1981 Ford F100 Revival (Parked for 12 years)

[ArdWrknTrk]

The master parts catalog, shown at Documentation/Driveline/Brakes, says that F100's with manual brakes have 11" drums and those with power brakes have 10" drums. But to verify that you should measure the inside of the drums. And you probably should verify that.

Verify that he has power brakes?

Jonathan is showing a picture of the booster, above.

[Gary Lewis]

Verify that he has power brakes?

Jonathan is showing a picture of the booster, above.

Good point, Jim. I forgot that.

[Jonathan]

That brake fluid looks awful!

And the brake hoses can swell shut inside. In fact, they can act as a check valve, allowing the pressure to set the brakes but not letting it drop off to release them. So it is wise to replace them.

Good luck with the project. But I'll warn you that it is likely the rear wheel cylinders will be bad as well. In my experience when the fluid is that rusty then there are several problems, and the rears seem to be a prime candidate.

Should I just go ahead and order before 4pm? If I order before 4pm I can get it tomorrow. After 4pm and I won't get until next Wednesday. And for the fronts how do I measure the rear drums? LOL It sounds so backwards. Do I measure from the inside or outside? I really don't have much time to pull them before 4pm so I am hoping there is a easy way to tell. It seems based on stock 11" rear is more common.

I also need some tires. I wanted to save money and get some used tires for now and called a used tire shop called KeKe's. They wanted $65 each for a matched set of used Hankook tires for the front. And $55 for a no name one for the rear. So then I called Blue Flame and they had tires for $35. I loaded up the car with the three tires not holding air the worst and went to Blue Flame. After I got there they only had three but they were all old trash not worth putting on the truck. He recommended Walmart. Walmart had tires from Dextero and just four left. I never heard of them but the reviews were good and made in South Carolina not far from me. I will post more information about them below. I got some fresh ones made this month! Walmart sucks but I did it anyway. After waiting two hours for them to mount just three tires I was done. I am returning with another rim today to mount number four. I may buy the display model too because my "good tire" I was planning to use as a spare has a slow leak too. Walmart rolled out the tires to my car and one had an old wheel weight on it! I said shouldn't you remove the old weights? He lied and said it was one he had laying around. LOL No way, the patina was a perfect match to the rim and it was on the front of the rim. All his weights were shiny and new and on the back side of the rim. He took it back, removed the old weight and balanced again adding a weight on the back side.  I really hope they mounted the tires properly. I don't have a lot of confidence in their work. The other strange thing was every tire had a different valve cap. One was black, one chrome, one chrome and green. I asked if they had matching caps and they started walking around looking at the floor. Picked up some old nasty looking cap and gave it to me. Seriously? You pay for new tires and stems and they can't give you new caps? They are something else.

http://www.dexterotires.com/

"Dextero Tires is a Giti Tire brand. Singapore-based Giti Tire Group, one of the largest tire companies in the world, operates eight state-of-the-art manufacturing plants, serving consumers in more than 130 countries worldwide. Giti’s first North American manufacturing facility, located in Chester County, South Carolina, began production in 2017."

"Dextero tires are manufactured by GITI Tire, which traces its roots in the tire industry to 1951."

 

[ArdWrknTrk]

I also need some tires. I wanted to save money and get some used tires for now and called a used tire shop called KeKe's. They wanted $65 each for a matched set of used Hankook tires for the front. And $55 for a no name one for the rear. So then I called Blue Flame and they had tires for $35. I loaded up the car with the three tires not holding air the worst and went to Blue Flame. After I got there they only had three but they were all old trash not worth putting on the truck. He recommended Walmart. Walmart had tires from Dextero and just four left. I never heard of them but the reviews were good and made in South Carolina not far from me. I will post more information about them below. I got some fresh ones made this month! Walmart sucks but I did it anyway. After waiting two hours for them to mount just three tires I was done. I am returning with another rim today to mount number four. I may buy the display model too because my "good tire" I was planning to use as a spare has a slow leak too. Walmart rolled out the tires to my car and one had an old wheel weight on it! I said shouldn't you remove the old weights? He lied and said it was one he had laying around. LOL No way, the patina was a perfect match to the rim and it was on the front of the rim. All his weights were shiny and new and on the back side of the rim. He took it back, removed the old weight and balanced again adding a weight on the back side.  I really hope they mounted the tires properly. I don't have a lot of confidence in their work. The other strange thing was every tire had a different valve cap. One was black, one chrome, one chrome and green. I asked if they had matching caps and they started walking around looking at the floor. Picked up some old nasty looking cap and gave it to me. Seriously? You pay for new tires and stems and they can't give you new caps? They are something else.

http://www.dexterotires.com/

"Dextero Tires is a Giti Tire brand. Singapore-based Giti Tire Group, one of the largest tire companies in the world, operates eight state-of-the-art manufacturing plants, serving consumers in more than 130 countries worldwide. Giti’s first North American manufacturing facility, located in Chester County, South Carolina, began production in 2017."

"Dextero tires are manufactured by GITI Tire, which traces its roots in the tire industry to 1951."

You've got a roller now!

Ridiculous the tire shop has new valve stems and no caps to go with them.

I probably would have painted the rims with the old tires on.

 

[Jonathan]

You've got a roller now!

Ridiculous the tire shop has new valve stems and no caps to go with them.

I probably would have painted the rims with the old tires on.

Yeah I probably should have painted them first but you know how I am. It would delay forever because I take so long to prep and paint. I just wanted to get it done ASAP so I can get it on the road. I will revisit it later and will wash them down for now. But knowing Walmart they would of scratched the hell out of the paint. I don't know if they have to try hard to be incompetent or it just comes naturally. I did pick up some paint and I will practice with the spare.

They gave me some new caps when I went back yesterday to get the third tire and the spare. Lots more drama then that but I will save it for its own post.

[Jonathan]

The master parts catalog, shown at Documentation/Driveline/Brakes, says that F100's with manual brakes have 11" drums and those with power brakes have 10" drums. But to verify that you should measure the inside of the drums. And you probably should verify that.

Thanks, I measured on the outside just for fun because Randy told me that they write on the outside the size. But you are correct they are 10" drums. The parts are on order and I can pick them up this morning.

Is it okay to jack the truck up under the rear differential?

[Jonathan]

I also need some tires. I wanted to save money and get some used tires for now and called a used tire shop called KeKe's. They wanted $65 each for a matched set of used Hankook tires for the front. And $55 for a no name one for the rear. So then I called Blue Flame and they had tires for $35. I loaded up the car with the three tires not holding air the worst and went to Blue Flame. After I got there they only had three but they were all old trash not worth putting on the truck. He recommended Walmart. Walmart had tires from Dextero and just four left. I never heard of them but the reviews were good and made in South Carolina not far from me. I will post more information about them below. I got some fresh ones made this month! Walmart sucks but I did it anyway. After waiting two hours for them to mount just three tires I was done. I am returning with another rim today to mount number four. I may buy the display model too because my "good tire" I was planning to use as a spare has a slow leak too. Walmart rolled out the tires to my car and one had an old wheel weight on it! I said shouldn't you remove the old weights? He lied and said it was one he had laying around. LOL No way, the patina was a perfect match to the rim and it was on the front of the rim. All his weights were shiny and new and on the back side of the rim. He took it back, removed the old weight and balanced again adding a weight on the back side.  I really hope they mounted the tires properly. I don't have a lot of confidence in their work. The other strange thing was every tire had a different valve cap. One was black, one chrome, one chrome and green. I asked if they had matching caps and they started walking around looking at the floor. Picked up some old nasty looking cap and gave it to me. Seriously? You pay for new tires and stems and they can't give you new caps? They are something else.

http://www.dexterotires.com/

"Dextero Tires is a Giti Tire brand. Singapore-based Giti Tire Group, one of the largest tire companies in the world, operates eight state-of-the-art manufacturing plants, serving consumers in more than 130 countries worldwide. Giti’s first North American manufacturing facility, located in Chester County, South Carolina, began production in 2017."

"Dextero tires are manufactured by GITI Tire, which traces its roots in the tire industry to 1951."

So yesterday I went back to Walmart to get the last tire put on and purchase the last display tire for the spare. I told them I wanted the display model tire with the older date code put on the worst condition rim for the spare. So as you can imagine they did the exact opposite and then refused to change it saying it is not a big deal and doesn't matter. Well I guess it probably isn't a big deal to them but it was to me and was a simple request. He was much faster than the guy yesterday but scratched the hell out of the back side of the rims. Big gouges! Of course when I showed them the bright shiny metal scratches in obvious contrast to the old black and rust color rim they claimed that the scratches and deep gouges were there before and old. I think lying comes naturally to Walmart employees. They are trained to lie and be incompetent.  

Then I noticed that there were wheel weights on both sides of the two tires I had done. I asked them why all the tires from yesterday only had wheel weights on the back side of the wheel? This Russian guy that works there that does more complicated things like oil changes that the others can't handle overheard and came up and said they screwed up and to bring it back. So I had to run home and remove all three tires from the truck again and put on jack stands to have them rebalanced from the one person that seemed to know what they were doing while he was still there. He even used these little feather weights I have never seen before. It is just like a sliver of weight.

Did I mention that Walmart sucks?

 

[FuzzFace2]

You've got a roller now!

Ridiculous the tire shop has new valve stems and no caps to go with them.

I probably would have painted the rims with the old tires on.

Yeah I probably should have painted them first but you know how I am. It would delay forever because I take so long to prep and paint. I just wanted to get it done ASAP so I can get it on the road. I will revisit it later and will wash them down for now. But knowing Walmart they would of scratched the hell out of the paint. I don't know if they have to try hard to be incompetent or it just comes naturally. I did pick up some paint and I will practice with the spare.

They gave me some new caps when I went back yesterday to get the third tire and the spare. Lots more drama then that but I will save it for its own post.

The weights should be on both sides as done on the 4th & spare but if someone does not want to see weights on the front side like alum. wheels then the machine can be set up to do just the rear side of the wheels.

If you had a bubble balancer the weight is only placed on 1 side so the rear would be the same.

I think my drag slicks are done on the back side, alum. slots.

The weights are a stick on type and I used duct tape to help hold them in place.

Cant see them from the front side.

Dave ----

[nic55kel]

The master parts catalog, shown at Documentation/Driveline/Brakes, says that F100's with manual brakes have 11" drums and those with power brakes have 10" drums. But to verify that you should measure the inside of the drums. And you probably should verify that.

Thanks, I measured on the outside just for fun because Randy told me that they write on the outside the size. But you are correct they are 10" drums. The parts are on order and I can pick them up this morning.

Is it okay to jack the truck up under the rear differential?

Regarding jacking the truck at the differential housing.

As a retired professional mechanic I have seen it done many many times and never personally heard of it causing a problem.

Do I do it myself? No. It is actually a controversial subject.

I always jack as close to the spring attachment points as possible (U-bolts) or shock mounts.

Just me - when you put a load on something there is always some deflection.

If using a hoist then obviously I use the frame rails.

[ArdWrknTrk]

So yesterday I went back to Walmart to get the last tire put on and purchase the last display tire for the spare. I told them I wanted the display model tire with the older date code put on the worst condition rim for the spare. So as you can imagine they did the exact opposite and then refused to change it saying it is not a big deal and doesn't matter. Well I guess it probably isn't a big deal to them but it was to me and was a simple request. He was much faster than the guy yesterday but scratched the hell out of the back side of the rims. Big gouges! Of course when I showed them the bright shiny metal scratches in obvious contrast to the old black and rust color rim they claimed that the scratches and deep gouges were there before and old. I think lying comes naturally to Walmart employees. They are trained to lie and be incompetent.  

Then I noticed that there were wheel weights on both sides of the two tires I had done. I asked them why all the tires from yesterday only had wheel weights on the back side of the wheel? This Russian guy that works there that does more complicated things like oil changes that the others can't handle overheard and came up and said they screwed up and to bring it back. So I had to run home and remove all three tires from the truck again and put on jack stands to have them rebalanced from the one person that seemed to know what they were doing while he was still there. He even used these little feather weights I have never seen before. It is just like a sliver of weight.

Did I mention that Walmart sucks?

If I want both rear wheels off the ground I jack the diff and end up putting stands as far out the tubes as practical for whatever I'm doing.

A tire balance machine will show you which side of the rim (in or out) to put the weight.

It can be set up for decorative wheels to only read inboard. But that often requires more weight and sometimes you can never fully get it balanced.

(At least that's the way Coates machines were a decade ago)