Just read the entire thread, you do great work! Can't wait to see this thing go on its maiden voyage.

 

Starting the mock-up of the new handle. I started with the stock handle and cut the grab bar off to make my own with a lower profile.



Took awhile to get the right measurements and angles. but I think I've got it figured out now. Here is the new handle ready to be welded.



This is how it will attach to the old handle assembly.




Now I have to build a box for the handle assembly to sit in. First I mocked it up out of paper.



Traced it onto 18ga sheet metal.



Then I bent the edges in on the brake.












Here's how it sits so far.

 

Before I sent the bed and tailgate to the blasters, I painted my fuel tank framework, and had the fuel tank powder coated.








Here is the fuel tank. I chose a satin finish that I think looks really sharp. This definitely didn't fit in my home powder coating oven, so I had to add one more thing to the outsourcing list Oh well, she's still home-grown.


Here are the fittings attached. The 3/8" and 1/2" barb in the front (left side of photo) are the fuel returns. 3/8 from the P7100, and 1/2 from the FASS system. The plate on the top is obviously my sending unit, and the elbow on the top is a roll-over vent valve. The welded on necks on the bottom of the photo are of course for my filler hoses.



The bed and tailgate are back from the blasters and primed. There will be more on the handle mod, but that was all I needed to do to the tailgate for now before I sent it off.






Here is the fuel tank installed. It fit in there like a glove, but when I went to do a final install for the sending unit, I stripped the 10-32 threads in the weld-in mounting flange. I'm not too happy with this flange in general, but this kinda sucks. I can't drill deep enough to helicoil it, and any drilling would put aluminum shavings into the tank. I can't reach in anywhere to clean it out, so I needed to find another solution.






And here's what I came up with. A company called Seabuilt makes these cleanout ports for marine diesel tanks. It's quite a brilliant design, I wish I had taken more pictures, but here's the link to their website where it shows a cool animation of how it works.
So, I cut out a big hole, drilled the holes for the bolts and installed the inner flange. This is a 6" cleanout port so that I can get my hand in to clean out all the shavings I just introduced, and for general maintenance.


And here's the plate that covers the hole. These are meant as simple cover plates, and the whole setup is designed to be installed in the lower side of the tank, so it's definitely designed to be leak-proof. I'm installing it in the top, so I don't even have to worry about that. Extra peace of mind. Instead of using it as a simple cover plate, I turned mine into the new mounting location for my sending unit. I simply installed the sending unit in the lid.


Again, I wish I had taken more pictures, but I'm sure you all can figure out how the rest goes together.

Now comes the chore of putting my shiny clean bed back on the truck. As you may remember, I had to put a 2" body lift on my truck to fit the drive train , so I was concerned about how the heck I was going to install the bed (using just me and one other guy), align the mounting holes, and keep the spacers in place without knocking them off. I know, I could have just put the bed on the frame and added the spacers later, but I came up with a pretty clever solution (I think).

Here's the spacer and the mounting hole.


Found some extra 3/8 fuel hose, just the right size to fit in the spacer hole and the mounting hole.


The fit is pretty snug, so these should stay put while the bed is being jockeyed into place. Once the bed is in, I can just use the carriage bolts to push the hose out the bottom.


Here's a shot from the underside. Bed and fuel tank installed!

 

great progress.....need a shot of this thing out int he driveway since it runs now!

 

Soon enough hopefully. Needs a bunch of fluids first. Trans, diffs, brakes, then she can roll under her own power.

 

this thing is looking awesome!

 

Just came across this build. Outstanding work.


Keep it up

 

Got caught up from 2015.

You're doing beautiful work.

If you're interested in going for a ride sometime let me know, my Electraglide is decent looking but I'd be too embarrassed to park my ugly crew cab on the same street as your truck. haha

Curious, do you still have the rear frame crossmember you removed? My crew didn't come with a rear tank so it has one X-member in the middle of where the tank should be and I tossed my saddle tank in favor of the tailshaft parking brake on my ZF5.

 

No, I had to cut it apart to get it out.
So your truck didn't come with a rear tank, and you ditched the side tank... how far can you get using just the fuel in your float bowls?

 

I am using an aftermarket poly tank strapped into the bed that holds around 16 gallons. I have the same large capacity tank that's in your Bronco waiting to go in, just don't want to spend a few hours in a junkyard with a cold chisel/hammer to get the X-member I need.

 

Anyone know where you can get a good set of the Supercab Drip Rail Trim? New or Used?

 

Made a heat shield out of a sheet of 304 stainless to keep the turbo from cooking the hood. I just took a rectangular sheet of 18ga, bent it to fit around the turbo, and riveted on some mounting legs. I think it turned out pretty sharp. It did result in a midnight trip to the ER though. When you're drilling holes in steel sheet with your drill press, make sure it's clamped down, or when the drill bit catches it, it turns into a high speed blade of fury. Oh, and wear gloves!
Only got a few stitches, and blood wipes right off of stainless.

 

How is it that the most difficult decision I've had to make on this entire project is which wheels to get? Anyway, I got it nailed down, and they finally arrived. Trophy Fuel wheels, 18x9. I chose these because they are beautiful modern-look wheels, but still with a timeless design. Most of the modern truck wheels I've seen nowadays are too elaborate and tacky. I don't think they'll stand the test of time, but I think these will. Plus they're Fuel wheels!


And here they are mounted to 35 12.50 r18 BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A KO2s.

 

Those are going to look really nice with the gray. Are you doing two tone or all dark gray?

 

Nice wheel choice looks like a winner. I went with Anthem Wheels for mine yes I realize buying wheels this early in the project is kinda stupid lol but at least I have them for when I finish the truck. I went with 17x9 for mine.