Wow! Thanks for all of the advice! I have a current list of things I need to do including the fuel pump/lines/tank issues, ebrake and brake check, rear sway bar, new rear shocks (the bushings are gone and the shocks move freely on the stud, plus they're rusted through), and a new fuel cap! Somebody forgot to unscrew the old one when we took the bed off

As for the cab swap, it's real high on my list. Sure it'll be tough, but I'm up for a good challenge. I got a bunch of great teammates and we're all willing to give our shirts off our backs for eachother. That's what a great team is. What I'm getting at is most of my good buddies on the team are very interested in the truck and would be glad to help. So the lifting off part can easily be covered.

 

Glad you got a good list. Stuff like sway bar and any e brake parts I would follow your local craigslist so that you can find a truck being parted out and get them cheap since you are on a budget. The rest I would get new as they don't cost much (minus the fuel pump). The cab I would look out for or possibly find a cheap parts truck then you will have access to the cab, front clip parts, and any parts that come up on craigslist too. Of course you being in the city you may not have the space unlike me.
Trav

 

Update:

Well, I got back from a mini vacation to see Whiskey Myers in Dallas and decided since for the next week that I'd be working on the rear of the truck I'd go ahead and turn her around. That's where the first problem was... Clutch in, turn key, CLICK! I'm thinking, no way...it had only sat for less than a week. But sure as the sun comes up, that battery won't even start my Highlander. It's weird that it has enough power to turn on the lights and everything else. That tells me I have a bad draw somewhere...really bad! Anyways, I through my good battery in there and she fired right up! Enough for me to turn the truck around and then I decided that was enough for 11 PM

Next morning I wake up to find this (bucket was put there after)





I quickly found the problem as the extra piece of hosing over the actual hose had slid down somehow and caused a big leak over night. Looked in there and I probably lost 2-3 gallons overnight. Not enough for the fuel gauge to change? Anyways I know to fix the parking brake I need to put the rear on jack stands so I figured I'd go ahead and get on that.


Just for grins I threw it the good battery and started her up, but I have to give a little gas to get it to actually fire after trying to crank. The truck ran great, let it run for about 5 or 10 minutes and then I went through the gears and it never shut off once. It's really confusing me, I thought I had a fuel pump issue...but they're both working fine obviously. I did a little bit of research through the forum and have found that I may have a fuel pump relay issue? I plan on picking up a multimeter tomorrow and trying to pull fuses to find where I'm getting the biggest draw. How can I test that relay? Or should I just go ahead and replace it?

One last thing, here's my current parking brake...you can see why it needs replacing.

 

michaelleiterman, It sure appears that you're on a bit of an incline there and I don't see that you have chocks under those front tires. There is little, if any, weight in the back of your vehicle and that truck can slide forward and off those jack stands hurting you and or helpers in the process.

Let's get safe and get some chocks under those tires before you get near that vehicle.

 

Funny how pictures can be deceiving, it's actually quite level. I'll set some out, just to be safe. Thanks for the advice

 

I am interested to keep an eye on this thread! I am currently looking for an older F150 somewhere in the '87-'96 range. In Indiana where I'm looking most of the affordable trucks have rust in the typical places. The ones in good (very little rust) shape are priced accordingly. I am figuring I'll be doing some rust repair at some point.

Keep up the posts so we can see how your restore goes!

 

Update:

Got multimeter and tested for draw, .02A draw on the system. From what I've read that is totally normal, anything over .05A is when I need to be worried about it? So as for the FP relay, I reckon thats all fine then.

Went to start the truck yesterday and it cranked but wouldn't start. Found that I have a bad ground from Neg cable to frame. My grandpa had told me he had grounding issues before with the truck, so it would only be right if they came back for me I reconnected the wire to the frame (thin gauge wire that came off of rad core to cable) and put in the good battery and she cranked! Even better with a little help from pressing the gas pedal the truck fired and was running! I'm guessing the problem with not firing is because of the bad, varnishy gas.

So, after fixing the ground issue and she ran and knowing there is no excessive draw anywhere, here's my question: Can a bad ground cause a battery drain?
That's the only thing that I can figure would've done it...

 

Have you brought the battery in to O'rielly or Autozone to be tested? You may not have any issue with your truck it may just be that the battery will hold a charge but won't handle a load like cranking it over. Had that problem multiple times on 84 Bronco II as I kept putting used batteries in it.
Trav

 

lol gotta love WI rust!! Your truck actually looks pretty good! This is what my 89 looked like back when i first picked her up:


A page back you were talking about a cab swap. I would actually say if you can find a good 89-91 cab, do the whole swap. 4 healthy guys can lift/move a gutted cab. If you can only find a 92-96 cab, mite be better to do patch panels. I used a 93 cab when i did the swap on my 89, and even with manual windows/locks and no A/C there was ALOT of little differences between the 2 cabs. Took twice as long to do the swap, and a ton of extra headaches.

Heres a link to my album of my cab swap:
89 Rusty Cab Photos by huston123_99 | Photobucket

 

I know there's something wrong with the battery sitting in it, however it was my primary battery before I put it in the truck. After it was in the truck it lost it's power. Only reading 9.8 V...I put in my new primary battery and it wouldn't start until I did reconnect a ground wire that I noticed was disconnected and then the truck started no problem.

Thanks!! Thats a good looking truck you got in the end! And I know what ya mean, I've had one bolt that was non-engine related that has come off easily!

 

Update:

Well, now that school is back in session and football season is in full swing, I've pretty much been restricted to working on the truck on the weekends. I ordered my fuel pump and new fuel tank straps...look at that new vs old difference!





I also had cleaned out the tank last weekend, man that was nasty! Threw some screws in there and water and shook it all up. Its not brand new on the inside but its a whole lot nicer than before. I took the wire wheel to the bottom of it and shined it up, then hit it with some clear coat. Again, not brand new, but at least shiny!


Last update I have is that I started to finish the frame. I hit it with some Rustoleum primer, it sucked right into that metal! But that just means its working Planning on finishing it off with Flat black rustoleum

 

Updates:

Replaced all 6 of my shocks last weekend with Rancho R5000 shocks; let me tell ya -- that was a headache! The front ones did not want to come off all that well...ended up breaking the outer shock stud on the passenger side. I had to grind the bolt off and smooth is at the shoulder to be able to drill the hole for a new bolt. Don't ya love working with old, rusty bolts!

I had bought 2" lift coils for the front, however not thinking it would require anything else up front I thought I'd be set! But no.. The tires would've been sitting like this \ /. It would've needed a drop for the pitman arm and would've needed a camber adjustment too. The castle nuts on the camber are so rusted that more than likely would've required they be cut out. Which all leads to more $$$ that just isn't in the budget. So! I decided to clean off the rust on the stock coils and hit up with Rustoleum gloss red to match the boots of the Rancho shocks. New plan is to get new set of 31x10.5s...which will be a little cheaper too.

One thing I did find in taking the front end apart, I will have to overhaul the brake system. I WILL be getting new rotors, calipers, and pads. By the time I get done with the truck it'll be nicer than it was in 1989!





Passenger side before I put the outer shock on








Whoever replace the pads last forgot to put the pad on....

 

Very cool project!

 

Update:

Found a cab, more than likely going to get it week after next.

So that being said, I started the de-cabbing process:

1) Removed seat
2) Removed interior pieces and seat belt holders
3) Removed bezels of shifters
4) Found that carpet had mouse **** all over and chewed up under seat (very saddened)
5) Removed steering wheel
*Thats as far as I am on the inside. I know that there is more electrical stuff to deal with.
6) Removed hood
7) Removed grill, headlight assembly
8) Removed drivers side fender /both are being replaced due to rust
9) Removed passenger side fender /

Also ordered up new rotors, calipers, and brake pads last week! Its gonna be sweet driving a 25 y/o truck with brand new everything!!



Once I saw it was beyond a simple cleaning I cut it up...not sure if that was smart or not.








New pads vs old ones....











Dont excommunicate me, but it looks like a jeep with the circles like that

 

Looks like a jeep with the rust. LOL
Looking good.
Trav