Hello, new here.

I am attempting to fix my dad's ford 77 camper special that has not been touched for about 6 years. At the time it had a transmission leak and the truck has about 120k miles on it. Overall it is in pretty good condition, though some of the bottom has some light rust on it, so far I have replaced the spark plugs, battery, and spark plug cables.

My questions thus far is the tanks sound empty, any chance they still have gas, and how should I get it out? What are my primary steps I need to check on bringing a once-running truck back to life again? Lastly, since it will likely come to the transmission again, are leaks on this pretty common?

Thanks, and I'll answer any questions the best I can, thank you.

 

Truck setting around starting advice.... "Where has it been sitting for 6 years with oil in a pan? If inside, I’d leave that oil in. Oil don't "just go stale", it should last as long sitting in an oil pan of a closed up engine as it does in a can.

I would at least disable the ignition and pull the plugs, and spin her over some with the starter avoiding long spells, just like 5 secs at a time. Do not just pull plugs and leave wires hanging, either ground the spark plug end or the wires or better yet, unplug the ignition module itself. No plugs will let her spin faster and watch the mechanical oil gage.

I’d simply start with a full radiator with the proper thermostat in place for a 351M/400 if that's what it is and cap off and keep an eye on it as she warms. No different than when you change coolant every other year or three ... or 5 as the case may be.

Reasonably fresh fuel in the tank, watch the carb top for signs of a stuck float though if setting a long time. By the time you spin the motor over without plugs priming the oil pump the carb float bowl will be full .... but there won't be any intake vacuum with plugs out. Just watch the top of the carb vent tube. If gas comes out, gonna have to "unstick" a float or inlet needle.

C-6 and it's new and dry, I'm putting at least 8 qts in to start ... before I even prime my engine's oil system with the no plugs routine above ... unless it causes it to come out the dip stick tube which I doubt (total capacity for my C-6 in a '77 F-150 4X4 with 351m/400 is 27 pints or 13.5 quarts). That'll help raise levels in the trans and make sure nothing runs drier than necessary.

Then after the priming session, check engine oil level, look for oil filter gasket leak, check and add some trans fluid so it shows on the stick again.

Then reinstall plugs, hook up wires and ignition module and if gas ain't sprayed out the carb vents yet ....start her up with a fast idle and as she run and warms up, while watching temp and radiator level and oil pressure and belts and carb vents and watching for leaks and checking oil filter gasket .... I’d be checking and adding more trans fluid as needed running her through the gears after 10 quarts.
As you try to make is a daily driver watch for a lot of seals to start leaking and after a little bit of driving ck the valve cover and oil pan hardware torque. Do not over torque the valve covers and bend the lip."

 

Sounds like the priorities are 1) get her running 2) sort out transmission leaks 3) the rest.

After 6 years of sitting, any fuel left in the tanks is probably pretty nasty. After nearly 40 years, the tanks themselves are probably pretty nasty.

If the fuel in the tanks is still liquid, you can siphon it out from the fuel pickup. Remove the rubber line attaching to the tank pickup. Get 4' or so of rubber fuel line and attach it to the tank pickup. Use a siphon bulb or vacuum pump to get it going and siphon the liquid out and into a can.

While the OE rubber line is disconnected from the pickup, remove the pump end also and blow out with compressed air.

Replace all rubber lines (tank to hardline, mid ship joint, hard line to fuel pump ect.) and add an inline fuel filter before the carb. Change the carb filter, add fuel to the tank (rear tank recommended) and fire her up. If the tank and filter sock on the pickup is not too nasty, she should run.

If the filters get plugged in short order due to crud in the tank, time for a new tank. I put in a standard 19 gallon on mine and now wish I had put in a 38 gallon version. My Aux tank was in really bad shape inside and I removed it and bypassed the selector valve.

 

Why not just drop the tanks and get 'em cleaned out? At the same time check/replace the socks so it's not an issue down the road.

If this is not your daily driver (DD), spend a bit more time now, rather than going back spending more time and money later.

 

Hey guys thanks for all the tips, so I am in the process of dropping the tanks (how necessary is this? as you will see in a moment) but I have a hit a problem, I am taking off the protective metal box outside the tanks, I broke all the bolts easy enough, but then realized there is a nut on the backside.

Specifically the midship tank protector, the right side bolt is nearly inaccessable as the drive train runs alongside of it. I MIGHT be able to get to it by dropping the muffler shroud, but it will be close. I haven't even touched the others. Is this pretty typical to be really hard to get to?

Once I take these protectors off, what am I facing under there as far as getting the tank off, and once off, any recommendations on how to clean?

Thanks tons guys, I'll try to upload a picture soon here to show you the progress.

 

On the guards, it sounds like you have skid plates. I didn't have to deal with that.

To clean, sometimes a radiator shop can do it by "boiling the tank out".

A very basic clean at home would be strong solvent like acetone and a length of heavy chain. Put the acetone in, put the chain in and shake it around so the chain removes the crud. Dump it out (and dispose of it), let it dry and clean with detergent like simple green and lots of water. Let dry thoroughly or if in a hurry, add denatured alcohol and shake around to absorb the water. Dump again and it should be OK (for a while).

To preserve the tank inside a sealing "system" is needed. I have used Eastwood 3 step (acetone, detergent, acid, sealer) with good results. Sealer without complete prep often peels off making a bigger mess inside.

New tanks are often readily available and moderate cost. If that's the case with yours, it may be easier and cheaper to replace the tank vs complete restoration.

If the goal is to get her running reliably for now, acetone and a chain should work.

 

Have you considered removing the whole bed??? 8 bolts and unplug the rear lights, grab a buddy and lift it off. I realize rusty bolts might be a problem but the fuel lines and wires are all on the top of the tank. Doesnt take much to remove the lock ring and pull out the sending unit then you can see inside the tank. Just a idea. I did this same procedure on an 86 Ranger.

 

Big weight difference in a 77 Camper Special bed and a 86 Ranger.....

The CS bed is a long bed and weighs maybe 450? Better be 2 big guys that can handle there own.

If you do the remove the bed route, have someone stand on the bolt head, when you use the impact to loosen the nuts. You can strip out the beds square bolt lock part very easily.

 

I turned on the power and the aux tanks shows about half full and the main is empty. As I stated, the 'main' (can I assume thats the bigger one in the mid?) is guarded by a skid plate, very hard to get off.

The rear tank (aux?) is guarded by a spare tire, it looks easy enough to perhaps get to, but am I going to be able to undo the wires or whatever from the bottom? (There is a camper on it, so I can't access the bed, and at 400 lbs it wont matter anyway)

Thanks for you help guys.

 

Starting a '77 Camper Special for a customer just this week. Subscribing.

I, too, need to know which is main and which is aux tank. Somebody's been there ahead of me and it's got me puzzled.

 

On my 1977 F250 the main is the rear tank and the drivers side tank is the AUX...

 

Deep in here are some diagrams of the fuel tank position ID info, rear tank gauge troubleshooting and a rear tank drop walk thru.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...then-some.html

 

Excellent point. Just thought it would be easier than trying to drop tanks.

 

Which '77 Camper Special is this? It could be an F150, F250 or F350. If an F150/250, it could be 2WD or 4WD

 

Its a f250, 4wd.

Ok, the next thing on the list is installing a fuel filter, as it doesnt seem to have one, how complex is putting an infilter?

Also, I dropped the tank...and it was empty. The gauge was showing 1/4 full, what could be up with this? I took the wires off, and empty, I put it on, and the gauge went up to 1/4, I took wires off and it stayed there. Something clearly wrong, but Idk what.

So, inline fuel filter installation ease, and mystery gauge problem?

Thanks!