Terminology: It's "rafts" not "boats". I had some kind of sea going vehicle in my mind!

-Matt

 

Quick update: Last weekend I drove the truck farther than up an onto a trailer. After a short trip around the block to check the brakes and steering I took it to my wife's cousin's daughter's (Spaceballs anyone?) birthday party. I forgot how much these trucks wander all over the road. It might be that I'm just used to rack and pinon, but wander it does. Another once over on the braking and steering is on the docket for the next month. I did a bit of work on the driver's side door, damaging the vent window spring bolt... Another story, I'll share some pictures later...

What I really wanted to talk about was the slide locks that I designed. I debating about shelving that project because I found these:

Door Latch Assembly | Dennis Carpenter Ford Restoration Parts

I didn't realize these could be found new anymore. I'm debating about just going with the stock sliders, especially since they are so cheap (and I need only need one).

I'm also doing some testing on my shoddy driver's door panel, while not salvageable, I'm doing some tests on what color I want to paint the panels.

That's it for now. Just wanted to share the source for slide locks in case anyone else is looking for a source.

Take care everyone.

-Matt

 

Matt - I'm with you on the sliders. I like the texture and the On/Off on the new ones, and that is hard to match with 3D printing. And, the new ones look like they come with the spring. So, let us know what you think when you buy one?

As for wandering, what I've found is that the steering sector box is a large part of the problem on most trucks. There's no adjustment, at least none that works, so replacement is the best way. I have been amazed how well the trucks drive with a new box. And, by the way, the Redhead boxes are by far the best.

 

Gary,
Thanks for the heads up on the steering box. I'll keep you posted on the sliders... Looks like they only have them for the passenger side, but beggars can't be choosers!

I'll probably still continue perfecting my 3D printed design... I really enjoy working in CAD, and I want a reason to possibly buy a 3D printer!

-Matt

 

What CAD program are you using? I'm using TurboCAD and can make it work but don't use 1/10 of its capabilities.

And, I want a 3D printer also. But it is hard to justify at the moment.

 

1980 Ford F100 F250 F350 Bronco Door Lock Slider Camel RH | eBay



1980 Ford Bronco F150 F250 F350 Door Latch Slider Red LH | eBay

 

I'm using AutoCad 2015.

-Matt

 

I'm sure that's better than my recent version of TurboCAD, but mine does FAR more than I ask it to do. Beyond 3D work, I'm now asking it the surface area of a cross-section of a 2/0 wire and associated terminal. That way I can determine what size the die need to be for my hydraulic crimper - which came with metric die.

 

Great looking truck there, I had an 81 Stepside (or Flareside) with overdrive and 300 6 cyl. back in the late 80s. I recently bought an 86 from Arizona with the same equipment except it has automatic trans. The previous owner disconnected the emissions stuff and replaced the carburetor with a new one. I'm sorting out some problems with the automatic choke (overchoking until warm) but overall the truck is in excellent shape with original light blue paint. I'll be following your progress. Good luck, Barry B.

 

Welcome to the forum, Barry B! Open this link and see if it helps with adjusting the choke. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...ent-101-a.html

 

Thanks for the info. I'll read the link info. My truck has a new replacement carb. installed by the previous owner and it looks like a Carter YF (probably Chinese copy), it has a vacuum unloader and it does move to open the butterfly a little, there is no heat tube visible so I assume the butterfly opens electrically. I loosened the 3 small screws but the black cap didn't want to budge. With slight finger pressure to open the butterfly it opens more and the engine runs good. After a few minutes the choke stays open on its own and the idle is smooth. In that first few minutes the choke bogs the engine down and it runs too rich. Any suggestions would be appreciated and thanks again Cheesecake. Barry B.

 

You should be able to bend the linkage between the unloader and the choke so the unloader opens the choke further. Unloaders are magic devices since they are essentially self-adjusting. If it opens the choke too far the vacuum drops so the unloader closes the choke some.

 

Barry,
I don't have the vacuum unloader on my carburetor. Mine is all manual and works off of the heat from the manifold and alternator. I tried to make a video last night to post on how I adjusted my choke, but had an issue with iTunes/crashing computers and general frustrations. I'll do my best to post it tonight. Here is the general process that I perform to set my choke. Remember to make sure the engine is cold when setting the choke. One thing to note, I used the instructions from GarysGarageMahal to ensure the choke butterfly plate and dechoke were set properly before performing this operation.

1. Set the throttle to the "choked" setting. (either flip the cam on the rear of the carburetor (as looking at it from the front) or set the idle to the high setting (depending on how your carburetor is set up). If you can post a picture we might have a better idea of what you are working with.

2. Mark the black cap and the carburetor with a white paint pen so you can keep track of the rotation of the cap. Rotate the black cap counter clockwise (if looking from the front) until the choke butterfly opens... Since you said your cap won't budge it might be a good idea to completely remove it, inspect and reinstall. You may need to sand the outer edge of the 'cap'. Sometimes they can be tight.

3. Once the butterfly opens, rotate the cap clockwise until the choke butterfly is just barely completely closed.

4. Tighten the ring around the choke cap.

I had pretty good luck with this process. Again, it sounds like my carburetor is different than yours. Lastly, I mentioned in an earlier post that I put the cap in the freezer and then set the choke; this did not work, our temperature around here is about 40-50 degrees so the choke was open too far to start the truck. Otherwise, when I set the choke this way, the engine starts right up.

I'll try my best to get my video uploaded tonight.

Good luck,

Matt

 

Here is a demonstration of how I adjusted my choke on the YFA:


-Matt

 

Thanks, Matt. Very helpful and by the way, it does not look messy under your truck's hood!