'76 F250 Turbo Build

[Frank]

Interesting- going through almost the exact same fitment/ supply hose issues with an obsolete car. NO replacement tank available, and the closest tank I could get is giving me the same grief- and as you say, twice the aggravation working solo.
Hang in there.

 

[Soldmy66]

Is it possible/feasible to have a skilled muffler shop custom bend, build, and weld a new filler neck?

 

[Engine Fan]

Fwiw, as much as you dont want to, I would notch the bed rail and reinforce it with plate.

 

[jgavac]

Fwiw, as much as you dont want to, I would notch the bed rail and reinforce it with plate.

This is ultimately the most likely way I see it going. I don't have a welder so I can't reinforce it myself, which is part of why I really don't want to do it. If I could reinforce it myself it wouldn't be as big of a complaint.

Ideally, I'd like to get a refund on the tank and try a different brand tank, but I don't hold out much hope for that

 

[Bronctopia]

caused the evaporust to turn mustard yellow and

That color looks like textbook Zinc Chromate paint pigment.

 

[jgavac]

Well I'm really at a loss on what to do with this damned tank. To my surprise, Aerotanks is willing to refund me for this tank. Biggest issue is getting it palletized and freight shipped back to them.

I had found another tank option from Fat Fender garage that I thought would work, but looking at it again it looks like it would require moving the rear crossmember that the Aerotank notches around, so goes back to not wanting to make serious modifications.

Then I thought maybe I'd just say screw it to buying a tank and instead designing one myself, but using the rough dimensions from the Aerotank, I'm getting quotes back $1500+ from marine shops around me because of how much welding it is. Now granted, if I can find someone locally with a laser cutter and then maybe hire someone to weld it up it as side work in their garage, I could potentially bring the cost down. And I could do a more simplified box shape to reduce weld count. But then after all that work, am I really saving anything vs cutting my bed for the aerotank or moving a crossmember for the fat fender tank?

This is all just a big headache.

 

[PSIG]

Remind me again what the goals are with the custom tank? You don't need a special tank for EFI. There are other options to make a plain tank work properly down to the last drop of fuel. Maybe a search of fuel tank catalogs with a post-it note of max measured dimensions would find an inexpensive option? The last tank I bought was blow-molded (like boats, RVs, military vehicles, etc). More than a stock tank, less than a custom, and tough stuff. Before that, a Chevy Suburban tank to fit the spare tire space in a Ranger.

 

[sixtseventwo4d]

At this time it looks like you are past the halfway mark to completion, whereas any other way you are back to the starting line.
Is putting the filler opening inside the bed a customizable option?

 

[jgavac]

So where the problem is the lack of a factory tank option under the bed for my truck. The 73-77.5 4wd F250s (colloquially know as highboys) have a completely different frame that is narrower from the cab rearward compared to the other trucks in the lineup, so Ford stuck a gas tank in the cab and called it a day, and there's little aftermarket support.

I didn't want to mess with in line EFI pumps since in tank is better, but there isn't a good way to modify the in cab tank for an in take pump, plus I didn't want the noise of a pump inside the truck.

So to get one under the bed, I have a few options
1. Buy aftermarket tank designed to fit from Aerotank or FFG, the only companies making something that works with the narrow frame
2. Modify tank from another vehicle to fit - bronco 2 tanks have been made to work in the past
3. Generic fuel cell in the bed, but that takes away bed space, and cells are usually small.
4. I design one and have it built

 

[DON]

So where the problem is the lack of a factory tank option under the bed for my truck. The 73-77.5 4wd F250s (colloquially know as highboys) have a completely different frame that is narrower from the cab rearward compared to the other trucks in the lineup, so Ford stuck a gas tank in the cab and called it a day, and there's little aftermarket support.

I didn't want to mess with in line EFI pumps since in tank is better, but there isn't a good way to modify the in cab tank for an in take pump, plus I didn't want the noise of a pump inside the truck.

So to get one under the bed, I have a few options
1. Buy aftermarket tank designed to fit from Aerotank or FFG, the only companies making something that works with the narrow frame
2. Modify tank from another vehicle to fit - bronco 2 tanks have been made to work in the past
3. Generic fuel cell in the bed, but that takes away bed space, and cells are usually small.
4. I design one and have it built

Just a thought, maybe time to invest in a MiG welder. Notch the frame a reinforce as necessary. A MiG is really easy to learn. Get a small tank from Tractor Supply. A few practice beads will help build confidence . It had been years since I used an arc welder (was never real good). Then I got a MiG and it was very easy to pick up on. A side grinder to make the cuts and prep the metal. Just a thought

 

[Frank]

jgavac, is the issue the fuel flow from the supply nozzle into the tank, if it's mounted a couple of inches lower? That is, the inlet hose will be blocked by the frame? I ended up running the rubber supply hose under the frame on the '62 AMC car because the tank was not a match to original. It's a slight uphill slope the last 6" of the filler hose, the top inch of the hose is above the plane with the base of the tank filler neck but the rest is below it. The ONLY reason I think this will work without airlocking and spewing gas out is the separate vent tube from the tank. It's higher than the inlet hole and separate from it. I made sure to run the vent upward only, attaching it to the filler neck a few inches below the gas cap, and not to neck it down anywhere so it can exhale fully as gas is added. I have not tested it yet.
Your vent tube is similar. . Seems like at this point if there's any way to drop the tank enough to clear on top, that's the ticket. Then what mods to get the filler pipe to work from there. A roundabout route from the fill cap to the tank may be ok up to a point, if the vent is kept full diameter and sloping 100% upward to a point near the gas cap. It may require ditching or modifying the factory metal inlet pipe. Mine did, used a short Summit cap flange to bolt the the inlet point and seal the gas cap. (listed for a '60's Mustang lol) Then rubber hose from there.
Just food for thought. . .

 

[jgavac]

In case anyone was considering it, I can't recommend moving in the middle of a big project like this one - it's been a bit of a pain my roommates and I decided to move and it all came together really abruptly right after the 4th, so I've been doing approximately nothing on the truck this whole past month.

One of the big things was moving my truck and roll cabs - I have a deck over trailer, but its brakes aren't wired up and I didn't have anything to safely tow it with (while loaded with a truck - my range rover managed it just fine with furniture), so I ended up reaching out through the local car clubs and found someone willing to lend a hand with their trailer and tow rig.





Though it may not look like it, this garage is actually bigger than my old one. Hopefully going to get moving on this again soon

 

[guhfluh]

So where the problem is the lack of a factory tank option under the bed for my truck. The 73-77.5 4wd F250s (colloquially know as highboys) have a completely different frame that is narrower from the cab rearward compared to the other trucks in the lineup, so Ford stuck a gas tank in the cab and called it a day, and there's little aftermarket support.

I didn't want to mess with in line EFI pumps since in tank is better, but there isn't a good way to modify the in cab tank for an in take pump, plus I didn't want the noise of a pump inside the truck.

So to get one under the bed, I have a few options
1. Buy aftermarket tank designed to fit from Aerotank or FFG, the only companies making something that works with the narrow frame
2. Modify tank from another vehicle to fit - bronco 2 tanks have been made to work in the past
3. Generic fuel cell in the bed, but that takes away bed space, and cells are usually small.
4. I design one and have it built

Soulless Innovations

We are a small metal fabrication shop specializing in welding aluminum and steel automotive after market parts for lifted, lowered, and hotrod cars and trucks

soullessinnovations.com

Though not exactly the same, F250 2wd frames from 67-72 are very similar to the 67-72 F250 4x4 frames and 73-77.5 F250 4x4 frames are almost exactly the same as 67-72 f250 4x4 frames. That said, Soulless may be able to help, as they offer the "narrow frame" rear tanks. The frame dimensions can be found at https://fordification.com/tech/bodybuilder70.htm and https://fordification.net/tech/bodybuildbks.htm

 

[jgavac]

Soulless Innovations

We are a small metal fabrication shop specializing in welding aluminum and steel automotive after market parts for lifted, lowered, and hotrod cars and trucks

soullessinnovations.com

Though not exactly the same, F250 2wd frames from 67-72 are very similar to the 67-72 F250 4x4 frames and 73-77.5 F250 4x4 frames are almost exactly the same as 67-72 f250 4x4 frames. That said, Soulless may be able to help, as they offer the "narrow frame" rear tanks. The frame dimensions can be found at https://fordification.com/tech/bodybuilder70.htm and https://fordification.net/tech/bodybuildbks.htm

This is some good information to consider, thank you! I'm still not sure what exactly I'm going to do, but more than likely I'm going to end up modifying the bed to make the tank I have work. It's just going to be substantially easier to do it that way rather than return this one and try and get something else ordered up or made.

 

[jgavac]

Progress has been slow going while unpacking after the house move, organizing the garage, etc. But getting back into the swing of things finally.

Old garage had racks that stayed with the house, so finally picked up my own and got things organized and accessible so I could start work on the truck again.




One outstanding problem was the backside of the fuel rail didn't clear the firewall, and finally got around to having someone move the outlet from the end to the side.


Bit tight with it now angled towards the future plenum, but this will be way easier to work around than the firewall


Lastly, been getting the ECU wiring ready to go. Got my bulkhead plug mounted, and then ordered up a plain bundle of wire for the engine side. Because I had that one pigtail sent to me defective, I was able to cut the connector off that and use that bundle for the MS3 card, and just had to order the expansion card bundle. While I wait for that to get here, I started working on my pin diagram and then mocked up the wires I do have (they're not pinned yet). I'm basically going to split the wires by side of the engine, then have it wye off to each side as soon as it leaves the connector. Pretty happy with how this going so far. This is the part I'm most concerned about, but I've spent so long looking at and thinking about the wiring diagrams now I'm a lot less concerned about it. Still plenty of room for errors tho

 

[jgavac]

Not too much more to report, but I have the engine side plug pinned out for now.







I also realized the other day that with the bulkhead plug mounted the way I do, the whole cab harness will be trapped with no way to take it out and I'd have to pin it in place, which doesn't sound fun or make for a serviceable harness. My first plan is to see if moving the flange to the inside of the firewall leaves enough room for the engine side plug. If that doesn't work, I'll cut a bigger hole and just have a bulkhead panel.

 

[Frank]

No bolts in the side cover?

 

[jgavac]

No bolts in the side cover?

I got those new Bluetooth bolts

I'm likely going to be replacing the inspection cover with the finned one from Aussiespeed to match the valve cover, just low on the priority order list right now. I was also unsure how I was going to do the coil mounting and thought I might do a custom made inspection cover with bosses built-in for mounting the coils, which is why I held off on getting the matched set before. Now I'm likely just making some sheet metal mounts for the coils that use the inspection cover bolt holes for mounting

 

[Frank]

I got those new Bluetooth bolts

I'm likely going to be replacing the inspection cover with the finned one from Aussiespeed to match the valve cover, just low on the priority order list right now. I was also unsure how I was going to do the coil mounting and thought I might do a custom made inspection cover with bosses built-in for mounting the coils, which is why I held off on getting the matched set before. Now I'm likely just making some sheet metal mounts for the coils that use the inspection cover bolt holes for mounting

Ah yeah, makes sense. . Just a curiosity question: do you have the valves lashed already? In a humid environment like I'm in, if an engine is sitting an extended time, especially if the intake/exhaust are open to the air, I keep the rocker arms backed off so all valves are closed to protect the cylinder walls.

 

[jgavac]

Ah yeah, makes sense. . Just a curiosity question: do you have the valves lashed already? In a humid environment like I'm in, if an engine is sitting an extended time, especially if the intake/exhaust are open to the air, I keep the rocker arms backed off so all valves are closed to protect the cylinder walls.

I've got pedestal mounted rockers, so no lashing on these. That's not a bad idea, I don't live where it's super humid all the time but so far I haven't seen any signs of issues inside the cylinders. I do rotate the motor every now and then to make sure nothing gets sticky.