Almost time to start using that air conditioner. Is it summer there yet?
Almost time to start using that air conditioner. Is it summer there yet?
In reply to Petrolburner:
It is. I got sidetracked, getting the Abomination ready for autocross season, but I'm going to be back on SanFord this weekend. Finishing up the A/C is at the top of the list.
After a 2+ hour drive in a Spitfire in 95 deg heat, I want AC in everything.
Ian F wrote: After a 2+ hour drive in a Spitfire in 95 deg heat, I want AC in everything.
At least you are driving the Spit. The GT has yet to go around the block this year. I fully agree on the AC everything sentiment.
I'mmmm Baaaccckk!
Finally back on SanFord.
Today the plan was to move the fuel tank back about 6" and start the install of the front A/C unit.
Things did not go as planned, but progress was made.
I started studying the mounting hardware on the tank, and it wasn't in the best shape. It wasn't horrible, but it was rusted fairly badly. That necessitated cutting some of the hardware to get it loose, which then necessitated dropping the tank all the way out.
I did learn something today. In the 50s, fuel tanks were soldered together. I discovered this, when I snapped the fuel pickup out of the top of the tank. 
That necessitated cleaning all the fuel out of the tank so I could solder it back together which is a good thing, because the inside of the tank was nasty. This is as sample of what was in there. Once again I'm amazed he made it 1000 miles home.
Globs of crap and debris covered the bottom of the tank so the tank got a liberal washing with Dawn and large quantities of water.
The next step was soldering the pickup back in place.
Then everything was cleaned up, primed and sprayed with a undercoating.
Now all I need to do is source a fuel sending unit and get it all reinstalled.
While I was under there, I pulled the propane tank. The original plan was to clean this tank up and reuse it, but I've decided to use a couple of 20 pound bottles instead. They will be easier to fill. The other issue is the original tank was well out of date so no one would fill it without having it hydro-tested.
Good to see progress being made! I agree that using modern swappable bottles will simplify your adventures immensely.
Awesome! Acme tank? Shouldn't be dated. I went with this type specifically to avoid the 20# tanks, although those were on the original plan.
Well, I almost had a bus with 5.9 Cummins with a Allison 5 speed.
Unfortunately it was a unbelievable rust bucket. The ground under the bus was literally covered in rust that had fallen off. Even the engine and transmission were very corroded.
The search continues.
In reply to Toyman01:
Bummer! Even the engine and trans were corroded enough to not be usable? That's surprising, especially with diesel oil leaks!
In reply to java230:
They were corroded enough to make me envision lots of broken hardware just trying to pull it. Im not in a hurry to replace it so I'll wait for a better engine.
In reply to Toyman01:
Fair enough, broken bolts and studs suck!
In reply to Toyman01:
In Canada at least, portable tanks are dated but anything bolted to a vehicle does not get dated or ever looked at. And they are very heavily built. Take a lot to rust through one. You might consider taking the old one to a propane distributor and having it revalved.
Any particular reason a 4bt or 6bt is off the table? There super common, can be had for cheap and have a E36 M3 ton of trans options. Plus, they only require one wire with +12v to run.
How cheap can a 4bt be had for. Asking for a friend. 
In reply to mazdeuce:
Seems like ~$1550 is a good price for a runner. Haven't looked in awhile though.
4bt is too small to move a 15k pound bus. It would be no better than the gas engine I have.
A 6bt is at the top of the list. What I looked at a couple of days ago was a 6bt. It had too much corrosion and rust for me. 6bts are a little thin on the ground around here, at any price. I would also like the entire truck. From radiator to rear axle. I need a medium duty truck, RV or bus, for the rear axle and HD manual or Allison transmission. That limits the the search some more.
I've also considered a 7.3 International. They suffer in the fuel economy department compared to the Cummins though.
My advantage is, I'm not in a hurry to to do a re-power. I check the list of Craig every week or so. If something pops up at a decent price, I'll jump. Until then, the old 361 will have to do the job.
4bts also shake something awful. Id go with a 6bt or if you had room an IH DT466 but that's a bigger 6 and may not fit in an old Ford.
In reply to Wall-e:
I would love a DT466. It's about 8" too long and 6" too tall.
In reply to Toyman01:
Thats too bad! They aren't that big (or so I remember) they fit in modern F series trucks. Dt466 is one of my favorite motors.
In reply to java230:
Thanks. I'll be picking some brains on this MDT stuff in the future. If there's anything that this thread has taught me, there's a lot that I don't know.
The Dt466 will fit in a modern F-Series, because it's bigger than a 50s school bus.
7.3 international (the T444E / PSD version, not the IDI) should be easy to find and should fit well, being generally V8 shaped like what's in there now. A 6.0 (with the issues all sorted before install) would work too, although the electronics would be tougher (but it would make more power). There are loads of both motors out there in both pickups and medium duty stuff.
Thinking about the fuel economy thing, in a vehicle as big and unaerodynamic as Sanford, I doubt you'll see a whole lot of difference between the available engine choices. Gearing, cruising speed and driving style will likely play a bigger role. In a smaller / lighter vehicle like a pickup, small engine efficiency differences will be more noticeable.
In reply to rslifkin:
My fathers 04 Dodge, pulling his 35' camper, at 65 mph, gets between 12 and 14 mpgs. The camper is 13K, the truck is 6K. SanFord is cleaner as far as aerodynamics and tips the scales at about 13K. I figure if I can get the gearing correct, I should be able to get close to that. I get 7.2 with the gas engine at 55, which I thought was amazing.
Unfortunate, a Ford PSD averages 3-5 mpg less pulling the same rig. I'm probably going to hold out for the Cummins.
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