My Newest Acquisition: 85 F250 4x4

[Michael Dimock]

Spent part of the day tacking the headache rack together before barbecuing! I will take it to work for some finish welding and final additions.

 

[Michael Dimock]

Last weekend I fabbed up a bracket for my battery switch which now supplies power to the rear Anderson connector. This is used to power my removable winch either on the trailer or on the truck. The headache rack was finished during the week and I got the whole mess (headache rack, tank, and box) all mocked up. The tank lid bowed during the shortening process so I had to beat it flat w/ the sledge and now discovered that the bottom is in need of the same treatment! I will have to take care of that when I yank the tank for the final time before the bed gets bedlined.... Just wish it would stop raining!

 

[Michael Dimock]

Finally got a 55gal drum to start my wmo gathering as well. I cut a hole in the center that was smaller than the filter bags upper hoop so they would have a nice tight fit on the lid. Northern Tool provided me w/ a barrel pump and I got the filter bags from Filter Source. For my first test, I have a 50 micron inside of a 25 micron for the prefiltering. It flows pretty good especially since it was in the 50's today. I cut out a 1/8" plate to cover the filter bags and allows me to cycle the oil through multiple times. I have about 20 gallons so far and will be slowly building inventory until I build my filtering rig...

 

[Michael Dimock]

Finally got the truck closer to where I want it.... Is it ever finished? Probably have 40 hours or so into the rear bed welding up holes, shortening the tank, fabricating the headache rack, bedlining, and then making it all fit! I'm pretty happy w/ the final product and best of all it has a touch of IH! Just need to get he tailgate installed at this point...

 

[GOOSE]

Looks awesomeYou're not the only one putting in hours on your rig.

 

[93f250idi]

truck looks so clean! i would leave the original wheels on it or put some factory alcoas if you can find em. might step up to a 285/75/16 for a meatier look. o and welcome!

 

[93f250idi]

and the bedliner looks awesome!

 

[Michael Dimock]

I've been busy prepping the truck for it's trip back to Oregon this Thursday for the Binder Bee (Oregon's IH scout/lightline show) as we (IH ONLY NORTH) will be vending there. I was going to tow my scout, but the flywheel is most likely heat checked and the clutch chatters.... I've ran out of time to change the clutch, so I'll be flying solo on the way down. Built a spare tire carrier for under the bed, wired in my transfer pump + rear Anderson connector, and changed the power steering, tranny, and transfercase fluid. The rear diff + brakes will be gone through on Tuesday and that should do it. Went to Pick N Pull this weekend and found a decent tailgate + hardware. It is even the same color! I had to glue the red plastic FORD reflector back on the aluminum trim and pound out a few dents, but it looks pretty good overall! Spent about half an hour adjusting it and it shuts like a dream. I just need a new handle and it will be complete.

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[Danielle]

I will gladly trade you my left ******** for that front bumper setup.

I would also trade his ******** for it! (Sorry have none of my own heh)

 

[towcat]

I would also trade his ******** for it! (Sorry have none of my own heh)

keep it up and we are going to require photo proof that you are really the fairer ***.

 

[Michael Dimock]

So, been away from posting for quite awhile. Been keeping myself amused with everyone's triumphs, failures, and questions here though! The miles have been racking up on the Ford as it has been towing my Scout's, scrap steel, and plenty of other things around the past year or so. DD duties switch on and off between it and the 62 Scout depending upon which one I am working on at the moment... Never a dull moment to say the least. My T-19 has always popped out of first on decel on rough roads and when it began coming out of third as well I figured why not swap in a ZF? That thought has certainly cost me a lot of money and even more aggravation. 5th sure is nice but I'm still not sure if it was worth it. Bought a "rebuilt" one off of Craigslist and them being cassette style cases are kinda hard to check out especially when you're a newb concerning them. Got totally f'ed by the guy and found out after I rounded up a few small parts and got it swapped in during a LONG weekend that it was worn out. 2nd and 4th were almost impossible to get in as even RPM matching it was difficult because the teeth were so mushroomed on the gears. After taking the thing apart I wasn't impressed with its syncros at all. They certainly have more teeth than a T-19 but feel frail in comparison. Being aluminum, using ATF, and 1 piece w/o a removable bellhousing also were on my negative list. But alas, I found another 5 speed that was recently rebuilt by ZF and tossed it in. It lasted for around 6 thousand miles until 2nd's syncro became angry. Still driving it but am RPM matching or as close as I can get to prolong the transmissions life. I always wondered why everyone was yanking out their E4OD's for ZF's when you can actually build up an E4OD. You're kinda of stuck w/ a ZF the way it is... Enough of my ranting. Lesson learned, buy a rebuilt ZF from a reputable vendor if you are thinking of swapping one in to make it easier on yourself in the future. Positive note though is with either trans I haven't had any gear rollover noise w/ a gallon of Swepco 20wt ATF in them! If I didn't prefer a manual over an auto I wouldn't have even hesitated when the T-19 went out to buy a built up E40d w/ an upgraded torque converter. Here are a few pics over the last year:

 

[Michael Dimock]

Recently I sent out my early Banks turbo to Typ4 for a rebuild and got it back a few weeks ago. I mocked up the turbo during the first ZF install and got the downpipe built to where my 4" exhaust starts at that time so I'd be ahead in the future. I also added some more insulation to the floor to limit noise a bit more. I must have tarded it when it came to the up pipes as the ZF's bellhousing extends back much further than an auto or T-19 so I had to beat the bottom of the up pipe. Oh and cut a large section out of the firewall to get the assembly in place as I made it one piece.... I'm going to have to make a new section for the up pipe in the future as I was tired of fighting the trans in one way or another and just made it fit. All of the exhaust I added was painted with Hi-Temp exhaust paint, header wrapped, and then painted again to retain as much heat as possible and limit rust. I bought some of Isspro's newest EV2 gauges and a Glowshift 92-97 three gauge pillar pod to hack up. Being a dealer for Isspro helps on cost for sure. The EV2 line is made in USA, LED backlit, and they are all electric which I really like for installation purposes. Didn't end up using much of the gauge pod and used plastic-weld to adhere it to the stock trim piece. Had to cut three chunks out of the back of the stock trim for wire access. Colorbond #75 blue is a very close match to the blue interior color used in these trucks. The turbo install took me two weekends with the fighting of the up pipe taking up one weekend and the rest got buttoned up in the next. I turned the injection pump up all the way minus a flat and it seems to be doing quite well. Gauges are awesome and would recommend them to anyone. Ended up with EGT, Boost, Coolant Temp, Oil Pressure, and Trans Temp. Without the trailer hooked up I can make around 10 PSI of boost in 4th floored doing about 85. The smashed up pipe is definitely limiting it a bit, but I'm going to enjoy it for a while before I fix it. Maybe when I take the ZF out again for a rebuild that I will be doing myself I will tackle that at the same time. Going up Hwy 80 to Fordyce towing my Scout has involved 2nd and 3rd gear w/ the 3.55's so I'm hoping w/ the turbo I will be able to step it up to 3rd and 4th. Water/**** is next on the list.

 

[Michael Dimock]

Here is a pic of why the first trans was angry and the reason I go through all the trouble in maintaining a tow vehicle:

 

[79jasper]

From what I've read, the zf's aren't hard to rebuild. Just takes patience and the right tools.

Which is why I'm looking for a press.

 

[91idi]

A ranger box is the way I'm going for my overdrive with my 86's t19. Not sold on zf's myself