Tiggie's 1976 F100 Parts Truck

[Tiggie]

Dang, I love me some dentside content. Do you have a thread for your F-250? Any details on that rig?

I hardly drove my '76 this past year... Went out to the F-100 Nationals (not in the truck ), and was inspired to do the coyote or godzilla swap (undecided still). Hopefully kicking that off in the next year once I have the garage space I need.

No thread on the F250... yet. I've always considered it a beater (because that's what it is). It's so rough. I drive it doing truck stuff... junkyard runs, hauling dirt, mulch, rock, firewood, etc. In the last few months, I've been getting lots of compliments on it. It really drives nicely and runs nice. It's way past the patina look. With an 87 bed on it, it looks terrible. So I decided to grab a bed for it, and then decided I needed a whole truck body instead. So here we are. This F100 "parts truck" is actually nicer than the F250 but I like the F250 for what I use it for.
Almost done with my bathroom remodel, so then I can spend some time on this project.

[DerekTheGreat]

...Went out to the F-100 Nationals (not in the truck ), and was inspired to do the coyote or godzilla swap (undecided still). Hopefully kicking that off in the next year once I have the garage space I need.

I wouldn't do either, especially the 7.3 swap. As enthusiastic as I was to see Ford return to their roots with a single cam, two valve per cylinder engine, the execution was terrible:

[Tiggie]

Got some time today to put some rear brake lines on this so that it has real brakes that actually feel like they could stop.
The main hard line to the rear was roached. Replaced that and it still would not bleed. Thought it may be a tripped proportioning valve, but no. Just a stopped up brake hose from '76. Of course the rest of the lines crumbled when I touched them to replace the brake hose. It was all good. Dad is a hoarder of car parts and had an old used brake hose around. Made some custom lines and made it all work.

All of this was to make the truck more mobile so that it can be moved easily and also get it up to the main garage to check out the engine further.

[Tiggie]

This thing gets worse and worse.
Scoped the cylinders today. Found significant pitting in cylinder wall 1. Also found some in cylinder wall 8. That explains the low compression on those cylinders. The block is already 0.060 over, so short of sleeving, it's probably scrap. The other cylinders looked great on my camera. Shame that an engine with such low miles is not usable. It does have a 390 rotating assembly which sounds fine, so that *may* be useful at some point.

Left front fender has been replaced and looked good at first glance. Alas, it's not better. Got some rust issues up in the nooks and crannies and it's thin and easy to pinhole with an ice pick.

I gave the wiring harness a good look over and I think I can use it. I absolutely need it for the other truck, so I am hopeful. Plus the A/C parts that aren't serviced in the aftermarket will be needed.

So it's not useless, but it is less useful than I initially hoped.

[DerekTheGreat]

Try "Restore" and simply run it. It WILL boost compression.

[Tiggie]

The pits are pretty bad. Wish I took some pics with the scope but I was ticked off and didn't want to remember the moment!

[DerekTheGreat]

Meh, it's a ~$10 investment with zero effort required, couldn't hurt...

[friskyfrankie]

Does "Restore" not contain lead? Would it not reek havoc on an emissions system? Not sure what the '76 has for emissions so it may not matter much. Does it have a "cat"?

[Tiggie]

I'm not sure what it had originally. Either way, the engine was bound for my 74, no cats there. But now that plan is no more.

[DerekTheGreat]

Does "Restore" not contain lead? Would it not reek havoc on an emissions system? Not sure what the '76 has for emissions so it may not matter much. Does it have a "cat"?

I don't think so, only know it works. Project Farm has a video out there with a diesel tractor which had low compression on at least one cylinder. After that stuff, it was back up with the others. Wouldn't surprise me if that stuff finds it's way into voids and becomes solid. Instructions say to add with every oil change once you start using it.

[friskyfrankie]

I don't think so, only know it works. Project Farm has a video out there with a diesel tractor which had low compression on at least one cylinder. After that stuff, it was back up with the others. Wouldn't surprise me if that stuff finds it's way into voids and becomes solid. Instructions say to add with every oil change once you start using it.

According to the company, it does contain lead but not sure how much and if it has any negative effects.

[sly]

Took a couple of months of daily driving, but put a can of Restore in a 89 Toyota Corolla that smoked real bad on take off (idle load up) and didn't have any issues after that.

[friskyfrankie]

I wouldn't put it in a car that works fine just for preventative purposes but if the engine really does have serious issues, why not?

[DerekTheGreat]

Took a couple of months of daily driving, but put a can of Restore in a 89 Toyota Corolla that smoked real bad on take off (idle load up) and didn't have any issues after that.

Interesting. I think I put the stuff in my '89 K1500 before I swapped the engine. It burned oil bad, about a quart every 300 miles or so. Doubt it helped compression in my case as the exhaust valve on #1 was burnt up, but it didn't do anything for oil consumption either.