Thanks! It'd be better if my seat and carpet were black too.lol.

 

I can finally update the thread with actual progress!!!

After a few months of inactivity, I finally did something worthwhile and tedious on the F100. I retrofitted my original non-locking hood release cable to fit my locking hood release handle.

First I knocked off the plastic to see what I was working with. I was happy to see that there was a little small ferrule attached to the handle shaft, which is just what I was hoping to find.



Then I brought out my grinder and took off the handle shaft, leaving the ferrule on the wire.




And finally, after grinding off the excess material, the ferrule fit inside the lock like a glove. My apologies for the blurry picture.




Locking hood release handle installed.

 

Well recently I came across a sale on Rit dye at the local grocery store. I decided to do something about my dirty, stained, blue carpet in the F100. I started out with this:



And after the first bath, it was a few shades darker.



It still isn't dark enough to match the black interior however, so it is currently taking it's second dye bath. When I pull it out it should be at the darkest shade possible. I thoroughly cleaned the carpet before I put it in the first dye bath. However there were still a few deep stains I could not remove. As you can see, the major benefit of black dye is that it hides almost all stains. I still need to find something to paint the heel pad black, but that will be easy to take care of.


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Also, I've strongly been considering changing my plans on the engine. I'm thinking of finding either a 351M or a 400 for the truck. Of course thanks to emissions standards in the late 70's to early 80's, It'll need some engine work to make it perform, but it'll be completely worth it. The 300 in the truck now is rated at somewhere around 117 horsepower, which is just horrible, and the torque numbers aren't near as good as the EFI 300's, so I'm not sure if the 300 is the way I want to go.

 

That is such a cool truck dude

 

Thanks!

 

Started tearing down the 300 for parts after I realized that the block was full of what seems to be rubberized gasket maker and rust. Got the Carb, Vacuum lines, Alternator, Belts, Fan and spacer, and a few other things all removed.

 

Distributor, Coil, associated wiring, and Fuel Pump removed:




Behind the Pushrod Cover:




Exhaust removed. When I got the truck, there was nothing after the cat. I had to fashion the exhaust just to quiet the truck down a bit and avoid noise complaints.




Intake/Exhaust Manifolds, Starter, Alternator brackets, and remaining vacuum lines removed.





"AIR" tube refuses to come off, so I had to take the entire assembly off together. About 50 or so pounds.




Looks like the cam has some nice marks on the lobe. This is looking through the fuel pump hole.



Inside the Water Pump:





Lower Radiator Hose: Check out the "clogged artery".



Behind the water pump, looking at the number 1 cylinder wall.




Pretty sure the truck has gained a few inches height in the front. The front used to sit lower than the rear.






The only things left keeping the engine and trans in are the motor and trans mounts. Once I get my new hydraulic ram, out comes the 300 and the C6.[/quote]

 

Engine and transmission are now out of the F100.




Radiator support removed.









Engine and transmission out:










A new "protection group" front bumper followed me home from the junkyard.







As did an under hood light that needs a little TLC.





Put the front fascia back on for now:

 

Truck is coming along nicely! I kinda like the look of the F-O-R-D accross the hood with the emblem in the grille...

 

Thanks man! I get that comment about the grille quite often. I love the grille, but only with the F-O-R-D on the hood. For some reason, those letters really make the grille "pop", at least in my opinion. I'll be running the 80-81 grille when I do strict shows, but any other time, I'll be running the 82-86 grille.

 

Yeah i think it looks tough!

 

When I picked up the new seat for my F100 from the Ranger Lariat donor truck, I also grabbed the 1980-only trim panels that go above the armrest on the 1980 Ranger Lariats. I just now got around to painting them black with a special blend of SEM that perfectly matches the factory interior color. And they are now installed onto the door panels.


Before:





After:

 

Trucks looking great Shaun!

 

Thanks Anthony!

 

Here's the remainder of my 300 pics. The 300 is officially 95% bare, with the only things remaining in the block being the freeze plugs, and the main bearings on the block side. It was definitely a fun experience tearing the motor down, especially since I have never torn an engine down this far before.


Cylinder head off. You can see where most of the cooling passages are completely blocked.







Valve side of the head. Plenty of carbon buildup.





Push rods, rocker arms, and head bolts.





Oil pan, bearing caps, and crankshaft removed. You can see here that all of the connecting rod bearings are all down to copper. The rest of the engine bearings with the exception of one were nowhere near this bad.





Pistons, connecting rods, main bearing caps, and bolts removed.






Closeup of the wear on the connecting rod bearings:





Nothing left but the block, freeze plugs, and main block bearings.




As a reminder of why I'm not keeping the 300, here's the rust throughout the cooling passages, and on the #1 cylinder wall.






And just a little something I came across. Gotta pull one of the heads on it and measure the cylinder bore to make sure it hasn't been bored over, and measure the stroke to see if it's a 351M or a 400 since the Catalyst sticker on the valve cover has deteriorated. Also gonna pull the water pump and the thermostat housing and make sure it isn't suffering from the same fate as the 300. If all systems look to be a go, I will strip the block of what I don't want, and will take the rest home in the next few weeks if it's still there.