences are, early duct has a bracket to the radiator support and a flex section into the bend before the air filter, later one is smooth and slips into the radiator support opening.

One item, I found both had the section that goes into the lower air filter housing to be partially collapsed. I used a few (3 or 4) small sheet metal screws to hold the bottom flat so there are no leaks or obstructions.

David - I will keep track of MPG, but as Rob said I still need to seat the rings. Yes, with Janey in the truck. At 150 miles there's still a lot of seating to be done.

Rob - I hope to remember to take some pics.

Bill - Thanks for that. Oddly enough, David found that post and pic this morn and sent it to me via email, but it is good to have it on here. I still need to confirm I don't have either of those before the hunt gets serious.

[Gary Lewis]

David - I will keep track of MPG, but as Rob said I still need to seat the rings. Yes, with Janey in the truck. At 150 miles there's still a lot of seating to be done.

Rob - I hope to remember to take some pics.

Bill - Thanks for that. Oddly enough, David found that post and pic this morn and sent it to me via email, but it is good to have it on here. I still need to confirm I don't have either of those before the hunt gets serious.

Ok, got the front driveshaft done today. Replaced all the u-joints and whatever the thing in the middle of the double-cardan is called. Boy, that double-cardan sure complicates things.

But, it is done. Tomorrow I'll see if I can fix the leak in the output shaft.

[85lebaront2]

Ok, got the front driveshaft done today. Replaced all the u-joints and whatever the thing in the middle of the double-cardan is called. Boy, that double-cardan sure complicates things.

But, it is done. Tomorrow I'll see if I can fix the leak in the output shaft.

Gary, some of the last of the big Lincolns had dual double cardan joints, one at each end. The reason for them is to even the driveshaft motion, the greater the angle the greater the acceleration/deceleration of the drive shaft per revolution.

[Gary Lewis]

Gary, some of the last of the big Lincolns had dual double cardan joints, one at each end. The reason for them is to even the driveshaft motion, the greater the angle the greater the acceleration/deceleration of the drive shaft per revolution.

Man, that's gotta be "fun" to work on. This was the first double-cardan I've worked on and I'm glad it is done. It takes 3 1/2 hands to push the spider in against the spring, line up the last u-joint, and start the bearing cap w/o knocking a needle or two over. Third time was a charm.

[Gary Lewis]

Man, that's gotta be "fun" to work on. This was the first double-cardan I've worked on and I'm glad it is done. It takes 3 1/2 hands to push the spider in against the spring, line up the last u-joint, and start the bearing cap w/o knocking a needle or two over. Third time was a charm.

Well, this is a game changer! I just started a new thread about MeterMatch by TechnoVersions. It looks like it is what we need to interface Bricknose senders to Bullnose gauges, and it is only $65, shipped.

I suspect that is less than I'd pay for the Arduino I've been planning, and it is apparently available now. Four wires (power, ground, sending unit, and gauge) and you are ready for setup. And that's quite flexible as you can set it to what the sending unit is supposed to give and then fine tune it to what it really gives if you want.

Having said that, I was planning on doing some other things with the Arduino, like replacing the aftermarket gauges for one. And maybe reading outside air temp. And providing alarms if the battery voltage gets too high or low. Ditto on oil pressure or gas level.

But, this would get me on the road, quite literally, and I could come back and do the Arduino later. In fact, the Arduino wouldn't even have to drive the fuel gauge then, so I wouldn't have to include a high-current driver.

Thoughts, please!

[Gary Lewis]

Well, this is a game changer! I just started a new thread about MeterMatch by TechnoVersions. It looks like it is what we need to interface Bricknose senders to Bullnose gauges, and it is only $65, shipped.

I suspect that is less than I'd pay for the Arduino I've been planning, and it is apparently available now. Four wires (power, ground, sending unit, and gauge) and you are ready for setup. And that's quite flexible as you can set it to what the sending unit is supposed to give and then fine tune it to what it really gives if you want.

Having said that, I was planning on doing some other things with the Arduino, like replacing the aftermarket gauges for one. And maybe reading outside air temp. And providing alarms if the battery voltage gets too high or low. Ditto on oil pressure or gas level.

But, this would get me on the road, quite literally, and I could come back and do the Arduino later. In fact, the Arduino wouldn't even have to drive the fuel gauge then, so I wouldn't have to include a high-current driver.

Thoughts, please!

Ok, the TechnoVersions MeterMatch is now on order and should be here Thursday. Maybe in time to install it for Friday's trip.

But, that came after a huge comedy of errors! You can't make this stuff up!

Last night I sent the gentleman at TechnoVersions a note and asked him to call me soonest this morning so I could see that he has them in stock and that he might be able to get it here quickly.

This morning I needed to drain maybe a quart of ATF out of the t-case in order to be able to pull the front output yoke to seal it. So I got an empty quart bottle and put a funnel in it and pulled the plug on the t-case. Out shot a bright red stream of ATF and I was catching it nicely with the bottle/funnel combo in one hand and the wrench and plug in the other. Until I dropped the plug into the funnel.

The funnel QUICKLY filled up as the plug stuck in the outlet to the funnel, so I put my thumb over the outlet on the t-case. And there I stood with a tall, ungainly bottle with a full funnel on top of it in one hand and a wrench in the other, but with that thumb over the drain hole. And the phone rang.

Obviously I didn't answer it. But I did realize that I was going to be there a LONG time as the level in the funnel was not going down at all. Then I realized that the funnel was tightly sealed to the top of the bottle, both being round and one having a taper, and there was no way for air to get out. So I lifted the funnel with my teeth. YUK!!!!

That started the ATF dripping, and I mean D.R.I.P.P.I.N.G. out of the funnel. So I stood there contemplating my next move. I decided that if I was VERY careful I could set the bottle and funnel on the arm of the lift and it might not spill. And then, with a free hand, I could pull the fill plug out of the t-case and put it in the drain hole. That worked, but not without another stream of ATF shooting out of the t-case before I could get the plug in.

So, here's a shot of the carnage. You can see the pile of paper towels that I used to sop up the ATF. And on the arm of the lift is the bottle and funnel.

And here's a somewhat before and after of the ATF in the funnel. On the left is the level after maybe 15 minutes of dripping - after I'd put the paper towels down, called TechnoVersions back, and placed the order. And on the right is the plug in the funnel after another 15 minutes of dripping.

Now back to the Coke to get the taste out of my mouth!

[1986F150Six]

Ok, the TechnoVersions MeterMatch is now on order and should be here Thursday. Maybe in time to install it for Friday's trip.

But, that came after a huge comedy of errors! You can't make this stuff up!

Last night I sent the gentleman at TechnoVersions a note and asked him to call me soonest this morning so I could see that he has them in stock and that he might be able to get it here quickly.

This morning I needed to drain maybe a quart of ATF out of the t-case in order to be able to pull the front output yoke to seal it. So I got an empty quart bottle and put a funnel in it and pulled the plug on the t-case. Out shot a bright red stream of ATF and I was catching it nicely with the bottle/funnel combo in one hand and the wrench and plug in the other. Until I dropped the plug into the funnel.

The funnel QUICKLY filled up as the plug stuck in the outlet to the funnel, so I put my thumb over the outlet on the t-case. And there I stood with a tall, ungainly bottle with a full funnel on top of it in one hand and a wrench in the other, but with that thumb over the drain hole. And the phone rang.

Obviously I didn't answer it. But I did realize that I was going to be there a LONG time as the level in the funnel was not going down at all. Then I realized that the funnel was tightly sealed to the top of the bottle, both being round and one having a taper, and there was no way for air to get out. So I lifted the funnel with my teeth. YUK!!!!

That started the ATF dripping, and I mean D.R.I.P.P.I.N.G. out of the funnel. So I stood there contemplating my next move. I decided that if I was VERY careful I could set the bottle and funnel on the arm of the lift and it might not spill. And then, with a free hand, I could pull the fill plug out of the t-case and put it in the drain hole. That worked, but not without another stream of ATF shooting out of the t-case before I could get the plug in.

So, here's a shot of the carnage. You can see the pile of paper towels that I used to sop up the ATF. And on the arm of the lift is the bottle and funnel.

And here's a somewhat before and after of the ATF in the funnel. On the left is the level after maybe 15 minutes of dripping - after I'd put the paper towels down, called TechnoVersions back, and placed the order. And on the right is the plug in the funnel after another 15 minutes of dripping.

Now back to the Coke to get the taste out of my mouth!

"You can't make this stuff up!"