Hello ladys and gents
I havent posted on this forum in a while. I sold my 91 f250 and got a chevy, sold that and got a GMC, sold that this past fall after I bought my current truck. My current ride is a 1996 F350 CCLB 7.3 ZF5

*Note, the updates will be posted in their own posts and this first post will be updated from there*

This is basically what it looked like when I bought it



When I got it, it was rough to say the least. I trailered it home and immediate gave it a bath. The interior was nasty. The carpets were stained and it smelled. On the way home from picking it up, I stopped at napa and picked up a bulk pack of air fresheners and 5 cans of carpet cleaner among other misc parts and a new optima red top to match the one the seller put in the truck.

When I bought it the seller told me the fly wheel had begun to shutter as they all typically do with this motor and trans package. When I got to the sellers yard where he has it stored I was beyond disappointed. I had just driven 2 hrs in traffic to see this thing and it was nothing like how he described it or showed me in the pictures. On top of the fly wheel issue, It needed a new battery, the oil pan leaked, it had a hard starting issue, the frame was very rusty, no rot, just copious amounts of rust, and the bed was beyond repair. After consulting with the wife who co-piloted the truck up there with me and getting the classic "Do whatever you want" and "You better get it cheap"

Well after going back and forth with the seller, who was actually selling it for his father, I handed him $3900 and went on my way.

The good:
The seller was the original owner
It came with one new Optima Red Top
It was my dream truck
Two full trucks of diesel

The bad:
The fly wheel needed to be replaced
The oil pan was shot
The bed was bent up
The tailgate was missing
The interior was disgusting

So, now that you the jist of my new bomb, I get onto the mods.

My main idea for this truck is to have decent reliable power.
Ill be doing the basics such as exhaust, intake, gauges. Once the funds come in I'd like to do 160/30 injectors.

I have already built a custom intake





That was the first run before paint

This is pretty much where its at now





while I was in there I changed and painted the thermostat housing, and a new thermostat of course





The rest of the mods Ive done have been for reliability, fixing / upgrading broken parts, and making the truck work better for me.

The main fix / upgrade has been the new Luk fly wheel and matching clutch kit.

The old:









Good stuff right??

The new:







MUCH better! The difference between the two is night and day. It starts easier, shifts much much smoother, and overall just makes it more enjoyable to drive. While I was in there I replaced the trans fluid with Motorcraft cherry juice.

One of my newest mods is a new-to-me set of rims and tires. I did some electrical work for a friend and to compensate me for my busted knuckles and hours of work he gave me this set of rims and tires.



The only two hitches were that one tire was missing, they're 295/75/r16 BFG all terrain KOs. Of course the KO was discontinued last year so they are hard to come by especially in such an odd size. I was able to source one from one of my local tire shops who I normally use. It was $303 and change out the door for the tire mounting and balancing. Little pricey but that is the nature of the beast. The other problem is they came off of a 2003 super doody so the bolt pattern was off, well that was no problem with a set of 8x6.5" to 8x170mm adapters.



Doing the dishes before having the new tire mounted.



Fronts on





next to by buddies 7.3

And just for *****s and giggles heres some pictures of the truck since Ive owned it.







my buddies 7.3 and my cousins 6.0



Towing a backhoe from Home Depot to the farm to repair some water lines.



Like the Firestone commercial says to do.. "Truck stuff"

On the interior (not pictured) I have tinted the windows, cleaned the crap out of the carpet and seats, mounted a switch box to control my blue lights (volunteer firefighter ) and other misc lights. I have also installed a trailer brake controller among other misc items

 

Even with the problems you stole that truck. Nice looking rig with lots of potential. Make sure you document and post lots of pics of your rig.

 

Still a good deal for $3900! Congrats! I love that blue!

 

So, now that you the jist of my new bomb, I get onto the mods.

My main idea for this truck is to have decent reliable power.
Ill be doing the basics such as exhaust, intake, gauges. Once the funds come in I'd like to do 160/30 injectors.

I have already built a custom intake





That was the first run before paint

This is pretty much where its at now





while I was in there I changed and painted the thermostat housing, and a new thermostat of course

 

thanks guys! Ill be adding to this thread. I have a bunch to add as Ive been busy since October making this thing a lot better

 

Swap that air filter for a 6637 or equivalent
Add an egt gauge
Install a 3" down pipe or turbo back exhaust system

 

What brand air filter is that?

 

Ill be getting gauges as soon as I can figure out what I want. Its a Specre filter from advanced auto

 

Yeah, get that filter off of there. Get a 6637 from NAPA and you will be good to go. Those are no bueno for the turbo fins as they do not filter worth a crap. Really nice truck! Love the blue. Welcome to FTE!

 

Love that blue

 

Thanks guys. I'll be getting a napa filter eventually. I've been on fte for a few years just haven't be very active.

 

Also change the orange intake boot they tend to tear around the clamp area and let dust in check Riffraff for any of your truck parts

 

I did I just didn't have an updated picture

 

Nice truck man. Sounds like you have some good plans for it. If you drive on a lot of gravel roads I'd change the filter to a 6637. If it's mainly on good roads I wouldn't worry too much about it. JMO of course.

 

Thanks man. I put a filter wears cover on it. So I'm really not all that worried about it