Re: Frodo, the '69 F250 CS: door redo

[flyboy2610]

Well, I finally decided to start a build thread for Frodo. He's been a good truck, very dependable. I'm not doing a frame off resto, or trying to make a show truck out of him. (I don't think he'd be happy like that anyway. He likes to get out and WORK!!
I adopted him on July 6, 2006. I had seen it sitting with a for sale sign in the window at the north end of the 27th st. viaduct for over a month. I had stopped once and asked what the owner wanted for it, was told $1500. That would have been an okay price, and I was hoping it would still be there when I had the money.
I stopped by one day because the owner had a price posted on the windshield I could afford. I told him I could give hime half on Thursday the 5th and half on Friday the 6th when I got paid. He said he would hold it for me till Friday, and would be in at noon. It was 12:00 exactly by my watch when I opened the door to his business.
I got the truck for $900. Paid cash, and it was all MINE!!!
I already had a '68 F100 which I was planning to fix up, but it became a bump trailer.
I've actually done several things to Frodo already, and will be collecting and re-posting here the threads I have already created. That way everything can be found in one thread.
Here are some pics of Frodo when I first got him:



When I bought Frodo, there was a passenger door in very good condition in the bed. I plane to upgrade to power windows and door locks, and will be installing that door when I do so.






More to follow!

[flyboy2610]

Frodo needs the shock treatment
(Note: this post is reconstructed as best I can recall. The original seems to have been lost during 'housecleaning.')

On my way back from Keith's house (Hi, Keith!) Frodo was bouncing worse than a check drawn on the House of Representatives private bank! (Note to self: make dental appointment to have fillings reset.) I wonder if my truck is related to Tigger?
So I decided to give Frodo the shock treatment. No, not the kind your friendly neighborhood psychiatrist would give, but brand new rear coil over shocks. I bought some Gabriel 41058 Load Carriers for $9.95 each off of eBay.
Now, most people would just take their truck down their local shop and have the shocks installed. Which is fine if your last name is Absolutelymadeofmoney. But when this is one of your favorite shows, you don't think like that: http://www.redgreen.com/
Of course, if that is one of your favorite shows, thinking is probably something you don't do too much of anyway.
First order of business is to compare the length of the old shock versus the new. Guess what? They don't match!


Now what could I use to compress the new shock to get it the same length as the old one?
Something every slightly demented handyman should have lying around:

Yup. A ratcheting strap. Good for a multitude of uses, some of which are even legal and moral.
I wrapped this baby around the shock with the ratchet end going over the top, and the loose strap end going around the bottom. I did it this way because, unlike that 20 foot boat you have in your basement, I know how I'm going to get this out! Tighten it down until it's the same length (hopefully) as the distance between the shock mounting holes.

Be careful with this little bomb, because if it goes off, it'll give you a red mark that'll make that hickey you got in seventh grade look like a mosquito bite! (Your dad still chuckles about that.)

Once you get back under the truck, install the top shock mount.

Now, if you've been a good boy, said all your prayers, and paid your Fordification bill, the lower shock mount will line up perfectly with the hole, and the mounting bolt will slide right in. (Note to self: say more prayers.)

Tighten the ratchet slowly until the holes line up, insert the bolt and snug it down. Loosen the ratchet, pull the loose end of the strap through the ratchet and out through the bottom shock mount. Tighten down the bolts.
There. Now that wasn't nearly as hard as you thought it would be, was it? Now...... go do the other one.
Update: Frodo no longer bounces like Tigger on a sugar buzz, and my dental bills are much lower!


Once you get

[flyboy2610]

Making the Frankentrailer coupler:

Frodo was the second bumpside that I owned. The first (which I still had when I acquired Frodo) was a 1968 F100. I nicknamed him Frankie, short for Frankenstein, because when I got him he had parts from at least 4 different bumpside years on him!


In the spring of 2005, I started tearing him done to do some badly needed rebuilding. Progress was slow, mainly due to a job loss during that time, but I kept plugging away at it. Sometimes he'd sit for months with nothing being done. Then on July 6, 2006 I bought Frodo. Well I didn't need two bumpsides, one of which was pretty well dismantled by that point. So the decision was made that Frankie would become a trailer. First project was the coupler. By this time it was getting late in the fall, so the trailer itself would have to wait till spring. In the meantime, I made the coupler. I built it out of the front section of Frankie's two piece drive shaft, a purchased ball coupler, two pieces of angle iron, and two pieces of steel rod (1/2" if I recall correctly.)
This is the drive shaft before surgery:


I used a reciprocating saw and an angle grinder with a cut off wheel to remove the ring and slip joint of the shaft.




I ground the end nice and smooth.

Next I mounted the shaft into my Larin 5" bench vise (one of the best purchases I have EVER made, I truly recommend this vise) and made sure the flange yoke end was nice and level. This is important, as I planned to mount the yoke into a piece of I-beam, which would be cut at an angle and welded between the angled sides of the trailer frame.


Next I took the coupler unit

And made sure that it was perfectly level on the slip joint end of the shaft. This ensured that when installed on the trailer, the coupler would be level from side to side.


I next marked and drilled the holes to bolt the coupler to the shaft.


To do the other side of the shaft, I inserted the drill into the hole previously made, and raised the table of the drill press up. That gave enough stroke to drill the other hole perfectly in line with the previous one. I clamped the shaft to the table before drilling.

Then I bolted the coupler to the shaft.


I wanted to add some additional bracing to prevent bending or bowing of the shaft under load, so I welded some angle iron to each side under the coupler.





I also welded some steel rod along the top on each side, but I forgot to take pics during that process.
By this time, spring was coming. Almost time to build the trailer itself!

[flyboy2610]

Putting a bumper on the trailer

The next thing I did, before Frankie was even a trailer, was put a new rear bumper on him. I got it from LMC Truck.

It is part #49-9899, STEP BUMPER-CHROME W/TOP PAD. Frodo got one just like it, except with lights in the bumper. I know LMC doesn't have the highest reputation around here, but I have to tell you that those bumpers have held up very well. The black sheen has faded from the step pads, but they aren't cracked or split or anything like that, and they have been well used. I have been quite pleased with those bumpers. I also bought the mounting kit, 40-2050.
I removed the old bumper and installed the mounting brackets, which was very simple.

The next challenge was how to lift the bumper into place and hold it while I installed the bolts. Ratchet strap to the rescue again! I inserted the hooks into the bed stake pockets and lifted up one end of the bumper while my faithful assistant slipped the loop over the bumper.

My faithful assistant, Christopher, turns 13 next month! I wonder where my little boy went?
I bolted the bumper to the brackets and used an appropriately sized deep socket to install the license plate lights.



Next I hooked up the wires.


I finished up the job in about three hours, start to finish.


By this time, as you can see, Frankie has been de-cabbed and un-fendered. The engine has been removed and is in the front end of the bed. Time to build a Frankentrailer!

[flyboy2610]

Building the Frankentrailer

As mentioned earlier, by this time Frankies front end was nothing but frame. The first thing I did was cut the frame rails 45" from the front of the bed. Sorry, no pic of that. (Yes, I know. Bad me. )
I then cut 45 degree notches in both rails, top and bottom, 12" from the front of the bed.



Next I installed some bolts in convenient holes in the frame rails, and used a come-along to draw the two rails together at the front. The bolts kept the come-along cable from sliding towards the front of the trailer.


I then used a 4' drywall T square from the center line of the crossmember just in front of the bed and checked to make sure that the frame rails met on the center line.


Then I drilled a couple of 5/16" holes and temporarily installed some bolts top and bottom to hold the rails in position.



I double checked the center line. Still good.


After that I cut some pieces of scrap steel to use as gussets at the 45 degree cuts i had made in the frame rails.


Using my Lincoln 110 welder, I proceeded to weld the gussets into place and fill in the cuts lines on the frame rails.


There were some convenient holes in the bottom frame rail which I used to mount the chain plate. I held a piece of steel bar stock in place and transferred the hole locations


which I then drilled through the bar stock for the chain plate.


I then bolted the chain plate into place.


From the post regarding the construction of the coupler, you will recall that the plan is to mount the flange yoke end to a piece of I-beam, which has been cut on an angle. This is the piece of I-beam I purchased and had cut:


As you can see, the unmolested flange yoke will not fit the channel of the I-beam.


Solution? Molest.... err, grind, the flange yoke.


This pic will give you a good idea of how this is all going to look when finished.


I proceeded to use the T-square again and centered the coupler shaft relative to the front of the bed.


I transferred the proper location to the side of the frame rails


and proceeded to make the cut out centered vertically in the frame rails.


At this point I drilled the holes through the I-beam and bolted the coupler shaft to it using grade 8 hardware.

I slid the coupler shaft through the cut out, and used the square to center everything up. I installed some scrap steel to center the I-beam vertically in the rails.




Once I was satisfied that everything was properly aligned,


I welded it all up.


Next I mounted the trailer jack. (This has since been replaced with a solid foot unit centered between the frame rails.)


I then installed the coupler, hooked up the light plug, and realized..... I have a TRAILER!!!



The Frankentrailer has been an absolute workhorse, let me tell you! It took a lot of work, but has been well worth it. Particularly during the fall, when the leaves are down. I usually get about 30 bags of leaves out of my yard, and Frodo and Frankentrailer just haul 'em all to the landfill, no questions asked!
What a pair!

[flyboy2610]

New bumper and hitch

Well, now that the Frankentrailer is finished, Frodo needs some way to haul it around. When I bought Frodo, he had this monstrously ugly "thing" barely (on one side) attached to him that that someone laughingly referred to as a bumper hitch:


That thing was just not going to do the job! You will recall that Frankentrailer got a new chrome bumper with polymer step pad.


When I ordered that bumper, I also ordered the same style bumper with lights for Frodo. I installed it the same way I installed the bumper on the Frankentrailer, see above for details.


I hooked up the relay for the lights:


I wired up the relay so that the hot wire to the relay is coming off the output side of the cargo light switch.


This way, as Johnny Cash said in the song "One Piece at a Time", "when we pulled out the switch all three of 'em come on!"


After I finished with the bumper, I put the hitch on. It is a DrawTite hitch, #41504 Max-E-Loader Receiver for a deep drop bumper.
This is the hitch:
http://www.draw-tite.com/content/produc ... part=41504
I think the 40 minute install time is bit optimistic! I had to drill two additional 1/2" holes on each lower frame rail. I bolted the hitch brackets in place, loosely, using only the holes farthest forward on the rails. I next slid one end of the receiver into a side bracket, and loosely installed the bolts. (This step is MUCH easier with an assistant!) The hitch is designed so that the crossbar has a flange 1/4" in from each end. This flange has bolt holes that match corresponding holes in the brackets.


I then slid the other side of the receiver into the other side bracket, and installed the bolts. I installed the bolts in the other two holes in each frame rail next, adjusted everything until I was happy with the placement, and tightened down all the bolts.


Final product:


I have been very happy with both bumper and hitch. I would not hesitate to recommend either to anyone.

[flyboy2610]

Putting in the Highliner

The headliner in Frodo wasn't smelling too good, kind of a musty smell. I also wanted to have a CB radio in the truck, but couldn't figure out a good place to put it. Looking through LMC Truck's catalog, I found the Highliner.


It seemed like a perfect solution. A place to mount the CB, and a new headliner. When it arrived, I set to work. The CB I had hoped to use, my Cobra 29 LTD from my truck driving days, was just too big to fit the cenetr console.
So bought a new CB, a Cobra 19 Ultra III.


It fit in there a whole lot better!


I installed its bracket


mounted and wired the radio


Cut a hole in the console cover


and installed it.


I also purchased an antenna for it.


I bought a small external speaker and mounted it so that it points towards the driver.


I removed the old headliner.


And gave the area a coat of up there a coat of rust converter and primer, particularly between the cab and the roof.



I don't have any pics of this, but I also installed some faced insulation/sound deadener up there. The stuff that looks like thick wool carpet pad with a flexible foil facing. Installed the stereo speakers, and attached the wires. I labeled everything well, and made a wire bundle. To get the Highliner into the truck, I looped two ratcheting straps across the roof, and hooked them together inside the truck, one towards the front and one towards the rear. I slid the Highliner up into the two loops, and brought the bundle of wires down the inside of the drivers side door pillar. I then gave both the drivers and passengers side door a good filling of expanding foam insulation. This is to prevent moist air from being forced up to the roof while driving.
I screwed the Highliner to the cab, starting with the middle screws front and back. Some of them matched the holes from the original headliner, some I had to drill holes for. Along the rear of the cab, between the cab and the roof, I inserted wooden spacers to keep the cab from flexing up enough to actually allow the screw to penetrate the roof. The front didn't need them.
Once the Highliner was in place, I fished the electrical wires up behind the dash, and hooked up the wires to the CB, and ran the antenna cable. The radio speaker wires were going to have to wait until I installed a stereo in the dash.
I think it came out nicely. (Seems to need a dusting, however. )




I have read numerous derogatory comments regarding the sound quality of the included speakers. I suppose for a true audiophile they might not be the greatest, but I have no complaints about them. I think they sound just fine with my radio/CD player. I've had that Highliner in there for 5-1/2 years now, and I'm very pleased with it. If you're looking for a way to mount speakers or just update your ride, check it out.

[killakobra]

i've already got my radio mounted to the headliner(custom made) and i've been playing around with the idea of making one of those headliners. just can't seem to peel off that many bills for a piece of plastic :

[flyboy2610]

"HowIdunnit" Metra 99-9222 Stereo Install Warning:Pics!!!!!

This is a “HowIdunnit” article regarding the installation of a modern single DIN stereo into my 1969 F250CS. I did this during the latter stages of my firewall cover installation project, as everything was being reinstalled into the truck. I began this installation with the heater box, heater controls, instrument panel, ash tray and glove box not yet reinstalled. I had already wired the stereo wiring harness into the truck. I am using a Highliner Headliner with four speakers. I have it wired up so that the drivers side speaker are the 'front' speakers, and the passenger side speakers are the 'rear' speakers. Doing so allows me to balance both sides of the truck for stereo effect.

I used the Metra 99-9222 install kit for a 1975-1993 Volvo. These are available through Amazon.com, Best Buy, at various places online, or local stereo installation shops. The kit runs around $20.
The stereo I used is a JVC KD-R200 AM/FM CD player unit, with a removable faceplate.
It also has a small remote control unit.

The faceplate you want to use out of the Metra kit is the largest of the three, the one with the triangle shape. It has plastic tabs in it for shaft style radio units. These will have to be cut out.


Test fit your stereos installation sleeve to see if any additional trimming will be required. Mine fit just fine into the opening.



The back of the faceplate has cutting lines for easy removal of the shaft plates.


To cut the shaft plates out of the faceplate, use a high speed rotary hobby too, such as a Dremel tool.


Once the shaft plates are removed, I test fit the stereos installation sleeve into the opening. It fit perfectly!


Now, we go out to the truck.
I have already bent the stock radios mounting ears back out of the way. If you have not done this yet, now is the time. They are easy to bend by hand.


I temporarily reinstalled the heater control unit, to make sure I didn’t mount the faceplate too low, and interfere with the installation of it later.


I installed the faceplate into the radio opening, positioned it where I wanted it to sit, and taped it into place. Be very careful with this step; you will have to live with the results for as long as the stereo is in your truck!


After you have rummaged through your excess hardware margarine tubs, and found some appropriate sheet metal screws, drill the correspondingly sized pilot holes through the tabs of the faceplate, and into the mounting ears of the truck.


The face plate screwed into the mounting ears. It’s very sturdy.


Install a short length of plumbers tape. Plumbers tape is a metal strap with holes in it. There is a speaker mounting stud just above the radio that is a very handy place to mount the tape to. You will want the tape to support the back of the stereo unit.



At this point, I installed the heater box, and hooked up the heater control cables. I then installed the heater control unit back into the dash.


The stereo sleeve fits like it was designed to go there!


If you haven’t already done so. wire up your stereo’s wiring harness and speaker wires.
Route your antenna lead.


After installing the sleeve for the last time, bend down the appropriate tabs to secure the sleeve to the faceplate.


Attach the antenna lead to the back of the stereo, and insert it into the sleeve until it clicks into place. Reach through the ashtray opening, and the glove box opening, and plug the wiring harness into the back of the stereo. Secure the plumbers tape to the mounting stud on the back of the stereo. Install the face plate, if removable.
Admire your work!

[flyboy2610]

When I converted the front end from drum brakes to discs last fall, (http://www.fordification.com/forum/view ... on#p568386) the shop that did the brake line fabrication for me pointed out that Frodo was in need of new bushings and king pins. Since I frankly don't drive him all that much, it was not a high priority job for me.
But the clunking from underneath has been getting more pronounced recently, so I decided I had better do the job. So follow along as Frodo get some suspension work!
First, I jacked him up and securely placed him on jack stands, two under the frame and two to support the I-beams. Safety is paramount in jobs like this, so please use good quality heavy duty jack stands under the frame. Every year, people die because a jack failed and let the vehicle come down on them. Don't you DARE be one of them!!!



I pulled the calipers off.


Followed by the hub/rotor assembly. Please note I have discs on the front. If you have drums, you will have more work to remove the brake assembly, but it all needs to come off.


Next to come off were the anchor brackets and dust shields.


Remove the front shocks.


Next, the drag link and tie rods have to come off. Use a good puller for this step. Some people like to loosen the nut and smack the assembly to separate the two, but I recommend a good puller. Here you can see that the drag link has been separated from the Pittman arm.



Separate the two tie rod ends from the steering knuckles, and withdraw the assembly from the vehicle.


It was at this stage that I discovered that this project had just gotten about $170 more expensive! All the tie rod ends were loose as a goose and completely shot! Oh, well.

One other critical piece of safety equipment is a good set of coil spring compressors. You do not want that coil to come flying off in a moment of explosive decompression! Get some proper spring compressors, and USE them! Since I was planning on having both I-beams off at the same time, I had to buy a second set. Still well worth the $40.


Here, I have loosened up the top spring cup that holds the spring to the I-beam. I have not completely removed it, though. To remove this, use a wrench on the nut by reaching through the spring coils. You may be able to remove it by using a socket and long piece of pipe on the I-beam/radius arm bolt, but there is a second nut underneath the spring seat, and they are on there pretty tight! I have placed the jack under the I-beam to support it.


Loosen the I-beam pivot bolt, the one that runs through the pivot bushing, and remove it. Lower the jack to let the I-beam drop out its bracket. You may have to "persuade" it to come free.


Remove the cotter pin and nut at the end of the radius rod, and pull the bushing off the end.


Place the jack under the I-beam/radius rod bolt and jack up the assembly until level. Remove the coil spring retaining cup that you loosened earlier. Pull the assembly forward until the radius rod comes clear of its bracket. The coil spring will pivot forward enough to allow it. Then roll the assembly back until the coil spring is straight up and down. The I-beam/radius rod bolt will still be inside the spring. Lower the jack slowly until the assembly is down. Take it off the jack.


You now have one side removed. Do the other in the same way.

"Bushings? What bushings? We don't need no stinking bushings!"

You can see where the clunking noise was coming from!

Here you can see that second nut on the I-beam/radius rod bolt I mentioned earlier.


They will be cleaned and painted before reassembly.


I pulled the grease fittings off and gave the king pins a good overnight soaking in penetrating oil, but to no avail. Those pins would NOT come out with a punch and 3 pound sledge hammer.


I finally took them down to Lincoln Clutch and Brake. To have the old pins pressed out, and the new bushings pressed in and reamed cost me $55. I though that was pretty reasonable. The guy at the shop said "Those old pins needed a LOT of force to come out of there!"
I plan to address that issue as we shall see in our next installment.
Thanks for reading!

[flyboy2610]

As mentioned in my previous post, the actual removal of the king pins and re-installation (and reaming) of the new brass bushings was done at Lincoln Clutch and Brake for what I felt was a very reasonable sum of $55. While this was being done, I cleaned and painted the I-beams and radius rods I planned to use. I acquired a set of radius rods (as best I can recall I got them from Keith, the site owner and administrator) which were much cleaner and shinier than those I removed from Frodo, so I decided to use those instead. I purchased new tie rods, an adjusting sleeve and a drag link from Autozone, cost me $166. I got everything primed and painted. Here's a pic after the king pins and I-beam bushings were installed:


Make certain that you install the correct spindle onto the correct I-beam. The steering knuckle MUST be on the same side as the steering stop pin, and is on the bottom of the spindle, as in this pic:


I put the I-beam bushings in first, so I wouldn't have the extra weight of the spindles flopping around on the other end. I used Prothane red polyurethane bushings on the beams and radius rods. These do not come with the metal shells. You must reuse the original bushings metal shells, so do not remove them from the I-beam. The part numbers are: I-beam 6-604 and radius rods 6-1207.
I encountered an interesting little "HUH?" as I was cleaning the I-beams. A previous owner had replaced the bushings with stock metal shelled rubber bushings, but on one of the beams he seems to have forgotten a step: he didn't get the old metal shell out before installing the new one!



I had a good laugh over that one! I decided that it wouldn't harm anything to leave it as it was, and I didn't want to have to tear out the old shells, just to install new OEM bushings and have to remove the rubber part. I ground down the extra metal to the height of the 'new' shell and called it good. The new bushings are a tight press fit into the old metal bushing shells, even when greased, as all polyurethane bushings should be or they will squeak like a mouse on steroids!

The i-beam bushings came with some little tear open plastic tubes of grease, but I knew there wouldn't be enough to do the whole job. I went up to Autozone to see if they had any grease. The clerk suggested Mobil-1 synthetic grease, as they didn't have grease made just for poly bushings. I bought a can and came home to do some research before I opened it, to see if others had used it for this job. It turns out the clerk was right on the money. Many people form various automotive sites have used this same grease for their poly bushings and have been very pleased with it. You do NOT want to use regular grease as it will attack the bushing material!


So, I was all set to install the bushings, but how to press them in? Ford makes a special tool for the job, but I'm sure it's hard to find and pretty pricey when you do! So I made something. I cut three pieces of 2" x 3/16 steel bar. One is 1.990" inches long, the other two are 1" long. In the long piece, I drilled a 1/2" hole through the center of the piece. I then welded the other two pieces vertically on each side. This allows me to straddle the metal I-beam bushing shell, but be snug enough so the tool doesn't wander. I had to weld this with flux core wire, as I am out of shielding gas for MIG. (I really don't care for flux core. It makes a lot of smoke, and I can't see what I'm doing as well. Plus trying to get the welding gun in there to do the welds!) Here's what it looks like:



To get the bushings started, I had to use one of the big metal washers for the radius rod bushings. This is because the length of the I-beam bushing and the width of the I-beam end exceeded the length of all the 1/2" bolts I have on hand. I could have run out and gotten some 1/2" all thread, but.... nah! Here's how I got the bushings in:
First, put on a disposable glove of some sort, either latex, vinyl, or rubber. This will keep you much cleaner. Get a glob of grease (Mobil-1 synthetic is even red like the bushings!)


and liberally coat the metal bushing insert.


The insert can be pressed easily into the bushing by hand. You want to do this now, as the bushing will compress during installation into the I-beam, making the insert much more difficult to install later.


Now, slather some grease on the outside of the bushing.


When installing the I-beam bushings, note that the flanged side of the bushing goes against the flanged side of the original bushings metal shell.
Get one of the metal washers that go on the radius rod bushings, a 1/2" bolt and nut, and several washers. Slide a couple washers over the bolt, insert the bolt through the bushing, insert the bushing into the end of the I-beam, place the radius rod washer over the bolt, and screw on the nut. This is what it will look like:


Tighten down the nut and the bolt will draw the bushing into the I-beam. The non flanged side of the bushing will contact the radius rod washer, preventing you from drawing the new bushing all the way into the shell.


Remember that tool I made earlier? Well, now is when I needed it. I removed the bolt and washers, and redid the assembly (minus the radius rod washer) with the tool I made.


This shot shows why I made the center piece the length I did. It was the distance between the outer edges of the old metal shell, plus two time the thickness of the steel bar, plus about .005" for clearance.


Tighten down the nut, drawing the bushing the rest of the way into the I-beam.


Do the other side the same way.
Now we get to install the king pins themselves. In addition to the king pins, bushings, and grease caps, these pieces came in the hardware set:



I knew where the thin metal shims were supposed to go, but I wasn't sure about the thick washer looking thingies. But my friends here helped me figure out that they're grease seals, and go between the top of the I-beam and the spindle.


So, mount the I-beam in your bench vise, top side up.


Remember how I said I would address the issue of hard to remove king pins? Anti-seize is your friend!


Put on another glove and get some anti-seize on your finger, then coat the inside of the I-beam (NOT inside the spindle bearing!) liberally.



The king pin has a slot in it into which a retaining bolt must fit.


When you install the king pin into the spindle, you lose sight of that slot. A helpful tip is to mark the top of the bolt so you know where that slot is, even if you can no longer see it.


Slide the king pin through the top of the spindle about 1/2-3/4" and slide the metal seal over the bolt. They fit pretty snugly.


Now set the spindle in place on top of the I-beam, with the slot in the bolt facing the I-beam.


Take one of the bearings that came in the kit, and insert it between the bottom of the I-beam and the spindle. The bearing that came with my kit is a sealed bearing, there is no way to grease it. Your kit may have a standard bearing, in which case you will need to grease it well before installation. In either case, install it open side DOWN to help prevent water from getting into the bearing.



Hopefully, it is a snug fit, requiring a few light taps with a plastic hammer to get it where you want it. Use a punch and a plastic hammer to tap the king pin a couple of inches down. Check up and down play in the spindle. Hopefully, there will be none. If there is play, tap the king pin back out from the bottom, and use the thin metal shims provided in the kit. Install these on top of the I-beam. You want the grease seal next to the spindle. Repeat the process until all play has been removed. In my case, the bearing and the grease seal were sufficient on both beams. I didn't have to use any shims!
When all play has been removed, tap the king pin down until the slot on the pin aligns with the slot in the I-beam. Install the retaining bolt, lock washer, and nut. Put the grease caps on.


Along with the grease Zerk's, there were 4 small plugs. I Installed these in the grease caps to keep junk out of there during the installation of the I-beams onto the truck. These will be removed and replaced with the Zerk's during the finishing up phase.



Next, we'll go put these back on the truck.
Thanks for reading!

[flyboy2610]

OK, so now your truck is on jackstands and you have a bunch of freshly painted suspension parts in your basement (or spare bedroom) that need to go back on the truck, but you don't know how to replace them. Well, never fear cause I'se a gonna learn ya!

The first thing to do is prepare your work area. I put down some large unfolded cardboard boxes under Frodo to help keep from scratching the paint on the parts. You don't HAVE to put anything down, but you'll probably wind up with more scratches if you don't. And so will your suspension parts.
Note the orientation of the parts that go into each assembly. The steering knuckle is on the bottom of the spindle, on the same side of the I-beam as the steering stop. The shock mounts are on the inside of the radius rod, with the long 'tang' of the radius rod on top. The torque spec for the I-beam to radius rod bolt is 180-220 ft. lbs. for the F100 and F250, and 350-500 for the F350!
Good luck getting it THAT tight! If you tighten it down that tight, the upper and lower tangs on the radius rod will compress, and you will not be able to adjust the positioning relative to each other to get everything lined up where it has to go. I tightened the nut down until I could just move the radius rod with some effort. There is another nut that goes on this bolt later, which I tightened up good, so I feel confident that nothing is going to go anywhere. The Ford factory probably had a jig they used to position the I-beam and radius rod, but I don't!


Now put on a disposable glove and get a glob of grease on your finger.


Smear it on the bushing end of the radius rod.


Smear some grease on the front of the radius rod bushing where it will contact the curved washer, and install the washer, then the bushing. The two washers I used on each side had one with a large hole and one with a small hole. The larger hole one goes towards the front of the truck, the small hole towards the rear. This is because of the different diameters on each end of the radius rod.


Slather some grease inside the radius rod mounting bracket hole. The idea is to have grease anywhere that polyurethane will touch metal.


Next, place the assembly on the floor jack with the saddle under the I-beam/radius rod bolt. Raise the assembly until the radius rod can slide into it's bracket.


Install the lower spring seat. After this installation was completed, I was looking at the factory diagram and discovered that this seat may actually be installed backwards on my truck. It shows the open bent end towards the front. But this is how it was when it came off the truck, so this is how it went back on.


Jack up the assembly until the coil spring is over the bolt, and install the upper coil spring retainer and nut. Torque for this nut is 18-25 ft. lbs.


Jack up the assembly a bit more until the radius rod is pretty much parallel to the ground.


Grease the rear bushing up real good and install it, along with the other washer (the one with the small hole, if yours have different diameter holes.) You may not be able to get the rear bushing into the hole far enough to get the washer on behind it, and still have enough threads available to start the castellated nut. That was the case with both sides of my truck. So what I did was start the nut and use just the nut to force the bushing into the hole, then I removed the nut, installed the washer, and reinstalled the nut. Torque for this nut is 80-120 ft. lbs. I did not torque the nuts to proper torque yet, though. I did all the torquing after the suspension was installed. One other thing about these washers. When I removed the originals from the truck the front washer was oriented as you see it in this picture. The rear washer, however, was backwards from what you see in this picture. It was actually oriented exactly as the front washer is! There was writing engraved on the washers, which indicated that they were properly oriented on the truck, and the factory diagram confirms this. So the rear washer in this pic is actually backwards from factory orientation. The way you see them now is how they were on the radius rods I got from Keith, site owner and administrator. The rods also had some blue urethane(?) bushings on them, which had marks on them indicating that the washers had been oriented that way for quite some time. I really like the way they look now better, so that's how they're going to stay. Just be aware that the rear washer is technically installed backwards.


Now you can lower the jack, and prepare to do the I-beam bushing.


The I-beam bushing is actually a three part assembly; the main bushing, the metal insert to keep the pivot bolt from destroying the bushing, and a thin circular thrust bearing. The thrust bearing goes on the non flanged side of the bushing, to help keep lateral twist at bay. It needs to be thoroughly greased inside and out.



Ready for installation. (Looks like a candy apple, doesn't it? Go ahead, take a bite if you want. I'll pass, though.)


Place the jack under the I-beam and lift it into position.


If you are lucky, the bushing insert will be perfectly lined up with the hole in the mounting bracket. Me? Well........


With the aid of a long drift punch and a pry bar, I got everything lined up. I put a thin coating of anti seize on the pivot bolt before I installed it, just in case I ever have to remove it again. Torque for this nut is 120-150 for the F100 and F250, 120-180 for the F350.



One side done! Now for the other.....


The other side is done the same way. When I did this, the first side took almost 3 hours. The second side took less than an hour. I guess that's because I did all the head scratchin' doing the first side!


Now, let's finish this job up!

[flyboy2610]

Finishing up
Re-installing the steering gear and brakes.

This project is coming to a close. Good thing too, because Frodo's busy season is about to start. (He's very handy to have around in the fall when yard work is being done. )

Here's all the freshly painted steering gear ready to go back on. I measured from tie rod to tie rod on the old gear I took off, and bench set the new tie rod assembly to that measurement, and snugged down the adjusting sleeve.


Be sure to install the new rubber boots before putting the new gear on.


Here I have installed the drag link to the Pittman arm, and the drivers side tie rod to the steering knuckle. Note that the tie rods go threads up on both knuckles. Proper torque for all tie rod ends is 60-75 ft. lbs.


Passenger side.


The center tie rod gets a special flat faced rubber boot, as it connects to the flat surface on the drag link.


After I had installed all the tie rods, I went through the front suspension and tightened all nuts to proper specs, installing new cotter pins on all castellated nuts as required. Cotter pins are cheap, so don't even THINK about reusing the old ones! I next installed all the grease Zerks, on the tied rods and on the spindles. I greased all Zerks until grease was coming out of the part.


I reinstalled the anchor brackets and dust shields. Torque spec for the anchor bracket to spindle bolts is 55-75 Ft. lbs.


I put the hub/rotor back on, and followed the proper procedure for tightening the wheel bearing nut. It got a new cotter pin also.


I reinstalled the brake calipers, torquing the mounting bolts to 17-23 ft. lbs.


I put Frodo's front tires back on, and let him get his feet back on the ground!



He'll go to a shop to have the alignment checked and set, and then
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TD_pSeNelU

[mcheath]

Wow! What a task, lots of work. How's Frodo drive now? Steering and handling up front better? I've never done anything like this but bet that my truck needs it all.

[flyboy2610]

This is an article detailing the rebuild of a door hinge for my 1969 Ford F250 Camper Special, Frodo.

A common problem among these old trucks is sagging doors. (And those of us getting a bit long in the tooth can relate to THAT, huh?) Most often, unless the door pillar itself is rusted out, the cause is a worn out hinge pin or bushing. These are not difficult to replace, unless the pin is totally rusted into the hinge, in which case you may need a shop press to get it out. This is the hinge I will be using for this write up. I will be doing all four hinges on the truck, upper and lower, passenger side and driver side.


The hinge pin/bushing kit that I will be using came from LMC Truck. It is part number 40-2790, and at this writing sells for $2.95 each. You will need four of them to do the whole truck, unless you have a crew cab. Then you get to buy eight of them.
Step one is to remove the old pin. Notice I have used a piece of wood under the hinge so as not to tweak it while driving out the old pin. I used a three pound sledge hammer and a stout punch to remove the old pin.


Here the old pin is removed. You can see the brass bushings still in the hinge. These will be removed in the next step.


Clamp the hinge securely in the vise, using a rag to protect it from the jaws. Drive out the lower bushing with the hammer and a small punch. Then reverse the hinge in the vise and drive out the other bushing.


Now it's time to get that rust off the hinges. Sure, you could use a wire wheel and a drill, but I prefer to use electrolysis. This method get all the rust off without damaging any of the solid metal, and it's a lot easier than trying to get it all with a wire wheel. Basically, electrolysis sets up a chemical reaction whereby the rust flows from the part to a sacrificial electrode. It require a non-metallic container large enough to hold the part away from the electrode, a metal bar or rod and wire to suspend the part into the container, another bar or rod to use as the sacrificial electrode, and a battery charger. You will also need enough water to cover the part, and one tablespoon of baking soda per gallon of water. When it's all set up, the setup looks like this:


The bar running a cross the top of the plastic 5 gallon bucket is clamped to the bucket so it doesn't move around. There are two wires suspended from it, on which the two parts of the hinge are hooked. I have already added enough water to cover the parts, and have mixed in one tablespoon of baking soda per gallon. The sacrificial electrode is clamped vertically to the back of the bucket. Please make careful note of how the battery charger cables are connected: The black (negative) cable is connected to the bar from which the parts are suspended. The red (positive) cable is connected to the sacrificial electrode. NEVER, EVER connect the positive cable to the bar on which the parts are suspended or you will ruin the parts! Make sure you have a good electrical connection for the cables.
Plug in the battery charger, and shortly you will begin to see bubbles. This indicates that the rust removal process has begun. Let the process continue for about 24 hours.


After 24 hours, your bucket will look something like this:


Unplug the battery charger, and remove the parts from the solution. The water/baking soda/rust solution can go down the drain. There is nothing toxic or harmful in it. Use a wire brush and remove the black film from the parts. They will look much cleaner than they did 24 hours ago!


Give the parts a coating of primer.


Once they are dry, top coat them. The flash on my camera makes them look pale green in this photo. They are actually a dark Hunter green color.


I recommend only doing one hinge at a time. That way you can use the other side as a reference for reassembly.


Install the bushings into the hinge.


Clamp the hinge bracket into your vise, using something to protect the paint on the flange. I have rubber guards for the jaws. If you don't have these, use a rag. Also note the use of wooden blocks, again to prevent tweaking the hinge during installation of the pin. Drive the pin in until you meet stiff resistance.


Next, I used a socket as a spacer and a piece of pipe for extra leverage and used the vise, rather than a hammer to seat the pin completely. They go in pretty tightly!


The finished job.



Mark the hinge with a marker indicating position and orientation to the top. The hinge now feels nice and solid. I will cover installation at a later time.