6.9 rebuild

[nicknd]

So I just bought a 1985 F350 for $1500. It's a Midwest truck and has a little rust, but it's probably 1/10 as bad as a typical 25 year old truck around here. Anyway, I plan to completely tear down the truck and restore it over the next few years. The restoration won't start until next summer, so the first thing I'm doing is investing in after market gauges and starting to stockpile parts.


Eventually I would like to have the engine overhauled/rebuilt by a professional. I'm talking about stripping it right down to the block and cleaning the cylinders and everything. Does anyone have a rough estimate of how much this would cost? I was reading a few things that said a 6.9 that is completely overhauled would cost $3000-$4000 (not sure if that's form a shop or not). I would just like to get other people's opinions. Keep in mind, a shop would do the rebuild, not me.

Also, I'm new to the forum and this is my first post, so there will be many more questions to come.

 

[Knuckledragger]

It depends mostly on how much of the parts you supply yourself and how much machining is necessary (or desired- balancing the rotating mass will make you very happy in the future but is not necessary).

My engine cost about $2500 to rebuild, but I did the assembly and supplied all of the parts. Machining was only about $950 - and included resizing rods, boring and honing block, replacing and honing rod bushings, balancing rotating mass, valve job, cleaning of block and heads, replacing cam bearings.

If your block is an early one, the piston squirters are pressed in and must be removed prior to boring (if that is going to be done). the later blocks have bolt in squirters, much better. I have made a tool to remove them if you or the shop need one. the factory does not make or sell them any more, and I am not sure you can even get the target template to replace them, but it is easy enough to put them back in the right attitude if you pay attention to how they looked before taking them out.

These engines are very long lasting, so if it is running all right you may be able to just replace seals and gaskets (and don't forget to rebuild the oil cooler) and be on your way. Replacing the head bolts with studs will give a lot of piece of mind.

Best of luck on your project!

 

[THECACKLER]

Welcome to the forum. Congratulations on the F350 score. I just did a 7.3 and have over $3K in it and did all but the machine work myself. Parts are quite expensive. I would recommend getting the heads done first. Magnaflux and pressure testing is mandatory before doing any machine work. Think then about installing ARP Head Studs. I have some parts if you're interested. I'm also parting out a rusty 85 F250 in Trenary. Personal Message me... I tried to PM you but couldn't...

 

[Agnem]

Welcome to Oilburners! Your first post is very refreshing, as too often we get the "found this site because I broke my truck" type of thing, not that that isn't what we are here for, but it is just nice to see someone climbing on board to start an adventure rather than to end one. You will definitely get the best help and advice here. Read away! Our FAQ's and tech articles are definitely worth your attention.

 

[nicknd]

Welcome to Oilburners! Your first post is very refreshing, as too often we get the "found this site because I broke my truck" type of thing, not that that isn't what we are here for, but it is just nice to see someone climbing on board to start an adventure rather than to end one. You will definitely get the best help and advice here. Read away! Our FAQ's and tech articles are definitely worth your attention.

I'll take a look at those ASAP. At this point, I'm just going to start collecting parts. I already have 2 new (from the factory) front doors with towing mirrors, extra radiator, a fairly new CDR valve, full set of reman BB code injectors (out of truck), extra exhaust manifolds, spare oil cooler (needs O-rings), front and rear tanks with good sending units (out of truck), and other parts I can't think of ATM. The truck came with all these parts for the asking price. Also came with F450 leaf springs, a 6" lift kit, and an already installed F450 hydro-boost braking system.

Once I'm making better money (going to college this year for welding then heading to ND for the oil fields), I'm gonna have shops with good reputations do all the hard stuff like machining the block, removing the body from the frame to get the thing 100% rust free, etc.... I can do easy rust repair or certain mechanical repairs, but I grew up in a house where my parents weren't into all the hands-on stuff like I am, so vehicle tools are scarce. Plus, I'd rather just get thing done and done right than spend 5 or 6 years working on it.

Two more things, I have low oil pressure at idle on my truck. The PO thinks it's the oil cooler since it dropped after he replaced the one that needs o-rings. Can the oil cooler affect oil pressure a lot? And, what company should I go to for gauges? I hear SunPro is really good, but I was looking around and none of their oil pressure gauges are detailed. I kind of want one that's digital so it shows chages by 1psi instead of going from 0-25 with 3 little marks in between.

 

[Agnem]

A lot of us prefer the ISSPro gauges. Oil presure is controlled by some extent to the little spring in the oil filter head. However, 5 or 6 PSI of oil presure on a hot engine at idle is pretty normal. As long as it is around 20 when your cruising it's still good. 40 on cold oil is typical at cruise.

 

[nicknd]

A lot of us prefer the ISSPro gauges. Oil presure is controlled by some extent to the little spring in the oil filter head. However, 5 or 6 PSI of oil presure on a hot engine at idle is pretty normal. As long as it is around 20 when your cruising it's still good. 40 on cold oil is typical at cruise.

Do you recommend electric gauges? I was looking at these ( http://www.isspro.com/EV2_WhiteFace_BluePointer_ChromeBezel.php ), but my year truck isn't listed. I need a gauge that goes by 5's or something stead of the one I have now, which goes, 0, then 3 marks, then 25. Also, my oil pressure is low even when the truck is cold.

 

[bike-maker]

Congradulations on your find! You now belong to a pretty small group of us that have the old slantnosed crew cabs. One thing left out of your Sig; does yours have a the Dana 60 straight axle?

 

[nicknd]

One thing left out of your Sig; does yours have a the Dana 60 straight axle?

No

I could have picked one up for an extra $500, but I didn't have the money. It's got the twin beam dana 50. It's fixed and built right so it doesn't eat through tires though.

Here are some pics though:

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As far as body work for it, all 4 doors, the grille, front clip, and fenders will be replaced with OEM parts. I will eventually go with a flatbed. The cab itself is in great shape. The cab corners have some rust, but no holes and the door jambs have a few bubbles here and there; also to my surprise there is no rust around the clearance lights. At this point, I can't decide If I wanna keep it blacked out after the restore (with new, but a basic, more durable paint) or dress it up a bit with a clear coat and some chrome.

 

[papastruck]

Welcome! I'm also on a similar journey with a crew cab. I'd suggest that it's a good thing you're not tearing into it for a while. I have a '73 that I swore I was going to "do right" with a complete teardown, POR-15 on the frame, etc., and it's still sitting in the garage... and the basement, and God knows where else, after 2 years, and I miss drivin' it! And I'm into it for way more than I am the '86. But the IDI, I've been chipping away at it while keeping it on the road, and as a result I've gotten to know it better and been able to prioritize fixes and upgrades. Believe me, the priorities are COMPLETELY different now that I've had it 6 months. Anyway, that truck looks like you could keep it rolling while you work - good snag.

 

[bike-maker]

Any parts for the rear doors are super hard to find. Mine was (and still is) missing the rear door panels along with the door handles. I've had a hell of a time trying to find replacents. I'll probably just end up trying to find a set of doors off a newer, 87-91 crew cab and use those.

Just looked at your pics again and noticed yours has the same identity crisis as mine..........it has a newer bed on it. Just the wheel wells are different, but it bothers the hell out of me. Guy I got it from owned it for 10 years and never noticed until I pointed it out to him.

 

[papastruck]

Any parts for the rear doors are super hard to find. Mine was (and still is) missing the rear door panels along with the door handles. I've had a hell of a time trying to find replacents. I'll probably just end up trying to find a set of doors off a newer, 87-91 crew cab and use those.

Don't know for a fact that they're identical, but the hardware on the rears looks an awful lot like the door hardware on an early Ranger (83-87) if you need parts. I'm planning to swap out to a later CC door setup, as that stuff is flimsy as hell, and the handles on the newer ones are mounted like the fronts and give you a lot more leverage. This particular project is a ways down the list, but I plan on posting when I get to it.

 

[nicknd]

Any parts for the rear doors are super hard to find. Mine was (and still is) missing the rear door panels along with the door handles. I've had a hell of a time trying to find replacents. I'll probably just end up trying to find a set of doors off a newer, 87-91 crew cab and use those.

Just looked at your pics again and noticed yours has the same identity crisis as mine..........it has a newer bed on it. Just the wheel wells are different, but it bothers the hell out of me. Guy I got it from owned it for 10 years and never noticed until I pointed it out to him.

If all else fails, I'll have the rust fixed on the rear doors. Mine came with rust free, primed doors when I bought it, but they guy said they're from a '93 I think; I'm pretty sure they'll fit on the '85. And I didn't notice the bed bed until now. Thanks, now it's going to bother the hell out of me. lol

Looking ahead to the future, I probably wont end up stripping it down to the frame. It has rust, but no scaling or thinning. I'm probably still gonna strip the body bare, but I won't take it off the frame.

 

[jonathan]

did you buy the truck from another member?

 

[bike-maker]

Nobody will ever notice the bed mismatch unless you tell them about it. Especially with your wheelbase being so long.
As far as I know the newer doors will fit, but they don't have the split windows if you're concerned about it being period correct.