Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

I really haven't been using this truck much this summer. But today it got some miles, about 350 of them. I loaded up my sons motorcycle, 83 Kawasaki KZ750, which a friend of mine is buying. Before I hit the road I decided to swap in the Ford seat. I really didn't want 6 hours on the original seat. Just doesn't have much support. The new one has much more foam and fold down arm rest.

And since I was working on that I figured I had time to put some of the dash together. I've been driving it for over a year with just the gauge cluster held in with a couple screws. Now it almost looks complete!

Checked the fluids last night and the rear section of master cylinder was empty. Well not completely empty, there was sludge and rust in it. I wiped it out and added fluid. It's yucky but I have brakes yet. I don't know how but I do. There's a leak on the hydroboost that I need to take care of them the system needs a flush at a minimum. Everything needs inspected and evaluated though.

No problems on the trip north. The other reason for going up was to borrow his scaffolding for the roofing job I'm doing this week. On my way home I started having a problem with the engine stalling when I stopped. A couple times after re-start I couldn't give it any throttle without it acting like it was either flooding or starving for fuel. I solved the problem for the rest of the trip by shifting into neutral when I had to stop. No problem cruising along.

Right before heading home he asked if there were two posts on the front of the seat. There is, he went back in the garage and came back with a Ford factory cup holder that mounts on the posts!

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

My new cup holder. And the problem with the truck isn't easy to figure out. Code reader says low voltage from the MAF sensor. It was new during the swap, so was the wire harness. Filter is good. MAF sensor wasn't really dirty but I cleaned it anyway. No signal.

I swapped the MAF sensor from my Yukon which I know is good and had the same low voltage code. I checked the signal in live mode and it was zero. Put it back in the Yukon and check the signal and it read normal. So I'm kinda stumped.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Took the truck to a local shop that specializes in LS swaps. We checked continuity on the wires to the MAF sensor, which was good. Couldn't get any voltage at the plug, which was bad. Figured out that there's a fuse for the MAF sensor, O2 sensors that is powered through the brake switch. Weird setup. He thought it was a bad brake switch so after blowing several fuses I unplugged the wire from it. That stopped blowing fuses and the sensors were were working again. Great! But it's not starting worth a damn and it's running worse than ever. He was trying to update the tune on the engine and transmission, then it wouldn't start at all. So he flashed it back to what it was when I came in.

I had to leave for a bit and when I came back I was going to try a new brake switch. The other wire was stuck and I couldn't get it to pull out to connect to the new switch. So I loosened the column bolts and the stuck wire pulled free. It was SMASHED to where I could see copper through the insulation. Well I found the source of the short. I plugged the wires back into the old brake switch and no blown fuse and the sensors are still working.

The self learning has a long way to go. It's almost like the MAF is still off. Going to drive it as much as I can the next few days and probably replace the cam position sensor, he thinks that is the cause of the hard starting.

If it gets back to normal then I'll bring it back next week for the retune.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

The truck continued to run poorly and stalling randomly while cruising along. The only codes I got were cam position sensor, misfire, MAF high and low and oxygen sensor. Nothing consistently except maybe the cam position sensor. Even though I changed it to another used one and then a new one. It got worse the more I drove it. Eventually I checked the fuel pressure and found the problem, sort of. Only 8 psi, how did it even run? The pump was running, the regulator is good, changed the fuel filter. The whole fuel system was new and probably only a few thousand miles on it. A walbro pump that maybe is pushing fuel out of a bypass so it can't build pressure. I don't know for sure because I didn't pull the tank to check.

Instead I got the passenger side tank out of the shed, pulled the sending unit out and inspected it. Inside looked like new but the old sending unit doesn't really work for adding an in tank pump. Got a new 87 sending unit for EFI locally and used the brand new mustang fuel pump I just got but wasn't using. I figure a 98 mustang GT is probably similar power level as the LM7 so it should be adequate capacity. I was surprised that the plug for the 87 Chevy fit the one on the mustang pump.

Working in the parking lot at Schwanke engines for a couple hours I had the new/old tank installed and power and hoses hooked up. A few cycles of the pump and it started right up. It's really a shame that there isn't a fuel pressure sensor. Would have saved me a bunch of trouble trying to diagnose it.

I had the ECU flashed with a higher performance tune. He also shut off some little things like the gas cap trouble code. Another issue I've had is inconsistent shifting which could be associated with the painless harness only having a single VSS plug to the transmission. Which works for a 4L60 but the 4L80 has two. I bought the plug harness for the second VSS and showed me how to connect it into the ECU plug. Hopefully that helps.

Next I want to get the dual tank setup working again. I'll have to check out the other fuel pump of course.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

I get it running decent and then the brakes fail. Sheesh

I'm getting things done around the compound for winter, and wanted to make room in one of the sheds. Which meant moving the camper to a different place. I didn't get out and use it this year but I really wanted to see if the new helper springs would be useful. And I'm happy with the results. It's just touching the perch on one end now so with it loaded up I'll see a benefit for sure. Keep it from swaying around like a drunk sailor. It wasn't in the truck for long which is great since the brake pedal went to the floor the next day. Yikes

I already knew there was a leak between the master cylinder and the hydro boost. And the master cylinder is rusty inside. I ordered a rebuilt hydro boost for it but while looking up the master cylinder there's a couple options depending on the size of the rear brake shoes. When I got underneath to check I found a leak from the right rear drum. So I'll need to check that out too. Hopefully the drums are ok since they cost about $100 each plus shipping. I also have a slight pull to the right at the very start of braking so the fronts need inspected too.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

When the brakes failed I was also in the middle of changing employers and the weather took a turn for the worse. So I brought the truck to the local mechanic. He swapped in the new hydroboost, rebuilt the rear brakes and bled the system. It cost me a few hours of labor but it was time I just didn't have.

So it was running good again and the brakes are good. Then it was parked for the winter lol. I've started it a couple times.

I got my front seat in for reupholstery finally. She did a great job mimicking a Chevy bench seat from a ford with a completely different shape. But she covered over the fold down arm rest. I didn't see it until it was done. I really wanted that. Instead of scrapping the cover though we will just use it on the back seat that doesn't have the arm rest and make another cover for the front. I had planned on waiting awhile to do the back seat, money is getting spread a lot of ways right now between projects. Oh well, getting done now!

It's rawhide vinyl, not leather, so it's got some shine to it until it gets some usage. This is a driver, not a show truck. Doesn't mean I can't make it look decent though.

I ordered a dark brown loop carpet for the truck. I think it'll compliment the look and easier to hide dirt. I'm not a fan of the fawn carpet that is in it now.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

The seat upholstery is done and now I have a lot of work to do getting them in, with the new carpet. But I need to replace body mounts and one of the cab support braces that is a bit rusty. Three of the 4 rear seat bolts were broken off so I spent most of the afternoon drilling those out. The rear seat brackets need to be attached to the Ford seat. Got a Pic of the hastily assembled rear seat to get an idea how it would look. Not bad.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Got the rusty cab support cut out. I left the nose of it in place, it was in good enough condition and it makes the repair much easier. The new support is cut to fit. Just need to drill some holes for plug welds and weld it in. I spent half an hour looking for the new cab mount bushings I bought over a year ago. So frustrating, too many projects going on.

Once this is done I can do the front carpet and seat. The rear seat is bolted down and done. Now I'm looking for seat belts because the plastic is crumbling on mine. Or look for better alternatives.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Was getting ready to weld in the cab support, pulled up the carpet from the front and found MORE rust. Scattered spots, nothing big but several small holes and spots not far from going through. Mostly the driver side, the passenger side has a couple small holes. So as usual, the job got bigger and will take longer to finish.

I cut out the driver side rust and have the new pan roughed down to size. I started welding the cab support and it has a twist that I'm struggling to straighten out. I think the cab itself is twisted after cutting the floor and it's not being supported on the frame. Tomorrow I'll get the bushings in and set the cab back down and hopefully it'll straighten out and I can finish welding the support and get the floor patch in. The passenger side should be easier.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Cab bushings installed and it's sitting back square. Finished welding the support in. Got the floor patch cut and fit but waiting until tomorrow to install it. Two reasons, it's supposed to be warmer so the adhesive will cure better and I need to go get adhesive lol. I'm out.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Floor patches are glued in. Going to let them cure over night. Still need to plug weld the floor pan to the support and brace under it. There were a few small holes on the passenger side about the size of a dime that i glued some small patches onto. And some smaller ones i just filled with the adhesive. I'll spray something over it all or get some sound seadener. Just about done with the floor finally!

Still need to do the passenger side mount bushings. Always something else waiting to get done.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Finished the floor repairs and got all the body bushings in. I cleaned it up and sprayed it black just to seal things up. I'm putting in some sound deadener next then finish putting the carpet in and finally bolt the seat down. Something I thought I would do a week ago.

Not really sure what else I'll do on this truck this summer. With my shelby cobra kit car getting close to being on the road I'm not sure how much time and money I can put into it. The next mechanical issue to fix is the rear gears. They are just wore out and howling on deceleration. There's more rust and body work to do. I'd like to find a nice step bumper. I'll have to get seat belts before I get a ticket. I need to do door glass felts. The rest of the interior will need some work, paint and repair panels, etc. Don't think I can afford to do the AC this summer. Very much a long term project.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Put in my lumber yard sound deadening. Laid the carpet in and set the front seat in. The carpet is not glued in. With our weather still on the cool side of summer I'll wait until it gets warmer and things settle in better. Looking pretty good though. Anyone have some brown seat belts in good condition for sale? Message me.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Picked up a new receiver hitch yesterday. Right now it just has a ball mounted on the bumper, which is rusty. I want to get a nice step bumper for it eventually. While sizing up how it will fit and see what's in the way, etc. I found a problem with the upper shock mount on the passenger side. I think I can fix it.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Picked up a rear step bumper for cheap. It's a bit rough but not rusted through anywhere. Some dings and a little out of shape. Most of it I was able to hammer out and clean up. Didn't want to spend much because I'm cutting it up for some foot holds in the ends like the newer trucks have.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Got the foot pads welded in. Just needs a cleaning and paint!

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Got it painted. I used rattle can lacquer because it says it has an ultra hard finish. We'll see.
Can't wait to mount it along with the new hitch.

The last part of the drivetrain that needs attention is the rear axle. During coast down it whines. Bad. Been told it's the pinion bearing. I'm happy with the 4.10 gear ratio. Rather than just fixing what I got I started looking for a newer axle with disc brakes. There's a bunch of 2500HD axles out there with the same gears, full float 14 bolts with limited slip. Stopped by Sidco in Glencoe today and he has them in stock for $350. So I'm bringing the truck there next week to get it swapped in. The spring perches need to be moved. I need to order an adjustable proportioning valve.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

i really like the bumper idea & how it turned out... very nice & cool idea!! i would be willing to bet that it might get copied a few times now... nice job!

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Thanks. I'm really surprised I haven't seen others doing this before. I got the idea to try it years ago when I first saw it on a new truck. It was pretty easy to do except for welding the chrome so there's pinholes in some of the welds. I got the bumper for $30. Plus the cost of some rattle cans.

Here's a picture of it on the truck.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Today I went to do an axle swap but ended up upgrading my own instead. I also began the process thinking I would keep the 4.10 gears but on the way to the shop, cruising at 60-70 I thought 3.73s would be better. So I get to the shop and they give me the option of the axle swap or swapping parts onto mine. He thought it would be easier to swap the parts. I asked the mechanic towards the end of the job if he thought it was easier and he shrugged.

In the end the goal was to repair the rear axle and get disc brakes. That happened. My old differential bearings were shot, the gears very worn. They swapped in 3.73 gears with new bearings and installed front rotors and calipers with adapter brackets. So not exactly what I was thinking but driving it home 70 miles it was great. I didn't do anything with the proportioning valve yet, a disc/disc one is on the way, but the brakes worked great without it. With the drums they would lock up all the time. Now I couldn't make them lock up.

Using the front brakes on the rear gives a larger rotor and more swept area than the typical rear discs.

On another note, I've got a leak on the transmission around the dipstick or cooler line that I need to fix.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

If my bumper wasn't chromed and in good condition I would be all over that idea
Great job
You could make some extra $$$ if you advertised that .

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Too many other projects now to try and make a buck doing this.

My transmission leak was just a loose cooler line adapter. Fixed! Took a test drive with my scanner hooked up. Everything is working great! No codes, no issues. Until the next one lol.