Parts truck

[ryanroo]

this build is going to hopefully happen relatively quick. i picked this truck up not quite a year ago. its ugly and nasty but i am a sucker. i used the front clip for my other 72 and set the 67 clip on it as a repacement. not one thing was done to it until recently.

in may i was talking to my brother in law and he decided to buy my DD (a 97 f250) to use for a when i need a truck type of thing. they live on a small acreage and he drives a Hyundai. they need a truck now and again and i had been considering selling the ford anyhow. they had just bought a new car for my sister so he wanted to wait until october to buy the ford.

a few weeks ago i snagged a 78 K30 and a plan hatched. it has a decent 350 and a good set of axles. the 72 has a tired greasy 350 that has who knows how many miles. axles are questionable at best. they work, but need a total overhaul. as opposed to replacing my f250 with something i decided to attempt getting the yellow truck (i call it the pee bucket in a slightly less PC way) running by merging the two, and cruising in super hillrod fashion. my cul de sac neighbors love me!

the 78 is a 4 speed truck and i decided i wanted an auto. the transmission and t case are really nasty in the 72 so out they come too.

anyway, here is a few pics.



this came in the mail today. went all out and ordered the "race kit" with kolene steels and red alto frictions. not sure that was neccesary but it was only a few bucks more. also got a Hughes truck convertor for it.



so far the front clip is help on by few bolts and i pulled the 205 as well as the some other stuff. i have also started striping the 78 and will hopefully make some progress this weekend!

[ryanroo]

the greasiest 350, maybe ever. but hey, i scored a vintage edelbrock victor intake and some sweety dime store special valve cover t bolts! also has a new edelbrock carb. WHOOEE.



the engine crossmember is super slimy. i had this one in the garage from who knows what, so i wiped it down and sprayed some flat black on it. i will swap it with the slimy one and try to scrape the gunk off the frame as well as i can. i will probably swap the trans cross member as well since i have one i can clean up in the garage. the t case and th350 are due for a trip to the carwash also.



hopefully more to follow tomorrow

[ryanroo]

got the front axles swapped



also scraped down the frame rails and hosed it off as best as i could. i hope to continue spraying the nasty with degreaser and hosing/scraping as best i can here and there. anyhow, i re installed the clean and painted crossmember with new flange head bolts and nuts. i also re attached the d60 brake lines to the 72 hard lines. i was more than happy that both trucks werent so crusty that the lines wouldn't break loose.

[ryanroo]

best $8.75 ive spent on this project yet

[ryanroo]

rebuilt the trans





doesnt look like it needed it, oh well.





and voila

[1leglance]

It is cool to see a low buck, put it together quick, anyone could do this build...
Looking forward to seeing pics of it on the road.

[mosesburb]

That's a nice neighborhood you live in there. I'm surprised your neighbors haven't burned your house to the ground yet.

[ryanroo]

they probably figure it is a safe bet that ill do it myself and save them the arson charges. HAHA. plus with all the knuckle dragging and generally threatening behavior they are all afraid to talk to me. i also have this gig worked out with my dog so when we go outside she acts like i'm beating her, cowering and yelping, the whole bit. when we go inside she gets a steak. works great. scares the crap out of all the little kids running around.

[MTCK]

Cool build! Looking forward to watching this one get on the road.

[6BT 56]

Ryan you sure have lots on the go . It will be nice to roll in some old iron . Smart dog you have as well. Lol. We did the same( no my parents didn't beat me ) when I was a kid with the mini bikes and go karts . When the cops escorted me home my parents would come out and tear in to me big time . When the cop left they would tell me not to for get my helmet and have fun . Ah ..... the good old days .

[ryanroo]

Originally Posted by 1leglance

It is cool to see a low buck, put it together quick, anyone could do this build...
Looking forward to seeing pics of it on the road.

im looking forward to that too. i want it going so i can spend some time on my project truck again!

Originally Posted by MTCK

Cool build! Looking forward to watching this one get on the road.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by 6BT 56

Ryan you sure have lots on the go . It will be nice to roll in some old iron . Smart dog you have as well. Lol. We did the same( no my parents didn't beat me ) when I was a kid with the mini bikes and go karts . When the cops escorted me home my parents would come out and tear in to me big time . When the cop left they would tell me not to for get my helmet and have fun . Ah ..... the good old days .

yeah, i agree. some times it feels like maybe i am an idiot... i am excited to drive something old and stinky again. i had a couple 72s i drove in college and it was nice to be able to carry a box with simple tools and few odds and ends and know i could fix my way out of most jams. plus itll be cheap to insure and register! i am already thinking about what color of spray paint i want to use on it... then i think a driveway camo job would really make my neighbors proud!

i love that idea your parents had. absolutely great.

[ryanroo]

i think i will have to stop putting parts on my workbench. this seems to happen every time...



primered. thinking about just using some clearcoat on this primer as it is a pretty close match to the Syracuse red. i have a can of AC orange that is a little darker than chevy orange but i dunno. maybe ill just get crazy and paint it black...



first time for me. ive had a lot of 205s apart and i never worry about ordering bearing kits. seems like as long as there is something, water, 80w90, atf, mud, lemonade.. any fluid at all in a 205 they are always fine. ive had some that were a little loose, but never unusable. busted this apart last night and... fiddle sticks



i had ordered a couple odds and ends from ORD and the seal/gasket kit was one of them. called today and they sent me a bearing kit. luckily they are close and i should be seeing it in time for a weekend assembly. gives the paint plenty of dry time

[ryanroo]

finally. i got the wrong seal in my kit for the rear output bearing retainer. i grabbed one at napa this afternoon and got the last few bolts in it.



i pulled the trans crossmeber. painted the replacement and picked up new not mismatched bolts for it. hope to get the trans and tcase hanging in it tomorrow. next will be engine swapping or rear axle swapping.

[quadzero]

Very cool project. How difficult was all the transmission work?

[ryanroo]

Thanks

Depends on your level of experience. i dont find them difficult at all. especially the older fully hydraulic units. there are a few "special" tools you need for different transmissions but there is usually a way to do it without them. i made a return spring compressor for this project with a few odds and ends from the hardware store. basically it is just following directions and remembering what went where and in what order. that and making sure there are no "extra" parts when you are done.

[Vintage Windmills]

Subscribed! Reminds me of my 71K20 "build" thread. I am just as bad with that one distracting me from the 72K20 all in build. Curious what you use for degreaser. I haven't found one yet that will easily cut through the clay you always find caked on the trans and tcases!

[ryanroo]

repeated effort is all i can claim that works. i use gunk degreaser. then i scrape. then i use more degreaser. then i scrape. then i car wash. then i use mineral spirits if i need to and let it soak. this 205 was pretty bad but after about a week of repeated doses of degreaser and the putty knife it cleaned up ok. the adapter was a different story. i rednecked it a little and just painted the nasty stuff that i couldnt bust off after an overnight soak in solvent.

[ryanroo]

i had fully intended have the t case in today. i looked over the adapter seals and thought they were good. upon closer inspection the rear lip seal was cracked. great. tried to chase one down. not so easy on a sunday in BFE colorado.

oh well, ive got other work to do.

in order to continue, i just bolted the empty adaper to the th350 and mounted it up. this gave me the opportunity to bust out my new poly tcase bushings from ORD. the freshly repainted crossmember is also making an appearance



started to remove the front clip from the 78. this truck obviuosly didnt realize that i have no patience for hi-jinx. busted captive nut, cut off wheel to the rescue.



got all the crap busted off



and with the flywheel flexplate exchange done, this found its new home



you can see the shiny new torque converter installed. what is not pictured is the starter bolt busted off in the block. some doughdick didnt tighten the starter bolts enough and one busted off. not really sure how the starter was even engaging, but it was. anyhow, i drilled and easy outed it and it actually worked.



here are the new prothane engine pads. these were from brothers i think.



hope to have the new adapter seals early this week. then i can finish the drive train re install and think about some fresh wiring for under the hood. and i will try to get the front clip installed this week if i can rustle up a few extra hands.

the engine from the 78 has an even NEWER edelbrock carb and this one is elec. choke. oh yeah, and a carb spacer.... yehaw.

[mosesburb]

Man, that is a sweet remote p/s reservoir mount!! You should chrome it. Are you swapping the hydroboost into the urine bucket??

[ryanroo]

Originally Posted by mosesburb

Man, that is a sweet remote p/s reservoir mount!! You should chrome it. Are you swapping the hydroboost into the urine bucket??

yeah its right there staring you in the face whenever you pop the hood for sure. speaking of, i hope it clears the hood. what is this "chrome" you speak of? ive never heard of it.

plan is to swap the HB. it isnt a front burner problem so it may wait for a weekend after it is more functional. im not a huge fan of the long pedal travel you get with the 3/4 ton MC on the dana 60 brakes. but, it will work for a bit. the hoses on the 78 were questionable. that will need addressed. the box from the 78 is going to the 72 also as it looks to have been recently replaced/less leaky. i have a fresh pump for a HB system on the shelf(spare for the m715) that i will probably use as well. i doubt the BBC mounts are the same though. and the ones on this engine are pretty gross.

[jjzepplin]

Like Your Progress. Should prove to be a nice rig.

[ryanroo]

Thanks

Napa came through with some seals.



for reference to anyone else who may find these seals hard to chase down. they are refered to as transfer case input shaft seals. this is obviously the SKF number.



gotta love the flash for showing off your awesome half arsed paint job



had a buddy stop by and help me set the front back on so it looks like a truck again. albeit a shabby half assembled beater of a truck. at least itll keep the rain off the engine.



gonna get my new wiring on the way for the the underhood area. later on ill do the under dash stuff as it is pretty nasty also

[ryanroo]

recieved the new wiring. this was ordered from classic truck. made by AAW. as has been said before, AAW is top notch stuff. i will get a dash side harness down the road when i have a chance.





the old stuff is beside the new. i have it routed and some stuff plugged in but i still need to do some other stuff. i have to modify the harness slightly for the internally regulated alt. and if i have time i will wire up a relay harness for the headlights. i also ordered the "front" tail light harness and will drag that thing through the rail somtime too. i'll end up getting a "rear" tail light harness for it in the future as it is pretty nasty. the rear axles are all but loose on both trucks. the yellow one will require a cut off wheel for the ubolts but the tan one is ready to rock. hopefully this weekend i can get that done. the tan truck has 2.5" blocks under the rear that i think i will swap over to the yellow one to help with the increased right height that the dana 60 adds.

[birdistheword]

Looking good!

[ryanroo]

I didnt have as much time this weekend as i had hoped. i was asked earlier in the week to help someone move on saturday and i also had to go to work for a bit saturday. nonetheless i was able to get something done

manifolds installed. also the half routed wiring. distributor is in. still need to attach the exhaust pipes to the manifolds and install the steering box. i am using the box from the tan truck so i will wait till i get it dragged on the trailer to scab the box off of it.



got the 14 bolt swapped in. switched the rubber line mount around and did some creative re-bending of the hard lines to get the brake line hooked up.




i used the 2.5-3" blocks from the 78. despite that, the original driveline was a little long due to the extra length of the 14 bolt's pinion campared to the h052. luckily for me i had this one laying about from my green truck that also had a 14 bolt swap at one time. it has very few miles on it and was built new for that truck so it is nice and tight and it landed right in the middle of the travel. ill need to figure out how to connect the park brake cables as they are a little short



this is how it is sitting now with the blocked rear. i think a set of 2.5 springs for the front will make it just right and i should be able to sneak a set of 35s on it with minimal interference



dumped some fluid in the trans, but got lazy before i got the tcase filled and the new filter and oil in the engine. gives me small victories to reach during the week