Jim's 1982 300 Six Bronco Original Restoration

[JimJam300]

That paint is really nice. I've always found getting a good finish out of rattle cans to be difficult but this was a breeze. Okay so the paint looks about right, I only compared it with a dirty trim piece though.




These foot vents were grey


And the dash is in!


So I figured out you can reuse all those behind-the-dash vacuum fittings by applying heat and just pulling out the tubing. Then you can use your own tubing and put colored stripes on them with paint markers.

Next on this list is putting the transmission back together, I had to take it apart again because the gears weren't meshing after I reassembled it to fix threads. Then restoring the cruise control module. Then getting that steering shaft together and bleeding the brakes. We'll see if my homemade lines are any good.

After that it's time to build the bottom end of the engine. First thing I gotta do are some threaded inserts on the bellhousing bolt threads, good thing I already bought that TimeSert kit! I'm going to send my crankshaft to a machine shop and get it ground so there's no guesswork on the bearings I need.

Gonna have a busy summer. Going to Guanajuato, Mexico for a couple weeks next month, then a work conference in Los Angeles right after that, then a family reunion camping trip right after that. Then more camping, backpacking. This is gonna put a dent in my already slow progress

[ArdWrknTrk]

I leave the barb in the rubber fitting and put vacuum line over, with a collar of coloured shrink tubing.
But, Vivek or someone recently pointed out a company that sells silicone vacuum tube in a whole spectrum of colours.

If I had more time I'd go search it out....

[Gary Lewis]

Looks very good!  

[Ifitaintbroke]

[JimJam300]

Bit the bullet on the Borgeson steering shaft w/ damper. For some reason I glossed over the part where it collapses in an accident and that's why I was thinking of doing the 12th gen F150 steering shaft mod. Anyway, installation was a breeze.



Finally found the correct hole covers for the front body mounts. Pulled em from a 88 F250 and painted them, sealed with butyl rubber. I'm just genuinely confused because many trucks seem to have the 2.75" x 1.75" hole in the floor but this 88 and my 82 Bronco have the 3.75" x 2.75" hole. Could this be specific to the plant that manufactured each truck?

Anyway, putting my transmission back together again. Finally. Encountered a problem with a mainshaft bearing I ordered and I will need to post it here later to get some pointers.