'Ol Blue Build, no longer topless

boonz28 · Sep 3, 2017

Clutch fan tightened, radiator, shroud, and hoses hooked back up.
Also dropped the battery off to be charged and tested. It's only got a handful of starts on it but it sat for 3 years+ without a charge so I hope it's salvageable.

boonz28 · Sep 3, 2017

For my own viewing pleasure sometime in the future and because I know most people here like pictures

boonz28 · Sep 3, 2017

I'll be ordering and installing some heat shields on those plug wire boots soon.

Man, it feels really good to see it all coming back together after years of not having to funds to get it going.
Down to just a handful of things left to do before she's drivable again

boonz28 · Sep 7, 2017

Quick update, my battery wasn't salvageable after sitting for 3 years without a charge so I had to buy a new one, that stung a bit but I expected it.
Got that hooked up.
Got the fenders and grill put back on this morning.
As for the engine, all that's left to do is prime the oil pump, land the distributor, and turn the key.
I have to leave soon to get my kiddos from school though so the plan is to fire the new engine up later this afternoon.

Wish me luck!

boonz28 · Sep 7, 2017

Well everything with firing the engine went pretty smooth. I did have an issue with not getting fuel to the engine that took some tracking down but once i figured that out and fixed it she fired right up.

The engine sounds great, smooth, quiet, no strange noises to cause alarm, let it idle for 20 minutes or more and the engine barely got hot enough to open the thermostat for about a minute then ran between 175-180 the rest of the time.
I'm very happy with everything so far.

No miles logged yet because i still need to do a final adjustment on the clutch, get it registered, and insured. After that she's pretty much ready to roll.

Today was a great bronco day, a lot of work and money went into getting it to this point and i'm looking forward to finally putting some seat time in after all these years.

boonz28 · Sep 7, 2017

Also put the hood back on for the first time in about a year

Casey835 · Sep 7, 2017

Hell yeah!!

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

boonz28 · Sep 7, 2017

https://youtu.be/X1Na3c2TvNs

Video of the first time the new engine ran

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fordguy · Sep 8, 2017

my truck was originally bahama blue, I had decided against that color until you posted yours. looks nice.

boonz28 · Sep 8, 2017

fordguy said:
my truck was originally bahama blue, I had decided against that color until you posted yours. looks nice.

Thank you, mine was originally Bahama blue but now it's grabber blue. They're close but the grabber blue is a little louder I think

boonz28 · Sep 8, 2017

To be honest when I first bought the truck I wasn't in love with the grabber blue but it's really grown on me over the years

sprdv1 · Sep 8, 2017

Looks great for sure bud.. Like it a lot

boonz28 · Sep 9, 2017

sprdv1 said:
Looks great for sure bud.. Like it a lot

Thank you!

I set the timing and took the bronco out for a little drive today, just a couple of times around the block with the kiddos in the back seat. It was the first time they've ever ridden in it and they LOVED it! Everything worked well also so that was nice. After i get the registration taken care of i'll set out on some longer voyages and really shake out the bugs.

fordguy · Sep 11, 2017

Btw what year is the honda is it a 750

sprdv1 · Sep 11, 2017

boonz28 said:
Thank you!

I set the timing and took the bronco out for a little drive today, just a couple of times around the block with the kiddos in the back seat. It was the first time they've ever ridden in it and they LOVED it! Everything worked well also so that was nice. After i get the registration taken care of i'll set out on some longer voyages and really shake out the bugs.

Even those little drives are a good time.. Nothing like taking a cruise w/the top off..

boonz28 · Sep 11, 2017

fordguy said:
Btw what year is the honda is it a 750

Good eye, it's a '75

boonz28 · Sep 11, 2017

Several years ago I bought some protofab plate bumpers for the front and rear. I really like the look of the stock bumpers but wasn't sure about hanging a 35" tire off the stock carrier. Plus the rear bumper has a rack on it that I'm sure will come in handy during camping trips

Anyways, now I'm second guessing using the plate bumpers

boonz28 · Sep 11, 2017

I've never painted/powder coated them or even mounted them up. I bought them right before my previous engine lost a piston, long story short the bronco got parked in the garage and the bumpers went to storage.
Well now that the bronco is finally running again I decided to mock up the bumpers and see how they look. Small hang up though is that the brackets I received with them were 2 sets of rear brackets. So today I cut, welded, and drilled some plate to extend the brackets about 1 1/2" for the front bumper.
Didn't get anything else done today due to other time commitments but at least it's something.
Tomorrow I'll pick up the bumpers from storage and get them mounted up.

boonz28 · Sep 11, 2017

I've decided to go with paint on these because it's cheap and easy to fix if it gets scratched or if I modify the bumpers in the future. I'll probably go with black but am open to suggestions

broncobsession · Sep 12, 2017

Black, silver, or white. Can't go wrong.

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