Awesome thanks alot.

 

Not sure how this happened but I was WAY behind on reading this thread. You’re doing a great job!

Well this explains why the rear main is actually the leak. Seems like they only leak after people “fix” them. Looks like you’ve got it sealed up and fixed well now!

I know SSJ hates them, but I’ve got gaskets on both manifolds. It would be much easier to do them now compared to in the truck. If they show any hint of leaking I would do something with them. Maybe have a machine shop face the manifolds? I still like the gaskets though. I did a warm retorque on the second side.

 

Yeah i'm in the boat of do it while its out, and there really is no hurry to get the truck back up and running, however the wallet is screaming for mercy. We'll see where I land after ordering all the new PS stuff and box.

 

Alright, got the bracket ordered from Snuggletough, got the pump, pulley, and all new hoses on rock auto order. All thats left is to order the box. Funny thing is, while I was down there, I could rotate the shaft going into the box about 1/4 turn (steering wheel moved with it, zero slop) and got ZERO movement out the pitman arm. Ive cranked the adjustment screw in probably more than you should, with little to no change. I cannot wait to have all of this on the truck. Nice thing about the pump conversion, is I can just move it from truck to truck eventually when I find my unicorn 7.3 frame and body . For those of you that dont know or remember, when I did my 2000 7.3, I went through 3-4 reman pumps back to back to back to back. After finally getting a non leaker and non squealer, I vowed to NEVER put a reman or even factory pump back on my 7.3, and today I'm sticking to that.

edit just ordered the blue top, in broke status now. Damn PMS

 

The Blue Top is a good choice. Quite a few are more than happy with the gear.

This is a great thread and we appreciate you bringing us along during your rebuild journey.

 

Well didn't get to do anything today except open my (what I hope to be the last for awhile anyhow) RiffRaff box. Clay hooked it up again, top notch customer service over there. I still, to this day, after all these years, get excited when I open these boxes. Call me lame, whatever. Tomorrow night, hopefully time allows, ill get the new oil gallery plugs in and new o-rings on the banjo bolts. Then get the hpop, and reservoir re-mounted, get my fittings in the heads for the regulated return, and then I think shell be about ready to go back in after I swap the steering box and all of the power steering/ hydroboost hoses.

Currently researching on the KC Turbos balanced assembly (these guys werent even around when I built my 2000, seem like a solid company!) and not sure if this is the route I want to go, versus just slapping a new billet wheel in there. The turbo doesnt need rebuilt, and has no noticeable issues, minus some surging, which a billet wheel would help with. I'd really like to just order up a stage 1 or stage 2, or gassssp get a t4 kit rolling (hah not on this rustbucket!) but know that injectors are probably a ways out yet, still needing gauges, and a hydra before those. (note if you ever sell your truck, keep your gauges especially if you ever suspect youll be in another 7.3). Speaking of injectors, I opted to not mess with mine, someone has clearly been in there in the past, as I have 5 yellow solenoid AD's and 3 brown solenoids. I have no smoke, or suspect any o-rings leaking, and its probably best to not go fixing what doesnt need fixing.

 

The kc stage 1 works fine with stock injectors. And then later on down the road if you want to bump them up a little bit it works great with some 160/30s.

 

Yeah, thats the issue, im not sure how "crazy" I want to get. Probably just best left alone for now

Wifes gonna kill me if anymore boxes show up after this week!

 

Sounds like a good reason to get one overnighted. 😂

 

Unfortunately, a full on turbo, was not apart of the plan....for now. I have alot of other things to get sorted out on this pig before we go making loud noises and breaking things. Gotta get the front end squared away, then onto the bed. After alllll of that, then maybe we can make some powers.

 

Well getting things on the motor back together and made an ouchie. Did the oil gallery plugs and banjo bolt o rings this morning.

Was mounting hpop, got the 2 10mm bolts started and the gear bolt with washer torqued down, tightened up the drivers side 10mm, 18ftlbs click, click. Passenger side bolt, click….turn suddenly loose. Crap. Stupid aluminum. Luckily local parts store had these in stock.

Hopefully this works! At least the motors out!

 

Ouch. That sucks. There is a aftermarket company that makes a repair kit just for those holes. Want to say it was either riff raff or diesel site.

 

The old helicoil worked just fine. Had to do this once before on a 97, pretty sure my stepdad was trying to put them suckers in with a 1/2" breaker. If anyone has this problem in the future, if you dont have a right angle drill, youll have to pull the plenum off for the pass side, or get a very small drill.

 

Well like the old timers always say, if it were easy, everyone would do it. Everything on this truck has been a fight, but I wont let it win. The light is at the end of the tunnel. Got most of the engine back together, just going to have to modify the fuel bowl drain line a bit to make it work with the drop bracket bringing it further out from the factory position, wont take much. Need to find an o-ring for the water pump elbow. Probably see if the dealer has one in stock, the old one doesn't look bad, but I just know it will leak.

All of my power steering hoses, pump and pulley came earlier this week, Blue Top box came today, just waiting on the powersteering pump bracket to show up, should be here early next week. Decided to tear into replacing the lines, and getting the boxes swapped. Man I don't know if ill EVER get the 2 lines that run to and from the cooler back how they were. Not sure if the Edelmann hoses I got from rock auto are just a little bit different, but looks like its going to be a fight. Not going to mess with those until the motor is in and the pump is mounted.

Started tearing the old box out tonight. Should be a super easy job considering.......well......there is no motor in the way, I can literally stand right over top of it. Boy was it anything BUT easy. The old hoses were in so good, I had to use a block and a 3' bar to pry up to get them free, took forever, debated just cutting them, and doing it when the box was out, but decided to fight it. Got em out, phew that's over, now the easy part. Put my puller on to pop the drag link from the pitman arm (mind you this thing is older than me and has been passed around more than....well you know), snugged it up, gave it a turn.....stripppppped. Awesome. Off to autozone we go to rent one real quick. Got back with the rental popped that off, I AM ON THE HOME STRETCH! Bust out the breaker bar to break the bolts that hold the box on, first bolt........snapppppppppppppppp. Mother of all things holy. Other 2 thank goodness came out perfectly fine, super rusted and seized but they came out. Man I was in the for the fight of the century. Spent an hour or so prying, spraying, wiggling, heating, spraying and prying some more. FINALLY got it worked out just far enough I could get a saw blade in from the bottom (was the lowest bolt that broke). Popped that sucker with a sawzall and never looked back. Slammed it on the bench, cleaned it up a little and will take it to a local shop to pull the pitman arm off and put it on the blue top, as I don't have enough air to run the gun required to break that sucker. Glad this is over. Please let all the hoses I ordered work. Time to go figure out what size those bolts are to mount the new box.




Least it wasnt hard to get everything out once I got it cut!

Was rusted solid inside the frame.

 

Props for the organized tools on the bench.

Neither myself with hammers nor guys with torches at the parts shop could get the pitman off my OEM steering box. Frikken melted it. Redhead took it as core anyway.