1990 F150 resto from hell.

[metalhead212121]

I changed a lot of gaskets. Oil pan, pickup tube, valve cover, timing cover, oil galley, egr valve, intake plenum, t-b, new egr pipe, new valve cover grommets.. Should be leak free when it fires up. Not going to be for a while. I've been working on the truck a bit. Nothing too exiting.

Be careful saying that... I recently resealed a engine that leaked oil from EVERY gasket. When I say every gasket I mean EVERY gasket. When all was said and done the engine ran good and didn't leak oil from anywhere. A week later it started to knock! Ended up needing a rod bearing. Fortunately the oil pan was the ONLY gasket I didn't replace. Put new rod and main bearings in.. no more knock. Down the road I realize the POS swallows oil! Like a quart every 1000 miles! Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you get fucked. I couldn't drive the POS because I didn't want to insure and register something that would just sit in my garage. If I HAD driven the thing daily I would have realized how much oil the POS ate.

 

[e30bradley]

A small update.. I am really lacking motivation to work on this truck or do anything. I wish I had someone to help me and just say "you can do it, lets go get something done". I am trying to look at things one project at a time instead of viewing it as 874783095 things at once. So yesterday I picked something that I could start and finish in one day..

I mentioned the wheels where kind of crusty and I was concerned about there structural integrity.. Well, that was for good reason. Here is what the 'bottom' of each wheel looked like (the side that was down while sitting 6+ years). I attacked them with a needle scaler and one of my favorites for rust, and angle grinder with a wire wheel.



good enough..


Primed


2 coats




I did the drums as well. I don't think I mentioned this but the brakes are new front and rear. All three soft lines. Pads/rotors, shoes/drums/hardware.



I did a test panel.. 3 coats base (full coverage achieved with 2) 1 coat of clear with some silver and blue pearl, 1 'drop coat' .. the panel was hanging, and 2 coats plain clear.



the sludge that came out of the diff.


I wiped some cobwebs down.. I will clean the garage thoroughly before shooting base and clear.

 

[e30bradley]

The color is really best described as 'machine grey'. The pearl really helps. I think I'm going to paint it like this: one medium-light 'tack coat' of base, 2 medium coats base, 1 tack coat clear, one wet coat clear, both with 1/2 tsp silver pearl and 1/2 tsp blue pearl per sprayable quart, 2 wet coats clear without pearl. The clear I have is a high solids Dupont$ 3:1 mix. I am trying to stop being such a perfectionist. I wanted to hang the doors and block across the seam but my friend with 35+ years paint experience insists I don't need to do that. I am telling myself this is the first car I paint and its not going to be the last. I am wasting too much time and money on small issues, I just want this thing done so I can drive it.

 

[JonBoehman]

I really would like to see how this turns out. It may be a ***** in what has happened for you to end up with the truck but in the end you may end up with a really nice dependable shop/work truck that you'll know all the ins and out on. That old 300ci I6 is easy on the wallet when it comes to repair. I had an f150 with one and it was a good runner. Good luck and keep up the good work.

 

[countryroad82]

This is what I tell people all the time (especially when I'm trying to not pick their car apart and be polite), look at the overall picture. Does it look better than it did? Are what you did to it going to make it more valuable? If the answer to both questions is yes then it's a win. I can be a total perfectionist, do everything to the point it is better than the day it rolled off the assembly line. And you know what? I'll find something that could have been better. I have yet to paint a vehicle that I have been totally satisfied with, and I have quite a few show winners under my belt. One won best paint at a Super Chevy show 9-10 years ago, it is a really nice car but I know where the imperfections are.
I looked at a car I painted 4-5 years ago that when it left I knew every flaw on that bit$% the other day, when I was looking at it I thought to myself, 'I did better on this thing than I remember' I guess when you're looking at it ALL THE TIME you see EVERYTHING! But look at the overall picture, you should be pleased with yourself. I personally think you're doing a fine job!!

 

[e30bradley]

I keeps trying to tell myself:

"Its your first paint job, its not going to be perfect so just get it done"
"There will be another car to paint, do it better next time"
"Do you want this thing in a million pieces forever?"

I usually take my time and take pride in doing everything as best I can. I feel like I have been rushing and not doing things as best I can.. I think I am just going to try and get it done. I really have lost motivation. I am doing stupid sht like rushing into spraying primer and not quadruple checking to make sure every bit is smooth, no chips on edges, so on.. I didn't mask the frame that I spent so much time painting nice gloss black. It looked great, now it looks like I am a lazy *** that doesn't know how to use masking paper.

I actually got something done today, I installed the power steering pulley. That is all I could manage to do today. I also swept the floor a bit, put the wheels on, moved the truck forward and moved the slushbox steering column to the attic along with some other junk.

Defeated by cast aluminum again.. Its pretty clean now but no where near paint-ready-clean.


This bracket is for the alternator and the smog pump. This and the Throttle are the only two parts I could endure the 'spot blasting' process for. Someday I will have a media blasting cabinet. Only then will I be able to properly prep cast aluminum for paint. For now, I'll paint these two parts and the rest will be installed as is after being cleaned.



I wiped the trim ring off with w/g remover, sanded with 1000 grit for a few minutes and then a few minutes with 0000 steel wool and some mag./alu. polish. It looks pretty nice. I have the center caps but I probably won't use them since I only have three.



1000lb HF engine stand gets a good rating from me. It has been holding this pig for weeks now. It flexes a good bit when working on the engine and the welds aren't pretty but if It was going to break it would have already. I believe this engine once fully assembled is over 750 lbs. Its not missing much either, just the plenum, TB, coil, the fan, flywheel/clutch, and some other small bits.

 

[e30bradley]

It looks like I am going to have to make updates from my phone from now on. My computer is a dinosaur. It was top of the line when it was new... In 2001. It just can't handle the video adds on photobucket.

I haven't been working on the truck very much but when I do I am just wet sanding. Lots if wetsanding to do.. A pillar and quarters are done, back of the cab is 90% done. I would have said the drivers door and both fenders where done but I just realized the 600 grit I thought I had used on them was actually 1000 grit so to avoid potential adhesion issues I will be sanding them over again with 400 grit. Since this is getting painted a solid color (grey) I am only sanding to 400 grit. I have sprayed a test panel with base/ pearl/ clear and can not see any sand scratches. The primer on the test panel was sanded to 400.

I'm also done with primer so if it's got a chip in it, it's getting painted with a chip in it. It will probably look better than new to most people and I'll just keep my mouth shut about where the flaws are. I'll do better on my 97 ranger or whatever I paint next.

A few pics to keep y'all interested. It will get there eventually...



Detail



I have never had adhesion problems or fisheye.. My work is always super clean. This passenger side door is done. Just brought it back in from cleaning it with dish soap and a new sponge inside and out. This is the reflection in the still wet 400 grit sanded primer.

 

[HaroRider]

I see why it is so overwhelming when people restore cars..Its an old truck do the best you can so you can just get it back together again.

If one day you end up doing a car that's "worth" restoring, then you can take your time on it. I wouldn't waste time spraying engine brackets and such. Or replacing parts that "may" be bad.

I never restored a car before, but I think its best to focus on one thing..such as paint and get it all back together..then go for something else.. say put the engine and what not back..then interior..step by step.

Jumping around looks like it becomes too much to do. Just a thought. Good luck. I hope you get it done. I am sure the final product will be good, even if its not perfect.

 

[countryroad82]

When I do a total restoration I do something similar to what HaroRider said. But normally it is scattered across the shop. But let's say I am waiting on a part to come in, I'll sandblast parts. When the parts are in, I install/repair/rebuild. After that is done, I paint/detail the parts I sandblasted. While I'm waiting on paint to dry for small stuff, I'm tearing out the interior or something of that nature. I turn everything into small jobs as I go.

When it comes to the body work, if needed I strip the vehicle first and get it in primer. Then I start doing the actual body work. Some people think this is bass ackwards but I live in an area where in the summertime the humidity is high so flash rust is insane so I prefer to just sand off the primer where I am working. But if say I work a dent out on a fender and get filler on it, I go to the other side and work something else out while I'm waiting on the filler to dry. Normally I can have a dent worked out and ready for filler by the time the other is dry, so I go over there and sand it and if it needs another skim coat, I'll mix up enough to do the dent I worked out. I'll keep doing this as it keeps me busy until I'm done and ready to prime my areas I worked and start block sanding. I do all the panels with whatever grit I start with and go over again with finer grits.

Basically I like to keep everything in sections to keep me from sitting around waiting on stuff to happen. I have found it quicker for me. But it's whatever works for you, I'm always trying to hurry up and move one out so I can get the next one in lol.

 

[tonydanzah]

Damn that needle scaler looks like it works awesome

 

[e30bradley]

Damn that needle scaler looks like it works awesome

The wire wheel does most of the work but it's faster to nock the chunks off with the scailer first. I used to just use a hammer and sometimes a chisel but the scailer is way faster. It's a HF unit, it seems good to me but it's the only one I have ever used.

Update: Taking a break from the truck so I don't do something stupid, like paint it knowing it still has little lows in the roof. I've been throwing away massive amounts of used car parts I have saved over the years, getting rid of an old project as well.. It feels good to get rid of all this ****. I will get back to the truck eventually. I bought this to daily drive. So glad I'm not riding the bike anymore!



87 F250 4x4 zf5 6.9 idi

 

[e30bradley]

I haven't worked on the F-150 since the last update. I may make it a drag truck and then I don't have the insurance cost and registration.. I already have a good 351W

The clunky ZF trans is no good for drag racing.. Or a 'weekend driver'. Rock crusher M22s are way out of my price range. What is a good manual trans for drag racing? 4spd is fine but 5spd would be nice incase I put it on the road.

 

[OutlawDrifter]

super t-10 would fit the bill for a 4-speed. i had one behind a 406bbf in a 48 english anglia.

not a lot of 5 speed options unless you want to drop some coin.

 

[e30bradley]

super t-10 would fit the bill for a 4-speed. i had one behind a 406bbf in a 48 english anglia.

not a lot of 5 speed options unless you want to drop some coin.

I had to look that up, looks like a nice ride! Seems like a T-10 would work. Maybe I can find one used, $1700 is still a lot. Would an old toploader 4spd hold up? If I bother with the V8 at all it will get at the very least new heads, cam, maybe rings. Should maybe almost 500 lb-ft of torque. It would probably be carbureted until I can afford to build a megasquirt mpfi setup.

 

[bri_man57]

Just saw this thread, I am a huge fan of the 4.9 straight 6. I wouldn't run the 5.0 or 5.8 from this generation truck (in stock form anyway). I actually have 2, 1990 4.9 5 speeds. One is a short bed single cab 4x4 with a clean paint job and the other is a single cab longbed 2wd and it just a work horse. I paid 1000 for the longbed and have put 45k relatively issue free miles on it. Love that thing. The rocker cover is leaking on it though, need to fix that. Cool truck!

 

[e30bradley]

Bri_man57, I love the 300 as well but not for a truck of this type. I think this truck is never going to 'work' again, I have a diesel F-250 for that. For a weekend driver I think I want some more power. I ride bikes so cars don't usually do much for me. I'm thinking 500lb-ft at the tires might do it. I had an 89' F-250 with a 351w (still have the engine) and it was pretty powerful even in stock form. Quoting myself:

"If I bother with the V8 at all it will get at the very least new heads, cam, maybe rings. Should maybe almost 500 lb-ft of torque. It would probably be carbureted until I can afford to build a megasquirt mpfi setup."

 

[bri_man57]

Bri_man57, I love the 300 as well but not for a truck of this type. I think this truck is never going to 'work' again, I have a diesel F-250 for that. For a weekend driver I think I want some more power. I ride bikes so cars don't usually do much for me. I'm thinking 500lb-ft at the tires might do it. I had an 89' F-250 with a 351w (still have the engine) and it was pretty powerful even in stock form. Quoting myself:

"If I bother with the V8 at all it will get at the very least new heads, cam, maybe rings. Should maybe almost 500 lb-ft of torque. It would probably be carbureted until I can afford to build a megasquirt mpfi setup."

I definitely hear it. Its not a fast truck, but it is powerful. I like them for the old school factor, like these were the last of the real ford trucks. Square steel cabs, highbeam switch on the floor, big ol straight six, manual transfer case, I just love them.

An i live in CA and these still have to be smogged which is a complete PITA. That is when they become less desirable. The older OBD1 technology just does not do well here with CA emissions.

I am a huge fan of 5 speeds and typically in full size trucks only the 6 cylinders come in MT. Yes, there are exceptions to that but they are more difficult to find.

With regards to the V8's I just feel they are gas guzzling and slow. I'm sure the peped up 5.8 would be nice, but I was not impressed with any I have ever ridden it. Felt like my 4.0 ranger would walk all over them but I can imagine that a little work really opens them up.

Again, great job on the restore.

 

[e30bradley]

I definitely hear it. Its not a fast truck, but it is powerful. I like them for the old school factor, like these were the last of the real ford trucks. Square steel cabs, highbeam switch on the floor, big ol straight six, manual transfer case, I just love them.

An i live in CA and these still have to be smogged which is a complete PITA. That is when they become less desirable. The older OBD1 technology just does not do well here with CA emissions.

I am a huge fan of 5 speeds and typically in full size trucks only the 6 cylinders come in MT. Yes, there are exceptions to that but they are more difficult to find.

With regards to the V8's I just feel they are gas guzzling and slow. I'm sure the peped up 5.8 would be nice, but I was not impressed with any I have ever ridden it. Felt like my 4.0 ranger would walk all over them but I can imagine that a little work really opens them up.

Again, great job on the restore.

Aftermarket heads and a new cam is not what I call "little work"..
Anyway, a V8 is probably not going to happen. Its just gona have the straight six and the clunky zf5 trans. Its still way to cold to do any paint work or wetsanding.. I'll get back to this truck near April..

 

[Doug B]

Any update on this project?

 

[e30bradley]

Any update on this project?

Yes, it is collecting dust in my garage.. Hoping to get back to it soon I am just super busy with work and have so little time for projects.

 

[e30bradley]

Change of plans. This project is getting sacrificed to continue the life of my DD 87 F350 updates will continue. Yanked the cab off today. Frame and 300ci engine are for sale