'90 F350 Crewcab 4x4 "BFTD" Project..

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

Well, my theory is a mixture of the worn out cv on the front driveshaft and the kids that owned it before me, pull starting it in 4 low all the time. I also discovered that the motor mount on the driver's side is apparently shot so that doesn't help matters either.. But considering all of the main webbing was still in tact, I'm not certain.

Anyways, its been just over 24 hours so I decided to fill the trans back up and take it for a spin. Drove it ~ 7 miles down the highway and back to the house on some back roads. Made sure to run it through all the gears and get it up to the same speed that I saw the massive leak the last time. I also took off a bit hard which is how I determined the motor mount was bad as the engine/trans tilted hard towards the passenger side of the truck. Needless to say, I think I stressed the case a bit.

Got back to the house and in the trip where I lost 1/2 a qt of fluid the last time, there wasnt enough of a leak to even make a drip on the cross member. I did have a very slight leak still up near the top (above the oil level) which was a spot I had apparently missed... so I let it sit for a bit.. cleaned it all off again... wire brushed around the edges of where the jb weld is currently and cleaned it really well... then 2nd coated the entire area blending it back a bit further around the top where I had missed it.

For the time being, I'd say it will be fine to drive into town to pick up materials and get back and forth to work. I'll definitely be keeping my eyes open for a trans or a tail housing. If I can keep it together until next winter, I'll plan to pull it apart and rebuild it with a new housing or rebuild another unit and swap it in.

Gonna try and lay some paint on it this weekend and fix the brake lights... then start driving it for a little while and see what else comes up.

More to come.

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

All is well so far...

I noticed something the other day and forgot to ask about it... I went to check the coolant level after the truck had been sitting for 3 days and when I popped the cap loose, I took a coolant bath. The cooling system was still under pressure after 3 days of not running.

Is that normal?? I've never had a vehicle hold pressure in the cooling system that long.

Anyways, I spent a little time cleaning out the shop last night and did some sanding on the body of the truck. Got everything cleaned up and ready (I think) to lay some paint come saturday morning. We'll see what happens.

I've decided to roll it first to get the texture I was looking for, and then spray a second coat if the coverage isn't what I want or if it turns out striped from being rolled.

O... and I'm also going Sunday afternoon to pickup a aux. tank/tool box combo that I scored CHEAP. Going to plumb it in as the 2nd tank since the rear tank is in bad shape on the truck now (and it would cost more to replace then I'll have in this new setup)

More to come!

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

Well I laid some paint today...

Got started early and started rolling the first coat on...

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Quickly noticed that the color was nothing like it was supposed to be. After getting 2 coats on the whole truck (which the paint laid really well actually... no thinning.. just a good foam roller) I didnt even take a picture of it. Rolled it outside and in the sunlight, it was flesh colored... it was BAD.

Anyways, got it back inside and let it sit all day.. had some running to do. Ended up going to the hardware store and finding something I could live with color wise in a rattle can. Came back home.. lightly scuffed the rolled on paint and went to town.

This is after 2 light coats and then 2 wet coats. Color is "Nutmeg" in a satin finish.

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Pulled the grille... cleaned it up and laid on some satin black..

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Going to give it a few days to fully cure and then I'll be doing the same to the headlight bezels, bumper, door handles, and mirrors. No more shiney stuff.

It was too dark to get it back outside for any decent pictures, but I really like how it turned out. It's not perfect.. but thats the point. No worries about bouncing it off of trees or anything else while out and about.

Now.. before anyone goes and starts saying "It'll never hold up" etc...etc.. I can repaint this thing 10 times over and still not spend $400.

Anyways, more to come once I get the mess cleaned up. Going to pickup my toolbox/aux tank in the morning.

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

I'm happy with how its turning out...

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Still have a lot of clean up... but thats ok. Went and picked up my aux. tank. Not bad for $210 including fuel cost...

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Need to clean it up, add some mounting points, and paint it. It'll work great I think. Going to either plumb it gravity feed or build a pick-up/sender for it... mount a filter head under the bed and go with some sort of 3 way valves either manual or solenoid. Rear tank will be used for W80, front for D2.

Anyways, Planning on ordering the plumbing bits for it this week if funds allow, along with front rotors/pads and repack the front wheel bearings.

Always something...
-Chris

 

[tnmtn]

I like the black out job on the grill, Nice job!!

 

[riotwarrior]

Looks fine man...nice...is thqt a fuel filler popping out of deck

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

Looks fine man...nice...is thqt a fuel filler popping out of deck

Yeah... some more of the half assed bs I'm having to sort out. That's on the list of crap to fix.

 

[riotwarrior]

Yeah... some more of the half assed bs I'm having to sort out. That's on the list of crap to fix.

Do a search...tech 101 quick deck.....I extemded soem filler necks...may give ya an idea or two to think bout

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

A bit more progress...

Cut out all the janky wiring for the rear lights... ended up cutting back to the harness just before the rear tank on the frame rail as it had been hacked up pretty good. I found 10/3 house wiring just twisted together with the light connectors (no wire nuts or tape.. just twisted and called good).. along with half a mile of bs wiring that went nothing. Anyways, rewired the lights from mid frame to each light and made new clean ground points. Everything works great now.

Also just ordered everything to do my manual fuel valve conversion and plumb my aux. tank... and a pair of 9" stud mount LED lights that I'll be mounting on the headache rack and putting them on a toggle for rear work lights and reverse lights.

Does anyone know if the inlet to the lift pump is removable? I cant recall and I'd like to upsize it to 1/2" if I can.

Anyways, plan on finishing up some more wiring over the weekend... hopefully will get my tank/toolbox mounted to the bed and start finishing the exhaust. Going to get plates monday if I can.

More to come.

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

Started on the rear tank...

Cleaned the bottom and welded on new mount tabs... then painted the bottom..

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Mounted...

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Started plumbing... I'm using the tank's drain as the supply and plumbing with 1/2".

Cant wait to get the boxes fixed and repaint the bed and tank.

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

Getting more done...

I cut down and made mounts for the stack that was on the truck when I got it. I'm typically not a fan, however, I had some useless space next to the tank and it turned out decent.

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3x3x1/4" angle may be a bit excessive for stack mounts... but I didnt have to buy anything. Lol

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Also got the filter head and some plumbing bits for the aux tank in today.. so worked on getting some of that done..

Mounted the filter head on the cab floor support

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1/2" gates fuel hose...

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Filter tucks up nicely surrounded by the frame and sheet metal so fairly protected.. and would probably be unnoticeable if the filter wasn't red.

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Started running out of daylight so called it. I've got the valves and a few other bits... and I've got most of what I need to plumb the stack so that'll be done soon. I also received my new front rotors and pads (scored a set of wagner rotors new for $60 shipped) so will be pulling the front end apart to do the brakes and repack the bearings soon.

More to come.

 

[Waystro]

JB weld will do fine for you I would do a double coat.
On the first ford I had the raditator started leaking so some JB weld in 2 coats drove it for 2 years like that.
Thanks for this build its giving me motivation to finish my truck.

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

JB weld will do fine for you I would do a double coat.
On the first ford I had the raditator started leaking so some JB weld in 2 coats drove it for 2 years like that.
Thanks for this build its giving me motivation to finish my truck.

So far its doing good. I'm driving it every day and I get the occasional drip from it but oh well. I'll check the fluid level ever so often. Come winter, I'll most likely pull the trans and have the housing replaced and possibly just have it rebuilt. Either that or swap in a reman unit.

 

[Waystro]

So far its doing good. I'm driving it every day and I get the occasional drip from it but oh well. I'll check the fluid level ever so often. Come winter, I'll most likely pull the trans and have the housing replaced and possibly just have it rebuilt. Either that or swap in a reman unit.

There's a good ZF5 up the road from me for $250 wrecked his truck and parted it out but kept the Trans it's been sitting 1 year I'll see if he's still got it.

Or I have a nice C6 auto sitting here if ya want it.

 

[AcIdBuRn02ZTS]

There's a good ZF5 up the road from me for $250 wrecked his truck and parted it out but kept the Trans it's been sitting 1 year I'll see if he's still got it.

Or I have a nice C6 auto sitting here if ya want it.

I'd like to keep it manual. If its a 4x4 trans, definitely see if he still has it. I'll gladly pay freight to get it here.