Before anything else, thank you all for your help in the past. I got the new harmonic balancer in (the Dorman one worked perfectly, and seems great), I almost have the fuel tank issue tracked down (dash switch, I'm almost certain, now), and I'm ordering a new timing set next week. So much to do!

Anyway, I have a few questions about the emissions system, or lack thereof.

Firstly. the EGR appears to be missing... What should I do about it?



Secondly, what is this thing? Can I get rid of this rat's nest of piping?



Thirdly, most pictures I've seen show pipes coming off of the exhaust manifolds for the exhaust system. Did the previous owner replace those with older manifolds instead of plugging the holes?



Lastly, what is this piping going into the top of the intake manifold? It's sitting just beneath and to the left of my carburetor. There is a diamond shaped flange with two metal pipes going into it.

 

What year is this truck (and engine)?

I see your EGR valve in the first photo.
It's just to the left of that orange tube or wire... (rusty kickdown linkage?)

Second; looks emissions related.
Where do the vacuum lines lead to?

Third; those are non-A.I.R. exhaust manifolds.

Forth; That is the choke stove.
It is a loop or coil of tubing that sits in the exhaust crossover.
It should be connected to your carburetor.

 

Picture 2 is a vacuum pump for an 85 ford

 

Charlie,
What's it's purpose on a gas engine?

 

Ah, sorry, I should have said that this is an 83 f250 with a 460.

The pipe in the first photo looks like it goes to some sort of Y, and there's a little vacuum on it when the engine is running, but it doesn't appear to be doing anything else. The kickdown linkage is just painted yellow *shrug*. Here's a closer picture... If this is the EGR, then cool, but it doesn't quite look like some pictures I've seen.



In the second picture, one of the vacuum lines runs from the back of the unit to a canister on the back of the carburetor, and another to a blocky thing on the right...






And everything pretty much ends up either here, or on another one of these trees coming out of a tap in the head.



It looks like a bowl of spaghetti in there.

 

No, that is the A.I.R. crossover checkvalve. the pipe goes to the thermactor port at the back of either head.
The EGR valve is the flat can looking thing with a vacuum line going to it JUST to the left of the kickdown in your first pic.
You can see it better in the second pic of your above post.

The 'blocky' black and brown thing is a vacuum delay valve (VDV)
It needs to be connected to the EGR valve ("canister")

The yellow 'tree' is a thermal valve and on my truck controls whether the distributor gets restricted or full manifold vacuum for the advance.

There should be a vacuum diagram on top of the radiator support and another one on the drivers side valve cover.
If you can't figure it out from there try and post a clear pic of the diagram.

 

Great, thanks. I hadn't been able to find the diagram, and I assumed that it had been painted over, since the trucks original color was red. I'll look some more!

 

Well, I can see it in your exhaust manifold picture.

 

I have never felt so dumb. Lol. I'm certain I never would have seen it in plain sight, there...

 

There is a glossary to help explain the color coded hoses and all the acronyms.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/7...-acronyms.html

I'm not sure if Chris has put it in the sticky's, but it should be.

 

on early 351 460's it was a diverter valve between the 2 AIR pumps.

Which brings us to the picture of the hose with the clamp, and no vacuum. That is a "reed" valve, it goes to your exhaust , or the air tube on the cat. it comes from the AIR pump. he's missing a few things.
I have some pictures, I'll have to load them later when I'm on the lap top, not the tablet

 

His valve cover says NON-CATALYST so I assume it is over 8,500#gvw and has no cats...

It must be blowing into the thermactor passages at the back of the head.

 

Yup. if you look at the fitting he posted in picture #2, it is on the tube that goes from head to head on the back of the motor.