The first unveiling

Dad has not seen the truck since it was in his garage.  He has seen the blog and we’ve talked a little about things as I found them, until this last week because he was traveling.  So he basically knows what is going on, but I have to admit I’m a little anxious with him seeing it for the first time in pieces…

When the discussion about me working on the truck first came up I was going to put in a new battery, change the oil, probably drain the transmission and differential and make sure the brakes were safe and working fine.  The goal was to do the things he could not easily do to get it to where he could play/tinker with it and drive it, then go from there.

Each time I started something, starting with draining the oil, it just seemed to lead to one more thing.  So in some respects a simple oil change has lead us to the block is almost stripped down and needs to be rebuilt.  Going this far would have to have been done whether I started working on it, or he did it.  But I feel kind of like the little kid showing his Dad something he accomplished, or at least was working on, and wondering how he was going to react…  I’m not sure I thought that at 50+ years old I would have felt that feeling again… LOL  🙂

But for me, this project is a labor of love and I wouldn’t give it up willingly for anything else in the world (assuming of course my wife doesn’t get too jealous)…

Getting down to the bare block

Getting down to the block

The next step is going to be a little work on my garage I think, I need to open up the other side of the garage and move the woodworking shop to the front.  My wife has lined up some photo jobs that will require some custom frames.  I make reclaimed wood frames for her photography, so I have to keep the wood shop in shape.  But also so I can get an engine hoist into the garage and have room to pull the block and transmission I think. 🙂

 

Worshiping the heads God…

The last couple days I have snuck out to the garage at lunch and after work to work on the truck.  The main focus has been the head on the driver side.

First I removed the oil filter canister from the head and disconnected the line to it.  I had to be careful as there was a small amount of oil in the bottom of the canister still and the last thing I wanted was that to go flying…

Oil Filter Canister

Oil Filter Canister

I made a mistake on Thursday and was wearing a nice t-shirt when I went out at lunchtime.  When I went back in, I realized I had a couple small grease spots, so I immediately sprayed it with some magic elixir from some magic blue bottle in the laundry room so it won’t stain, I hope…

That night I removed the temperature sending probe, or I tried to…  The nut came free, but the probe would not come out of the head no matter what I tried, so I sprayed it with some oil and moved on to removing the nuts from the studs.

Temp Probe

Temp Probe

Once all the nuts were removed it came time to soak the studs in oil, and let them sit.  I came back the next day and added more oil, gave it a couple whacks to see if it would loosen up, but no go yet and I didn’t have more time to really get into it.

The driver's side head

The driver’s side head

Friday I decided that removing the grill and towbar from the front was going to make working on the truck easier, and given I think I’ve made the commitment to pull the block and rebuild it from the bottom up, removing the nose was going to make that much easier.  Of course, now I’ve decided I’m going to re-engineer my workshop to make room for rebuilding the block out of the truck.  I removed the bolts holding the grill/nose on, only to realize I needed to remove the towbar first so the nose would clear the horn… it’s always something else.  So I soaked the bolts holding the towbar to the frame in oil to make removing them easier the next day.

Saturday morning I went out determined to get the head off.

I started by removing the towbar and the nose/grill piece and the towbar.  Dad’s truck has this beautiful nose, the grill is oval and bows out, and I think one of the most distinctive parts to the look and feel of the truck.  Getting the grill/nose loose took some oil and elbow grease, the bolts for it are not all in the most convenient locations, but the towbar came off so easy I wondered if I was having a dream and I was going to wake up and realize I hadn’t started yet…

Nose and towbar

Nose and towbar

Then I started working on the head by adding some more oil to the studs,  I cleared all around where the head and block met, then I started tapping around the head using a 2X4 and rubber mallet, then moved to a little heavier hammer. 🙂  Once the head broker free it was just a matter of working it slowly from all sides.  I used the trick with the plastic floor space/wedges again and once I had it loose I worked it off the studs.  I had one stud that was obviously causing a problem, but eventually it gave up the fight.  I set the head on some 2X4’s on the top of the block to continue to work on removing the temperature sending probe.

The head laying on top of the block

The head laying on top of the block

I did stop to do some research, my new books came in handy, and of course consulting the Great Google…  Unfortunately nothing magic appeared, so I decided to try using a little heat to loosen the temp prob, after all it’s the head, it gets hot.  I’m not sure I actually got all of the probe out, the wire broke during some part of the struggle, I think the probe may have separated and left the casing in the head, that may take some more work, but it will get fixed if so.  I’ll do some more research and get something ordered.  I feel bad, this is the first thing that has “broken” and it looks like that is not a cheap part. 🙁

Temperature sending unit

Temperature sending unit

I also decided to take the front tires off, I already know I’m going to need to rebuild the brake system.  Something was dragging when we moved the truck over here, hopefully all it is  is the brake shoes and not something internal, axle, something…

But I won’t know until I get the drums off, so the first step is take off the tires.  Since the truck is on jack stands already the hard work was done.  Once I had the tires removed, I loosened the caps covering the castle nuts, but I decided these are probably different enough from the drum brakes I am used to that I was going to do a little light reading before I keep going.

The first Tire is off

The first Tire is off

An additional blood sacrifice was required…

So for lunch yesterday, I decided to head out to the garage and see what else I could do.  The truck did demand an additional blood sacrifice, but it turned out to be worth it. 🙂

I have been working my way towards getting the heads and intake off the block so that we can see what is going on inside the engine.  I decided to see what was left to do on the intake.

Getting bare...

Getting bare…

I remove what I think is an oil line (actually it is a vacuum line I found out) from the intake to the distributor, the wiring harness from anything on or around the intake; the oil pressure sending unit wire (I think) and the wiring to the distributor, as well as an oil (vacuum) line on the top of the intake to the firewall.

Then came the fuel pump stand, push rod and the bushing and cup at the back of the intake.  That was a terror, it was very badly rusted, so I had a hard time getting things apart but I did finally get them removed.

Fuel pump stand and push rod

Fuel pump stand and push rod

My hard work and those few drops of blood came into play as the intake came off nice and smoothly at that point.

The intake is off

The intake is off

The good news is, it is not as bad as it could have been in the block, the bad news is it is not as good as it could have been in the block.  But it could definitely have been worse, so I’m happy to get this opened up.

Into the valley

Into the valley

I’m pretty sure at this point we are committed to rebuilding the top of the engine at least, it just makes no sense not to.  Once both heads come off and we can see the valves and we’ll know if we need new sleeves and pistons.

After work last night, my walking buddy was tied up, so I went back down to the garage to continue the battle with the head.  I had soaked the studs on the both sides after I removed the nuts, three studs came free from the block when I was taking them off the other day.

Head nuts removed and a few studs came out as well

Head nuts removed and a few studs came out as well

I started with some gentle taps around the head.  I began to see an opening between the head and the block, so I started rocking the head.  Then I got the idea of using some plastic wedges, normally used for spacing laminate flooring and tapping them in from all four sides.  They did great, I used them from the sides and top and bottom, knowing they wouldn’t scratch or scar the surface of the heads or the block.

Note to self, soak the studs on the other side, then soak them again, then soak them again and try wire brushing them clean before trying to remove the head.  It took me 20+ minutes of rocking the heads back and forth to get them to come off of the studs.

The block today

The block today

But no matter what, we have made more good progress.

Sunday afternoon in the garage.

The sacrifice in blood has been made to the truck for the week.  But in return for a skinned knuckle, I was rewarded with progress. 🙂

The nuts are off of the right side head, although the head itself is still stuck tight.  Some light reading and research and I have found this is not uncommon.  So following the least intensive suggestion, for now I am soaking the studs (and the edges of the heads) with some oil so see if I can then gently bust it free.  Once we have that off we can start getting a look inside the block and we will know more.

I’m also soaking the bolts holding the intake as I suspect it will be stuck also, we’ll just have to see.

Getting bare...

Getting bare…

Probably the biggest step for the weekend is that the carburetor is now off the intake and now on the bench.

The carb is on the bench

The carb is on the bench

I was trying to take the grill off the front of the truck to make it easier to work around, but the nuts and bolts need to soak in penetrating oil, they were fighting me and it just wasn’t worth the effort, I can come back to that battle later.

But the starter solenoid is off and the wires all labeled.  The starter is disconnected, but still attached for now.

Starter Solenoid

Starter Solenoid

 

Side note here, working on the truck is something I love to do, but being able to work on the truck AND smoke bacon… priceless!!!

Makin' Bacon

Makin’ Bacon

 

Making progress

Over the Father’s Day weekend I made good progress.  My wife was gracious enough to let me spend most of Father’s Day in the garage. 🙂

I started by climbing under the truck and pulling the drain plug on the transmission.  Interesting, what appeared to be water or very thin oil came out first, followed by thicker oil more like the gear oil I expected.  So, more research is in order there, I’m not sure how water could get into the transmission.  Apparently in Ford tractors there is a way for water to get into the transmission if left outside, but I’m not sure our Ford truck has spent enough time where it would get rained on for it to be able to drip into the transmission via the shifter or top end.  We’ll have to see what I can figure out.

On the learning front, even though I “saw” four hoses, I never realized that the Ford’s cooling system actually is split into two sides.  With a water pump on each side and intake to the block and outflow on each side of the block to the radiator.  On Butch’s truck, there is also a heater bypass hose, as there was no heating system in the truck itself, I’m guessing because it was a farm truck, but I still have to research that.

I opened the petcocks on both sides of the radiator.  One side was totally dry, the other dripped slowly, so I was guessing there was actually some liquid still in the system.

I started by removing the bypass hose from the block, then tried to remove it from the T junction in the lower radiator hose.  I was thinking that by removing it here, if there was any coolant left in system it would drain from the lower hose.  Unfortunately the T junction in the lower hose was rotting, so the hose tore as I tried to work it free.  I had figured we would need new hoses, given how old they had to be, but that convinced me, no question, new hoses would be going on it all around.

Bypass Hose

Bypass Hose

Next I removed the hoses from the top of the cylinder heads to the upper part of the radiator.  After removing the clamps I ended up having to cut the hoses to pry them off the connectors on both ends of each hose.  The rubber had been compressed long enough to harden around the ridges in the tubes, so there was no way they were going to just slip off.  I also found there is a thermostat on both exit openings on the heads on each side.

Thermostat

Thermostat

After I got the bottom hoses removed on each side, I had to cut them off as well, I removed the plug wire guide/tubes and the spark plug wires.  Interesting that the wires are enclosed in a boot kind of assembly that caps the distributor on both sides, then tubes that runs up and along the top of the block, peeling off wires to each cylinder.  It is actually a very neat set up.

Plug Wires and tube

Plug Wires and tube

Then I removed the generator from the top of the block, which also freed the belt.  I already bought a replacement belt, but it was kind of funny, the belt was so stiff that it held it’s shape even after I removed the generator, even after removing it from the pulleys connecting the generator, crank and water pumps… LOL

 

Belt

Belt

Belt

Belt

I removed the broken flexible fuel connection that connects the hard line coming from the tank and connecting to the fuel pump, as well as disconnecting the oil filter assembly line from the front of the block.  The rear connection seems to be a bit harder to get to, so I decided to wait for the manuals to get here to make sure I wasn’t just going to be forcing something.

Next I removed the radiator.  I’m not sure if it needs to be reconditioned or not yet, but I wanted it out of the way to make room for what comes next, and to make sure I don’t damage it in some way working around it.

With the radiator out of the way I decided to break loose the nuts on the motor mount, since I now had some room to work with.  These will have to come off to get the oil pan out when I reach that point as you need to jack the front of the motor up a couple inches to get the clearance for the pan to drop free.

Then I pulled the plugs and I decided to break loose the nuts on the studs holding one of the heads on.  I plan on removing both heads, then the intake, then I’ll decide if we need to pull the block out of the truck to have it professionally cleaned up or not, or if more will be needed than just cleaning.

Head

Head

I didn’t have time to finish loosening the nuts on the studs, Father’s Day intruded at that point so I decided it was a good place to call it quits for the weekend.

I haven’t been able to do much this week, but the replacement flexible and stiff fuel lines to connect to the fuel pump and carburetor arrived, as did the best things… 🙂  I got a Ford Service Manual and Fuel System manual, so I’m not just working on my own knowledge.

Manuals

Manuals

Happy Father’s Day Dad

This is my Father’s Day gift for my Dad, Butch, who has taught me so much.

For Father’s Day Dad, I’m giving you (and your truck) a gas cap… 🙂

A gas cap worthy of your truck

A gas cap worthy of your truck

For as long as I can remember, the old Truck has had a pot holder sticking out of the filler neck.  In searching the bed of the truck for parts and to see what was there, I found numerous gas caps, but none of them were the right one.  So I decided as part of getting it running again, you and it deserve a gas cap worthy of your truck, one with the Ford “V8” embossed on it.

Happy Fathers Day, love you Dad.

Progress sometimes comes in baby steps

Yesterday for lunch I managed to sneak out to the garage for a little bit.  I was able to pull the fuel pump off the pump stand.

Fuel pump on the pump stand

Fuel pump on the pump stand

It was a little hard getting it off the stand.  Once I got the bolts undone, the arm still had pressure on it, holding the cap on the push rod, but with a little bit of twisting it came free.  The arm is showing quite a bit of rust an the pump housing is loose, that isn’t a good sign.

Fuel pump removed...

Fuel pump removed…

On the good news side, I have a Ford Service Manual and a Fuel System manual coming.  The oil and gear oil got here yesterday afternoon.  Gotta love the internet, you can find anything, and I’m still amazed at how reasonable the parts are for this so far.

Adding to the list of things to do

I haven’t been able to sneak out to the garage for the last couple days, other than to peak at a few things and apply some penetrating oil to the engine mounts to prepare them for loosening so I can raise the engine to drop the oil pan this weekend.

I have however been busy ordering more parts and supplies.  I have a couple gallons of oil and gear oil coming in tomorrow and the line to replace the broken fuel line I found to the fuel pump.

I need to figure out where I can get some kerosene, to clean the inside of the block out once I get the pan dropped and the heads and intake off.  Always something more to plan for and do.

I’d still like to get the transmission and differential drained this weekend, and run some water through the cooling system to see if anything leaks also, so lots in the works.

My wife asked me what I wanted to do for Father’s Day, I told her I wanted to get up and have some sausage gravy and biscuits and then spend the day working in the garage on the truck.  Of course I’d like to spend some time with her and the kids, I just want to do it in the garage… 🙂

I learn something new every time I crawl under the truck

I love learning new things.

Today, while figuring out what it is going to take to drop the oil pan, I found the original hand crank attach point on the front of the crankshaft.

Hand crank starter

Hand crank starter

I even found the opening in the front of the grill that I never knew was there because the tow bar has been in front of the grill for as long as I remember.

Hand crank grill opening

Hand crank grill opening

I was also going through some of the stuff in the bed of the truck because I knew there was a pair of jack stands in there, I found a full set of new plugs just waiting to be swapped in…

New plugs!

New plugs!

Since I did find the stands I went ahead and put the truck totally up in the air.  That also helped to give me a little more room to slide under it.  I’m not quite as thin as I used to be, even just a few more inches of clearance was a blessing… LOL

Jacking the truck up

Jacking the truck up

Doing some research leads me to the fact that dropping the oil pan wasn’t going to be quite as simple as I had hoped.  But I’ll order new the gaskets that I’ll need this week and I should be able to get it dropped next Saturday without too much trouble.  I think we’ll also need to pull the intake manifold and make sure the valley in the top of the block is clear and maybe flush from the top to make sure we clear anything that may have accumulated.

All in all it was a good day.  I didn’t get as far as I had hoped, but I’m always optimistic how far I am going to get.  Figured out the next steps and we’ll go from there.

Digging in and it is not all good news

I now have definitive proof that my Dad taught me the tin can exhaust repair procedure long before the Internet spread it around…

Tin can exhaust repair

Tin can exhaust repair

I discovered that while cleaning out the engine compartment.  I spent probably a half hour vacuuming, and then blowing out a lot of dust, pine needles, sawdust and not sure what else from in and around things.

The next step was to climb underneath and start by opening the petcock to drain the radiator, which apparently was already empty, since nothing came out.  So I’m going to get something to flush the radiator and to run through it to try to clear out any build up, scaling or debris that may have accumulated before we fill it.

Climbing underneath

Climbing underneath

Next I decided to tackle the oil.  I moved the pan down under the drain plug, which on this truck is actually about two inches across.  I pulled the drain plug, but here is where the bad news starts.  Instead of gushing out like I had hoped, it just dripped, slowly, from around the edges of the hole.  So I stuck my finger up into the hole, which was a semi-solid chunky goop, that refused to slide out, just continued to drip from around the edges of the hole.

This is not what oil is supposed to look like

This is not what oil is supposed to look like

I decided to open the oil filter canister hoping to let some air into the system from above (yes, I know the breather should do this, but not knowing the state of the it…).  I decided to let it drip, and hope more comes out, but the new plan is to pull the oil pan (hopefully tomorrow) and take a look at the bottom end of the engine.  Depending on what I find will determine the next steps, but I think we will need to tear the engine down and rebuild it or at least seriously clean it now and try to take it apart and flush it out and do a top and bottom rebuild over the winter.  I’m not holding my breath, it was pretty chunky.

I don’t know how long it has been since K-Mart sold these oil filters, but I’m guessing it has been a while…

K-Mart Oil filter

K-Mart Oil filter

I also decided to pull the plugs, well at least on one side to see how they looked.  I already planned to put in new plugs, but I figured it might give me some hope if the plugs weren’t totally rusted, that the cylinders aren’t either.  Fortunately they don’t look too bad.  They are obviously pitted and showing their age and some wear and tear.

Plug

Plug

Tomorrow, time permitting, I’ll drop the oil pan and we will start trying to determine the next step where the engine is concerned.  I’m wondering if I can talk my wife into letting me put a lift in the garage… LOL Not much headroom as it is, but even a couple feet might be worth it.