1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

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Joshpow
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by Joshpow »

Itll haul one thing!! starts with an a and the other 2 letters are the same!
Josh

72 F-100 Ranger XLT SWB
71 F-100 Custom SWB
67 F-350 Dually Dump
02 F-250 Stroke
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2972100
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elgemcdlf
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

Managed to get the rack swapped out. Tell you what, sure beats having to swap out a steering box! Then I found another problem up front. My left lower control arm is bent. The shaft on the rear mount is bent. To be honest with you it may have been when I put the front end in and I just missed it. Suspension came out of a wrecked car. Anybody that has a CV IFS in their F100 have any problems with lower control arms? Anyway tomorrow morning I go shopping for a lower control arm. Sooner or later I will get the rear suspension in.

Josh - That's exactly what I am planning on. Right now the engine goes in. Maybe next winter it comes back out and built. Planning on the neighborhood of 650hp with a lobin' to the max cam (gotta sound cool). Go through the C6 and the rear end. Will need beefier axles and a pig support added. I am also planning on a heavy duty rear anti-sway bar.
Last edited by elgemcdlf on Fri May 31, 2013 6:34 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by Joshpow »

Cool. Love the FEs anyway. 650 np on an FE is even better!
Josh

72 F-100 Ranger XLT SWB
71 F-100 Custom SWB
67 F-350 Dually Dump
02 F-250 Stroke
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2972100
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

650hp out of a 460 is a no problem build that can run on tap fuel. No stress on it at all.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

Pulled the front bumper to do some mods. Removing the plate recess & setting it up for blind mounting. I will also be building in some rectangular driving lights. I don't have the lights right now so I can't cut the holes yet. I also managed to get a pic of the suspension with the bumper off. I have a set of original '53/'54 Custom Cab hood badges I am thinking about using. I am going to put them in the same place as the '70 badges and remove the F O R D across the front of the hood. If they don't work there my next thought is using just the FORD F 100 in the cowl area just above the seam where the fender and cowl come together. If that is the way I go I will leave the F O R D out front but will shave the original badges. These are pitted but I wanted to get a look before I spent the $175 on new ones.

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I am hoping to have the bumper back on and a decision on the badges sometime next week. Perhaps Wednesday.
Last edited by elgemcdlf on Thu Jan 29, 2015 8:28 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

Here is the bumper with the plate recess delete and blind mounting.

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Left side badge replacement.

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Left side of the truck now.

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Right side of the truck now.

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Head On view.

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The ends of the bumper need pushed back about 3". I will let the chrome shop straighten it out prior to chroming. I still have to order the lights and get all that set up. The appearance of waves in the bumper are an illusion caused by the ground area and chrome side by side.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by Blue Oval Man »

Great work on that bumper, looks awsome. Did you consider narrowing it up some to bring it in on the ends closer to the fenders? I have been thinking of this for some time now, no plate area and narrowing. I was also planning on cutting an inch or two out of the frame rails and moving the bumper in closer to the grill, I think it would "tighten" things up a bit up front. When are you planning on getting to the irs swap? I have all the parts to do the same mods but it will be a few months before I get to it so I have been living off your posts till I get at it.
David.
69 Ranger, 72 Ranger XLT SWB, 70 Ranger 4x4 SWB (future project), 79 Lariat SWB, 77 Lariat 4x4 SWB (another future project) 66 Galaxie 500 XL (first car, purchased new by dad), 68 Mustang GT S-code fastback, 90 T-bird SC, 03 Mustang Mach 1, 06 F350 PSD and 07 Sport Trac daily drivers.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

I have thought about narrowing it. I took a look at the stone guard and it followed the lines pretty well in stock width. I am putting rectangular driving lights in the bumper as well. Kinda thinking following roughly a 60 degree angle from the lights to the mirrors. Using that as a roughing in spot for the lights. I had not thought about clipping the horns and moving in tighter to the body. I am going to look at that. I may still narrow it a bit. Until it goes in for chrome you never know what I might do with it. I do like the look without the plate recess or bolt heads.

The IRS is always getting pushed back. The main problem is I had a bad heart attack back in Jan of this year and they put a defibrillator in me. I can not be around welding now so I am at the mercy of others. I only have two guys I know that I trust to do it for me so I wait until one of them can do it. I am still hoping for before winter. Hoping for within 2 weeks. I know I will be one happy camper when it's in. Then comes the 460. Have to pay others to do that as well. Need custom mounts (yep welding) built but hopefully I can sneak that in before spring. After that I think most of the rest that needs done I can do myself.

I am raising the hump in the hood 3/4" for a very subtle cowl induction. Sinking the tail lights 1" along with some other subtle body mods.
Last edited by elgemcdlf on Sat May 05, 2012 3:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by fbomb100 »

looking good elgemcdif ... I thought too why you did'nt narrow closer to the body as well.. or that you did'nt get to that part as of yet....damm I need to get on mine...
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

I go at it little by little. Checking the "look" before making the next move. Clipping the horns taking the bumper closer to the grille area lends itself to narrowing the bumper. If I covered the body line in the stone guard by moving the bumper back then it would look ok to me if I covered that same body line on the ends by narrowing. The other option would be to custom build the stone guard. If you take a look at yours you will see what I mean. My thoughts are it wouldn't look correct covering that body line on the ends but following it all the way across the front. Clear as mud yet?

The other thing that somewhat bothers me about narrowing it is if you look at the end of the bumper in relation to the headlight doors. It curves tightly around the outside of the doors. I will have to take a close look at it all. '67-'72 bumpers are hard to come by around here. The sectioned in piece is from a '64-'66 truck which happens to be the same bumper with exception of the ends. The '64-'66 just go down straight and the '67-'72 bumper actually follows the upper shape all the way around.
Last edited by elgemcdlf on Fri Oct 21, 2011 2:25 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

Another issue with the bumper is the radius on top where it turns the corner. I am thinking I need to cut that down to a smaller radius.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

I had an appointment to drop the truck off Wednesday for the IRS. As luck would have it we got rain all day. I got all the parts hauled in to the shop though. Had high hopes for Thursday but rain again. I finally got it dropped off this morning. Greg told me he would call early next week. He knows I want to document the install so he will call when he is ready to start on it. If all goes well I will have pics with commentary on the IRS install next week sometime.

On another note my truck was featured in the Readers Rides section of Powerblock Magazine. I went back through this year's issues and it is the only vehicle featured this year in primer. For those checking it out you will find it 13 clicks back. It is issue #33.

http://www.powerblocktv.com/magazine/
Last edited by elgemcdlf on Sat May 05, 2012 3:18 am, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

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The IRS install started today. First a couple pics of the ousted rear end!

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The start of the install is to remove the bed from the truck. Once the bed is removed anything preventing removal of the old rear end or install of the IRS needs to come out. In this case the mufflers were far enough forward so they could stay but the tailpipes had to go. This truck is getting a 460/C6 soon so the exhaust will stay as you see it in the pics until the engine swap. As luck would have it there are really only two U Joints used by Ford unless into a heavier truck. The truck's driveshaft had a small size and the Thunderbird had a large. My local auto parts store was able to find a u joint that would allow putting the TBird end on the truck driveshaft. This is a temporary as when the engine and trans swap takes place a new driveshaft will be built. I am intentionally not posting the u joint number as your driveshafts may have different u joints that need merged. Any good parts store should be able to locate the u joint you need.

I purchased new brake hoses and adapters to convert the 3/16" line over to metric so it could be screwed into the TBird hoses. The adapters are Edelmann 271300. The shocks are not being mounted as in the TBird so shorter shocks are needed. There are plenty of options available. I bought mine at Advance Auto. They are front shocks from a 1970-1982 Chevrolet Blazer. The Advance Part number is 59041. The Monroe part number is 33033. Napa also has Monroe shocks with the part number 94005. If you would prefer something different you are looking for a shock with a compressed length of 10 1/8" & an extended length of 14 5/8". You want eye type mounting on both ends.

I purchased a mount kit from http://www.truckirs.com. At the time of this entry the kit cost was $395. plus shipping. Ok here we go. Once the rear end and all other required items are removed we measure in 22 5/16" (SWB) 26 5/16" (LWB) from the end of the frame rail on each side and mark the frame. A note on the LWB dimension. This is not a verified number as this install was done on a SWB truck. I do not currently have access to a LWB to check. My recommendation would be to mark the axle centerline on the frame. Align the IRS to this line and utilizing the rear mount mark the frame for the cut. We will be making a cut vertically from this point 1 3/4". Then with the frame level we mark the frame for a horizontal cut forward the length of the rear mount. So far so good. Now comes the fun part, time to weld the rear mounts in place. After considerable checking for squareness the rear mounts are tacked into place. You will notice the holes for the rear mount are slotted so you have a fair amount of room to shift the carriage around after the mounts are welded in place. In this install the spring perches and upper shock mounts are still on the frame. Just in case we got scared and wanted to put the 9" back in. They will be coming out here shortly. The mount kit comes with 6 gussets, 3 for each side. It also comes with the upper shock mount ears. Here is what the rear mount should look like at this stage.

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At this point and visible in the picture the 2x2 piece of .125 wall tubing is welded into place. The length of this piece is 33 11/16" long. It is positioned centered with the mounting bolts & level. Weld to the top of the rear mounts as well as the frame rail. Here are a few pics of the install so far.

Cutting out the upper shock mount on the passenger side.
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The upper shock mount (original) on the passenger side prior to removal.
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A shot of the left side from the back of the cab.
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A view from above before the 2x2 crossmember was welded in. The line with vice grips on it is the original brake hose.
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Passenger side view.
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A view from the rear of the driver's side.
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One advantage to using the Thunderbird IRS: everything is mounted to the carriage. You have 4 main mounting bolts, 2 brake lines, 2 shocks and the driveshaft. Once they are disconnected the entire unit is out of the truck. HD axle shafts are available for this rear end rated for up to 650hp. Larger diameter anti-sway bars are available aftermarket. Aftermarket drop springs are also available. Being an 8.8 you can get gears in practically any ratio you desire including a locker. I will be cutting coils out of my springs to get the correct ride height. If I have a problem with the springs after cutting I will look into other options. That is it for now. More pics tomorrow as we finish up the install and get the bed back on.
Last edited by elgemcdlf on Thu Jan 29, 2015 8:37 am, edited 6 times in total.
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by fbomb100 »

I see your getting started on the IRS! cool.I do see the drum brakes on it are you going to put disk on it as they did come with them in the later birds and mark viii but the hubs are only 4 1/4 B.C.still.. A hub from a IRS mustang would work and give you 4 1/2 B.C. then you'll have a maching set for rims! just my :2cents:
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Re: 1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

Post by elgemcdlf »

I may swap out for discs later. I planned on swapping the bearings to get a matching bolt pattern. I will have my final answer on discs when I get ready to swap bearings. Getting the engine and trans in are more important to me at this time. The 302 is about dead. The engine will require fab work so I am back to paying a shop to do it for me. Along with that comes a new fabbed radiator and driveshaft. If I did the bearings and swapped to discs right now it would just put me farther away from doing the engine. The wheels I have on the front of the truck came with the IRS. They are drilled for both bolt patterns so I am good for now on that part. I still have fantasies of solid steel reverse type with trim rings and center caps painted to match the truck. They will have to be custom built due to the 12" rotors up front along with offset issues.
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