DeLone's Build Thread

[Thed]

Alright, here's a quick history lesson.

Here's what's been going on recently

All of my current mods are in my sig below, and as you might see I am currently undergoing a 302 swap for her. My wish list is as follows:

-AFR 185cc heads coupled with some 1.72:1 rockers which will most likely be from Scorpion. Hardened pushrods will be required.

-XE270 cam from COMP Cams

-Trick Flow Track Heat intake

-75mm throttle body

-77mm MAF

-30 lb/hr injectors

-Torque Monster headers

-A/C will be kept.

-HP goal is 400.

-Tossing around the idea on whether or not to make a custom IRS setup when the 7.5 gets replaced. A 4-link 8.8 is starting to look more likely, though.

-M5OD-R2 transmission



Right now I already have a 1997 302 from an Explorer sitting in the garage (GT40 heads). I have a 1996 computer from the J/Y. I already have adjustable engine mounts waiting for me. I'm currently working on getting a T-5 from a guy on The Ranger Station from a 1994 3.8L Mustang. The tricky part will be converting the mechanical linkage to a hydraulic setup. I have it mostly figured out, it's just a matter of finding the right parts and fabbing up a bracket for an external pull-style slave cylinder.

Until then, the little, old, reliable Lima with 220K miles will keep me going.

_____________________

Parts list updated 3/12/13

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[westy]

Yowza!!

 

[Thed]

Yeah... you've been missing out on some stuff Westy. Nobody ever checked out the thread over at M/T so I just plain ol' stopped using it.

 

[Thed]

Aright some progress on the hydraulic clutch problem.

I'm just going to convert to mechanical.

















Nah just kidding I'm keeping hydraulic!!!

I found out that just about every slave cylinder out there needs a master cylinder with a 3/4" bore. My Ranger, and every Ranger from my generation on used a 5/8" bore master cylinder. Incompatible... damn and blast. So I start digging and digging around to see what I could do about that. I found out that the 1992 model year (and only 1992 MY...) Ranger with the 4.0L engine had a factory 3/4" bore master cylinder that bolts into my stock location!!! SUCH GREAT NEWS!!! And, there are more than enough to choose from on Rock Auto, starting at roughly $40.

Now I'm still looking into the slave cylinders as I'm unsure if I need a pull or push type, but it looks like I solved my master cylinder problem.

 

[Rev]

Wow, that is crazy that you even found that. Nice!

 

[Thed]

The Ranger community is a great one Rev!!! We love helping each other out, especially with obscure information.

You may know that too, though. The Mazda followers are an excellent bunch. Always fun to chat with!

 

[Rev]

Yea, some guys are extremely helpful. I'm glad you found a good group!

 

[Thed]

Alright so the whole T-5 thing is... ehh, screwed over warm. And to be honest, I'm kind of thankful. I didn't have high hopes for the durability of that transmission. I'd love a Tremec, but it's not going to be a T-5 (or a T-45 or a 3650). All of the others are WAYYYY over budget for this build. So it looks like I'm screwed.









But not really.


1st 3.75
2nd 2.32
3rd 1.43
4th 1.00
5th 0.75

The gear ratios listed are for the Mazda M5OD-R2. If that looks familiar, it's because either A) you noticed that I have a M5OD-R1 or B) that it came in the Broncos and F150s.

There are a few disadvantages to this transmission compared to the T-5.
-It's heavier, much heavier. Try 40 more pounds than the 80 LB Tremec.
-It's harder to find
-It doesn't like to speed shift very much

But, in my opinion, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
-It's more durable
-It can handle more power
-No hole will need to be cut to place the shifter in the cab, unlike the Tremec. The existing hole will be used.
-Very easy to rebuild
-Labor and parts for a rebuild are cheap
-And the big one, cheap to acquire. I found a used one on eBay with 127k miles on it for $475 shipped to my door. Yeah, that's cheap.

 

[Thed]

In the spirit of the thread and keeping things updated for whatever's sake, here's an update.

The rear U-Joint has been shot for some time now, and I finally got around to replacing it on Tuesday.

And on Monday, some new goodies showed up.

A Snap-On impact ratchet and a Blue Point digital caliper. Both are extremely awesome.

Also I have been contemplating putting in an Explorer center console with some leather bucket seats. I honestly think the results would be awesome. Something similar to this:

And I saw this on another guy's Ranger with a 302 in it... chrome spark plug wire looms. I MUST HAVE THEM!!!

Alright, and as for the progress of the build, I got a tranny last week for the swap, and it came in today!!!! It's an M5OD-R2 from a V6 F-150 and I got it for $325 shipped to my door. TOO AWESOME!!!

Surprisingly, it came with the slave cylinder still attached. Just to be on the safe side I'm going to get a new one anyways.

So that's what's going on.

 

[Thed]

Got some shit done today! Took apart the top end... of the intake.

I did this in an hour and a half:

Took the upper intake off, and removed the wiring harness.

Then I prayed to God that there was no gasoline left in the rails and pulled them. Came off with ease.

And this is how she sits now...

Also, I found this in cylinder #8's intake.

It doesn't smell like coolant, but it kind of looks like it. I just think it didn't get as much crud in it as the rest of the cylinders did.

And after a few more hours of work, it looks like I have some bad news. It looks like the water pump may have failed or at least the gasket did, because when I pulled the alternator bracket I discovered this.

The engine still turns and stuff, so I'm not too worried.



Also, do you want to know what E10 does to your engine? Well it leaves this white crud caked on to your exhaust valves. All of them look like this.

But other than that everything is going smoothly. This is how it sits now.

And is anyone interested in some Exploder headers? $50 + shipping and they're yours.

Oh yeah, upon removing the broken dipstick, I found out that the pan is still full of oil. Assholes were too lazy to even drain it.

 

[Mustangeio]

Yea, some people are very useful. I'm grateful you discovered a excellent group!

 

[Thed]

Oh wow thanks for bringing me back to this, I have a lot of updates to come...

 

[Thed]

I went to my local LKQ here in Durham to go pick up some goodies for the swap!

Ford wanted $160 for this bracket alone... but I got everything I'm about to picture for $140.

Power steering pump and A/C compresor on its bracket

Throttle cable

NEW DIPSTICK!!!!!!!! :sweet:

I spent $170 on the following:

Water pump
185* thermostat
Thermostat housing gasket
Head gaskets
Valve cover gaskets
Oil pan gasket
Timing cover gasket
Upper and lower radiator hoses
Belt
Oxygen sensor connector
Two idler pulleys

Not too bad IMO.

No more lower intake...

Took off the water pump and valve covers...

And I found this... it seems like caked-up coolant got stuck in there. That will be cleaned out, as that timing chain cover costs a cool $160... no thanks.

No more rockers...

Who else knew that the exhaust and intake springs were different?

Heads off!

I found a master rebuild kit with forged aluminum pistons from Summit. Cost? $575

Also, I got this GearWrench 239-piece set for a STEAL! Brand new and literally too good of a deal to pass up. It also turns out that they just released info in their new 120-tooth ratchets last week and they will definitely be added to this set make this new set perfect!

Everything here for $233 after tax - about $100 off what others sell these for. Oh, and a lifetime warranty on everything. If it breaks I just go to wherever GearWrenches are sold and they give me a new one no questions asked.

 

[Thed]

Did some work today...

Took off the harmonic balancer (with a steering wheel puller, don't ask why), the oil pan, and the timing cover.

Then I took the cam out and flipped the engine over.

And I called it a day.

Interesting tid-bit: all of the connecting rods are labeled the cylinder in which they reside.

 

[Thed]

Got some brand spankin' new A/C lines for $48 thanks to Rock Auto!!!

Also, it looks like getting a dyno tune is going to cost roughly $779. Not bad considering I get to keep an SCT X3 in doing so.

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