Austin Centurion
Registered User
Hello, I'm new to this part of the interwebs, but was really hoping to get some sage wisdom from some of you folks.
I just purchased a 1985 Ford F-250 Super Cab, Long Bed, 6.9 IDI, T19 Trans, Dana 70 LSD rear with 4.10 gears. It has the door tag and some of the bits from Centurion-Lehman (The retro CB radio console on the roof), but I can't find much details on that, except for some pictures of their old marketing flyers from the 80s.
The truck didn't run when I bought it, but I felt like for $1000, it was a decent deal to give myself a project (I've been getting the work-from-home idle hands cabin fever lately). There is rust in all the usual places (cab corners, fenders, and some under the bed). But I've always wanted to learn how to weld, and patch panels are available for cheap.
I did a good once over today, and made some preliminary purchases to get going. Ordered a Powermaster Ultra Duty starter, part #9050, new MC starter solenoid, New/Upgraded battery cables from CustomBatteryCables.com (A high school friend had an 84 that caught fire due to some old battery cables, learning from that incident), new MC ZD1A glow plugs (I did my research to make sure I got the popular recommendation), MC thermostat, Delphi mechanical lift pump, MC fuel filter, 4gal of MC VC5 antifreeze, distilled water, Fleetguard DCA4, rad hoses, and rad cap. Also ordered a fuel injector install kit, but can't afford new injectors right now. Also grabbed 2 new Group 27 batteries during a Costco run today. Basically maxed out the card for right now, so it'll be slow going from here. Also got 2.5gal of Shell Rotella T6 and a Purolator filter from Walmart and AAP. I have a 5gal jug on standby with some Diesel Kleen mixed in. (Also ordered a Haynes manual, to help with everything not related to the IDI)
I plan to pull the bed off this weekend, the side tank is leaking and I want to clean up the frame and rear axle. I have 2 cans of some rust reformer, and a quart of some flat black enamel. It looks like the frame was painted/coated at one point, but it's all flaking and there's a bit of surface rust. I'm gonna go crazy with a flap disc. Plus the interior is rather gross, so that is going to get stripped out too.
The prior owner started to do some wrenching on it a while back, which is why it has been sitting under a tree for a while. Radiator was pulled and system drained, not sure why, but running some flush and distilled water before pulling it back in. He also started to work on the injectors, but stopped, guess he realized it'd need new ones and didn't want to deal with it anymore, I don't know.
My plan is to have this be a long term resto/beater (if that even makes sense). I want to get it running and driving under its own power, but don't care if it looks perfect. I like the vintage. I had an 84 Dodge D150, 318LA, and 727 Torqueflite before this, but sold it and bought a 2015 Mustang to have a more reliable daily that could make longer trips.
I'm here because the fear is starting to set in, and that feeling like I bit off more than I can chew. I'm familiar with gas engines, this is my first diesel. I know suck, slap, bang, blow but I'm not as familiar with the black magic that occurs under the hood of this giant driveway ornament. So I'm searching for some sage wisdom from you wonderful people. What am I missing? What should I fix/check/replace/do? I'm sorry for this being sooooo long winded. I didn't intend it to be, but I got to typing this out and couldn't stop. And I thank all of you in advance for taking the time to even give thread a simple read.
I just purchased a 1985 Ford F-250 Super Cab, Long Bed, 6.9 IDI, T19 Trans, Dana 70 LSD rear with 4.10 gears. It has the door tag and some of the bits from Centurion-Lehman (The retro CB radio console on the roof), but I can't find much details on that, except for some pictures of their old marketing flyers from the 80s.
The truck didn't run when I bought it, but I felt like for $1000, it was a decent deal to give myself a project (I've been getting the work-from-home idle hands cabin fever lately). There is rust in all the usual places (cab corners, fenders, and some under the bed). But I've always wanted to learn how to weld, and patch panels are available for cheap.
I did a good once over today, and made some preliminary purchases to get going. Ordered a Powermaster Ultra Duty starter, part #9050, new MC starter solenoid, New/Upgraded battery cables from CustomBatteryCables.com (A high school friend had an 84 that caught fire due to some old battery cables, learning from that incident), new MC ZD1A glow plugs (I did my research to make sure I got the popular recommendation), MC thermostat, Delphi mechanical lift pump, MC fuel filter, 4gal of MC VC5 antifreeze, distilled water, Fleetguard DCA4, rad hoses, and rad cap. Also ordered a fuel injector install kit, but can't afford new injectors right now. Also grabbed 2 new Group 27 batteries during a Costco run today. Basically maxed out the card for right now, so it'll be slow going from here. Also got 2.5gal of Shell Rotella T6 and a Purolator filter from Walmart and AAP. I have a 5gal jug on standby with some Diesel Kleen mixed in. (Also ordered a Haynes manual, to help with everything not related to the IDI)
I plan to pull the bed off this weekend, the side tank is leaking and I want to clean up the frame and rear axle. I have 2 cans of some rust reformer, and a quart of some flat black enamel. It looks like the frame was painted/coated at one point, but it's all flaking and there's a bit of surface rust. I'm gonna go crazy with a flap disc. Plus the interior is rather gross, so that is going to get stripped out too.
The prior owner started to do some wrenching on it a while back, which is why it has been sitting under a tree for a while. Radiator was pulled and system drained, not sure why, but running some flush and distilled water before pulling it back in. He also started to work on the injectors, but stopped, guess he realized it'd need new ones and didn't want to deal with it anymore, I don't know.
My plan is to have this be a long term resto/beater (if that even makes sense). I want to get it running and driving under its own power, but don't care if it looks perfect. I like the vintage. I had an 84 Dodge D150, 318LA, and 727 Torqueflite before this, but sold it and bought a 2015 Mustang to have a more reliable daily that could make longer trips.
I'm here because the fear is starting to set in, and that feeling like I bit off more than I can chew. I'm familiar with gas engines, this is my first diesel. I know suck, slap, bang, blow but I'm not as familiar with the black magic that occurs under the hood of this giant driveway ornament. So I'm searching for some sage wisdom from you wonderful people. What am I missing? What should I fix/check/replace/do? I'm sorry for this being sooooo long winded. I didn't intend it to be, but I got to typing this out and couldn't stop. And I thank all of you in advance for taking the time to even give thread a simple read.