Big Blue's Transformation

[Gary Lewis]

Ok, I am "there" on the t-case.  Save for torquing the nuts on the yokes and filling it up with fluid, it is done.

And, it does shift fairly well.  It dawned on me that in the truck you have 2' of lever, so that 2" lever on the side of the t-case isn't going to make it shift very easily.  But a large Crescent wrench did the trick.  

However, today was not all peaches and cream.  As explained in the Hydroboost Planning thread, I still have a hose to figure out.  I pulled the nice powder coated C-II bracket off and put the Saginaw bracket on, bolted the Sag pump in place, and played with hoses.  The Superduty hose from the booster to the steering gear fits, but needs bent a bit for some reason.  But I still have to find or make a hose with the right fitting to go from the booster to the pump.  

[ArdWrknTrk]

That's WAY too pretty!

I think I'd have to make a bash plate before I started dragging it over rocks.

[Gary Lewis]

Thanks, Jim.  It actually turned out better than the BW1356 on Dad's truck.  I didn't powder coat that one, just painted it.

I do have a skid plate.  Big Blue came with a homemade one, but Dad's truck came with a factory one and I'm thinking about using that one on Big Blue.  Don't want to hide all the pretty on Dad's truck.  

[1986F150Six]

That certainly looks good, Gary!

[Gary Lewis]

Thanks, David!

As for what I did today, I got the power steering cooler on.  You can read all about it on the Hydroboost Planning thread if you want.  But let's just say that I think I have a plan that will work.  

[Gary Lewis]

I haven't been very diligent updating the check list, but I just did.  Feels very good to tick off several boxes, but there are several more that are poised to be checked soon.  Like the brake system, the hydroboost system, and the Saginaw power steering pump.

And, speaking of the Saginaw pump, as posted in the Hydroboost Planning thread, I think I got the last issue sorted today, which was the pump-to-booster hose.

After that, I moved on to the firewall brace.  Got the truck back far enough that I could get in fairly easily and looked up under the dash and found this.  Note that the bolt holes to the side aren't being used.  In fact, the only fasteners being used are those of the clutch master cylinder.




Here's a comparison on that brace to the Terrapin one that is going in.  Which is stronger?  




And here's the Terrapin brace in place.  Note that there are tabs on the top and side which have backing plates to go on the other side of the cowl and transmission hump.  I'll use them, but wonder what the best sealant is for the plates?  I'll use Loctite on the threads, but what is best between the plates and the body?

[ArdWrknTrk]

The little plate does need to be tied to the tunnel..
But if it's in place BEFORE the firewall is delaminated it is really all that's needed.
And, there's no real disassembly required.

[Gary Lewis]

Jim - I don't understand the comment about disassembly.  But, I'm pretty sure the firewall isn't delaminated yet.  And I might as well use the bigger brace as I have it.

But, no comment about sealant?  You are the chemicals guru.  RTV?  Blackjack?  The Right Stuff?  Forma-A-Gasket?

[85lebaront2]

I would just use a good body seam sealer, the purpose is to keep water from getting between the brace and firewall.

[Gary Lewis]

Not sure I have seam sealer, but I'll check.

However, the purpose is to keep water from getting under the backing plates and then through the holes in the cowl and tranny hump.  There are two backing plates that have nutserts in them, and they go on the other side of the cowl and tranny hump so the bolts that go through the holes you can see in the brace don't leak.

I'll use thread sealer on the bolts, but want to keep water from going under the backing plates and through the holes beside the bolts.

[ArdWrknTrk]

I'm no kind of "guru", I'm just a lifelong materials science geek.  😄

You only have to take off the clutch master in order to install the longer studs that come with the triangle kit.

That OTHER monstrosity, you've got to remove the steering column, pedal box, and who knows what else, just to get it in position!

Bill is right. Regular seam sealant is going to outlast you.
If you REALLY wanted to go full Gary, you might use something like 3M 5200.
It's a polysulfide marine sealant used on through hull fittings and other penetrations below the waterline.

If you glue the plate up with that even a bomb wouldn't get it loose.

[Gary Lewis]

You didn't notice in the pic the absence of a steering column, pedal box, et al?

The "other monstrosity" is going in.  In fact, it is in place and I just have to mark and drill the holes, which I hope to do tomorrow.

But I don't want to glue it in.  Instead I want to seal it.  I'll see what I have to-hand.  

[ArdWrknTrk]

I'm not waiting for that page to load again...

I'm saying using the triangle brace prophylacticly doesn't require disassembling EVERYTHING attached to the firewall on the left side.

5200 is a sealant, not a glue.

On Sat, Feb 22, 2020, 11:46 PM Gary Lewis [via Bullnose Enthusiasts] <[hidden email]> wrote:

You didn't notice in the pic the absence of a steering column, pedal box, et al?

The "other monstrosity" is going in.  In fact, it is in place and I just have to mark and drill the holes, which I hope to do tomorrow.

But I don't want to glue it in.  Instead I want to seal it.  I'll see what I have to-hand.  

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Dad's: '81 F150 Ranger XLT 4x4: Down for restomod: Full-roller "stroked 351M" w/Trick Flow heads & intake, EEC-V SEFI/E4OD/3.50 gears w/Kevlar clutches
Blue: 2015 F150 Platinum 4x4 SuperCrew wearing Blue Jeans & sporting a 3.5L EB & Max Tow
Big Blue: 1985 F250HD 4x4: 460/ZF5/3.55's, D60 w/Ox locker in front & 10.25 Spicer/Trutrac in back, & EEC-V MAF/SEFI

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[Gary Lewis]

Now I understand.  Thanks.

But in my case the steering column had to come out 'cause the tilt-column part is broken and it won't always start.  (I am probably going back in w/the non-tilt column to ensure I don't have that happen at the worst possible time.  After all, the truck is going to be rather tall and people will use the wheel to help them in.)

And, the pedals had to come out so I could put the hydroboost pedal in, as well as add the starter switch on the clutch.  Plus I wanted to ensure that the bushings were good.

So, I might as well use the monster.

As for the loading time, would it help if I cut my picture size down in future?  Is that causing you a problem?

[ArdWrknTrk]

I understand why you used the big reinforcement.
99 9/10 of people won't have their cab stripped when their firewall fails, no will they have the facility to do so.

I think my signal is not great and the backhaul is overwhelmed.

Remember back when there were 56k warnings for picture laden pages?!?!  🤣
It seems so quaint now.

[Gary Lewis]

I remember acoustic couplers.  So yes, I remember the 56k warnings.

I've been maximizing my picture size to get max clarity.  But, I'd forgotten about you being on limited bandwidth.  I'll cut the size back on future posts and lets see if that helps.

Yes, the brace may be overkill, but it is what I have and I might as well use it.  The HD clutch that's going in will add some strain on the firewall, so it is good insurance.  And it may add some rigidity to the steering column, which won't be a bad thing given the overlanding I hope to be doing.

Speaking of which, I was worried about people using the steering wheel to hoist themselves in and breaking, again, the part in the tilt column.  (I've had to remind myself about that problem every time I get in.)  But I hadn't thought about the driver using the wheel to hang onto in overlanding.  So that pretty well cinches it - I think the fixed column needs to go in.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Oh yeah, I remember 14.4 telephone modems.
That was well before even 56k dialup.

[85lebaront2]

I have noticed that some of your more recent postings take a while to load, I am not on DSL anymore, but I only have 10g download and 5g upload speeds here on Virginia's appendix.

[Gary Lewis]

Ok, let's see if these pics load faster.  They are 1/2 the size of the others.

Today I got the monstrous firewall brace installed.  Lots of work, but it is in.  Plenty of seam sealer on the backing plates.  But I didn't get Loctite on many of the bolts because the seam sealer got there first.  I had to thread the bolts in first to line up the backing plates, and when I pulled them out to Loctite them most of them were coated with sealer.  So I'm sure they are sealed.

Anyway, here's the inside shot, and you can see the two G8 5/16" bolts in the top and three of them on the side.




And here's the backing plate in the cowl area:




And the backing plate on the firewall.  The firewall was at a bit of an angle so I installed longer bolts initially that let me get them started and then tightened them down, which bent the brace and the firewall to match.

[salans7]

Is it just me or are you gonna have a heck of a time getting the steering column screws back in? It looks like the plate covers some of the holes?