Need door lock advice for 1981 F150

[JohnnyD]

Thanks for the clear measurements. I'm traveling for a few days and the parts aren't in until next week, so no worries on the timing. These look like they will get me where I need to be.

- John

[FuzzFace2]

JohnnyD wrote

Gary, I just ordered the rest of the parts to convert to pin-style locks. However, the door panel I have doesn't have a hole for the pin, and neither does the underlying metal of the door, so I need to drill these. It looks like you have a reference truck that has been converted. Can you make some reference measurements to help me locate the holes in the proper position? Maybe distance from the closed window, and from the latch end of the door or something obvious. This is one of those cases where I want to measure twice (three times?) and drill once.

Thanks, John

P.S. - When I get all the parts I'll carefully document the procedure so someone else will have an easier time than I have had.

John,

What you doing with the slider part of the lock on your door panel?
Were they in working shape?
You leaving them in place to fill the hole or what?

I went looking the other day for new door panels with slider locks & the sliders and I did not find any one that sells either.
My panels need more work to be what I would like to have on my truck. I also need both slider locks.
With that I figured I would get the later panels with the push / pull pin lock and use my latches would this be able to work with my slider latches?

From what I am reading I can use my slider latches with push/pull pin but work backwards?
But you were trying to use the push/pull pin latches with the slider lock and this would not work right?

Back to my question about the slider lock if you left them in place and drilled the hole for the pin I guess that would look ok but I was thinking if you went with the later panels you would be able to use it to drill the hole in the door frame is what I was thinking.

I will be watching the outcome
Dave ----

[JohnnyD]

Dave, sorry for the slow reply, somehow your post did not trigger an email to me.

I just posted a step-by-step on replacing the latches and pin locks. Search for "Door latch replacement and conversion to slider locks - 1981 F150" or look at my postings.

To answer your questions:

1. I left the sliders in the door panels. They will make a nice conversation piece. But I find myself starting to latch them when I want to lock the door...

2. The pin-style latches WILL NOT work with slider locks. Look at my photos here or in the new posting. the problem is the pin and slider rods have to work at right angles to each other. The slider has an extra piece on the latch to convert.

3. I suspect that you can convert sliders to pins if the slider latch is in good shape. It looks to me like the slider mechanism on the latch will work pulling up and down or along the door. But this doesn't solve the problem that no one makes replacement latches for the sliders as far as I can tell. If you use an existing slider latch to convert, the pin may work backwards, but that is no big deal.

4. Yes, buy new panels with pin-style holes predrilled. I would have done this when I replaced my panels a couple of years ago (I posted elsewhere my interior remodel) if I had realize my latches were on their last legs. BTW, LMC makes a great cover that fits the top of the dash perfectly to cover up the cracks in the original padded dash.

5. Yes, you have to drill holes for the pin locks in the door frame, but this is out of sight behind the plastic panel, so there is some forgiveness there. Gary posted in this post (and I copied in the referenced one) the location of these. There is quite a bit of slop in the mechanism, so don't get freaked out about this. As I mentioned in my new post, I would use the existing pin holes in the panel or drill new ones first, and use these to help locate the hole to drill in the door frame.

I found LMC Truck to be very helpful and they had a large variety of parts for the 1981 F150.

- John

[FuzzFace2]

Thanks for the reply
When I am on my pc with bigger screen I will check it out again.
Thanks again
Dave  ----

[JohnnyD]

Dave, Gary just told me that he was moving my new post to the main forum; Documentation/Door Locks, I think. I guess if you still search with the title it will come up.

- John

[Gary Lewis]

I did move it to the main section, here: https://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/Door-latch-replacement-and-conversion-to-slider-locks-1981-F150-td104889.html.

But I was also talking about placing it on the website here: Documentation/Interior/Doors/Door Locks.

The forum and the website are technically two different things.  And it is easier to find things on the website since they are supposedly in a logical place, Documentation/Interior/Doors/Door Locks.  Does that make sense?

[FuzzFace2]

Thanks guys when I have some "ME TIME" and on my PC I will check out the step by step info.

My question was:
Can I used the slider door latches with the push / pull pin rod / lock?
I thought the pin would work backwards, push to lock, pull to unlock?

I think what you were trying to do was use the slider lock / rod with pin latches and would not work?

Then again being I cant get the slider door panels or the slider locks I might just swap everything over to the pin type parts?
Dave ----

[Gary Lewis]

Yes, and yes.  You can use the slider latches as pin latches, but down will be unlock and up will be lock.

[Robvrig]

I have a 1986 Ford F-150 302 having trouble with the power door locks.
got new actuators but still not working. I thought there might be a relay the electrical diagram does not show a relay.
Rockauto sells a relay STANDARD MOTOR PRODUCTS RL2 https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/ford,1986,f-150,5.0l+302cid+v8,1121667,electrical-switch+&+relay,door+lock+relay,3656
Having trouble locating the physical location.
Please tell me if there should be a relay and where it should be.
Thanks

[Gary Lewis]

Welcome to the forum.  Glad you joined.  

However, you've missed the request from Scott to go to the New Members Start Here folder and introduce yourself.  That isn't a requirement, like abiding by the guidelines is, but it would be appreciated.  We are a community, not a one-post and away site, and we like to get to know people.

As for your question, there is no relay.  The whole of the door lock wiring is shown below, which is from the 1985 EVTM (Documentation/Electrical/EVTM's/1985 EVTM/Power Door Locks), and if you want to know the component locations that is shown on the next page in the EVTM.

But what problem are you having?  Do the actuators make noise but don't move the linkage?  If that's the problem then it may be the actuators.  I bought some new Chinese actuators from Amazon and they were absolute wimps.  They didn't come close to locking my doors.  But their protective "skirts" were good so I put those skirts on some old Ford actuators and they lock the doors emphatically.

[JohnnyD]

Also look for any place the mechanisms might be binding. As I've noted elsewhere, there is very little extra clearance for the door latch mechanisms. For me, installing the rear lower window guide rail improperly resulted in the key lock binding and not opening properly. Good luck.

- John

[Robvrig]

Tnanks I'll watch that when I get it all back together.

[Robvrig]

I will have to work on my intro - its actually my son's truck.
Thanks for the response.
We bought a couple of actuators on E Bay probably Chinese.
We haven't put them in the door just plugged them in and tried to see the movement.
Nothing - fuse is ok.
Will have to get the voltmeter out and test the circuit.

[Gary Lewis]

My Chinese actuators were from Amazon, and they wouldn't even try to move the linkage.  After that happened on the first one I pulled it and put the other new one in.  Same thing.

So I tested them against the old ones I'd taken out of another truck.  I have a small vise and I sat it on the bench, clamped the link of one of the new actuators in it, held the other end, and gave it power.  It tugged on the vise but didn't move it.  Same thing with the other new one.

Then I tried the Motorcraft ones.  Wow! They moved the vise like it was a rag doll!

You can read my testing here.  But Scott shared a link several posts prior to that with the actuators he bought, and they work fine.  Apparently there are good ones and bad ones out there.