Gsmblue Posted April 19, 2018 Author Share Posted April 19, 2018 It is a big list, but should be doable. Keep us posted. I’ll try and remember to take pics too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted April 24, 2018 Author Share Posted April 24, 2018 I’ll try and remember to take pics too. Still not had time to tackle the big stuff. But I got a small win today.. I managed to remove and replace the bent and straggly wiper arms. The drivers side was a bitch but I managed to use leverage (a wrench under the wiper arm) to get it off. The new arms don’t has as much of an angle at the head so when in the parked position they sit a little high. No big deal. Stuck on some duralast aero blade wipers as they were the only ones in the store that would fit.. Installed screen washer jet thing and hose, so that works now.. Also scrapped all glass surfaces with a sharp blade, washed glass and replaced the rear view mirror with one that works. These are small details that the wife will notice are wrong so I need them to be right.. was 90mins well spent. Sorry for the boring post... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 24, 2018 Share Posted April 24, 2018 Still not had time to tackle the big stuff. But I got a small win today.. I managed to remove and replace the bent and straggly wiper arms. The drivers side was a bitch but I managed to use leverage (a wrench under the wiper arm) to get it off. The new arms don’t has as much of an angle at the head so when in the parked position they sit a little high. No big deal. Stuck on some duralast aero blade wipers as they were the only ones in the store that would fit.. Installed screen washer jet thing and hose, so that works now.. Also scrapped all glass surfaces with a sharp blade, washed glass and replaced the rear view mirror with one that works. These are small details that the wife will notice are wrong so I need them to be right.. was 90mins well spent. Sorry for the boring post... Yes, that was 90 minutes well spent. Sometimes it takes almost that long to get a wiper arm off. So, well done! And those small details can make all the difference in the world. You'll notice each time you drive the truck how clean the windows are. Like when I fixed the horn on Big Blue - small detail but every time I drive him I think "Now I have a horn!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted April 26, 2018 Author Share Posted April 26, 2018 Yes, that was 90 minutes well spent. Sometimes it takes almost that long to get a wiper arm off. So, well done! And those small details can make all the difference in the world. You'll notice each time you drive the truck how clean the windows are. Like when I fixed the horn on Big Blue - small detail but every time I drive him I think "Now I have a horn!" Progress! Got the rocker covers and intake manifold off. Does not look great in there... Going to spend tonight and tomorrow night cleaning up the surfaces and stuff. Any advice? There is a lot of hard to remove gasket material and at the front there seems to be some pitting around the coolant ports.. was thinking of skimming with RTV before placing the new gasket on... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 27, 2018 Share Posted April 27, 2018 Progress! Got the rocker covers and intake manifold off. Does not look great in there... Going to spend tonight and tomorrow night cleaning up the surfaces and stuff. Any advice? There is a lot of hard to remove gasket material and at the front there seems to be some pitting around the coolant ports.. was thinking of skimming with RTV before placing the new gasket on... Haven’t seen pitting on the heads, but have seen lots of pitting on aluminum intakes. As said, Brandon smoothed his up with JBWeld. For cleaning up, I’ve used Rolloc discs, but there are two problems with them. First, they leave an abrasive residue, and it is hard to keep it out of an assembled engine. Second, I’ve read that they leave high and low spots on the gasket surfaces that are hard to seal - especially on soft material like aluminum. So some say that scrapers are the only way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted April 27, 2018 Author Share Posted April 27, 2018 Haven’t seen pitting on the heads, but have seen lots of pitting on aluminum intakes. As said, Brandon smoothed his up with JBWeld. For cleaning up, I’ve used Rolloc discs, but there are two problems with them. First, they leave an abrasive residue, and it is hard to keep it out of an assembled engine. Second, I’ve read that they leave high and low spots on the gasket surfaces that are hard to seal - especially on soft material like aluminum. So some say that scrapers are the only way to go. Thanks Gary. I have scrapped over once. I will get a new blade and do again. I bought a couple of those wheels, red and green. But i am not keen on using them at all. As you say, easy to over do it. Need to think about skimming options.. JB weld or RTV... The intake itself looks really good. Just needs wiping down I reckon. This is all new to me, and I am loving it!! Thanks for all the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 27, 2018 Share Posted April 27, 2018 Thanks Gary. I have scrapped over once. I will get a new blade and do again. I bought a couple of those wheels, red and green. But i am not keen on using them at all. As you say, easy to over do it. Need to think about skimming options.. JB weld or RTV... The intake itself looks really good. Just needs wiping down I reckon. This is all new to me, and I am loving it!! Thanks for all the help! From what I can see everything looks to be good. Given that, I'd go with RTV. The keys for getting RTV to work for me are to make sure you get the manifold in place correctly w/o sliding it around, and then snugging it down and letting it set overnight. So I use long bolts with the heads cut off as guides to align the manifold to the head. Just screw them into the heads loosely and lower the manifold over them. Then install the other bolts loosely, and unscrew the guides. Once all bolts are in gently screw them in to where they are snug. Leave it over night and come back the next day to torque them down. And, I use RTV on the front and rear dams that tie the sides of the block together. Place a smooth 1/4" to 1/2" bead of RTV on them. But the dam and the manifold have to be CLEAN so the RTV will adhere to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted April 29, 2018 Author Share Posted April 29, 2018 From what I can see everything looks to be good. Given that, I'd go with RTV. The keys for getting RTV to work for me are to make sure you get the manifold in place correctly w/o sliding it around, and then snugging it down and letting it set overnight. So I use long bolts with the heads cut off as guides to align the manifold to the head. Just screw them into the heads loosely and lower the manifold over them. Then install the other bolts loosely, and unscrew the guides. Once all bolts are in gently screw them in to where they are snug. Leave it over night and come back the next day to torque them down. And, I use RTV on the front and rear dams that tie the sides of the block together. Place a smooth 1/4" to 1/2" bead of RTV on them. But the dam and the manifold have to be CLEAN so the RTV will adhere to them. Progress is slow. This weekend has not let me get done what I needed to get done. But a couple of small things happened. More gasket scrapping on the intake manifold. Pretty sure it is as clean as it is going to get. Two of the bolts for the intake were in bad shape, the ones at the front by the coolant channels, so I ordered up ARP bolts for the manifold and matching bolts for the valve covers. Should arrive on tuesday. Installed the new steering column. It feels so much better. Everything is tight and precise. Very happy even if it was expensive.. Also installed a Borgeson intermediate steering shaft. I need the steering to feel tight, this thing needs to feel secure for the wife.. as I have so much invested in the steering it seemed worthwhile. I won’t know until I have her running again. On the plus side, the hazard lights are working now! Managed to get the idiot light filters glued back in, 3 of them were damaged. Removed all thr shitty aftermarket driving light wires to the frony and to the back up lights. Installed the stock Ford grill from the wreckers instead of the shitty aftermarket one that was there. The Ford emblem is hidden now though.. Ordered up a pair for KC Daylighters for the bull bar! I always wanted them on a truck, the covers with the smiley faces are iconic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted April 29, 2018 Author Share Posted April 29, 2018 Progress is slow. This weekend has not let me get done what I needed to get done. But a couple of small things happened. More gasket scrapping on the intake manifold. Pretty sure it is as clean as it is going to get. Two of the bolts for the intake were in bad shape, the ones at the front by the coolant channels, so I ordered up ARP bolts for the manifold and matching bolts for the valve covers. Should arrive on tuesday. Installed the new steering column. It feels so much better. Everything is tight and precise. Very happy even if it was expensive.. Also installed a Borgeson intermediate steering shaft. I need the steering to feel tight, this thing needs to feel secure for the wife.. as I have so much invested in the steering it seemed worthwhile. I won’t know until I have her running again. On the plus side, the hazard lights are working now! Managed to get the idiot light filters glued back in, 3 of them were damaged. Removed all thr shitty aftermarket driving light wires to the frony and to the back up lights. Installed the stock Ford grill from the wreckers instead of the shitty aftermarket one that was there. The Ford emblem is hidden now though.. Ordered up a pair for KC Daylighters for the bull bar! I always wanted them on a truck, the covers with the smiley faces are iconic! Never posting from my phone again, sorry about the picture rotation... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 29, 2018 Share Posted April 29, 2018 Progress is slow. This weekend has not let me get done what I needed to get done. But a couple of small things happened. More gasket scrapping on the intake manifold. Pretty sure it is as clean as it is going to get. Two of the bolts for the intake were in bad shape, the ones at the front by the coolant channels, so I ordered up ARP bolts for the manifold and matching bolts for the valve covers. Should arrive on tuesday. Installed the new steering column. It feels so much better. Everything is tight and precise. Very happy even if it was expensive.. Also installed a Borgeson intermediate steering shaft. I need the steering to feel tight, this thing needs to feel secure for the wife.. as I have so much invested in the steering it seemed worthwhile. I won’t know until I have her running again. On the plus side, the hazard lights are working now! Managed to get the idiot light filters glued back in, 3 of them were damaged. Removed all thr shitty aftermarket driving light wires to the frony and to the back up lights. Installed the stock Ford grill from the wreckers instead of the shitty aftermarket one that was there. The Ford emblem is hidden now though.. Ordered up a pair for KC Daylighters for the bull bar! I always wanted them on a truck, the covers with the smiley faces are iconic! That's actually very good progress. I'm in the same mindset - if I can get ahead faster by buying something in then that's probably what I'll do. So I like the way you've done the steering. That can be a very fiddly, time-consuming area to work on, so letting the pro's do it has big advantages. And, I agree on the KC Daylighters. They are period-correct and look good on these trucks. Well done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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