What did you do to your Ranger today? (Part Deux!)

[youngbuckwithapickuptruck]

MOAR QUESTIONS:
should i just crank my steering wheel back and forth? engine on or engine off?

vaccum pump no vacuum

 

[youngbuckwithapickuptruck]

looks like a i figured out a setup that may work but now the pump isnt pulling vacuum. this pump was brand new plastic sealed in the box when i picked it up this morning, i even tested it and it worked. the last two pumps i tried to 'rent' from autozone wouldnt pump either.

any ideas whats wrong? i tried moving the steering wheel left to right about 20 times and it keeps bubbling air and if i go really fast, it seems to be sucking in air as it raises the powersteering fluid level to start spilling out the reseviour(sp?).

advice?

 

[Curious Hound]

looks like a i figured out a setup that may work but now the pump isnt pulling vacuum. this pump was brand new plastic sealed in the box when i picked it up this morning, i even tested it and it worked. the last two pumps i tried to 'rent' from autozone wouldnt pump either.

any ideas whats wrong? i tried moving the steering wheel left to right about 20 times and it keeps bubbling air and if i go really fast, it seems to be sucking in air as it raises the powersteering fluid level to start spilling out the reseviour(sp?).

advice?

View attachment 137373

Are you trying to get the old fluid oit? Or refill and remove air?

 

[youngbuckwithapickuptruck]

^^^i was trying to bleed air out of my power steering system after swapping my steering rack.

i think i broke my clockspring while trying to bleed my power steering.

i think i may have turned my steering wheel over a full rotation when i was reconnecting the intermediate shaft (never read or saw a warning about this)
and then when i was bleeding the system by turning left/right, i remember feeling slight resistance turning right and then it finally gave way and let me turn to "full lock" this must be when it broke

now i am hearing a plastic dragging noise inside my steering wheel, my horn doesnt work and my airbag light turned on.

advice?
any tips for jimmy rigging the horn to work?

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

Well, among other things, I chopped a quarter inch or so off the splines of my passenger side inner outer shaft for the front of the Choptop. Thinking probably Monday, weather permitting, I’m going to tear the front end apart to see about making 4x4 work. I’m doing a down and dirty budget fix to my problem. If you’ve been following along, I’ve had a problem of the passenger side axle shaft being too long.

I think some of the problem is that the axle pivot bolt hole in the James Duff bracket was egged out when I got the brackets. I welded it up ages ago and been using it since. I’m thinking part of my ongoing problem has been that I may have welded the wrong end of the egged out hole. So the idea for a temporary fix pending replacing the brackets is going to be to plate over and move the holes 1/2-3/4” over. Then with the now slightly shorter shaft and knocking the cap out of the end of the slip joint, I should be able to get enough travel to be able to put the passenger side shaft in with an external C-clip eliminator spring and have 4x4 again.

I still have plans to replace the brackets which will hopefully fix things for good, but realistically, with what has happened lately, it’s going to be 2-3 months before I can get the new brackets and winter will be largely over by then. I live in a valley and most of the roads out are not particularly well maintained in the winter so 4x4 is almost a must of it’s snowing. A good limited slip or rear locker works most of the time, but the locker for the rear axle of the Choptop is still sitting in my shop. Also knowing how my F-150 performed with a locker, I’d like the front axle capable of doing something.

So there, all caught up. Standby, things are about to happen because I’m tired of status quo. If there’s something that bugs me, it’s driving a vehicle that doesn’t do what I need it to do. I’m really salty about the tailgate on the Choptop not working but that’s a major sheet metal project to fix and I need to do something about the bumpers about the time I deal with that so I have to put up with it for now because I really need the green Ranger fixed first.

 

[sgtsandman]

The bed is off of the 2011 and all the dirt and debris has been blown off of the frame and fuel tank with an air nozzle. I was going to drain the tank via the filler neck opening in the tank but remembered about the anti siphoning valve after I got the filler neck hose off. And since it started raining, I put the filler neck hose back on. The pump retaining ring is in decent enough shape that I won't have to replace it. So, douching everything under the truck with fluid film seems to be having some benefit.

The dead battery has been removed from the truck so I can turn it in for a core when I buy the new one after work tomorrow. Hopefully the weather will cooperate tomorrow so I can get the old pump out and the new one in. Good weather or not, I can install the new battery.