Speed

I got a shifter from a friend,but still need the pivot bolt. I have a ball valve handle that almost fits the transfer case,I think with a little careful filing I can make it fit. Then all I need to do is cut it down to the right length,drill a hole for the shift rod end to go into and engineer an adjuster of some sort for the rod,in case the length isn't exactly right. (I suspect this shifter is off a full size Ford truck,so I don't know if it mounts in the same place on the transmission.) I ALSO need to find out what size the threads are for the pivot bolt,I think I'll have to make one to get the right shape. I'll STILL need a set of locking hubs. I was told the ABS and Cruise Control are somehow linked to each other on the Explorer (Through the ECM??) so,if the ABS fails to work,it's likely the Cruise won't work either. Sounds weird to me,but I've seen weirder things designed into vehicles. I'm hoping to avoid the wrecking yards,since the closest one to me is a 100 mile round trip. Speed

I'm adding that 10 psi residual valve to my shopping list. Looking back,with all the gearing this truck already has,I guess it doesn't matter how low first gear is,so that makes the transmission search a lot easier. I'd STILL like to find the transmission mounted E-brake though,but NOT to use on the main box. I just want to use the lever and ratchet assembly,and I'll build a rod long enough to reach from the stock E-brake lever to the brake on the back of the Brownie,to replace the cable operated "on or off" lever in the cab. I'm starting to think,AGAIN,about working this truck;Scrap metal is so low here it doesn't even pay enough to buy the gas it takes to haul a car to the scrap yard in Osino,so I'm looking into maybe hauling 3 or 4 cars at a time up to Idaho Falls,to the salvage plant there-IF the price is high enough to be worth the trip. If I'm getting good info,as long as I'm not hauling FOR someone,I'm just transporting my OWN metal,for MYSELF,so the DOT shouldn't bother me,as long as I don't go over the 26,000 weight limit or overload my truck's safe load limit. (According to my figures I'd have a very generous 18,000 before I'm anywhere close to 26,000.) I know I'd probably eventually end up having to scale it for those reasons,and I expect they'd be doing safety inspections,just because of the age of the truck. I think I can go North to Mountain Home,cross I-84 and there's a side road up to Idaho Falls that doesn't have a scale house,but I need to ride the bike up there and verify my information. Speed

Well,changing the controls didn't make any difference on the Cruise Control,so the next move is going to the Shop and using the "Smoke Machine" to try to track down vacuum leaks. Not really sure what else it could be,and the repair manuals studiously avoid mentioning the diagnostics or repair of ANY of the accessories. This is the FIRST truck with Cruise I've ever owned that DIDN'T work. Speed

I think I'll be looking at a trip to Pick-N-Pull for seats next time they have a Half Price Day. Speed

Hey,I'm trying to get all my ducks in a row to convert my '93 Exploder to a manual-shifted Transfer Case and still need a few parts. I need the shifter,complete with the pivot bolt and the tab to attach the shifting rod to the shifting fork in the T/C,and a set of locking hubs,with the related wheel bearing nuts,jam-nuts and springs,etc. Stock ones are fine,I'm not that rough on drivetrain. If anyone has spares they won't need,let me know what you want for them and I'll give it a go. BTW-I'm told the shifter from a B-II or Ranger with a manual T/C is a bolt-in,but since I don't have one of THOSE to spare EITHER,I guess I won't know,unless YOU can clue me in. While I have it apart for this,I'll be replacing the ENTIRE clutch,including hydraulics,since I already have everything for it. Not sure if I can get this done before next Spring,as I also have a Toyota truck I need to swap both axles and all the springs from my "rolling wreck" into,as well as installing a new clutch,which I can't do until I replace the engine and clutch on mt Chevy one ton truck,so I'll have something to haul/tow with. (I have a feeling this Toyota will become a much more extensive project than I wanted it to be. Anyway,any help,knowledge or advice is appreciated. Thanks!! Speed

Just out of curiosity,how much of a bag of snakes is it to swap a '93 Explorer 4.0 into an '84 Bronco II? Happens I have a '93 parts truck with all the electrics and a good 4.0 now....Only thing is that my '84 is a 5 speed,which I want to keep,but the 4.0 is an automatic. Speed

I decided my best move is to swap my '81 Yota axles over to the '82,swap the P/S set up over,and pull the engine,Transmission and T/C and whatever else could be used from the '81 and scrap the rest. I REALLY don't need ANOTHER truck,and this one (the '81) needs too much work to save. I'll get the '81 up on stands under the frame,pull the wheels off and borrow a set of those wheel dollies,pull the front and rear axles and springs complete and wheel them over under the other truck and jack them up into place. I bought new urethane bushings to use under the other truck,but will have to buy new bolts and lock nuts for the springs since they weren't included in the sets. I MIGHT invest in shocks for it while I'm at it. In the meantime,I installed the new bracket and 105@ 10si alternator on the '82,and have some 100W headlights for it that I won't install until the truck is functional. The '82's front fenders are pretty whanged up on the front edges,so I'm looking at cutting the bottom foot off the front of each one. I'll also swap as much of the brake system over as I can,since it's all new on the '81. I'll buy a set of stock mirrors for the '82,that'll only cost around $60.00. I'll ALSO want an electric fuel pump for it,I might have one in the garage somewhere. I MIGHT consider a better set of seats,since these are hammered and the frames are pretty flimsy. What's a good fit in the Yota pick up? Not a lot of room in those things. If I can find an A/C compressor and bracket for a 22R motor I'll set it up with on-board air. One more thing I'm considering is using the gas tank from the '81 as a second tank for the '82. I think I can mount it on the left side similar to the stock location,and just put the filler tube into the truck bed. I figure that'll give it about 600 miles range. I'd put a manual selector valve in the lines and wire both senders through a "left-off-right" toggle switch My friend Ben says he'd build me a set of bumpers,a grille guard and a hitch for it,with a suitable degree of overkill. I might put a winch on it,or just a spotter hitch,which I can then plug my 5K winch into at either end of the truck. Speed

Okay,got all four ball joints and the tie rod ends done,got it aligned (twice),and apparently the lower axle ends are slightly bent,so the alignment is maxed out even with the 2 degree bushings. Apparently the previous owner had bent them playing "Dukes Of Hazard" with the truck. The Ford dealer has a place in Kentucky that straightens them but with the shipping,tear-down and reassembly of the front end,ANOTHER alignment and the cost of the repair I'm figuring it'd be cheaper to just swap in the front end from the parts truck,replace the ball joints AGAIN and get ANOTHER alignment. A job for another life,I think. I drove it to SLC and back a couple of days ago to bring back a friend from his Cancer treatment. I averaged about 19.4 mpg,mostly due to a lot of speeding up and slowing down. The intermittent power window's been working fine for almost 2 weeks. (Hope I didn't jinx it.) Had a little go-round with the ABS-it was acting up and the shop replaced a module,which fixed it. Then,in SLC,a guy cut me off and I had to do a sudden stop. Unfortunately,it happened just as I got the right side wheels on a steel plate covering a hole in the road,and one front tire slid more than the other,and*triggered the ABS light again. Now it stays off sometimes,then goes on for no reason. Sometimes shutting the truck off for about 10 seconds will clear it,sometimes it'll clear for a block or two then light again,sometimes it just won't clear at all. I don't think I'll sweat it for now-the brakes still work fine. One thing I know I want fixed is he cruise control-I really need it if I want to improve my gas mileage. Speed

Okay-I got the exhaust tightened up,Got the wheel bearings packed/replaced,and the Exploder is substantially more fun to drive. Still a bit road-wild,due to the right lower ball joint being shot,but FAR better than before. Gassed it up and drove to Carlin and back,and it seems to be better gas mileage around town than on the highway-To Carlin,a wee bit of creeping around town there,and back got 18.2 mpg,but before that,a week of just town driving around Elko got me 20.4 mpg. The mileage COULD be about the same if I kept the highway speed closer to 65-70 instead of 75-80. (80 is about 3000 rpm.) The shop who did the exhaust and wheel bearings gave me a quote to replace the lower ball joints,but the owner said,"Huh-THIS is weird. For only another 3/10ths of an hour flat rate you can get ALL FOUR done." That'll make it around $360.00 plus my cost for parts. Not sure if he's set up to align it but that's not bad. As far as "farmed out" work,that'll be about all I need. The rest of it is just little stuff I can do myself. OH-that reminds me,I was given a '93 Exploder parts car. No title,but it's complete and is a runner. Has an auto. tx and full time 4X4. The guy says he thinks it has a posi rear end too. If that's true,I HOPE it's a 3.73 ratio. That'll also give me a couple of doors and the LF hinges,the inside liftgate cover,and a receiver hitch,and MAYBE even a set of hubcaps. I'm going out to check it out Sunday and do an "inventory" of what I can use. Speed

Found a shop that "specializes" in rusted exhaust bolts;their shop looks a mess but they have a good rep for doing good reliable work,so I'm getting an estimate to fix the exhaust leaks and do a wheel bearing pack,installing the locking hubs I'll be bringing in. (I have new Timken bearings and National grease seals to use-they're fine with using the parts I bring in,as long as they're not used or "no-name" junk.) I have a brake hose to replace on the right front,but I can do that myself. I also bought some synthetic ATF to use in the T/C when I install the manual shift unit. Still need a couple of pieces of linkage for that-the tab and retaining nut and washer on the T/C,the shift link to the shifter and the shouldered bolt the shifter pivots on. I could make these parts,but I'd need a transmission to attach everything to,to mock it all up and test its operation on the bench.The way I see it,I'm getting close to having the machine I've wanted for quite a while,comfortable,roomy,reliable,set up the way I LIKE it,runs down the 4 lane at 90+ all day long,with decent mileage thrown in while still capable of bashing around the hills-all for under 2 grand. Down the road I might throw a little more into it for a locking rear end,a receiver hitch,maybe a beefier front bumper with a winch,but that's really about all I could want. I have PLENTY of OTHER trucks for other purposes. It must look like I'm lazy,but this last year has wrought havoc with my health,and I've discovered there's a LOT of work I just can't do anymore. Speed

Okay-we found the wires for the O2 sensors and got them plugged in. The PO had them tied back and just didn't plug them in when he was "finished" putting the clutch in. The "check engine" light hasn't been on since plugging them in. It seems to have a little less torque than before,idles at about 700 rpm (down from 1000-1100) and now backfires a LOT on compression. Looks like I'll have to remove the crossover pipe bolts,clean threads and reinstall them tighter. So far the two shops I had check 'em wouldn't try to snug 'em up-one guy tried a little but was afraid he'd break one because they were so rusty looking.

So far no problems other than having to pump up some pedal if I leave it parked for 6 months or so. I'll get one of those valves in the front brake line when I bring the truck home to replace the alternator and add the high power headlights. I'm also going to slide the flatbed about 6 inches closer to the cab and re-attach it. Last time I put it on I left it back a ways because I planned to add dual 4" stacks to it,mounted to a cross-frame bracket between the cab and the bed,but now I think mounting stacks to the headache rack would work fine;and if I decide to remove the bed and install the 5th wheel plate again I can use that time to build the bracket and bolt it to the frame,with nothing in the way. If I do it right,it,and the pipes,will fit with the bed in its original location. Speed

The GMC has been upgraded to a dual reservoir master cylinder the same bore size as the original;I eliminated the Hydrovac,but the brakes work well without a booster,and there's room to add one if I need it. I had to use an adjustable proportioning valve which I mounted inside the right frame rail near the battery box,to compensate for the master cylinder's Disc/Drum configuration. The A/C compressor is for an on-board air system,to inflate tires,run the air horns and possibly operate air brakes if I need to move a trailer so equipped. It wouldn't be DOT legal,but would work for a short distance. I could make a very basic set-up and operate the trailer brakes via a trolley valve on the steering column-I have a couple in the shed. Speed

Well,the clutch problem is SOLVED! And I didn't have to do ANYTHING to make it work! I took it to Les Schwabb to get some decent tires on it;they did the swap and PUSHED it out of the service bay,leaving it parked just outside the door. I'd explained the clutch would "work" if started in gear but would drag when stopped,like an automatic would. Apparently that scared 'em. Anyway,I got in the truck to leave,and as I did,my toe got under the clutch pedal and pulled it up a little. Something popped,and after that the clutch worked perfectly. My theory is that the pushrod from the pedal wasn't seating properly,and wasn't letting the master cylinder operate all the way through its range,and lifting the pedal allowed it to "center" itself. A closer inspection shows only ONE lower ball joint is bad,and it's DESPERATELY in need of a bearing pack. The NEW plan is to junkyard a set of stock locking hubs and spindle nuts/springs/etc. and installing those as I do the wheel bearings. Dutch says if I can make it to his place he'll help me do the lower ball joint (s) and get it aligned. I have some parts-N-tools to bring him anyway. THAT brings me to my next concern. My mileage has been hovering around 10 mpg,and I KNOW it can do better than THAT. This truck has two NEW O2 sensors,but the plugs they should plug into are missing. I know what the color codes are,one is a 3 wire,the other is 4 wires,of which two wires are paired to the 3 wire one,and the wires go from there-not sure where. I believe the PO butchered the wiring harness to 'em by pinching 'em between the block and bell housing when he installed the clutch and either cut 'em off or tied 'em off somewhere. I've noticed this thing starts GREAT in cold weather,and runs GREAT,but its behavior,and the fact that even with a leaky crossover pipe it NEVER backfires on compression braking,tells me it's running rich. The "check engine" light goes on and off randomly;I'm pretty sure the O2 sensors are most of the problem,but I'm nervous about doing anything with the wiring-I don't wanna risk smoking the ECM,even though there's half a dozen of these at Garcia's Towing in Wells. I ALSO need to go to school on adjusting the headlights on this thing-this is the first ever "modular headlight " set up I've ever owned. I have to find a 3mm socket too. I gave it a set of 100W headlight bulbs,so I should have a LOT more range than I'm noticing. I have my "Gotta Do" lists done for each vehicle now,and I have most of the parts,excepting a clutch and ring gear for the BroncWorth and some sort of an A/C compressor bracket for the '54 GMC. Speed

The MAIN reason I've always liked the 420 is the "deep as an oil well" low gear. Was there ever a 435 or 465 with anything close to the 420's low gear? Were either of 'em offered with the E-brake option(?)? Regarding the limitations of the Jimmie Six,I've NEVER been a fan of high revs. When I had my 80 Harley 80 incher,I had 'er geared to run 80 mph at around 2500 revs. IT was happy there,I was happy there,it was perfect,and with solid lifters and a points ignition it had plenty of torque to get rolling even riding two-up with a load of yard sale treasure. BTW-the 4 main six seems to be VERY critical of balance,so when a build is done you have to have the rotating assembly balanced REALLY well. Another thing that will make it live longer is a set of lighter pistons-those stockers would be a liability if it's gonna wind more than 3500. (Not sure how a set of light,higher compression pistons would hold up in a 2 ton truck,though-I'd assume lugging it down to 300 rpm would no longer be an option.) I'd be curious -to see what changes happen with pistons 1/3 the weight of stock ones,with a couple of points higher compression-horsepower curve,torque curve,MORE torque or less,MORE horsepower,or less? At what rpm? I've set my own redline for the 302 at around 2750 if needed,but usually around 2600 against the factory's 3400. Besides,a Jimmie doesn't NEED more than 2600 to do its work-twisting it beyond that's just bangin' your head against the wall. It looks like finding the 4 speed I'd like will be a long shot,so I'll roll with the Clark for now. My next projects have to be a new alternator,and 5/8" pulley,a new 5/8" belt,rebuilding the rear section of drive line,better headlights,swapping the Cherokee black leather bucket seats in,and a new clutch. (MAYBE new rear axle seals and brakes...) And an EXHAUST system. I've decided on a high flow quiet muffler in 3",going back into a 3" stack on the left. A LOT of this will have to wait until later,as I have other more pressing things to deal with. The alternator/belt/pulley is a MUST HAVE. Speed