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"Gray Ghost" F250 Build

51K views 116 replies 39 participants last post by  landen300 
#1 ·
This is my first truck/build, updates will be slow and far between but I will try to keep it updated.

Truck Background

1991 F250 Lariat Reg cab
EFI 351, ZF S5-42, BW1356, D50 TTB, Sterling 10.25, 3.55s

Owned by an old guy in WV, his wife couldn't drive a manual so he got a different truck. I bought it and brought it to NY 2 years ago.

When I first got it it was horribly bastardized with big rig mud flaps front and rear, reflectors, running boards with lights, airdam with lights:shaking:


The start of the D60 swap


D50 Grossness :barf:


Pirate salute


D60 hanging
 

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#5 ·
YUP... deff. need it with these trucks- especially with the shackles up front; gets worse with lift springs and worn bushings. I tried it without one and nearly shit my pants the first time I got above ~35 on a brief downhill in the neighborhood. I am pretty sure the front end was literally airborn jumping left to right a couple times. It could have also been compounded by the front tires being worn funny from the previous TTB.
 
#9 ·
Yeah for the most part also they were designed with the ends of the ttb arms keeping everything in place too.

On the panhard bar you need make sure that it can move back and forth with the axle since it needs to move with the springs. Something like a big hiem joint with high misalignment spacers would work well.
 
#18 ·
Update

Okay not much has happened in the last year. I added some bed rails and a headache rack.

Photo 1 shows it as it sits now.

I moved due to getting a new job so I have a 1 car garage now instead of the barn to work in so in photo 2 you can see what I am working with.

Picture 3 shows the Bassani ypipe and cat that will be going in along with a Slowmaster 10 series and a Magnaflow stainless tail pipe. All 3" mandrel bent stainless. There is also my Ramsey RE10000 That I have to rebuild and build a bumper for.

Picture 4 is me mid-rebuild of an econoline saginaw which will be swapped in soon. You can see the bracket that I scavenged off the van also.

Pic 5 is a F-superduty master cylinder that may go in if i ever do rear disks since it is valved for them. In the mean time there are the 1-3/16" bore wheel cylinders that will go in to increase rear brake power. After the saginaw swap I am going to throw that hydrobooster in there for good measure.
 

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#21 ·
Last summer I added on board air. I converted the stock Sandan compressor with an inlet oiler. I used compression fittings to attach the air lines.

I got a big rig trailer air tank from work and stuffed it in front of the rear wheel.

I also fabbed up a switch panel because there was no where really good to put a bunch of switches in the stock truck. I also put an air pressure gauge in there so I can see how full the tank is.
 

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#24 · (Edited)
Well I took her out really wheeling for the first time this weekend. Did awesome for a stock pickup on 33s. Totally ripped the stock exhaust off on a tree so about 50% of the time I was bouncing it off the rev limiter with open manifolds. Did fine and didn't get stopped by the law on the way home, so a good day all in all.


I finally got my saginaw rebuilt with a coat of gofast semi gloss black, haha.

A word to the wise when rebuilding one of these, DO NOT replace the shaft bushing if you can help it. It has about a .002" interference fit and is made of some babot like material. After I knocked the stock one out I tried to pound one in with a block of wood and some oil, totally crushed that one, I then tried to press one in with an arbor press and a block of nylon with oil, that one bulged when I was about 90% in. By this point I am furious that I have to go and get another $13 kit for the damn bushing so I pulled out all the stops. The third one I machined an arbor out of aluminum that was -.004" the ID of the bushing, I threw the bushing and arbor in the freezer and the cast housing in the oven. I worked fast and oiled the bushing and threw everything in the arbor press. IT STILL SCRAPPED CHIPS OFF THE SIDE OF THE BUSHING! At this point I said it is going together and if it doesn't spin true is going to be used as a core! Everything runs smooth with it right now so we will give it a try.


Cliffs:

Tried to rebuild saginaw
F'd up 2 bushings trying to replace them

3 bushings x $13 = $39 for rebuild
or
$70 new pump - $20 core

still came out ahead even though my blood pressure is high.
 
#25 · (Edited)
Finally got off my ass and ripped the stock exhaust out all the way up to the flanges. Got the torch out and removed the rusted to shit manifold flange studs, came out fairly easy for being in there 20 years. The new studs will be here Monday, depending on weather I might get the new stainless system in tomorrow after work.

I ordered a set of 37's and recentered H1s from 406YJ last week, going to try and shove them in the stock wheel wells for now, shackle reversal is in the works.
 
#27 · (Edited)
You will be extremely satisfied with the y-pipe. I too am running a bare bones stock 351 and the Bassani headers/y-pipe WOKE the truck up, mileage greatly improved. I did have to use a ~5 foot O2 extension harness for a mustang due to where Bassani locates the bung compared to stock. Keep up the build :smokin:

Edit: The timing bump to ~12.5-13*, new copper plugs @.55" and MSD coil made a noticeable improvement in fuel economy, even passed emissions without my cat on. (was backordered, cat installed now)
 
#52 · (Edited)
You will be extremely satisfied with the y-pipe. I too am running a bare bones stock 351 and the Bassani headers/y-pipe WOKE the truck up, mileage greatly improved. I did have to use a ~5 foot O2 extension harness for a mustang due to where Bassani locates the bung compared to stock. Keep up the build :smokin:
I wish the only problem I had with my bassani was O2 sensor extensions...Ended up having to cut about a half inch out of the "Y" and cut the pipe and bend the drivers side bend in.





Glad yours fit ok. But yes, headers and full exhaust was night and day for my 351 as well.
 
#30 ·
Do not know how to check castor... can you explain to me? as seeing how the alignment shop Ive been taking my truck too must not be experienced in checking it either.
The 37" humvee tires I had rode great, till they went out of round and to be honest I forgot how much medium I used, but I did use golf balls instead of airsoft bb's since the price of the bb's was very high with relation to how many lbs I needed to use.
I went to a legit tire shop and the guy said he could use Dynabead balancing medium at $100 tire... I didnt bite on that deal. Ended up selling the tires to some jeep guy for what I paid for them, thought they were the greatest thing since pie.
 
#31 ·
You would need to put the truck on level ground and use an angle finder on top of the knuckle to figure out your caster. I can't remember what it's supposed to be off the top of my head for a kingpin or a ball joint Ford 60. You could look up some pics on google of what I'm talking about.

As for the medium, fuck that Dynabead noise. They were way too proud of that stuff when they priced it. Airsoft BBs work just as good and cost me only like 15 dollars to do 5 tires. They don't rust, fuck up your rims or tires, and they don't clog your valvestems like the powder does.
 
#32 ·
i run about 7* of castor on my chevy d60. not sure if that helps but most guys run between 5-7*. you want it in that range, too little castor and your tires will wander/ too much and you cant steer for shit. you want the top of the knuckle to tilt towards the back of the truck.
 
#37 ·
Depends on who works there but, I think you should be fine on your own. Do what Dr. Danger said and park your junk on level ground, then use an angle finder (dirt cheap at **** depot) and rest it on top of the knuckle. it will tell you what your castor is. If you need more, use degree shims, or make longer shackles. Im not to sure but I think you can run anywhere from 5-10* without any issues.


and moonshiner, the f250 that you swapped the d60 into, was the 60 kingpin or balljoint? loose king pin caps lead to more wobble and shake issues than most realize. if they are kingpins rebuild them and put a few washers under the spring to add tension.
Hes running a kingpin, its in the pics. I agree with you though, rebuilding the whole kingpin will work wonders if you're getting death wobble. If you rebuilt them and you're still getting shimmy, re-balance your tires.
 
#35 ·
Its not a matter of stock style shackles, its a matter of the extra stability gained if they come from the factory orientated in the front and you change them to the rear. That said, are your shackles in the front or rear?
 
#36 ·
as to balancing, don't, i repeat don't ever use the powder balance. always go with bb's if you go the dynamic route. most gas station and home compressors have way too much water in the air and when you air up you end up with clumps of shit in your tires that completely kills all balance. i fell for that shit when i was 16 and got raped on balancing that only lasted for a few weeks.

and moonshiner, the f250 that you swapped the d60 into, was the 60 kingpin or balljoint? loose king pin caps lead to more wobble and shake issues than most realize. if they are kingpins rebuild them and put a few washers under the spring to add tension.
 
#39 · (Edited)
if they are kingpins rebuild them and put a few washers under the spring to add tension.
Adding that bit of preload is very important when you are running bigger tires.

I also fully agree with previous comments about staying away from powder balancing media. I've always used copper coated bb's. I had one cup per 44" bogger, and she tracked smooth and straight at all speeds even without a panhard/track bar.

edit:
They're up front, completely stock except for the lack of a track bar.
Thanks for clarifying. I usually don't hear people being happy when they lose their panhard/track bar, have forward mounted shackles, and drive on the street allot. Always good to hear a different experience. What size tires do you run?
 
#44 · (Edited)
Ok for anyone doing the saginaw swap with a hydrobooster, this is what you need if you are going to do AN hose.

16mm x1.5 O-ring to -6AN fitting for the saginaw (at least on mine)
11/16" x 18 O-ring to -6AN fitting for the hydrobooster in.

I installed the exhaust system a few days ago, no real trouble there.

‪351w Exhaust Clip‬‏ - YouTube
 

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#45 ·
Ok got the Saginaw and hydraboost in. Went fairly easily, took a couple of hours.

Parts breakdown for my saginaw and hydraboost swap:

Econoline saginaw pump with bracket
F-Super Duty hydrabooster
3ft -6AN powersteering hose with one straight fitting and one 90 degree fitting
16mmx1.5 oring to -6AN fitting for saginaw out
11/16"-18tpi oring to -6AN fitting for hydraboost in
new booster to gearbox hose
reused stock booster low pressure return

the hydraboost high pressure out is 5/8"-18tpi oring FYI

I also added a return barb to the side of my reservoir using some 3/8 tubing instead of teeing the stock return line. I also had to "egg" out the stock master cylinder mounting holes with a 1/2" drill so it would fit on the hydraulic booster.
 

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