Project '71 F-100 Update: 7/24 Wiring Progress w/ Pics!

[quantumleap]

one question...how do those center caps mount onto the wheels..can you take a closeup of the center of the wheel?

[Caseys71]

I can take one as soon as I get a working camera but I am pretty sure that the center caps are pushed through the back of the wheel through the hub and held in there by pressure once you torque down the lug nuts.

[quantumleap]

ok then i think i need to try to find a set of center caps,do you know where to get 'em? How bad were the wheels before you used the never-dull and how would you rate it..
Just got me a set today!
Thanks Casey

[Caseys71]

, Glad to hear you got you a set! I believe you can get the center caps at summit for around $15-20 each I will PM you the link when I get a chance. The wheels were a bit corroded to say the least (can't describe the look of it but basically the way aluminum looks after it hasn't been polished for a while and kinda turns white I guess you could say ) I will get you a before and after picture before I log off tonight. I would rate the Never-Dull at 11 on a scale of 1-10 , my dad swears by it and I never got a chance to use any until these wheels and man did it make a difference, as good as it started to make the wheels look I just had to keep polishing them to see them get even shinier . If your wheels were in the condition mine were it may take a while to get them shinin' like they should be though so be prepared for a lot of polishing.

[Caseys71]

Well today after work I came home and stripped the rust off of each individual leaf in the pass. side leaf pack, stripped the rust off of the U-bolt plate and took some pictures . Now for the bad news...apparently I don't read directions to well and forgot to format my memory card before transferring the pictures on my phone to the card and after formatting it the pictures disappeared . So I will try and take some pictures as soon as I get off work tomorrow. Hopefully I can get a day off here soon so I can slap some paint on these babies, and strip the rust off the driver's side spring pack and get them covered in POR-15 as well. Wanted to get some work done over the weekend but I was too tired from work and was stuck going shopping , then it rained all day Sunday . Like I said you guys will be getting some pics in the new future, hopefully this time I don't delete all 20 of them before the make it onto the computer .

[Caseys71]

Here's the pics I promised ya' Quantum:

Before polishing but after a serious bath .

After Polishing, it'd probably look even better if I took the pic outside rather than in our garage .

And a side by side comparison .

[Caseys71]

Here are some pictures as promised :

Axle after being coated in POR-15

A shot of the 3rd member after being coated in POR-15


Bye-bye old leaf-spring bushings!

Leaf-springs stripped of rust and ready for POR-15, I just need a day off to do it .

Flex-O-Matic shackle stripped of rust also ready for POR-15

U-Bolt Plate ready for POR-15

Backing plate cleaned up and ready for paint

Comparison shot between my old U-bolt and the shiny new Grade-8 U-bolt I had bent at a local spring shop .

Comparison between old leaf-spring bolt and the pretty new Grade-8 one


That will be all for now

[72stepside]

So jealous on the rims. They look great!

[Caseys71]

Thanks man, I'm glad I finally got my hands on a set. I had envisioned using them from the beginning .

[RTG_RACING]

Looks good man.

[Caseys71]

Thank you sir!

Wish I had an update for today but can't do anything (Paint) yet until I get a better idea of how much rain we'll be getting. According to the last time I checked we might be getting storms off and on for the next week or so .

[basketcase0302]

Casey,

Looking very good!
And your Dad's absolutely right about the never dull. I used it many years ago in the Navy.
Fighting the rain here too, had to quit last night when the lightning struck about 20 yards from me and the bump!

[Caseys71]

Casey,

Looking very good!
And your Dad's absolutely right about the never dull. I used it many years ago in the Navy.
Fighting the rain here too, had to quit last night when the lightning struck about 20 yards from me and the bump!

Thanks Jeff! Ol' Basketcase is coming along as well!
Yea Never-Dull is some good stuff, glad he mentioned it to me after we picked up the wheels.
It's tough working around mother nature, especially when you've got a lot of painting to do . Don't know about you guys but over here we could use the rain, as hot as it has been everyone's lawns are getting brown, corn is drying out, almost anything that should be green is turning brown . That lightning will get your attention really quick . Glad it didn't hit you or the truck!

[Caseys71]

Let's see since the last update:
-Both spring packs have been coated in POR-15 and top-coated with a Silver Rustoleum
-I have installed new outer wheel-bearings on the rear
-Passenger's side brakes were done to include new shoes, new wheel-cylinder, new adjuster, new hardware kit, new wheel cylinder bolts/washers, and new nuts for the axle flange/backing plate bolts and soon to be turned drums Driver's side will be done once I get the backing plate painted.
-I masked off the center section and painted the rear portion silver to give it a nice contrast against the black everywhere else
-Changed axle flange gaskets and 3rd member gaskets will put new gear-oil in tomorrow or Wednesday for when I get the truck moving again
-Coated the U-bolt plates and all of the other misc. parts associated w/ the rear springs w/ POR-15 and Rustoleum
-Also picked up some more misc. hardware to finish up suspension
-Made my own center-pins for the spring pack out of some 3/8" by 3" Grade-8 bolts (pins that align the springs and locate the spring pack on the axle perch)
-Took some meat off of the leaf-spring bushings in the Flex-o-Matic shackle (they wouldn't fit inside the Spring-perches even after spending a day or two w/ a combination of a BFH, and my dad's help , I ran the bushing's through the band-saw and removed something like 1/32" off of each side of the bushing)
-Tomorrow I will be painting the driver's side backing plate and touching up any spots on the rear frame where the POR-15 didn't get top-coated (it's hard to tell the difference between POR-15 and Rustoleum when the POR-15 you are top-coating is wet and the same Gloss-black as the top-coat you are applying over it )
-Hopefully Wednesday I will be able to get the axle back under the truck and attach the drive-shaft, the shocks, do the driver's side brakes and start bending some brake lines .

I will try and get some pictures uploaded later on!

[Caseys71]

I promised you guys pictures, so here they are :

I think it turned out pretty good! Wish the paint hadn't seeped through the tape in some places but I will fix that tomorrow!

New adjuster and hardware. Ohh Shiny !

New hardware and shoes

New bushings


New wheel cylinder/Hardware, so much for NAPA having parts made in our country

New nuts on the axle-flange/backing plate bolts, hardware store didn't have any fine thread Grade-8's

New axle flange gasket

Comparison between my new center-pin that I made and the old one

Painting in progress!

More pics to come after I further progress!