Hey Keith, Steve is absolutely right about gear ratios, but you have to remember one thing with 4x4's. The front and rear differential gear ratios have to match, but not exactly.. For instance, if it has a 4:11 rear, it will have a 4:10 front differential ratio. So, if you are going to change one, you must change to other.

Find out your ratios... Oh, and if the PO swapped to a 390 from a 240, then he had to move the engine mounts, which will be very obvious.

Baja

 

Hard to tell for sure by Keith's photo but, it looks to me that his truck is a 2WD. The center caps have a design on them that makes it look like it has 4WD but in fact may not be.

The center caps on the '92-'96 F150/Bronco wheels on my '69 F100 have a similar design in the center of the caps but my truck definitely isn't 4WD.

 

Dang Steve, you are right again... do you ever get tired of it? Just kidding amigo, but they sure fooled me, with that 4x4 look alike cap... Sure looks like a lock out hub...

Baja

 

Thank you to both Baja and Steve, yes Steve is right it's a 2wd, they do look like lockouts from a distance. I have a picture of the actual door plate, I will upload it. It's interesting given paint and body.

 

Upon looking closer at Steve's truck, I see what still looks like lock out hubs, but on both the front and rear, which my powers of observation failed me the first several go rounds..

Would sure have been easier though, if it was just in 4-L, and with a shift 4-H, your 60 mph top speed would have been solved...

Other than the normal leaks, what did you find?

Baja

 

According to your tag, your truck came with 3.70 gears (09 Axle code), which earlier, I had said there was a great probability that the truck either had 3.50s or 3.70s, due to the truck originally having a 240 in it.

My truck has 3.50 gears but, it came with a 240 coupled to a C-4 automatic transmission.

 

yes Baja, the mounts are in different positions. I need to take pictures of the engine so you all can see it. It's a very clean 390, a few seal leaks, nothing major. A couple of PO's ago, someone swapped out the differential for the current one, I actually have the "highway" differential, I'm actually curious to see if there's much difference with the big 390, this thing has dually exhausts and it does roar a bit, acceleration is wonderful! I'm wondering when I'm going to have to do the throw out bearing and clutch plate, has a bit of chatter when you take off, it's a cool truck, I enjoy the heck outta the rig. That long wheel base is fun, big bed, Inside floor boards don't look bad. The GAS TANK is giving me a headache. I saw pictures of the original connection for the gas feeder line, that would be the issue, where would you get something like that? I drove the other car, or I'd go snap pictures and put them up. The formed a little GEL volcano and put the feeder tube through the middle into the tank, fumes are KILLER! Headache city.
Thanks,
Keith

 

Ok, there are a number of online sources for older Ford trucks. LMC is one, but you have to be careful of what you order from them, as some most if not all, are re-pros, and not exactly what was original. DC, or Dennis Carpenter is a step up from LMC, but so is the price. Jefffafa, is the Bump King, and is a virtual fountain of information about parts and their whereabouts... ND, or Number Dummy is totally knowledgeable about each and every part you could ever look for, but he has been scarce on the site for a bit now... He has helped me more than I can count...

Baja

 

If it's still there, there's a cork gasket between the fuel sending unit and the top of the gas tank. The cork gasket under my truck's sending unit was pretty much disintegrated --likely thanks in part to ethanol laced fuel, since ethanol will eat up cork gaskets.

I took a 1/16" sheet of polypropylene and cut a new gasket from it, to place between the sending unit and the fuel tank.

 

I wish I could say Great"minds think alike Steve but unfortunately, I fall a little short on that count. I did however, discover a similar condition, so using what I had available, which was some rubberized cork, I made a replacement gasket, coated it with "Blue Goo", Permatex, and put it in.. and it has worked with no leaks or weeping for 5 years now.. fingers crossed at this typing... I replaced the tank to fill pipe hose while I was at it..

Baja

 

When you mention, "Blue Goo," is this in reference to RTV?




....or, is it in reference to Hylomar non-setting sealant?

Hylomar ? Non-Setting Compounds

I've used Hylomar non-setting sealer on sending units before, since it's fuel resistant. It wasn't the actual Hylomar brand name that I used but, it was a generic of if it. In any event, it was good stuff and years later it was still pliable.

 

That's the stuff....

Baja

 

You guys are good! (Baja and Steve) I took the truck down to Car ER on Eagle Ranch Road where I live, they have an older truck Guru named Henry, he drives a 57 Chevy pickup that he's restoring, it's in perfect shape and runs like a beast, he understands truck! He had a '66 Ford F100 that he used for YEARS and rebuilt multiple times. Henry took one look at my truck and said, "love those models, yep we'll get her fixed up right." So he's pulling the gas tank outta the truck and sending it to a radiator shop to have the plate for the gas line feed tube resoldered back in, then he's putting a proper brass nipple on the line and eliminating the SMELL factor, he's putting the pumpkin that I have for highway speeds into the differential and they are changing all the fluids since they are already into the truck. He's going to check and see if there is anything else "weird" on the truck that we need to fix. Give it the old once over. He and I are a couple of years apart in age, 70's grads if you know what I mean, so we both speak truck. I've had many cars in the past that I pulled engines, fixed clutches, brake jobs, honed cylinders, etc...but with the NEW stuff, I don't know anything about the computer junk. NO clue, The funny part is that the "new" techs have NO idea about the older cars and trucks. If it doesn't have a computer plug in, it's a foreign item.
I gotta find a paint shop that's relatively cheap to get the paint done on the truck and replace the chrome parts. I'm not crazy about the meadowlark yellow, I think I want Peacock Blue or Caribbean Blue and the Wimbledon white on the bottom and cab top. Maybe the royal blue? Needs to look creamy and classic. So on the tag it shows W for color? I didn't find that one the color chart, am I missing something?
Keith

 

Sounds like you found the right old timer, who knows trucks. Now, new trucks are way up on convenience for the dealership mechanics, having a built in plug for diagnosis, and over the top on what I call "Fluffy". In the stop n go city driving of today, the 'Fluffy' trucks are nice, comfortable, and they all but drive themselves. The multiple 'sensors', do most of the driving that those from former era's had to learn to do for themselves. Its a whole different driving experience today, and those of us who still drive old iron, its like having a Time Machine. I just still enjoy going for a "Sunday Drive", and not having some machine multi task for me.

Baja

 

Yep, your right! Here in Albuquerque it's go go gadget cars, drive like wild demons. Glad you get to have relaxing Sunday drives!
Looking forward to getting my truck back!
Keith