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New owner from Germany

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tody

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Joined
Mar 22, 2017
Messages
207
thanks for the heads up on the rear brake hose. i looked around a little and found that the hose for the 78 bronco looks the same, has the same fittings and is roughly 3 inches longer. i'll give that a try. the 76-79 f100 hose is 9" longer - that will be my last resort if the other one does not fit.

the electrical issues are not fully resolved. i found that i also had no brake lights. this leads me to the turn signal switch, which i might swap out. a garage buddy had one, as it crosses over to the 65 mustang.

also, transmission and transfer case are out. man, that's some heavy stuff! both will need a good cleaning.
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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FIFY=? Don't know the nomenclature.

i had to look it up as well. translates to "fixed it for ya"...
what good offroad vehicles come out of germany? everything with a G from mercedes benz comes to mind.
 

74BroncoCO

Bronco Guru
Joined
Nov 3, 2004
Messages
2,374
i had to look it up as well. translates to "fixed it for ya"...
what good offroad vehicles come out of germany? everything with a G from mercedes benz comes to mind.

Unimog?

Sure, G wagen too! What about some of those that run the Dakar? Man? Iveco?
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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207
started cutting holes for the side markers on the passenger side today.
made a template from the other side, transferred it and drilled/cut away.

IMG_2421.jpg


both are in:

IMG_2422.jpg


some more cutting in the dash, squared the hacked holes from the previous radio and fit a DIN sized radio:

IMG_2423.jpg


also, new tires are here:

IMG_2424.jpg
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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207
when putting in the new turn signal switch, i found that the old one was already missing the plug:

IMG_2417.jpg


can anyone confirm that this is what I need?
https://shop.broncograveyard.com/19...h-Male-Connector-Plug-End/productinfo/17040M/

also, the door latch is giving me headaches. i thought it was the latch rod going to the handle, as this seemed not to be an original one.
but it turned out to be the latch itself:
everything is fine UNTIL i lock the door when it is latched. when i try to unlock it, the bar in the middle of the latch will not return all the way. when i press the door button, it jams the latch altogether. i tried duplicating this behavior with the latch on the bench, but could not find anything...
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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207
look what the postman delivered today!

IMG_2427.jpg


Big thanks to BoulderMike22 for shipping that to me internationally. I'll try to install these tomorrow. I know that the winch is working, i still need to sort out the mounting points for the cables.

Other that that, a couple of things are finished:
Brake plumbing is complete, ran the final new line from the distribution block to the rear today. The brake hose from the 78 Bronco was the right length even for a fully extended suspension in the rear.

Wiring is finished. Radio is wired in, also a Courtesy light under the dash. Still need to find out which plug I need for the turn signal switch.

I cannot figure out the door latch, though. Narrowed the problem down to the upper bar (attached to the outside door handle) jamming when trying to open the locked door. Works perfectly with the door unlocked, but jams up when I try to open it when locked. Will give that a final try tomorrow. If all else fails, I'll get a new latch and rod...

Another problem is the fuel gauge. It works if grounded directly. But it does not read anything for any of the two tanks. Pumped out the fuel today, inspected the sending units. Both look good, and the ohm reading is roughly correct (10 ohms to 70 ohms). Can the fuel switch on the dash be faulty?
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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fixed the fuel switch on the dash. pried it open carefully, only to find this:

IMG_2432.jpg


cleaned everything up, used a little sand paper on the contacts:

IMG_2433.jpg


now everything works flawlessly...

also, new shoes are on:
IMG_2434.jpg

IMG_2435.jpg

IMG_2436.jpg
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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207
rims have since changed. was 15x6, now is 15x7.5. tire size is 31x10.5.
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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another much needed part arrived with the help of hankjr - the heater core retaining clip:

IMG_2471.jpg


heater box is all sealed up and back under the dash:

IMG_2477.jpg


found a nice place for the winch control cables:

IMG_2476.jpg


wrapped up everything under the dash, everything is back to working condition:

IMG_2475.jpg


and here it sits, still waiting for the engine and trans:

IMG_2478.jpg
 
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tody

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Mar 22, 2017
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207
in the meantime, i will take care of both tanks. auxiliary tank is out and looks good. needs new straps, though. fuel out of the main tank also looked pretty clean. still need to drop it.

help me to decide on the fuel pump. it came with an electric pump, mounted on the frame right after the selector valve. should i keep it? or go with the manual pump on the engine?
i tend towards the manual pump, due to reliability...
 

DirtDonk

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Nov 3, 2003
Messages
47,345
If you can get better quality parts for US vehicles in Germany, then the mechanical pump is a good unit. But over here lately (the last few years) the pumps we get typically wear out quickly. Instead of the usual 20 years or 100k miles, we're lucky to get 2 years or 10k miles!
And I'm only half-joking... It's really that bad%)

What type of gas are you using there? Any ethanol added, or just straight gas? That might have a bearing on it, or it might just be the cheap stuff we order from overseas strictly on price. When you order only by price point, you're likely to get less than you bargained for.

Wait for others to give you their opinions. I like mechanical pumps, but I'd be very tempted to stick with the electric.

Paul
 

bronkenn

Contributor
Bronco Guy
Joined
Apr 27, 2017
Messages
2,662
Loc.
Southeast Ohio
If you can get a good mechanical pump then I would recommend that. That is all that was used for years with good results. Ken
 
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