Dead Horse revisited

[Jayson5150]

After spending 3 hours b-( in my 120 degree garage to change a starter..(original 1969) and dealing with headers. I am beginning to wonder what I should do with this beast. As much as I want to continue trying to bring it back to life...i think i bit off more than i can chew. When I pulled the starter i felt inside the bell housing and removed a handful of rat droppings, fur, bones, dead leaves, etc :-& . Realizing this is not a good sign. I am kind of left with these options....

1) Pull motor/tranny/xfer case & rebuild--probably a good idea anyway.

2) also pull front and rear axle assemblies and sell the rest for scrap.

3) bail on project completely, take the loss & sell it off.

Pulling drivetrain will open things up so I can install the new Centech harness that's been sitting on the bench for the last couple of months. I have also switched to floor shifter and rebuilt the fuel tanks(boiled out, replaced sending units & lines) The truck ran two weeks ago but starter finally quit and new one wont turn it over either. What do you guys think?? (

 

[Bully Bob]

Can you turn motor over by hand....?... meaning be sure it's not stuck or frozen. (fur, bones, droppings & leaves won't stop starter but clean as much out of there as you can)

The (old) starter may still be working...have it tested at auto parts.

If new starter won't crank it over, then there's a prob. elsewhere. Is clutch disengaging & out of gear..?

 

[Jayson5150]

Old starter was tested...bendix popped out but spun very slowly & weakly. new one makes noise like it's trying, not like bendix teeth are grinding more like motor is over torqued...just doesnt sound right. I can turn the motor by hand farily freely. last week it would start but seemed like the battery was dying but battery holds 14 volts and drops to 12 when under load. and starter was dying even when being jumped.

(Note: the truck did sit parked outside ******* for 20+ years before i drug it home in Feb.)

 

[1973Donkey]

Dont be discouraged. It took me about 7 years of hard work before I actually had something to show for my efforts. Time goes by quickly. I set short term goals. I split the car into 6 sections and chose 1 section at a time to finish. Heck, you could find another donor engine from some other vehicle for a reasonable price. But it looks like you a ways away from driving your project anyway. Its all worth the effort in the end in my opinion.

My bronco actually had a fire in the engine compartment that trashed and buckled the sheet metal, hood and all the rubber!



Here are some images of my engine compartment after I replace the wiring and rubber gaskets etc. I had to replace the inner fender walls and wheel tubs as well. The firewall is still damaged to a point but i smoothed it out and continued on.



This took a few years. But finally the work was complete and I had it painted.



1998 looks great!

Here is my bronco 17 long years later with some rust and other issues



Brake booster rusting badly



Headers rusting



Rear seams rusting



Now i'm back fighting the same gremlins of rust but I know that in a couple of years of saving and hard work I can get the Donkey back into show quality form!

Its a love hate relationship. But I saved and penny pinched asked friends for advice and help. Your project vehicle looks better than mine did when I got started! Keep working on the things you know you can solve and finish. It makes the larger things like engines seem small in the end. I'm not sure of your age, I'm creeping up on 40 and this project has been very frustrating and rewarding. don't give up yet.

M Smith

 

[1973Donkey]

In my opinion, i would remove the engine and set it aside. tinker with it when you feel like it but don't focus on it. It looks like only about $1200 bucks and some busted knuckles away from having the body prepped for paint. I never took the body off the frame on mine. I Just used a hand held wire brush and a can of black primer to get it looking good...not perfect but it worked. I look at the work you have done and see myself about 14 years ago! I didn't have a garage to work in so your ahead of seasonal game i had to play.

remember, engines are cheap and plentiful if you just want to get it on the road, look in the paper for a running 289 or 302 that has some milage on it $350 should get you one.

You can look back on this in 5 years and smile, the memories and pain are worth it! I have to contend with my wife now! makes this sort of work really hard.

M Smith

 

[76Explorer]

Is that the ground wire from the battery attached to the valve cover bolt? It should be mounted to the block, somewhere closer to the starter.

 

[Jayson5150]

Is that the ground wire from the battery attached to the valve cover bolt? It should be mounted to the block, somewhere closer to the starter.

Yes it is...and I am going to replace it and move it to a better location......also want different headers on here, these have front two pipes running under motor mounts and rear two over it....cant remove without lifting motor; also they make a simple starter exchange a pain.

I'll have a cherry picker in this week...I'm gonna pull motor, take it apart and start over under the hood...when I cant afford parts, it'll give me an area to clean up.

I cant belive the damage rodents can do..vacuum lines, wires, hoses etc.

I'm not going to give up.....If for no other reason than to prove my wife wrong /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 

[SAYBYE]

Hi Jayson 5150

Looks like your bronco has a lot of potential. It will be worth it. Looks like most of the work will be time consuming only. You should be able to do most of the work yourself. I'd get a good book to show how everything gos. The best one I found, is a 68 Bronco/69 Econoline manual. It has a light green cover with white writing on it. It shows everything, exsploded veiws, wireing, how to rebuild, body seams, everything. Books 4 cars is a web site where you could find it. I got mine at a swap meet for 20 bucks. If you take your time and do one area at a time you'll have it on the road in notime. Don't be afraid to ask questions.Good Luck SAYBYE