I've washed my truck about 15 or so times since I bought it in January but haven't touched the engine area. The headers are showing signs of rust. The master cylinder has since been swapped but that area behind it is rusting.

The po didn't bother having them paint the engine area when they restored it.

I need to find a good stool to clean about in there. I'd like to dress it up a little. Just looking for feedback from those who may have done it already. If this was your truck, what would you do to it? (if anything)

 

Here are some basics based on experience with my two Mustangs and reading Mustangs Monthly for the past 17 years. I've applied some of this to my rig but still have much to do. One word of note.. try to limit the color palette to no more than four colors.. Ford blue, black, silver, and grey.. except as noted below..:

Engine color. Ford Blue - the darker version common to 68 and later Fords. Light blue looks weak. Duplicolor, Plastikote, or Rustoleum is fine.

Things that are semigloss black - Krylon 1613 (Sometimes labeled semi-flat black_ is the closest spray bomb to the factory matte black. Walmart is the source.. $2.97 a can!! I buy them in six packs and have bought up to 18 cans at one time. An alternative is Rustoleum Satin Black 7777.

Eastwood's Cast Grey - Get your exhaust manifolds bead blasted and then apply. Let cure and it lasts a loooong time. Another alternative is Calyx manifold dressing. It "brushes" on like a glue stick. Better if applied after bead blasting. Your headers look OK to me.

Power brake booster, alternator fan, and master cylinder lid... Use Eastwood Gold Cadmium System

Radiator fan...POR-15 black.. use on the radiator fan cuz it'll withstand the inevitable stuff that hits the fan (haha... that's a funny!)

Hardware.. contact AMK products for a hardware kit for your application. Nice stuff but pricey.

Fender bolts.. avoid the type with the star washer - it traps dirt and mars the paint as they are tighted down. These might have been phased out in the late 60s. Silver or cadmium.

Carburetor... Use Eastwood's carb refinishing kit or clean it as clean as can be.

Intake manifold... VHT clearn or natural aluminum if it's aftermarket, otherwise engine color.

Heads... stock heads get the engine color. Aftermarket aluminum are left natural.. show'em off.

Water pump.. engine color or Kyrlon silver with VHT satin clear.

Distributor.. black caps typically. MSD caps (red) can be shot with alkyd black. Grey caps are OK too.

Plug wires... black wires and boots. Avoid the (IMO) gaudy blue, yellow, and red wires unless that's your thing.

Hose clamps.. stainless steel. All clamps need to face one direction and be accessible with a wrench or nut driver.

Valve cover bolts... Engine color or silver.

Brackets, brackets brackets... Krylon 1613 semigloss black. Buy lots!

Electrical terminals.. Nothing looks like shade-tree work like using the crimp-on terminals and leaving them looking like crimp-on terminals. Take the time to plan to first slip in some heat shrink and plain butt terminals. Slide the heat shrink over the crimp and apply heat. It'll look alot more factory.

Heater hoses.. black only. Avoid the red hoses.. they look like crap. Install so all the print text on the hoses are readable when standing at the right front fender.

Radiator hoses... black only. More points if you can get them stamped with "FoMoCo".

Wiring... you'll likely encounter wires that have been spray painted. Try cleaning them with Go-Jo hand cleaner and a rag. In fact, Go-Jo will also clean rubber hoses. Try it.

More wiring.. try and unbundle the tangle of wires so the wires look purposely run and neat. No one like to look at a bundle of snakes doing the nasty.

Decals.. finish it off with the correct decals (Air cleaner decal(302/351/390/427/428/etc) on open emission system), Autolite specs on the side of factory air cleaner housing, coil, voltage regulator, EGR valve, emissions on the valve cover, and "Caution: Fan" on the shroud). Avoid sticking the product/manufacturer decals under the hood or the firewall. Leave that the the rice rocket crowd.

Paint daubs... Your call. I think Ford was still color coding stuff with paint marks into the late 70s.

Other stuff...visit the wrecking yard and look for:

Metal harness clips that install under the driver's side valve cover bolts. They are used to hold the wiring harness that goes to the dizzy. Paint engine color.

Plastic harness clips that hold the harness to the inner fenders, the drip channel on the firewall, the horn wire across the core support
On bumpsides, the retainer holding the heater hoses to the right inner fender

Engine tags .. nice lil detail. It goes under the coil bracket on the intake.

Spark plug wiring clips - the type that slips onto the bracket on the valve cover (if your covers have the bracket). An alternative is the kit produced by "Made For You" products to neaten the wires.

Carb return springs and its bracket that bolts on the intake manifold.

Wire loom wrap clamps from late 80s and 90s GM products (also called convoluted tubing. Ya know, the plastic tubes with a slit down the middle). Terminating the cut off end with the clamps is alot better than leaving it loose or wrapping it with electrical tape.

 

Well yours looks way better than mine did after I got it. The top of my engine is torn apart and I am doing things the hard way and will repaint the engine while in it's saddle. I have repeatedly scraped, de-greased and washed the 35 years of mud, grease and grime and since its pretty well stripped now, I think I can paint it. I bought an engine paint kit from POR. Its way expensive but I think will turn out good and last a long time. The kit includes a de-greaser, primer and top coat.

I personally don't care for black motors but if its clean that's still way better than rust. On the inner fenders, I used some full strength liquid de-greaser and some fine steel wool. After I did that I worried that I may have damaged the galvanized coating but so far its holding up okay and looks way better. I think the hard lines for the brakes and fuel lines are stainless because they cleaned up nice and shiny with the steel wool. Your water pump looks natural and the bolts are getting rusty so, I'd clean em up and paint them along with the power steering pump.

I think the engine bay looks better if you invest in some nice wire looms (wrap).

On the headers, I think the only way to stop the rust will to pull them off, get them blasted and then professionally coated. It will be expensive but, they will look good and last a long time afterwards.

Consider replacing the cowl lacing to keep the rain water from getting back into the engine. I need to replace mine too and I've see it in the LMC catalog.

I also changed out my distributor to an HEI type to get rid of the extra wiring and separate coil. I have not yet installed it so I hope it works okay.

Mothers metal polish and some soft wire brush can help detail the fasteners and they you can shoot it with some clear coat.

When I get mine finished, I'll post some pictures of course.

Good luck with what ever you decide.

 

I would paint the inner fenders and the core support first!
Then I would paint the rad. and the master cylinder and booster.
When that is painted it makes you focus on the engine more and it is easier to pick out what you really want to change on the engine.
I would take the front of the engine off, ie. Fan, Brackets, Timing cover, water pump, and I would paint them first.
Then, either paint or have it powder coat the intake.
Slap some new valve covers on it.
I bought some wire looms for my wires to go in and it really makes the engine bay look clean.

This is my opinion but I would get rid of the huge air cleaner and pick up a sweet lookin one like a Ribbed Edelbrock one or something, remember, just my opinion, its your truck.

 

Looks pretty decent as is......far better than mine....not sure why you're sweatin it.....

EDIT! nix the Fram oil filter, replace with a WIX or Motorcraft filter

 

x2, I would just paint the inner fenders

 

I honestly wasn't sure anyone was going to respond, let alone hit me with the massive amount of info posted here.

Hio, I'd give you rep for that book you wrote but it appears you're maxed out for now. You're blowing my mind with all that info.

Kikkup, you're maxed on rep too but good pointers. Cleaning up some bolts is fairly easy. Could even dremel polish some of the metal in there and seal it with zoop seal or whatever they're calling it these days. I don't know what you mean about the hei type but I'll investigate that. Post up a pic as you said you'd do. Also the cowl lacing? I'll have to research that too, the less water gets in there the less I've gotta clean it but I'm not even sure what that is. *edit* Guessing
<table class="partInfoTbl" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr class="partInfoTbltr"><td class="col2">41-1515</td><td class="col3">COWL LACING KIT 1 REQ from lmc?</td></tr></tbody></table>
Montana, I might just leave it the hell alone, feeling a little overwhelmed after reading hio's post. Just painting my motorcycle engine was a flipping two week project, I can only imagine what kind of masking nightmare it'd be to do it without the engine out.

Then again, I think I could safely start with Mudrat/460's advice and just paint the inner wells, it might well be enough inspiration to just start adding a few of these small tips as little weekend projects. I can't see going full bore without completely pulling the engine and that's not likely going to happen for many years assuming the prior owner wasn't lying and it was rebuilt about 10k miles ago.

Mudrat, I'm engine stupid. What's core support? Will probably have to google half the stuff Hio said too.

Hio, what paints for the core support and engine wells to start? master cylinder radiator and booster too? If I jump into this, that's where I'm starting. *edit. you said Use Eastwood Gold Cadmium System mc head, booster.

Thanks for the feedback, awesome.

 

The core support is the big metal support that the headlights, grill shell, and radiator bolts too.

I used engine enamel to paint mine.

 

a little incentive,,took an afternoon to do.. replaced intake at later date..

 

 

Are those blankets I see? lol

That's one way to 'cover up' something you don't want to paint.

 

I use aluminum foil... really good for wrapping wiring harnesses and getting a tight contour on funky shaped parts...... cheap, very effective in that it stays put, and .... recyclable.

 

I've used rags and stuff before, but always found that overspray can make it through them. I like to use giant plastic sheets and cut to size, no paint makes it through plastic.

 

Silver Trucker once you get every thing painted the next step is wire ties and hiding wires. I have a 79 with the plastic fender liners. I ran a bunch of wires under the inner fenders and over the plastic fender liners. I know you can get them at LMC. I'll try to get a photo of my engine compartment.

 

That is a lot of info there Hio. All useful as usual.