THAT's what's missing! Should make me feel 100% better about it.

No, the exploder isn't going anywhere. Runs like a top, even with 192k miles on it. Now why cant the truck be like that?

I'm getting ready to take off the gas cap, drive a new truck under it and call it done.

Yeah, maybe I'm over-reacting. But still, it takes plenty of those $0.05's and $0.10's to keep it going.

 

In 4 months after buying my 72 ford I replaced the tranny,rearend, exhuast, carburator,brakes, mucked around with faulty clips/adjusters, replaced master cylinder, all new fuel line, new fuel pump, changed pvc system... That thing made the veins in my temples pulsate pretty hard some times!! I've driven it for a year now without doing anything to it besides tightening stuff up that rattles loose when I'm doing 50+mph down back roads.

 

oh yeah how about this crap!

Buy a 1979 f150 4wd with a rebuilt 390 last september. Ask the guy if 4bbl and he said yes. Look at the truck and its old 2bbl. Buy the truck for $1200 and then get home and water comes out the exhaust. Talk to people and call a lawyer then take the truck back to get fixed. Its supposed to get new head gakets but gets a thermostat and one exhaust manifold gasket. I track down the builder and the engine shop. The guy who pieced it together lives pretty close to me. I call him and he tells me $200 in labor so i'm like sure. I buy the $65 headgasket set and get a $265 1406 carb and he puts the carb on while redoing the headgaskets. I end up paying the lawyer a $100 for nothing really. He wrote the dude a couple of letters and called him. Then when done i bring it home and it pings, stumbles, and backfires. I buy up an exhaust valve and take it back to the guy to work on. Another $180 in labor plus the $65 headgasket set. The engine shop gives me a break and install a new valve and all new seats on the head. I think they checked it over as well. I get it back and try octane boosters and lower timing and try manifold and ported vaccum with no results. I end up driving like this for about 2 months and then got my crane adjustable cannister for the dizzy. I put it on and adjust it and try it for awhile and it still pings no matter how adjusted. At this time i have 55 to 60 degrees toal timing. Then i break down and get a reman dizzy $60. Put it in and set it to 10 btdc and its good. 40 degrees total now. I had an alternator at the same time because my new cb radio killed the old one and drained the battery. oh and i had dealt with air in tyhe fuel line and have bought 3 fuel pumps and brand new line from tank to carb. I ended up checking the eccentric on the cam. Tore the the front and while on the cover someone was helping me and pryed on it and broke a ear off and then realised the oil pan bolts were in. I jb weld that 3 times and put it back on. Redid the cover last week and got another front cover when the jb weld had broke again. I put permatex on all bolts on jackets and put it pack together and torqued them bad boys down to 15 ftlbs. The next day coolant some out one of them and i let the truck run and dry it up yet fearing iwas going to have to do the bolt again with actual thread sealer but it worked out great. A month ago my tansfer case took a serious crap and the chain was skipping in 2wd. I get estimates and end up buying a np205 and finding a adaptor to get it doen. Not to mention 2 used driveshaft and 2 new ujoints so it would fit. The np 205 didn't leak sitting around but in the truck the rear seal and front are bad in the transfer case. IT requires 1 to 1.5 quarts of gear lube about every week. But my 4wd works now and theres no damn chain skipping. This last week my truck started running crapping down low and quarter mile went down 3 to 5 mph. I buy a rebuild kit for $43 bought it doesn't have a accelarot pump and that was separate and another trip to dubuque. I had bought a holley street avenger 670 it was a manger special. Someone had bought used it a hour on his 350 and ran to rich. i bought it in case the edelbrock was toast. I end up trying the avenger but it runs bad. boggs bad and had stalled 3 times. I finally put the rebuilt edelbrock back on it and no luck it was the same. I try manifold vaccum to pick up the bottom end but that doesn't work and go back to ported. I timed the engine again and had to adjust the dizzy like back in the day. I set it to 12 instead of 10 btdc. I think something skipped a tooth but who knows. I had inspected the timing chain when i did the cover and it was all right. it runs better but not quite like it did before. I try the holley and get it all dialed in and its slower than the edelbrock and i can't install the kickdown rod because a stud on the manifold is in the way. The linake was bought separte as was the edelbrock back in the day.
Now i can start on how my brakes are junk. I need new calipers, pads, rotors, drums, and shoes. Everything is junk and rotor are grabbing now real bad. I have bought 4 new reman master cylinder and my brakes never worked right. I think i have needed a proportioning valve the whole time and got a price from ford of $148 and i said forget it summer is about here and front brakes are good enough. Nope they are shot! Looks like couple worth of hardware needed.
Nothing ****ed me off more than the three different times the transmissions lines came apart (rubber and steel) and i ran out of fluid. Had to walk a little to far in the cold. I bought new line and put it on and it laeked no matter how tight everything was so i bought some super wide clamps the next day and drove my truck home. I haven't had a problem with that since.
list of parts added since i have bought it
solenoid, ingition box, dizzy, alternotor, power steering pump, wires, cap, 2 rotors, 6 plug sets, edel carb, 4 mc, brake line, 3 fuel pumps, new line, tranny line, transfer case and adapter, 2 new belts, crane vaccum advance, 2 ujoints, 2 drivesahfts, not to mention the prvious gasket sets and work done.
So now the truck run ok but needs new brakes and front shocks. And with the gas prices, the brakes, and the way i use of gas the truck will be sitting.
Oh yeah i forgot the 2 times my hood flew open at 55 mph and broke all the supports and i had to get my old one of my 78 f150. I got it painted not to long ago. I did not cover everything but noone would have enough time to read this or to hear about all the crap i have had on my 1979 since last september. Bought the truck for $1200 and have about $2300 in parts and some labor since buying it.

 

I can't even read thru all of Foredeverpower's story. I bet mine's even longer and more expensive. I currently have 3 old trucks, none of them can actually transport my backside at this time.

It's just the way it goes with a 30+ year old truck.

I'm actualy looking at spending more money now......It's a sickness.

 

Yeah its something to read, i need to break it up more. You do have more money invested but you have more money than me as well. I would be kinda ticked if i had invested how much you have and used quality parts for that to happen. More power = less reliability.

 

Well, I hate to say it, but it looks to be my own fault. I was running the wrong cup size on my pushrods. Sure, I was going on what somebody told me, but I should have questioned things when my measurements looked off...

That's part of trying something new. I usually jump in with both feet....that's the price I pay. Of course, sometimes, it pays off.



BTW, never assume that just because somebody spends more, that he has more :-) I am by no means wealthy.

 

Yeah, I read the whole story. Mine's probably 30x longer than what I posted before. I just didn't want to sit down and type it all out. I'd probably go over the message posting limit and have to break it up into multiple posts.

Oh well, soldier on. Carburetor rebuild today while it's nice out.

 

I dont mean to brag but i drive mine over 50 miles a day everday for 5 years .Only had to replace the water and fuel pump. Its not a hot rod but it will turn and head or a tire when need. Its still cheaper than insurance and payment on a newer truck.Told my wife last night maybe I will get a new truck soon. maybe somthing from the 80's

 

..and what would you accomplish with all the spare time you would gain from not working in the garage (where it's peacefull.....)

--Mike

 

now i wouldnt call it to peaceful in the garage it can get pretty shakey in there sometimes, but a cold one seems to overcome that, i dont know what i would do without my old trucks, id be pretty bored just looking at a new truck in the driveway knowing theres nothing to fix or do to it.
.

 

Yeah and $500 a month payments Pus insurance...Ya couldnt afford the Beer!-Russ

One of my Uncles just bought a Late Model Chebby Short bed 350/auto

I had to take the Old 70 F250 out and spank him good in front of all the family!

 

So Much for the Chebby Vortec!!! LMAO!! -Russ

 

Ok I got it fixed. One carburetor rebuild later, and it runs better. I leaned it out, by putting smaller jets in and running the idle mixture leaner. It runs better now than it ever did. Still though, the accelerator pump seems like it's not working. Stomp it and it dies. Something's -beep-'d up in the accelerator pump. I ordered this new float bowl from Jegs, and it just has the 2 holes next to the hole for the check ball. Does anyone know how this is supposed to work? I just bent a flat piece of metal / wire through the holes and over the check ball and soldered in the metal. It seems to work ok, but I'd like to put it together correctly.

I'm looking at a 4-barrel holley fuel injection system. O2 sensor, programmable speed density, the whole bit. $1350 from Jegs. No more rebuilding carburetors just to have 'em leave me stranded again!

 

Kurt....are you running a holley on it??

 

Yep. Running a holley 600cfm vacuum secondary, with the optional secondary metering block installed so I can change secondary jets.