blksn8k2

I haven't read every post in this thread and maybe this has been discussed already but is the 6.8L being planned as a replacement for the 6.2L SOHC? That would probably make too much sense...

Just build a shorter stroke, shorter deck height aluminum block version of the 7.3L, use PTWA spray bore cylinders and call it a day. NA version for high end trim F-150/Expedition and maybe Bronco Warthog. Add a blower and you have the perfect Raptor R and GT500 power plant.

The new fuel tank sending unit arrived today. So far I'm not impressed. It bolted in easily enough but is even less accurate than the one that came with the tank and it was advertised as being better. At the current fuel level of about 10.5 gallons the old unit was reading 33.7 OHMs which translated to 1/8 full on the gauge. The new sending unit at the same fuel level reads 53.1 OHMs which translates to "E" on the gauge. At this fuel level either sending unit should be reading about 28 Ohms which would equal between 3/8 -1/2 full on the gauge. BTW, in my previous posts about the fuel level sending unit and gauge I had the OHM ratings bass ackwards. The high number relates to empty and the low to full, not vice versa. Sorry for the confusion. The new sending unit measures 73.4 OHMs at empty and 10.7 OHMs at full. My next step will be to talk to Autometer about their Fuel Signal Adapter and whether or not it is capable of correcting my situation.

Agreed. BTW, FedEx still doesn't show the radiator as having been delivered and I've had it for nine days. Next item to wait for should be the new design fuel tank sending unit. The seller said he received the first batch from the manufacturer a few days ago so I assume he has started shipping them. Now I'm debating whether I want to try a different set of spark plugs. When I built the engine the recommended plug was an Accel 276 which is basically equivalent to a Motorcraft AF42 or AF42C. Most of the older (pre 5.0L HO) small blocks used either a BF42 or BF32. Those BF series plugs have a larger 18mm diameter than the AF series and won't fit in my heads. I used a set of iron World Products Roush 200 cylinder heads on my engine and they use the same smaller 14mm diameter AF series plugs as the newer 5.0L HO, I assume because by doing so they (World Products) had more room for the larger 2.02" intake and 1.60" exhaust valves. Those WP heads have 64cc combustion chambers and when combined with the flat top pistons in my 393 result in an approximate 10.5:1 CR. Back before the 5.0L HO the larger dia BF42's were the higher heat range plug used in lower compression ratio small block and big block engines while the BF32's were the colder plug used in the higher CR engines like the 289 HiPo. What I have read is that when Motorcraft (and others) switched to copper core plugs (Note: copper core plugs are designated by the suffix letter C) they were able to cover a wider range of CR's with one heat range which eliminated the need for the colder heat range 32's . Not sure how true that is but they did stop production of the BF32's which sucks because those are also the original plugs for both the 390 (10.5:1 CR) in my '68 Cougar and the 428CJ (10.6:1 CR) in my '70 Mach 1 which are both FE series big blocks. Anyway, since the engine in the Bronco uses the smaller dia AF series plugs and has a higher CR, I may need to go to a lower heat range plug and the currently available Motorcraft plug would be the AF32C. However, current thinking is to stick with the higher heat range AF42C's unless the engine shows signs of detonation or starts melting the spark plug electrodes but neither of those are likely to happen unless you are running some type of forced induction or nitrous or a higher than 12:1 CR. The theory is that a hotter plug has better self cleaning properties than a colder plug and is therefore less likely to build up deposits and foul out. So, once I start putting some miles on the Bronco I should have a better idea what type of spark plug it likes. I have noticed that it is extremely sensitive to ignition timing changes which might be due to the fact that cast iron cylinder heads do not dissipate heat as well as aluminum. Not sure what difference, if any, a different heat range plug would make on that issue.

The real problem is that they are forced to run in these huge packs. All it takes is one even minor mistake and all hell breaks loose. This is not real racing. It's just running around in circles waiting for someone to screw up. The fastest car seldom ever wins which is the exact opposite of what real racing should be about. If I were an owner I would boycott the superspeedway "races". The odds are that I would be money ahead. The risk has to be worth the reward. I get it that the cars are way safer than they were in 2001 but sooner or later somebody is going to pay the ultimate price again for putting on a good show for the so called "fans" that would be just as happy watching Roman gladiators duke it out. If you could get an honest answer from most of the drivers (or at least those not afraid of being fined for their honesty) I bet most of them would say they hate this crap. I also understand why Daytona and Talladega are the races that get the most attention from the TV networks but that also means these are the only races a lot of people bother to watch. And then NASCAR wonders why so many people don't take their sport seriously? Really? ?

I wonder if anyone has ever done a comparison of the percentage of cars that actually finished each Daytona 500 before and since the inception of restrictor plates in 1988? The number of cars not finishing would only include cars taken out in accidents and not due to mechanical failures. I still can't believe the car owners are willing to put up with cost of all those totaled race cars.

Finally got around to firing up the Bronco again after the latest round of changes. Temp gauge held steady at just below 180° after about ten minutes of idling and driving around the lot. The steering also works like it's supposed to now after repositioning the idler arm.

It occurred to me yesterday that there was no wiring diagram or instructions for how to wire the electric cooling fan. I thought I had it figured out based on normal use of colors but I thought I had also seen some wiring instructions in the description of one of the dozen or so listings for this radiator on eBay. I also did an internet search and came up with a wiring diagram that was similar to the instructions I found on the other eBay listing. Amazingly after following all that it actually works. I did have to add an extension to the ground wire on the fan motor and I removed an extra metal eyelet on the wire between the relay and the thermostat switch on the intake manifold. My starter solenoid is going to go on strike if I add any more wire connections to it. Between the LED light bar, the electric choke on the carb and the cooling fan it's getting awfully busy around there.

In FedEx' defense there is a pretty steep grade at the end of my lane where it intersects the highway. If your vehicle isn't at least AWD there are days when you ain't climbing that hill. Anyway, they did deliver the package to the Dollar General yesterday as I had requested but no one ever called to tell me it was there which I had also asked them to do. I called the store around 1 PM and they confirmed that it was already there. When I picked it up the cashier had no clue how to deal with it so I gave her the tracking number and said it was probably the large box right behind her. After verifying the tracking number she pushed it back where she found it. I had to then tell her that I needed to take it with me. I asked her if she needed to see any ID and she said that wasn't necessary. Whatever. Funny thing is I was wearing a mask anyway. When I checked FedEx tracking today it said the package was out for delivery and would be at the Dollar General today. I would assume the driver should have scanned the bar code when he dropped it off at the store yesterday and you would think FedEx would require that the store scan it again when the customer (me) picked it up. ? If I was like some people I could probably claim I never received it and ask for a refund. I haven't permanently installed the radiator yet but I did do a trial fit yesterday and was surprised to find that there was an interference between the electric fan's shaft and the water pump pulley. I fixed that by modifying the mounting brackets so that the radiator is closer to the core support. I suppose some of that could be attributed to the 2" body lift but you would hope that the radiator manufacturer would know their product well enough to account for vehicle mods that are fairly common. Then again I don't suppose there are too many old Broncos running around on the streets of China let alone any with a 2" body lift.

Update on the new radiator delivery: FedEx tracking shows that the driver decided not to attempt getting to my house yesterday afternoon due to a "weather event". Odd thing is that it was sunny all day yesterday and had I plowed the lane in the morning even though it didn't really need it. So, knowing that we would be getting a couple of inches of snow today I requested that FedEx deliver the package to a "local" Dollar General today which is still about ten miles from my house. That was the closest FedEx drop off location. The last time FedEx delivered a package to my house the conditions were no better than they were yesterday. I talked to the driver that day and told him that anytime the lane was not passable he could leave my packages at the neighbor's house at the end of the lane. I even watched him write that on his notepad. The problem with FedEx is that they seem to have a different driver every time I get a delivery. I removed the old radiator and fan yesterday.

There were two Mustang GT4's (?) in the preliminary Challenge whatever race. One managed a 10th place finish while the other DNF'd, I think.

While waiting on the new radiator I started cleaning up the engine compartment which basically amounted to some fresh black paint on the top of the cowl/firewall and underside of the hood. The other thing I did this week was to replace the manual choke on the Holley carb with an electric choke. Today's project is to finish some minor crack and paint chip repairs on the fiberglass hood scoop and repaint it with some classic Wimbledon white. A little disappointed with the whole radiator buying experience. The seller claimed it was shipped on Jan 31st but according to FedEx tracking they never had it in their possession until Feb 4th. The seller of course blames the delay on current events. It's now scheduled to be here on Monday, Feb 8th and it was coming from a neighboring state. What's frustrating is that the original estimated arrival date was Feb 3rd. If anyone is curious about the angle of the brake booster and master cylinder, that's the way they came from Ford on the original Broncos. The small, finned thingy on the driver side is a power steering fluid cooler that I added years ago. The oversize tires are tough on the steering system and can cause excessive heat buildup. I also replaced the original Ford pump at the same time with a Saginaw unit that handles the heat a little better. And I also replaced the worn-out original steering box with a new, slightly quicker ratio unit and I assume that's about the same time the pitman arm got installed out of whack. LOL

So would the "More to come in 2022" be in reference to the V8? I'm still holding out hope for an aluminum block supercharged 6.8L Godzilla...

I think I have the track bar issue resolved, at least for the time being. The simple solution was the remove the locknut from the adjustable end of the existing bar. The threaded eyebolt on that end is now bottomed out meaning the bar is a short as it can possibly be which got me to the desired result of having the front axle centered at ride height. The threaded connection should not have as much stress in this bottomed out position as it might if the eyebolt were extended out a few inches and the track bar cannot twist out of adjustment due to the way it is mounted. Sometimes even the blind squirrel finds the nut, pun intended. While I had it apart I also got rid of that nasty John Deere yellow. The next issue was with the steering. While driving it around the lot I realized that the turning radius when steering to the left was horrible. The fix was to remove the pitman arm, center both the tie rod and the steering box, and then reinstall the pitman arm. Once that was all done I had to remove the steering wheel and re-center it as well. Now the steering goes to full lock in both directions, which it wasn't doing before. I also decided to upgrade the cooling system. The old system did an okay job of cooling but it was just not reliable. The radiator was showing signs of a really slow leak and discoloration near the bottom of the core. You could see greenish corrosion forming on the copper fins. The other big problem was that when the 2" body lift was done before I bought the Bronco, the radiator, being attached to the core support, moved up 2" with the body but the engine, being attached to the frame, obviously did not. What that means is that the belt driven fan is no longer centered on the radiator core. The bottom of the radiator shroud was also modified so that the fan would not hit it. The fix was to order a new all aluminum radiator with an electric fan and metal shroud. I should have that by the end of the week. The radiator is exactly the same size as the original which means I can reuse all of the mounting hardware and hoses. The core is a three row which is also the same as the original. Being aluminum it should be more efficient than the old copper and brass radiator plus the electric fan will now be centered on the core and there will no longer be a mechanical drag on the engine to operate the fan. And, against popular opinion, I went ahead and mounted the push bar with the LED light bar. Not to worry though as it can easily be removed by unscrewing two 1/2" bolts and unplugging the wiring harness. ?

New subject. I started looking at an issue I'm having with the track bar (panhard bar) on the front suspension of the Bronco. That's the yellow bar in the photos. I was kinda planning to buy a new one because I noticed that the old one was at the minimum length of it's adjustment and the axle was still not centered under the frame. It is shifted almost 3/8" toward the passenger side. Back when I first bought the truck it had 5 1/2" of suspension lift plus a 2" body lift which was pretty ridiculous. Not long after I bought it I replaced the 1/2 ton truck snowplow front springs with 2" shorter progressive rate units and removed the 2" lift blocks from the rear axle. I also replaced the old what I assume were Rough Country brand shocks with the correct length remote reservoir Bilsteins for the now 3 1/2" of suspension lift. As I said, the problem now is that the front axle is no longer centered under the truck. When I lowered the truck 2" it moved the axle that 3/8" toward the passenger side. Because of the suspension design, as the suspension compresses or extends, the axle actually shifts from side to side as the suspension moves up and down. That is because it is pivoting on the ends of the track bar. You can't prevent it but you can minimize the effect it has on the steering, known as "bump steer", by trying to keep the track bar as parallel to the intermediate link bar of the tie rod as possible throughout its travel. The way they did that on the older designed Bronco lift kits was to add a drop bracket to the driver side frame rail to mount that end of the track bar. By lowering the upper end it brought it closer to the angle of the link bar. However, they discovered that wasn't such a great idea because it put a lot of extra stress on the frame rail. On some of the newer kits they use a taller bracket that attaches to the passenger side of the axle that instead raises the lower end of the track bar to accomplish the same thing. BTW, the original factory installed track bars were not adjustable. Whoever installed the lift kit on my truck did the right thing by including the adjustable track bar. They just went a little too high for my taste. Being an older kit, my truck naturally has the frame bracket. If you look at the first photo, you can see that the upper end of the track bar is now a bit too low. I'm going to try removing the lowering bracket from the frame rail. By doing that I can go back to the hole in the original bracket which will raise that end of the track bar and effectively shorten it thus pulling the axle toward the driver side. I doubt it will be perfect and I'm hoping it actually moves the axle too far in which case I would then be able to adjust the track bar by lengthening it to center the axle. As I said before, the track bar is at its shortest possible length right now which means I am out of adjustment with the current setup. The center-to-center length between the track bar bushings right now is 28". I checked the length of all the currently available adjustable track bars I could buy and they were all the same as the one I have now. In other words, I can't buy one that will adjust to a shorter length than what I already have. The way I see it I have no choice but to remove the lowering bracket from the frame rail. If the angle of the track bar is then too far off in the opposite direction I could buy one of the newer lowering brackets that has multiple hole locations. However, that might not be the best solution since it would put me right back to the frame stress issue although it would be lessened by the fact that the bending arm would be shortened by using a higher mounting point. I did look at the possibility of drilling an extra set of holes in the existing lowering bracket but the sides are tapered in the area where I would need to add holes so that probably wouldn't work very well. I could also try adding the newer style lifting bracket to the axle but the way it mounts would interfere with a u-bolt that attaches the front sway bar. One thing I will say about the suspension modifications that were on this thing when I bought it is that whoever did it apparently just threw every possible big, beefy part under there that they could buy at the time. I guess they were going for the monster truck look that was popular back then. It has override traction bars on the rear leaf springs, axle trusses and huge anti-sway bars on both axles and giant polyurethane bump stops on the front axle. It also had a set of link bars tying the rear axle to the center of the frame rails but I removed those because I believed they were restricting the movement of the rear axle too much. I still have not removed the front mounting plates for those but I plan to as they serve no other purpose now than to reduce ground clearance. I'm not exactly sure what they were trying to achieve with all that but it certainly made it ride like crap and took away most of the suspension articulation, or wheel travel. The only purpose the springs seemed to serve was to get it as high as possible because all the other crap wouldn't let them do anything else. Suspension technology sure has changed for the better since this one was built.

Thanks for the opinions guys. I'm obviously on the fence. Older vehicles aren't known for good lighting so anything that improves that is a good thing. But I agree the pushbar can also detract from the "old school" styling. Having said that I could show you some photos of some of the aftermarket plate type bumpers/pushbars that are sold for early Broncos that are anything but "nostalgic". To each their own. I think I mentioned before that the deer hunting is really good here but that also means that hitting a deer on the highway is a very real possibility and the pushbar does add a little extra protection. I replaced the front bumper cover twice on my old Sport Trac due to hitting deer. If I do decide to add the Duff's rock sliders to the rocker panels I think the pushbar would compliment those and add to the off-road look.

I just happen to have an extra push bar that is the same as the one I have on my F-150. There is an LED light bar that mounts in it as well. All I would need to mount it on the Bronco are some brackets to attach it to the frame rails, which I can make. Yes, no?

While searching the forums on classicbroncos.com I came across multiple threads where members were complaining about the same issues with the aftermarket fuel tanks and the piss-poor accuracy of the fuel tank sending units. One of the members has a connection to a sending unit manufacturer and started a group buy for the type of sending unit I mentioned earlier. The unit is longer so it gets the float closer to the bottom of the tank at low fuel levels and because the float is mounted to and slides on a vertical stainless steel post it also has a more lineal travel which should also make for a more accurate signal to the gauge. I placed my order today. Pretty sure it would make a lot of people's lives easier but I'm not sure if I want to suffer from the slings and arrows I would get by posting the pictures of my floor opening over there. You wouldn't believe the skepticism I got from one guy after posting pictures of my door stops. I guess he likes getting hit in the ass by his doors. LOL

I tried running the separate ground wire but it made no difference. When I checked the resistance in the wire from the hot side of the sending unit at the gauge it read about 34 OHMs which is not surprising (33.7 + .4 = 34.1). I suppose having a nearly ten gallon reserve when the gauge reads "E" is better than the opposite.

Back to a more on-topic subject. I've been messing around with the fuel level gauge the past couple of days. The problems I'm having are mostly related to the vehicle sitting in storage for the past however many years, which is typical for most of the other issues with this project. After getting the gauge mounted and wired, which was an adventure in itself, it didn't work. For a 12V power source I went to a Bronco wiring diagram I found online and found the wire that originally sent power from the ignition switch to the voltage regulator on the back of the original instrument cluster. That cluster has been pretty much gutted with the only remaining "gauge" being the speedometer. It also still has the indicator lights for the high beams and turn/hazard lights but that's it. A previous owner had already mounted Autometer oil pressure and engine water temp gauges under the dash as well as a matching tachometer on the steering column. As I mentioned in a previous post, I am adding a matching voltmeter and a fuel level gauge, also under the dash. Once I wired the voltmeter using the old voltage regulator feed for 12V switched power it works fine in both the ACC and RUN ignition key positions. Not so much for the fuel gauge. The first thing I found was that when I pulled on the wire leading from the main harness to the fuel tank sending unit it almost fell on floor. It was frayed and looking like it had been chewed off. Rats! Literally! After replacing that the gauge still didn't work. Using my Actron multi-meter I was able to trace the next problem to the fuel tank sending unit which was a bit surprising since it was pre-installed in the tank when I bought it new in about 2004. The tank came from BC Broncos in Texas and holds 24 gallons. The original tank held 16 gallons, I think. The new tank has an elaborate mounting system that connects to the frame rails and is adjustable for height. It also has a 1/4" thick skid plate which was something the old tank didn't have. That's all great but it's a real pain in the ass to remove and then reinstall the tank. Unfortunately, BC put the sending unit in the top of tank which also means you can't get to it. The original tank had the sending unit mounted on the front of the old tank facing the rear axle which also means there was no need for an access opening in the floor. Needless to say, now there is. I suppose some Bronco purists would cringe at the fact that I cut a hole in a perfectly good original floor but whatever. There's a bunch of other mods on this truck I'm sure they hate as well. Anyway, after getting access to the sending unit, I put the meter on it and it didn't have any reading, zero. So I pulled it out of the tank and the first thing that jumped out at me was the amount of yellowish crud on it. I assume that was a combination of evaporated gas and condensation. Once I had it cleaned it still registered zero OHMs of resistance. I then disassembled it and in the process found a plastic insulator that was too thick and not allowing the body of the sending unit to make contact with the top mounting flange which meant it wasn't getting a proper ground. That also probably explains why it never worked with the original gauge. After trimming the plastic piece and reassembling the unit it was now reading between 77 (full) and 13 (empty) OHMs of resistance out of the tank and it is rated for 77-10. Probably close enough. The Autometer gauge is rated for 73-10 OHMs. Again, should be close enough. After reinstalling the sending unit in the tank the sending unit now reads 33.7 OHMs with about 11.5 gallons of gas in the tank. Again, pretty close. However, after reconnecting the wires to the sending unit and the gauge, when I check the gauge it is now reading less than 1/4 tank. Not cool. The "hot" wire to the sending unit reads .4 OHMs from end to end, unconnected, which means there is no break in the wire. The sending unit appears to be reading the proper amount of resistance for the amount of gas in the tank which means that is no longer the issue and neither is the wire from the sending unit to the gauge so the problem would appear to now be with the gauge itself. If I ground across the gauge connectors it pegs past full so it appears to be functioning properly. I plan to try running a separate ground wire directly from the gauge to the ground lead on the sending unit. Right now the sending unit is grounded to the frame which is good but the gauge is grounded to the body. Shouldn't be an issue but it won't hurt anything to try something different. BTW, those white wires hanging under the new gauges are just the power leads for the background lighting inside the gauges and haven't been connected yet. If I can't get an accurate reading I can buy a gauge synchronizing box which connects between the sending unit and the gauge. Autometer makes one that also includes a digital readout and a low fuel level warning. I'm also not real impressed with the design of the BC Broncos sending unit. Besides the fact that it didn't even work as built it also uses the old school toilet tank swing arm setup. I know there is a replacement sending unit available that uses a float that slides up and down on a vertical post so that might be worth the change if only from a reliability and accuracy perspective.

Neither does any of the illegal alien BS that's bound to happen. Probably as we speak.

Wow! Be safe fuzzy. You're gonna hate me when I tell you this but I bought a 91 acre property that borders on the property my parents had when I was a kid. One of my sisters and her husband now own the old house. I grew up hunting on the land I now own. At last count I am up to 20 ladder tree stands, seven of which were here when I bought the place. The deer and turkey hunting is awesome! I also added a couple of small ponds and food plots and the previous owner added a small orchard. The property also has a natural gas well and I get free gas. There is also a stocked trout stream which also has native small mouth bass within walking distance.

I know exactly what you guys are saying, especially about having the time and space. Most of my projects started years ago in an unheated 2 1/2 car garage behind my house in Ohio. Before I retired I bought this property near my old hometown in PA and then added the 40x50 shop so first and foremost I would have a place to keep all my junk under roof and out of the weather. That didn't happen overnight which meant that I spent more time putting up the building, moving everything from Ohio, getting the house in Ohio ready to sell and then improving the attached garage here than I did working on any of my car projects. Most people downsize when they retire. I guess I'm not most people. ?

Speaking of inspections, my nephew who is a Pennsylvania State Trooper stopped by today. When I was showing him the progress on the Bronco I mentioned that I was just about ready to get it registered and inspected. He told me that if I register it as an antique vehicle it does not need to be inspected. There are some restrictions on usage of antique vehicles but nothing I couldn't live with. I'm not totally convinced that is the best choice but it is something to consider. I could also register it as a classic since it is more than fifteen years old. That would still require an annual inspection but would not have the same driving restrictions as the antique option. The advantage of either of those two options is a one-time registration fee that never needs to be renewed and classics can be converted to antiques once they reach the twenty-five year age category. The Bronco obviously qualifies for either option.

I find it interesting and entertaining to watch some of the auto related "reality shows" on TV but I hope everyone realizes that is far from the real world. Not everyone can afford what those shops charge and a lot of what you see is made for TV ratings drama. And it would be great to have the Garage Squad show up at your doorstep ready to finish your neglected project in three days but odds are that's not going to happen either. When you don't have a ten man professional crew things take a lot longer to finish and the results will probably not be as good. But for me there is a real sense of accomplishment in learning how to do this stuff myself. And if the results aren't what I expected then I have no one to blame but myself. Putting it out here for everyone to see can be intimidating but it has also kept me on track and was definitely an incentive to do it as well as I could. I also appreciate the fact that BOF is more civilized than the typical anti-social media. With all the other issues going on these days I just hope this has given others an incentive to do something similar and maybe provided a little distraction from some of the more unpleasant things we all have to deal with.