Bringing an F100 Back from the Dead

Made it "event free" to Lone Pine. 290miles, at just a hair under 19mpg. Ol' Furd was doing really good until we turned onto 155 east. After several miles out of Delano, it got REALLY twisty, with some climbs 10-15%, topping out at 6100feet. Heinous! Drivetrain wise, it was great. Steering wise, it was a 60 year old pick up truck!
The only glitch was the coolant temps sensor for the EFI started reading 25° under what it should be. The other coolant temps sensor for the dash gauge reads normal. It's not affecting the way it runs. At least not yet!
So far, so good!

 

Alabama Hills a little west of Lone Pine, then on the wifey's cousins place in Dyer NV. Truly BFE. Don't come here. The road is freakin' hairy. But Ol Furd did well. Some of the grades were taken in second gear. We passed by the road to see the bristlecone pine trees. But that road was closed. Probably for the best. It tops out at 10,000 feet.
And the EFI temp sensor issue is no longer an issue. Back to normal after sitting overnight.
Virgina City tomorrow!

 

Never noticed your “extra” name for the pickemup until today. What does your wife think of the “booby bouncer”????

 

I guess it keeps you entertained & distracted on a long drive

 

Those mountains in the background sure make pretty pictures, but the roads around them sure can test the vehicle. Sounds to me like the old truck is doing OK, and the wife is still smiling in the pictures.
The road trips looks to be off to a great start.

 

Yep, we've had some heinous climbs and wicked switchbacks, but Ol' Furd is doing well! Wifey has been happy so far!

Mike, when I first got the truck road worthy, it had a heavy spring stack in the rear. It was truly the "Boobie Bouncer."
Named courtesy our member here who goes by wfo guy!

 

Holley and Dakota Digital use the same temp sensor. I had one from each fail under warranty. There's lots to see in the USA. I've never understood why people will travel around the world yet they've never been 2 states away from their residence.

 

It still amazes me that so many people who live near me are reluctant to even travel outside of the county. Some rarely do. They're missing out on a lot of big beautiful world.

 

I get it. Both ways. So much to see and do right here in the US. Lots to see and do outside too. That's what I love about road tripping.
The thing that keeps us from going outside the country is primarily cost and effort. My wife doesn't mind air travel, but I hate it.
I'm not afraid of flying, and at my age, not really afraid of crashing. My biggest fear is getting stuck in a middle seat between two 350lb sweaty guys.
That said, wifey did convince me to take another trip to Hawaii this fall.
Looking forward to arriving. Not the part between leaving and arriving!

 

Arrived in Virginia City last night, and found a nice little B&B. The trip was mostly uneventful, along 264 to hwyv95 in western Nevada. There is nothing out there for miles. Nothing.
The ol' temp sensor thing acted up right away, showing about 25° under what it should have been. But at a gas stop in Hawthorne, NV, I unplugged the connector, then plugged it back in. Bingo. It's the connector and not the sensor. So I'll worry about it no more!
19mpg on this leg.

 

19 m.p.g. ain't bad considering how much wind those trucks push. They are a lot of things but aerodynamic is not one of them!

 

Man, you got that right. You should see the windshield right now! Bugs splattered against a near vertical wall!
The part that hurt mileage, much like the first day, were several miles of extremely steep and twisty sections of road. Particularly 168 east out of Big Pine. That is a hairy road even for a modern car!
25 to 30 mph, 10 to 15% grades....holy cow were they brutal.
So yes, i am very pleased with the fuel mileage!

 

I took a few photos of Virgina City early this morning before heading out. The coffee shop didn't open till 8. I got my coffee fix from the kuerig machine in our hotel lobby. Nobody died. All is well!
Our B&B host did a nice breakfast for us and we had a very nice time chatting.
We hit the road at about 930, heading to Burney Falls. Stopped in Susanville for fuel, and logged 19.2mpg for that last leg.
Burney Falls is just spectacular! I ain't got words. Well worth the 3 hour diversion.
The photo of the mountain peak is Lassen Peak. We first thought it might be Shasta, but we stopped at a scenic overlook and a plaque told the story
Ol' Furd is humming right along. We are at 930 miles so far

 

Stopped in Alturas, Ca. Clutch felt pretty angry last night when we drove to the restaurant. Stiff pedal feel. Seems OK this morning. Maybe heat soaked. Caused me to lose sleep last night.
We'll see how it goes. I may cut off our Washington leg, and head straight to Missoula. Easier to do a clutch swap at my in-laws place, than a hotel parking lot, and having to rent a jack, or find a shop.
I reckon its all part of the adventure!
Alturas is a pretty nice, old small town. Just south of the O-Ree-Gone border.

 

Holy cow what a day! Left Alturas this morning, and drove ALL THE WAY across eastern O-Ree-Gone. 430 miles. Arrived in WallaWallaWa bit after 6pm.
Lots of hills, lots of curves, lots of forests, meadows, scrub brush. I wanted to see what 395 was like. And boy did we.
Two "major towns" if you can call 'em that. Burns and John Day. Neither one we wanted to stay at. So we pushed through.
Ol' Furd did ok, finally topping over 20mpg at the last two fill-ups.
Clutch is still clutching. Although it's not completely happy.
Next stop will be Florence Montana!

 

I really like the bed on that truck.

 

Good pics. I've not heard of a clutch becoming more dependent on pedal pressure with heat. Something unusual going on?? I didn't go back and see what you used for clutch linkage. I would think that might be a source for trouble. Here's hoping it's nothing major to be a real travel stopper. Best wishes.

 

All the mechanical linkage is ball bearing, with a hydraulic throwout bearing. Top of the line quality Tilton.
Aside from the pedal rod, there is a bellcrank. That is ball bearing and spherical rod ends. It's pretty stout....but not totally bulletproof. So we'll check that out.
Napa in Missoula has the clutch kit, so may swap it out at my brother-in-laws place there this weekend.

 

I've been thinking about this since leaving WallaWalla this morning. I think you just might be right. Perhaps, just perhaps, that hydraulic throwout bearing might be the culprit. It may be tying up when it gets hot. I've never had a PP act like that either.
I may re-engineer the actual release mechanism when we get back. Use a conventional fork with a hydraulic slave on the outside.
At any rate its acting almost normal today.
We're running east on highway 12 along the snake river. Absolutely stunning. I'll post pictures later. Not many cell bars out here!

 

How about not enough free play on the throw out bearing. Just like not enough air space in a master cylinder or not enough free play on a pedal rod to either a clutch or brake master? I would look for air space in the master 1st because it's easiest. 2nd would be free play on the pedal rod to slave. Hope it's simple, Mike.

 

We made it into Missoula yesterday without a hitch. Picture is at a rest stop aling highway 12. Followss the Lewis and Clark trail.
My brother and I will check things over this weekend, but I think I will let this clutch thing ride until we get back. It's functioning. Most times ok, sometimes its a bit pissed off.
The Big Thing is with non ethanol premium on the last few fuel stops, we've hit as high as 23mpg!
We are 1700 miles in, and I gotta say I am amazed that I actually followed through. We all tell ourselves stuff like.. "Wouldn't it be cool if we did...." and then we just didn't for some reason or another. But here we are, days from home, in a 60 year old pick-up that i rescued from the crusher just a few years ago.
The pics are gonna be few for a while, since internet and cell service are sketchy where we are. I'll do a big photo dump upon our return. Thanks Fer taggin' along!

 

Memories of a ride like this will make you happy for all your lifetime.

 

I was rethinking my comment about no air space in the master. If the throw out bearing was over extended, you might have a slipping clutch but that would be the opposite of what my 1st thought was. When you are running down the highway, can you shift without the clutch easily?

 

With the abuse the mountains probably gave the clutch, its understandable it may be a bit unhappy, as long as it is still functioning, I would keep moving. Treat it a bit easier if you have to go into the mountains on the way home. If your clutch linkage has a grease zerk, I think I would give it a few shots of grease (and put a little lube on any place two pieces of clutch linkage may rub together), maybe with all the pedal pushing the grease and lube has worked its way out a bit and things are a touch too dry. Exhaust heat and road dust can do strange things you probably would not have noticed around town, at home.

The pictures are cool. It looks like you are having a great time. 23 mpg is great! At 1700 miles so far on this one trip, in a 60 year old truck, you rescued from scrap, you have done something probably 50 % here will never do. That is a great accomplishment, and it will ruin you for life. When you get back home and fix a few little things, you will always be ready to jump into the old truck and go for a ride to someplace you have never been before!

 

I think I'm pretty much done worrying about it. Aside from the change in feel when its heat soaked and the chatter, primarily in reverse or intentionally slipping it, it acts ok.
After a having a couple days R&R here in Missoula, we will continue on into yellowstone tomorrow. After that, the shortest way home. Probably close to 1300 miles, for a total of 3000.
The view from my brother and sister-in-law's back porch!

 

^^^^
Nice.

 

Headed out from Missoula this morning, Tuesday, May13, and we had a nice smooth ride...in the rain all the way...to West Yellowstone.
Ol' Furd has been knocking down 20mpg or better since the middle of Oregon. And the clutch is acting completely normal. Pretty much the best it has felt for the entire trip.
One of the really cool things is it has been quite a conversation starter. I've been approached by dozens of people on this trip wanted to have a closer look.
Tomorrow, we will do the two big loops of the park, then face west on Thursday for the trip home...at this point over 1000 miles away.
So far we've put 2000 miles in the rearview!
Below....the road to Yellowstone.

 

Into Yellowstone today. Weather report said light snow in the morning, then light rain in the afternoon. No rain in the morning.
We got to Old Faithful just as it started to spew. Good timing!
The plan was the complete giant loop. We were thwarted however. The east side road is closed until after Memorial Day.
Oh well.
So we head back to the west side, and lunch at the Old Faithful "village". Upon coming g out of the restaurant, it started to snow lightly. Fun!
The plan was to go back up the west side road to Mammoth Hot Springs. But not long after leaving the Old Faithful village, it started snowing BIG! Giant flakes that were sticking to the windshield. Getting sketchy!
Ol' Furd kept on truckin' though. We decided to pack it in and head back to the hotel. The only problem with the truck was a windshield leak at the bottom right corner.

 

I was doing fine until the snowflakes. LOL.

 

In a pinch, try some Shoe Goo to fix the leak externally. It comes in clear or black.