1986 F350/460 ambulance reprovision

[Gary Lewis]

Yep, sure have.  

[Westerj]

Thanks guys.

Ive taken out blower. Vacuumed it out..
gotta find borescope to peer around.  
Thanks for the tip on glovebox. Damper
door seen behind blower seems a little tight
To open. Can i open manually or only
w/ vacuum to the dashpot? Figure thats part
 of the 3 bedroom 2 bath condo setup by
 rodentia.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Imagine!

Central heat and air...
They even had their own home gym complete with squirrel cage treadmill!  

Pull the heater core straight out until it hits the glovebox opening.

Then drop down until the pipes touch the bottom of the heater box.

Then rotate the bottom towards the firewall and take it out under the dash 'on its back'
That way you don't spill glycol all over the cab.

[ArdWrknTrk]

I imagine the door is all packed up with nesting material on the other side.

You'll see when you get the heater core out.

[Westerj]

Yup. it was all paved with comfy paper towel shreds behind heater core and towards the drivers side. Wall to wall. Heater core is toast... has a weepy gooey spot right in the middle.  Dont think I've see the far side of the evaporator yet... only observed from under-hood, when blower/fan was removed.   Dont want to split the evap box unless I have to.   Replacement from Autozone had squared Top Tank, so the core wouldn't fit in. Returned.  Tubes looked good. #398247.   Didnt want to cut up the housing to fit the new core.  Back it goes.  Dang.  

So far 6 1/2 mice.. place was hopping!    (1/2 mouse was micro mouse, dessicated in the bedding..  )

This part from The Rockiest Auto (  APDI/PRO 9010205  )  looks like a better match.

[ArdWrknTrk]

That appears that it should fit.

Did you notice a foam rubber 'collar' nestled around the header tank?
Maybe the mice ate it, but you want it, to keep air from just bypassing the heater core.

Your kill count just keeps getting better!  
Gonna need stickers surrounding the drivers side mirror, or cut notches in the heater box...  

I've used Mortite strip caulk in the past to seal the cover, but I don't even know if they still make that stuff.
I think any thin closed cell foam weather strip tape is fine, around the opening, under the lip if the lid.

[Westerj]

Thanks Jim. Saw the collar on top tank. Will be sure to save it for reinstall.  Is that rounded off corner (towards driver when installed) and the curved bottom tank particular to the big block units, or the AC?  Will confirm for posterity the fit of  APDI/PRO 9010205 ( https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=2783096&jsn=1).   Price is good. 25 bucks or so..  

Put out a few dots of "test" peanut butter ... Lets see if any disappear.. maybe a sheet of Paper towel too.

Do the Bullnose door strikers have a nylon collar?  Mine have none.  Quick tune up is a blast of Wd40 or white lithium grease into the door latch?  

[ArdWrknTrk]

The striker should have a plastic bushing.
Later trucks had a guard incorporated behind the bolt, and these work fine as well.

I try to flush out some of the grit before lubing the latches.
Maybe your truck doesn't see the same dirty construction sites mine does?
White lithium is the go to lubricant.

The S shape of the core's necks are unique to the AC heater box.
To the best of my knowledge the heater core design is the same across all engines.

Years back -on FTE- I sliced one of these in half when an individual argued that there was a specific inlet and outlet.
(No, it doesn't matter which is feed and which is return...)

[Westerj]

Once again,  thanks for the insight.

Any benefit to the guard? Aint no concourse!!

Ill attach a pic of heater box, showing the
rounded top of the heater core recess.  There
Do seem to be some that work with square
Top tank.

Found someone stood on hood between
hinges at cowl, flattened out hood some.
... have to bend that back. Hopefully can
 handle that in place.

Thinking of a horrid freight sand blast
cabinet.  Anyone using one of them?

Cheers.... JW

[Gary Lewis]

I'm using a blast cabinet from Grizzly Tools, but it is also available from Northern Tools as well as Tractor Supply.  In other words, many of the Chinese-made tools, including blast cabinets, are similar if not the same from vendor to vendor.

I used to have a cabinet from Eastwood that worked, but not all that well.  Here's what I've learned from my two cabinets:

Loading: My Eastwood cabinet had side doors, and I really didn't like them.  There's always media built up on the sides and when you opened the doors it fell on the floor.  My current cabinet is front-loading with the whole front opening up via lift arms, and that is highly preferable.  It not only keeps so much media from falling on the floor as well as facilitates loading, it makes changing the plastic lens that protects the glass much easier.

Light: The Eastwood cabinet had a magnetic light on the outside that was supposed to shine through the window and illuminate the part.  But with the window getting dirty quickly the amount of light getting in is greatly reduced.  Instead, get one that has lighting inside.  Mine has a light on the top that shines down and it uses several LED tubes with a plastic lens to protect the glass.  It is FAR better than a light shining in through the window.

Size: Go as big as you can afford and have room to house.  There will be many times you want to get a bigger part in than you can, or need to turn a part to get to different side, and a small cabinet prevents that.

Filter/Dust Collector: The Eastwood cabinet suggested that you use a separate vacuum to pull the dust out.  It never, ever worked very well.  The new one has an included dust collector and it works MUCH better.  You will not believe the amount of dust generated, and it has to be removed from the cabinet or you can't see to work.

Media: There are lots of different approaches, but what I've settled on is crushed glass.  I tried coal slag, but it is easily crushed and makes a huge amount of dust.  I tried sand, but it really shouldn't be used.  I've tried walnut hulls, which work well for softer things but doesn't do much on rust.  And I used aluminum oxide, but it was very aggressive.  But the crushed glass seems to do the best and last long enough.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Guard, just that they seem available in the 'HELP' section of most LAP.

I know that some heater cores don't fit regardless the application chart.
(There was quite some discussion about air conditioning lines recently)

I have a few Horrid Fate tools but never used their sand blast cabinets, so no experience or opinion there...

[Westerj]

Some tank styles are rounded on bottom, and on top too.... tank styles seem to be one or the other.

Coolant connections see to be either Straight, angled or offset. 

Angled if heater core takes place of condenser in nonac trucks.  

Offset with AC, heater core behind glove box..

Side note: Are you interested in monitoring temp and humidity?

Found interesting device .govee gvh5075.  Temp and humidity monitor.... when you wanna know!!

20 days recorded. Bluetooth too.

On Mon, Aug 31, 2020, 10:24 AM ArdWrknTrk [via Bullnose Enthusiasts] <[hidden email]> wrote:

Guard, just that they seem available in the 'HELP' section of most LAP.

I know that some heater cores don't fit regardless the application chart.
(There was quite some discussion about air conditioning lines recently)

I have a few Horrid Fate tools but never used their sand blast cabinets, so no experience or opinion there...

 Jim,
Lil'Red is a '87 F250 HD, 4.10's, 1356 4x4, Zf-5, 3G, PMGR, Saginaw PS, desmogged with an Edelbrock 1826 and Performer intake.
Too much other stuff to mention.

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[ArdWrknTrk]

I have a bunch of Bluetooth temp & humidistats left from when I used to do big (walk-in) humidors.

I never thought to put one in my truck.

[Westerj]

Ya never know. Cool tech toys.

On Mon, Aug 31, 2020, 7:45 PM ArdWrknTrk [via Bullnose Enthusiasts] <[hidden email]> wrote:

I have a bunch of Bluetooth temp & humidistats left from when I used to do big (walk-in) humidors.

I never thought to put one in my truck.

 Jim,
Lil'Red is a '87 F250 HD, 4.10's, 1356 4x4, Zf-5, 3G, PMGR, Saginaw PS, desmogged with an Edelbrock 1826 and Performer intake.
Too much other stuff to mention.

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[ArdWrknTrk]

Another one bites the dust!



What do they say?
"To the Victor go the spoils!"

[Westerj]

Second mouse gets the cheese!!

On Tue, Sep 1, 2020, 1:40 PM ArdWrknTrk [via Bullnose Enthusiasts] <[hidden email]> wrote:

Another one bites the dust!



What do they say?
"To the Victor go the spoils!"

 Jim,
Lil'Red is a '87 F250 HD, 4.10's, 1356 4x4, Zf-5, 3G, PMGR, Saginaw PS, desmogged with an Edelbrock 1826 and Performer intake.
Too much other stuff to mention.

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[Westerj]

A temp / humidity monitor might be an indication of the sogginess of the floormats and apparently the amount of chud in the Cowl Vents!

[ArdWrknTrk]

Raining off and on today.

Maybe I should go put one out in the truck?

[ArdWrknTrk]

79F and 55% RH right now.

I suppose I'll have a better idea when it stops raining.

[Westerj]

Just saying.. when the Cowl Vents were plugged up.. the inside of the truck can was rather dank/humid with Doors/windows closed.