Okay guys I have a 94 f450 with a 7.3 idi motor in it ofc. I have only drove the truck a number of times. The first time it over heated. I put a new radiator cap on it and it isn't over heating. But, it is getting to the A in NORMAL on the water temp. Gauge. The radiator upper house is pretty tight after a few minutes of idling. Could this be thermostat? That's more than likely what I think it is but I want some more opinions.

 

If it's in the "A" in "NORMAL," then that would be considered "NORMAL." If you are freaked out about that, then buy a genuine motorcraft t-stat, test it in boiling water first, then install it. It's not that hard to do.

Do not use a non-motorcraft t-stat.

 

The only reason this bothers me is bc that's after I had drove it from work to my house. I live only 20 min away. It was at the A in about 15 into my drive and it has to be perfect for everyday use bc I'm going to be using it to pull my 8.5x16 enclosed trailer

 

The gauge isn't really accurate. If you really want to know how warm it is, you need to get a 'real' gauge that tells you the actual temp.

There are a number of things that may be wrong causing the engine to heat up. Or it could be perfectly normal...

 

Okay I got a thermostat today and installed it. Ran the truck for a good 3 hrs. 15 min in it got to the A. After 45 min it ran N to between O and R. PERFECT! But now my question is is that on my way home I had a stretch road where the speed is 55. It got pretty hot on the road like L to a little over L but never in the red. My question is is that do you think that the water pump isn't pumping efficiently or is the radiator plugged?

 

How do the radiator fins look? Are they nice and clean and straight? or blocked up with mud and bugs, and squished over in places? Could also be a blocked radiator. One suggestion has been to take one of the IR thermometers (the ones with laser pointer) and check over the whole radiator. The temp will vary, but should be hottest at top and gradually getting cooler the lower you go. Any fins that are hot at top, but with cold spots in the middle could be blockages where the coolant isn't circulating through.

 

Get a real gauge, they are cheap.
A properly working system should warm up to and then stay at 185-195F most of the time; it really shouldn't get over 200F unless you are towing a heavy trailer. Even then, it's most likely to get hot when hauling up a steep hill at a slower speed(45MPH or less) and basically flooring it.
In nice cruising, it shouldn't get hot.
Again, this is why you need a real gauge. The grounds and gauge bits never were very good, and are much worse these days. As the truck warms up, resistance in the wires changes the gauge positioning, even if the actual temp stays the same.
I've had my stock gauge vary by like three letters while the actual temp stayed within the 185-195F range(which should be around the N)

 

What genscripter, tecgod, and Macrobb said:
Get a real gauge. They are great cause they actually do what Ford should have done in the first place!

NORMAL means nothing, really. I've had my pickup overheat, blow steam all over and require 2 gallons of water to refill the system and the gauge never moved past the "M". That's scary, and lame.
You're worried about what the gauge is reporting...I'm worried about what it doesn't report!

Anyway glad to see a good motorcraft t-stat installed, that's good PM.