Good story, i wish you were closer, would like to have that 400.

 

Working on this project outdoors and away from home is making for slooow progress, but I keep whittling away at it.

I now have the rear and front axle installed along with the disc brakes all around, 14" rotors up front. Unfortunately the cashed out 15" wheels I have won't fit over the new front rotors. So I'm on the lookout for used 18 or 20" wheels so I can have a rolling chassis again.




Will be time to buy a powerplant soon, and I'm still leaning Coyote with 10R80.

The choice of what color to paint it has been haunting me for months, but I think I've landed on keeping it original and having a classic paint expert revitalize and protect the existing paint. So the exterior will be all original, with everything below the body being like new, with a mostly new interior for comfort.

I'm having a hard time visualizing black wheels with that paint scheme and I think chrome is the way to go, but I'd love to hear some opinions on that!

 

wow nice job on the brake upgrade.

The first 4wd brake upgrade I can remember seeing on this website actually.

Will you compliment the 14" rotors and (guessing) 4 piston calipers with hydroboost?

Thanks for posting and keeping the progress alive.

 

What's the plan for a Coyote implant? Buy a wrecked late model F-150 4X4?

 

Clever: Thanks and yes that's the plan. That will be a ways down the road at this pace! Since this thing is going to be a lot faster, I figure it better have more braking ability. 18" wheels would fit, but the 18" options for the classic bolt pattern are slim. I don't particularly love 20" wheels on classic trucks, but the number of options goes up exponentially. Unfortunately Mickey Thompson doesn't make Classic III's in anything larger than a 17" because I've always loved the look of that wheel on a dentside.

Flowney: Still trying to decide how I'm going to acquire that.

I've read that you should make sure the vehicle hasn't been in a front end collision, yadda yadda, but everyone else knows that too and so the price of a gently wrecked truck is pretty high. There are hundreds of already removed powerplants for sale online, but then you're trusting a complete stranger that they're accurately representing what they're selling. There's absolutely no way to know 100% what vehicle it came out of, or how many miles were on it, or what type of collision it was in. They could be reusing the same VINs over and over again to sell their latest offering.

So I've been leaning toward buying new to avoid any unknowable issues a wrecked unit may have and also to get a warranty. But then I realize it's going to be 1-2 years before the project is finished and by then the warranty will be worthless.

I'm super curious what everyone's experience has been with buying used Coyotes and 10R80's out there. Is it the game of Russian Roulette I'm fearing, or are the odds way better than that? Any tips and tricks out there that have yielded great results for anyone?

 

Look at Copart salvage auctions. You might have to go through a broker, but you can pick up a F150 that's been totaled out by insurance due to something like vandalism, or a rear end/T bone that didn't effect the engine. You get the whole car so you have all the stupid little parts that add up, and you can sell the carcass, or part it out, when you're done to recoup some cash. You can get a whole truck for less than some of the take out packages sold online. If you're local to the auction site, they used to let you go in and look at the vehicles that were coming up for the next auction, but I haven't been to one since before Covid, so IDK if that's changed..

 

This truck had none of it's original suspension components when I got it, and I'm just now learning how important a trac bar is. Or track bar, or z bar, or any number of names I've found online for the exact same part. Basically the bar that mounts on the frame between the coil tower and the power steering box, and goes down diagonally to a stud on the passenger side of the Dana 44.
I've had no trouble finding an adjustable trac bar, the stud, bushings, etc. But I cannot find the bracket where it mounts to the frame. Looks like Part #3A093 on this diagram, but I'm not having any luck finding a stock height replacement part online. I can find all kinds of them for a 4" or 6" drop, but nothing for stock height. The 2.5" suspension lift I purchased came with a relocation bracket that fits inside the stock bracket, which is what set me off an this mythic quest.

Any suggestions?

I don't really want to fabricate my own, but hey, whatever it takes at this point. Thanks!!

 

Ugh... good luck with that, unless there is a jy around you, and even then I think it would be hard to find.. btw, great story with your truck, sorry for your loss, glad there is a gain and the memory to carry on!
If needed, I can measure and take pics of my 77 F150 SB 4x4 bracket.

 

Why not measure the drop bracket that came with your kit and buy a reproduction bracket with the same or similar drop?

fwiw a 2.5” lift likely comes with 2.5” drop bracket. You could buy a 2” bracket and be close enough with an adjustable track bar.

 

Buy a length of square tube/C-channel the right size to fit the end of the tracbar and make your own.

 

Subscribed. Keep up the progress.

 

All the reproduction brackets I can find actually bolt inside the factory bracket and use it for strength/rigidity. They're not designed to bolt directly to the frame and use by themselves. I'm going to have a buddy help me make one with a piece of 3/16 tubular, a plasma cutter, and a drill press. I don't know how long stock is, but I'll make it long enough so the bottom hole puts the trac-bar parallel with the drag link

 

Wow its been a long time since I updated this. So the Coyote and 10R80 are in with FFG custom headers. I lost about 6 months waiting for FFG to fabricate a cross member for an Atlas adapter and the stock NP205. Very pleased with the finished product though. The cab and bed are on. The bed has been Line-X'd. New Boyd fuel tank. The dash has been gutted and is ready for gauges and a new AC. It graduated to the garage so things are moving along quickly now and plumbing is next!

At what point does it make sense to go with hydro boost over a vacuum brake setup? I plan to run 33" tires and the stock Coyote should motivate it nicely. I want great brakes and I know hydro boost supplies more pressure so it's better, but the idea of additional fluid lines under the hood and the possibility of not having brakes due to something power steering related just sounds odd to me. What are your thoughts? Is vacuum going to be enough or should I just go with hydro boost and get over it?

Some long overdue progress pics. The wheels are just project wheels and not part of the final build.