project: "Ultimate Tow Rig"

[-Nathan-]

before proceeding with final installation, I wanted to address my intercooler pipes.

here is the hot side pipe, it is wrapped in insulation and foil, from the factory it is supposed to quiet turbo noise....but I like turbo noise

stripped the gunk off it

the cleaned it up with a wire wheel, primed and painted; also did the cold side pipe.

while waiting for the paint to cure, figured Id put a new fuel filter in her

and everything put back together

still in the break-in process, but the turbo is much more noticeable, and the boost seems to come on quicker.

 

[Sunk]

I like turbo noise

Who doesn't?

 

[86 slo-vo]

That insulation they put on the hot side pipe suckssss to get off. I snagged one out of the JY to cut up for my intake and it took me a good while to get it cleaned up


Sent from your moms house using Tapatalk

 

[Toms01PSD]

Nice work so far, wish I could afford some of that good stuff! Only things i've done are the 6637 intake, ccv mod, foil delete, and straight piped.

 

[Flash Gordan]

Who doesn't?

I know a few school bus drivers that are driving international buses with this same motor. And they bitch at me every week during the school year, "My bus is too noisy." I try to calmly tell them that it is supposed to sound like that.

 

[AgPete139]

Ha. Nice build, Nathan.

I'm now subscribed to your upgrades.

 

[-Nathan-]

Ever since I bought the truck, the truck would seem to wander on the highway, and the steering just felt loose. Well, its to the point that you cant even turn the wheels with the truck at rest, and the play is ridiculous. All the TRE are tight, the steering shaft joint is tight....its all in the steering gear. These trucks are notorious to have issues with the steering gears. I have a new Motorcraft steering gear, will put it on this weekend.

pictures to follow of course

 

[-Nathan-]

got the steering gear in and fluid changed, actually a very simple job.

First pull the airbox, battery (drivers side), and the battery tray. From here you have access to everything.

Disconnect the steering shaft (undo pinch bolt) and pull it off the splines. Then disconnect the hydraulic lines, I had to use a 5/8" stubby wrench. Also, dont forget to disconnect the joint at the pitman arm.

Then undo the 3 bolts that hold the gear in, the gear box is threaded, so no nuts to worry about here. Then pull the gear out. Here is old vs new.

Pull the pitman arm, youre going to need a BIG pitman arm puller, a heavy duty one like this is very slick.

Also get some new o rings for the hydraulic lines before hand. I forgot, and had a buddy run out and find me some that worked.

Then install the new gear and hook everything back up.

Now at this point, the system needs to be bled. Since I was changing fluid anyways, I switched to Mobil 1 Synthetic.

Remember that on a hydroboost setup, the PS pump runs fluid to both the hydroboost for the brakes and the steering gear. Disconnect the return line on the master cylinder as shown here, and using a 3/8" piece of vinyl tube connect to it, and run the other end into an empty container.

Now your going to need a buddy to bleed the system. Start the truck, and with the pump cap open, have your friend keep the reservoir full. Turn the the wheel lock to lock, and pump the brakes periodically. The system empties into the waste container, and new fluid pumped through. After 3 quarts worth has gone through, the system is flushed, and the fluid is now changed.

Steering has DRASTICALLY improved, probably a combination of both the new gear and the new fluid. Plus the synthetic fluid will be better for the pump come winter.

Peace.

 

[Toms01PSD]

Nice work. My truck decided it wants to leak fuel. Hardline on the passenger side is leaking. Should be fun to replace.

 

[-Nathan-]

That sucks dude, anything fuel related is never fun.

Side note...got my new clutch master/slave in the mail. The one in my truck is the original as far as I know, and has all sorts of slop. The pushrod eyelet is wore, and I cant keep clutch pedal-pushrod bushings in the dang things. So....new master/slave is going in this weekend probably, and instead of the stupid little plastic bushing, Im going to mod the pushrod with a small heim and bolt, for a bullet proof fix.

 

[-Nathan-]

Forgot to post this a couple weeks ago:

Swapped out the tranny fluid for this; Royal Purple Synchromax, a SYNTHETIC trans fluid specifically designed for manual trannies that require ATF.

And....the batteries in my truck were pretty much pooched, as said earlier, routine -50* weather, for 6 months of the year KILLS batts. Also, the terminals/cables were corroded and losing connection once and a while, so I put 2 new batteries, gold plated terminals, and used termination lugs to wire it back in. Is much more functional, and allows me to add to the terminals later if I wish. I opted for better batteries as well, in the cold I need all the CCA I can get.

Before:

After:

 

[-Nathan-]

my clutch bushing heim didnt show up, so I didnt get it and the new master/slave installed like I had hoped. Had to replace ANOTHER bushing....I need that heim ASAP so I can fix this permanently.

busted bushing:

After doing my EBPV delete, of course there is no longer an EBPV solenoid. So that left an empty plug in the engine bay. While not having anything plugged in DOES NOT throw the check engine light, I dont like just having random unplugged plugs. So I got an EBPV fooler from Dfuser, its basically electronic trickery to throw the right resistance to trick the computer into thinking its getting a signal back from the EBPV.

empty plug:

and fooler plugged in:

Since I had some down time, I figured Id shampoo and do a complete detail of the interior. Ive been putting this off for a long time. The previous owner smoked in the truck a bit, so that lingering smell was still there. After 3-4 rounds of shampooing the seats/carpet/headliner, the truck smells awesome, and the seats/carpet feel so much better.

when detailing my truck, I noticed some sludge INSIDE my headlights. These headlights are notorious to be super crappy in the light department, and are glazed badly. So since they are leaking, glazed, and have crappy light output, I ordered some new headlights. I have a set on the way, with 9007 to 9008 conversion harnesses, should look and light much better.

hope to have the headlights in before I head hunting...could really use the extra light.

peace.

 

[-Nathan-]

Swapped my clutch master/slave and upgraded the master pushrod bushing.

first disconnect the clutch pushrod from the pedal, and remove the clutch position sensor ( by removing the bottom of it).

then disconnect the reservoir

to disconnect the master, push it towards the firewall, and turn COUNTER-clockwise 45 degrees

remove the slave in the same manner, push and rotate.

then pull the whole thing out through the engine bay

I have broke 3 plastic bushings in the past 2 months, so I was not putting one back. So I modified my pushrod, with a heim used to fix the OBS powerstroke manual trucks. You can find them on ebay.

here you see pushrod and heim

then cut it

and welded it for good measure

then removed clutch pedal, there are two bolts on the firewall on either side of where the master was

and two inside the cab, directly above the pedal

then ground the nub off the pedal

then punch it out

and ream the hole to accept the bolt for the heim

put the pedal back in, and then put the new slave/master assembly down through the engine bay; installation is opposite of removal

youll notice there is a retainer on the slave, LEAVE IT, as the first time you engage the clutch it will come apart.

then hook up the clutch position sensor, and bolt the heim in place.

action is MUCH smoother, and I dont have to worry about that stupid plastic breaking and leaving me clutchless somehwere.

**NOTE: if your clutch pushrod is a bit short, the heim will hit the sensor before the clutch is completely depressed. As long as the clutch is disengaging fully this is okay, but you may want to make a bigger stop(using a 1/4" bolt and nut) on the pedal, so that the sensor does not act as a stop.

 

[-Nathan-]

Had to do a few minor things to touch up yesterdays work.

Now ford has some very well engineered/thought out items, as well as some not so good things....

The bracket that holds the clutch master reservoir is plastic, and the reservoir is held in with "plastic christmas trees". They SUCK. I managed break my bracket yesterday...

I couldnt just leave it zip tied, so I made a more permanent fix.

Got some random stainless steel from a heat pad (just needed something random to use)

Made a pattern, and started drilling/cutting, and made 2 of these, to sandwich the plastic

Used some 2 part epoxy as well to make sure it didnt go anywhere

And bolted the reservoir in place. Is much more sturdy, and a little better looking than zip ties.

Also, as a result of the heim being bigger in diameter than the stock eyelet, the heim was contacting the clutch position sensor before the clutch pedal hit the stop. So I pulled the plastic/rubber piece out:

Drilled the hole larger, and used a bolt/nut to make an adjustable stop. (note the end of the bolt, not the head, contacts the pedal assembly to stop it)

Hopefully Ill have my headlights this week and get them installed sometime.

 

[Bennybooster]

man, you put so much detail work into this truck, much props man