Lookin great man! I meant to ask you... Where did you get that push bar? Or did it come on the truck when you got it?

 

Thanks! I got the push bar on Craigslist for $15 right after I got the truck 2 years ago. It was chrome, but the guy who had it painted it gloss black. I prefer the black. The chrome underneath is nice though because if it gets scratched or nicked the chrome shows through, and it won't rust like regular steel when the paint is scratched off. I don't know what brand the bar is. It doesn't gave any markings or stampings.

 

Figures.. Craigslist always has the deals man!

 

Popped in some new headlight bulbs today. Supposed to be 4k bulbs, so they make a slightly less yellow light then the old 3k bulbs and more of a little bit whiter light. I also used a 3M headlight restoration kit. My headlights weren't too bad, but they did have some oxidization from being over 25 years old. The kit came with pads I used with my cordless drill, and it really made the lights look new. Between that clean up and the 4k bulbs, I have a noticeably better light beam.

I also modified my PCV system setup slightly to try and solve the baffle issue that's been letting slinging oil be sucked up and into the carb.

 

I just cleaned up mine with some polish and some sealant from walmart, kinda did it the cheap way, but I definitely noticed a difference in lighting. Have you considered a headlight relay harness? takes the load off the headlight switch and makes the headlights brighter by using heavier wire and relays to supply more voltage. I'm making one right now for mine. Also, what 4k bulbs did you use, I'm curious, right now I just have sylvania xtravisions

 

Sounds like an interesting mod. Very easy to do. May have to try it at some point. Tell me what you gain out of it. I already run one relay for my grille lights, bumper clearance lights, modded 3rd brake light, push bar lights, and interior floor lights. It flips on when the parking lights come on with the first pull position of the headlamp switch. That relay is only loaded around 5.5 amps. I could easily run another relay dedicated to the headlights. How does it work with the high beams? Will they still suck off of the headlight switch or do you run a separate relay there?

I'm using Sylvania halogen somethings... Don't remember the name right off, just that they said 4k. They're 45/65 watt I think, so the heavier wiring off of a separate relay may not matter as much for these as some of the ones with 85 watt high beams.

 

The benefit you get out of a relay setup depends on how bad your stock wiring is. My son's Jeep Cherokee was putting about 10 volts to the headlights with the engine idling. I put relays on it and the difference was like night and day (pun intended). Before the swap I wasn't sure if the low beams were on or if it was just the parking lights. Almost seemed like some high-buck accessory lights afterward.

I put two relays on it, one for the low beams and one for high. I guess they make kits, but I just picked up relays at an auto parts store.

 

Wow, sounds like a real difference. I'll check my voltage. I checked once before but it was almost a year ago and I don't remember what I found out...

Thanks for sharing!

Makes sense. And that's the way I'd do it. No reason for a kit, wiring is easy as long as you do it right the first time. Fuses, solder, heat-shrink, and cover the wire in plastic housing. Oh, and electric grease if needed at any plug-in points.

 

heres a LinkHeadlight Relay Conversion!!! - Ford Truck Fanatics to a guy who made his own with aftermarket headlight plugs, I'm fusing the low and high beam circuits separately, so if the low one fails, you can see to get off the road safely, and I soldered to some ford headlight plugs. I'm about 2/3 done. not trying to clutter up your thread, just trying to help.

 

Thanks for the link! I'll look into doing it when I find the time. Should be an easy task.

 

Changed the oil today at 3000 miles since the rebuild. I switched to Rotella T6 diesel 5w-40 synthetic. Its 1250ppm of zinc should about satisfy my flat tappet cam. I'm going to keep a little extra zinc additive in it until I break about 10k miles though probably just to ensure the cam gets broken in well. This T6 oil seems to build pressure much more quickly than the 10w-40 conventional oil I was running before. Much better peace of mind for cold starts at 0 degrees...

I also got a 180 degree thermostat to replace my 160 thermostat. The 160 keeps the engine right at 160 since the rest of the cooling system is up to par. 160 is really too cold for efficiency or a lot of cab heat in the winter. The engine builder uses only 160 t-stats because he builds mostly high performance weekend drivers and race engines. A lot of times I can really smell the un-burnt fuel in the exhaust and suspect I can improve efficiency a bit. I have been doing decent on fuel though. About 10.3 mpg average, and recorded a recent tank of all 4x4 driving at 9.85 mpg. I'm happy with it considering my entire setup from the short gearing, to the C6, monster 468, and the lift. Plus it's wintertime, and fuel mileage always takes a dump with the winter fuel and cold temps.

Lastly, I got gaskets and fluid for the D60 front diff and the 10.25 rear.

I hope to get to both the t-stat and diffs next week.

 

regarding the headlight relay I can say for a fact that they are much brighter. I am running the same Sylvania silver stars or super whites something like that in my 88 F150 and our 89 F250. My 88 F150 when I got it had a headlight relay. Yesterday when we took both truck for a test drive the 89 F250 could see probably 1/3 to 1/2 as much as my 88 F150. Both truck also still need there headlights adjusted. If I get both trucks started at the same time at night I will try and get a pic.
Trav

 

Started hearing a metal on metal knocking sound last week while driving. Only during certain RPMs, like 1100-1500 rpm. I dropped the inspection cover off of the transmission housing, and found that one of the torque converter bolts wasn't tight enough. Tightened that up and haven't heard a thing since. That was last Thursday. Boy was it a relief to find that loose nut because I didn't know what else it could be. I'd had a little but of a rattling noise in that same rpm range since just about when I got the truck back from the engine builder but I never thought much of it because it was so minor. Now the light rattle isn't even present.


I also put a 180 degree thermostat in the engine. I finally have good cab heat.

Last Thursday I changed the rear differential fluid and cover gasket while some friends did the front differential for me. From records that I have, it hadn't been done in either differential since 1998, so it was definitely time. Didn't find any real signs of wear in the old fluid or the diffs, so that's a good sign especially considering that I'm hard on the rear one almost every day.

 

If you don't get hung up on his GM bias, Mark (of M.A.D. Enterprises) is a great guy to work with and has some really good material on his site regarding headlight relays. His kit has everything needed and quality wires/connectors, but you can easily duplicate locally.

Here is his article on the relays: Brighter Headlights

We completely rewired my son's '69 C10 during his teenage years using Mark's products, and couldn't have been happier with the results. He still drives the truck today...12 years later.

 

Thanks, man. I'll check it out. I honestly haven't even gotten around to checking voltage at the headlights yet... It's been cold... I'll get to it this week though.