Category Bullnose Garage

hiy folks Ed here welcome back to Bullnose Garage. Today I’m doing something a little bit different. I have a product here from Dinox and a set of headers for my 351W. So, uh, they sent this set to me and, uh, asked me to do a little review of them for you guys, so that’s what I’m doing today. Um, now unfortunately I’m not going to have time, uh, to put those on the actual, uh, vehicle itself. I can’t get them on the engine, obviously the engine’s not ready for that. Uh, but what I can do is, uh, go through the package, open it up, take a look at them, see their quality, and let you know what I think. So let’s get into it. Hello!

All right, so here the box I got. We’re starting fresh. Everything is even still in the bubble wrap. So let’s take a look at these bad boys. These are stainless steel. They look really good. They come with brackets, reducers, your gaskets, and your hardware, and there you go. What you see is what you get. Now when I put these on mine, which I will, um, I think I’d probably go with ARP bolts instead of the ones that come with this. That’s not to say that these bolts aren’t good. I don’t know that they’re not good, but ARP is kind of the standard, and, uh, since I build a performance engine, I want to make sure that I get the best. So, uh, that’s what I’ll probably do there. But let’s take a look at these actual headers themselves. Oh man, I love new engine parts!

All right, so I will be the first to admit that I am not a header expert. I’m just some with a bullnose who likes working on in a spare time. But I can’t tell you when I think something is pretty high quality, and these seem to be pretty high quality. They are 304 stainless steel, and I mean this look shiny. I mean, yeah, they are beautiful. I can’t wait to get these on my 351 when I finally do that build. All right, so what do you get? You get a couple of headers, obviously, get a couple of reducers. Uh, this will take you from 3 in down to 2 and 1/2 if that’s the size of your exhaust. Obviously, you get the gaskets, and you get a couple of hangers, and you get your mounting hardware.

Okay, so let’s take a look at some of the important stuff, right? Obviously, like I said, they seem to be pretty well built. They’re nice and solid. Um, the runners on there look like they’re configured pretty well. Here’s the welds, so you can see what the welds look like. Um, I am not a welding expert by any means, but they do look pretty good to me. There’s your welds on top, and just for the sake of consistency, so that you can see how their manufacturing processes are for two separate pieces, here’s the other one, right? So I know how heavy these are ’cause I’m holding on to them, but how thick are they? On the tin, it says they should be 1.5 mm. I got my CID Harbor Freight caliper, and let’s see what it says. Oh, it’s not pull the battery out of there. Handy dandy Harbor Freight quality right there. Let’s get that back. Come on now, get on there. Hey, there we go. Battery compartment in there. All right, is zero. Okay, now we’re ready. Let’s see how thick it is, and it says 1.52 and 1.47 depending on how I roll it. Uh, obviously because it’s rounded, it’s kind of hard to get an exact measurement, but you know, I do think, uh, let’s see, there’s 1.6, 1.51. Yeah, I think that’s going to be, uh, exactly what they say it is, 1.5 mm.

So for the sake of complete transparency, there is one thing that I want to mention. The company Dinox that sent me these, again, they sent me these for free for me to keep them, put them on my truck. Uh, they’re not paying me for this, so, um, they are a little expensive. These are about, uh, $3.89 for the set on their website. Uh, now they have said that, uh, they’ll make a deal for my viewers. It’ll be down in the comments. Um, but, uh, they do come with a three-year warranty from Dinox. Um, now again, to be fair, I don’t know how, uh, good that warranty is going to be. I haven’t had to deal with their customer service. I have dealt with them as part of this, uh, this video preparation for them to send me these headers, uh, and they’ve been very responsive. They’ve gotten back to me within, uh, you know, 24 hours every single time. Now obviously they’re trying to get me to make a video to do release or to do a review for you guys, so you know, they’re trying to grow their business, they’re trying to reach out. You know, the other thing I’ve done noticed is that, uh, they’ve been posting a lot on like 4×4 forums and, uh, you know, other automotive forums trying to get their brand out there. Uh, so what they mainly make is, uh, exhaust stuff. They kind of specialize in EGR delete stuff, um, tubes and fittings and stuff to do those sorts of projects. So, you know, if you’re looking to do an EGR delete or, um, you know, they got a couple videos out there about, uh, um, exhaust dumps, electronic exhaust dumps, and, um, just a bunch of stuff it comes with exhaust. So if you’re looking into that, you may want to give them a shout. But they’re fairly new, so, uh, you know, if you’re willing to, they gave me a chance, small channel trying to get out there and, uh, you know, promote their products, and so I really do appreciate that. And like I said, I will definitely be putting this, uh, on my truck when, uh, when that time comes, uh, when I get that engine ready to go. So I’m looking forward to that.

And you know, as much as I’m not a mechanic, I am kind of a perfectionist, so I’ve been doing a lot of research on basically every part that’s going to go on that engine. And I wouldn’t put a part on the engine, uh, that I don’t trust, you know, and that’s just the way that it is. And even with my limited experience in headers and parts and that kind of stuff, man, these are, you know, these are heavy. Uh, they feel like they’re really well built, uh, and it just, it just they look beautiful. So, you know, take that for what it’s worth, take it with a grain of salt from me because again, I’m not a mechanic, I’m just a Schmo. All right? And I got these for free, but I will tell you that they’re not paying me, so, uh, the fact that I got them for free has not tainted this review or anything. It is just a straight honest, um, you know, what you see is what you get with me, guys. Uh, you know, we’ll see how they go. It’s like the bolts, right? I’m going to use ARP ’cause, yeah, anyway, yeah. So when we put these on my truck, uh, you know, when I want to put them on the engine ’cause I’m going to run on a stand, uh, we’ll see how it goes.

So anyway, as always, if you have any questions, comments, concerns, gripes, internet ramblings, put them below. Uh, I’ll have links below to all of this stuff and the Dinox website, uh, for more information. Thanks again for watching, guys, and we will see you next time.

Howdy folks, Ed here. Welcome back to Bullnose Garage. Today I’m actually out in my bun, driving around, so forgive the bumps and rattles and, you know, some of the noises that happen with an older truck. Today I’m here to talk about the NP435 transmission, which is this puppy right here. That’s what’s in my truck. It is a solid workhorse of a transmission and, uh, it’s certainly worth your consideration if you want to do a, uh, a swap or if you’ve already got one you want to do a rebuild. Uh, it’s probably worth your time. I’m going to get into exactly what everything is, how it works, uh, what all the stats are, that kind of stuff. Keep in mind, uh, this video is Bullnose-centric because it’s Bullnose Garage. So while I know, uh, that the NP435 was used in other vehicles like, um, you know, basically all kinds of vehicles across the board, uh, what I’m going to be focusing on are the Bullnose vehicles, the Fords. So you’re going to see some information in the video that is specific, uh, to the Ford versions. So that’s because I’m a Ford guy, you know, that’s how it works. So while I pop up onto the interstate here and let this engine scream for mercy as it goes into the high fourth gear on the transmission because there’s no overdrive, let’s, uh, go ahead and get into it.

Hello, the NP435. This manual gearbox isn’t just a transmission; it’s a piece of engineering that stood the test of time. Known for its durability and versatility, whether you’re restoring a classic or just curious about what’s under the hood, this guide will walk you through everything you need to know about the NP435, from its gear ratios and shift pattern to the engines it pairs with and how to keep it running smoothly. The NP435 is a four-speed manual gearbox designed with one goal in mind: durability. Built by New Process Gear, a name synonymous with heavy duty, this transmission has been a workhorse in Ford’s lineup since the 1960s. It was a natural fit for the Bullnose trucks and Broncos of the 1980s, providing the kind of robust performance that these vehicles are known for.

Now, what makes the NP435 particularly interesting is its gear setup. You’ve got four forward gears, but they’re not all synchronized. Second through fourth gears are synchronized, making for smooth shifts during regular driving. The first gear, often called the granny gear, and reverse, they’re not synchronized. So if you’re trying to pop into first while still rolling, you’re in for a bit of a grind, literally. But that’s by design because first gear is really meant for when you need serious torque to get moving, especially with a heavy load. So let’s talk gear ratios. The NP435 is known for its particularly low first gear, which is what gives it that reputation as a workhorse. In most Ford applications, you’ll find the following ratios: first gear 6.69 to 1, second gear 3.34 to 1, third gear 1.66 to 1, fourth gear 1 to 1, or direct drive, and reverse 8.26 to 1. There’s also a version with a slightly less extreme first gear at 4.85 to 1, but the low ratio version is what you’ll most commonly find in these Bullnose trucks. That first gear at 6.69 to 1 isn’t something you’d use in everyday driving unless your everyday involves towing a tractor out of a ditch or crawling over boulders. It’s all about giving you the torque to move heavy loads or navigate through terrain with confidence.

The shift pattern on this transmission is pretty straightforward. Here’s how it’s laid out: first gear is up and to the left, second is down to the left, third is straight up in the middle, fourth is straight down in the middle, and reverse, that’s far right and down. Now this pattern is practical, especially for a transmission designed to handle tough jobs. First gear is intentionally out of the way so you don’t accidentally engage it when you’re moving through the more commonly used gears. Moving on to the physical aspects of the NP435, this transmission is built like a tank. The case is made of cast iron, which gives it that characteristic durability but also adds some serious heft. At around 130 lbs, this isn’t the kind of transmission you casually toss around the garage. It’s hefty for a reason; it’s built to withstand the kind of stress that comes with heavy duty use. For the four version, the input shaft, which connects to your engine, has a diameter of 1 and 1/16 in with 10 splines. You’ll also notice a power takeoff or PTO port on the passenger side of the case. This cast iron construction and solid internals are part of why the NP435 has such a loyal following. It’s not flashy, but it’s the kind of component that you can rely on when the going gets tough.

So what can you bolt this transmission up to? The NP435 is versatile, fitting a range of engines that you typically find in Bullnose Ford trucks and Broncos. Whether you’re running the venerable Ford 300 inline 6 or one of the V8s like the 302, 351 Windsor, 400, or even the big 460, the NP435 has you covered. This flexibility made it a popular choice in a wide range of Ford trucks, from daily drivers to heavy duty workhorses. When it comes to fluids, the NP435 calls for SAE 50 weight oil or 80W90 gear oil. You might be tempted to use modern synthetic oils, and that’s fine, but make sure they’re compatible with the brass synchronizers inside the transmission. These old school gearboxes weren’t designed with synthetic fluids in mind, so using the wrong type can cause more harm than good. The transmission holds about 4.5 quarts, and it’s wise to change it every 30,000 to 50,000 miles, especially if you’re working the truck hard. The NP435 typically pairs with the mechanical clutch linkage in these trucks, which is straightforward and reliable. Depending on your specific setup, the clutch diameter usually hovers around 11 in, but there’s some variation depending on the engine and vehicle configuration.

When it comes to transfer cases, the NP435 is highly compatible with several options, making it a favorite among those building serious off-roaders or towing rigs. You’ve got the NP205, a gear-driven, highly durable transfer case that’s pretty much bulletproof. Then there’s the NP28, which is chain-driven and a bit lighter but still solid for most uses. The Borg Warner 1345 is also another option, reliable, chain-driven, and well-suited to off-road adventures. This compatibility with multiple transfer cases makes the NP435 a versatile option, whether you’re building a truck for the trail or the highway. Now cooling, unlike modern transmissions that might have dedicated cooling systems, the NP435 keeps it simple. It relies on air cooling, with a cast iron case acting as a heat sink to dissipate the warmth generated during operation. For most driving conditions, this setup works fine. However, if you’re planning on running it hard, whether that’s towing heavy loads or spending long hours off-road, make sure the transmission gets plenty of airflow. Overheating isn’t a common issue, but it’s something to be mindful of in extreme conditions.

Speaking of running hard, the NP435 can handle up to 450 ft-lbs of torque. That’s a significant amount, and it’s more than enough for the engines it typically pairs with. Whether you’re hauling, towing, or off-roading, this transmission is built to take the stress without breaking a sweat. Driving with the NP435 is an experience that feels more mechanical, more connected to the truck. Low first gear, often called granny gear, is great for when you need to get a heavy load moving or navigate tough terrain, but in everyday driving, most people start in second gear. The shifts are deliberate; there’s no rushing this transmission, and that’s part of its charm. On the highway, the direct drive fourth gear allows you to cruise comfortably, although the RPMs are higher than what you’d see with modern overdrive transmissions. But that’s the trade-off: you get strength and simplicity, but not necessarily the refinement of newer gearboxes. The NP435 shines in situations where durability and reliability are more important than smoothness. It’s excellent for off-road driving, towing, and any situation where you need to trust your transmission to get the job done.

When it comes to keeping your NP435 in good shape, regular maintenance, as usual, is key. Fluid changes are a must, especially if you’re putting the transmission through its paces. Luckily, routine service like this is straightforward, although the weight and bulk of the NP435 can make more in-depth work a bit challenging. Rebuilding the NP435 isn’t overly complicated compared to other transmissions, but it does require some mechanical know-how and the right tools. A full rebuild kit will set you back somewhere between $400 and $700, depending on the quality of the parts. Uh, if you need to replace major components or if the transmission is in particularly rough shape, a professional rebuild might be in order, and that could run you anywhere from $1,500 to $2,500. Given the longevity of this transmission, though, it could be a solid investment. The NP435 is renowned for its durability; with proper maintenance, this transmission can easily last over 200,000 miles. It’s a workhorse designed to handle tough conditions, whether that’s off-road, towing, or just the rigors of daily driving. But like any mechanical component, it does have its potential issues. Synchronizers in second through fourth gear can wear over time, especially if the transmission hasn’t been well-maintained. Bearings can also wear out, particularly if the fluid hasn’t been changed regularly. And if you’re doing a lot of heavy off-roading, the input shaft might show signs of wear sooner than expected. Despite these potential issues, the NP435’s reputation for reliability is well-earned. It’s built to last, and with a little care, it will.

The NP435 has been around since the 1960s, making it one of the more enduring designs in heavy-duty transmissions. Ford used it extensively across its truck lineup, from the F100 to the F350 and even in the Broncos. Here’s a quick rundown of where you might find one: at the Ford F100 from 1966 to 1983, the Ford F-150 from 1975 to 1986, the Ford F250 from 1966 to 1987, the Ford F350 from 1966 to 1987, and the Ford Bronco from 1966 to 1977. The NP435 was favored for its ability to handle the demands of these trucks, whether that was for work, off-road, or just reliable daily driving. And thanks to its popularity and long production run, the NP435 enjoys pretty strong aftermarket support. Whether you’re looking for a rebuild kit, replacement parts, or performance upgrades, there is no shortage of options. Popular modifications include upgrading the bearings, altering gear ratios for specific applications, and modifying the shifter for a shorter throw, especially useful in off-road setups. And this transmission might not have the glamour of modern units, but its reliability and the wealth of available parts and upgrades make it a favorite among enthusiasts.

So that all sounds great. The NP435 is strong, it’s reliable, it’s heavy-duty, and it can handle pretty much whatever you throw at it. And, uh, I’m pulling right out and putting in something different. Ed, Ed, why do you do this? You’re doing this to your 3006, and now you’re doing it to your NP435 too. Why do you keep changing things? Why do you keep pulling the most reliable components out of your truck? Well, to start with, the NP435 is a four-speed with a really low first gear. Now that’s great for heavy-duty tasks, but it can feel a bit clunky and unnecessary on the street, and I’m building a street truck. And I always start off in second gear and can count on one hand the times I’ve used first gear in a real-world situation. The shifts are heavy, and there’s no synchro in first, which means I’ve got to double clutch if I want to drop down into first while rolling. Now for some folks, that’s part of the charm. There’s a raw mechanical feel that reminds you that you’re driving something built to last. But if talking about refinement for a street queen is what my truck will be, the NP435 leaves a bit to be desired. The shifts are more of a workout compared to modern transmissions, and you’re going to feel every bit of that ruggedness in your hands. It’s not the smoothest operator, and on the highway, that missing fifth gear means my Windsor is going to be revving higher than I’m going to like. It gets the job done, but it’s not what I would call a relaxing drive.

So my choice? The ZF5 is a 5-speed manual, and that extra gear makes a world of difference when you’re just out for a drive. For starters, the ZF5 is a more refined transmission all around. It’s got synchronized gears across the board, which means shifts are smoother and easier, even in first. Everything about the ZF5 feels more polished and suited to street driving. The gear ratios are more evenly spaced, which will give me better control over the power from my built 351 Windsor. And where the ZF5 really shines is that fifth gear. On the highway, it lets the engine settle into a nice, comfortable RPM, making for a quieter, more fuel-efficient drive. And you’ll notice the difference right away: less noise, less strain on the engine, and an overall smoother ride. So if, like me, you’re setting up your truck for street use and you want to enjoy those horses without feeling like you’re in a tug of war with the gearbox, I’d say the ZF5 is the way to go. It’s smoother, quieter, and just more enjoyable for everyday driving. The NP435 has its charm, no doubt, but for a refined street experience, the ZF5 will make the truck a joy to drive, whether I’m cruising around town or hitting the highway.

All that said, the NP435 isn’t just a transmission; it’s a testament to durable, no-nonsense engineering. While it might lack the smoothness and refinement of more modern gearboxes, that strength and reliability more than make up for it. Whether you’re restoring a classic Bullnose Ford or just need a transmission you can count on, the NP435 is a solid choice, and it’s built to last. So as you guys can see and probably hear, I’m out here on the interstate going about 65 mph, and that’s about as fast as I can get this rig to go using the, uh, NP435 and my inline 6. And at 65, I’m in fourth gear, spinning about 26 or 2700 RPM, so it’s pretty high. It’d be nice to have an overdrive.

All right, guys, well that’s the NP435, everything that I know or pretend to know about this solid workhorse of a transmission. Hopefully, you learned something; that’s always my goal in all my videos is to, uh, impart knowledge, take the stuff that I’ve learned, stuff that I’ve researched, and pass it on to folks, uh, to maybe help them out a little bit. So you know, now’s the time that I ask, if you really want to support the channel, I’d appreciate a like, a subscribe, uh, drop a comment down below. Hey, if you really want to support me and get some cool stuff, check out my merch store. I’ve got a lot of really cool designs on there that I’m really happy with, you know, uh, especially get here if you, uh, like a little bit of granny gear. Yeah, get your granny on. Was that creepy? I feel like that was creepy. All right, guys, if you have any questions, comments, concerns, gripes, internet ramblings, stick them below. Thanks again for watching, guys. Oh, and by the way, that link is bullnosegarage.com merch. Get your granny on. Thanks again for watching, guys. We will see you next time. Oh.

Howdy folks, Ed here. Welcome back to Bullnose Garage, and today I’m with the donor. It’s been a long time since I’ve been out here looking at this thing. It has been sitting out on my lot for about three years, just sitting here under the sun.

Now when we left off, I had fogged the engine. If you don’t know what that means, it means there’s an oil that you put inside called a fogging oil. You put that down inside all the cylinders, run it around a few times, and make sure that it coats the cylinder walls real well. And you do that to make sure that no rust or corrosion gets in there if the engine is going to sit for a while.

Well, this thing has sat for three years, and today I’m going to open it up and I’m going to see exactly what kind of damage has been done in that three years with fogging oil applied to the engine. And to help me with that, I’ve got this brand new endoscope from Vivor. Now to be fair, they sent that to me. They asked me to do a review on it, and I figured what better way to do a review on an endoscope than to get back down inside this engine and see what kind of damage has been done. So we’re going to do that today. Stick around.

So before we get into this, let me tell you a little bit about this Boriscope camera from Vivor, because that’s one of the reasons I’m here. They sent this to me for free in return for a review of it. And so, you know, it’s far beyond me to refuse free stuff. So I’m going to go ahead and give you guys my honest opinion of this, and it’s actually really good, guys.

So last time I did this project, I used a computer laptop with a Boriscope that was like a USB plug, and it goes in, and I was balancing the laptop on top of the engine and trying to get video and doing all this stuff. This thing has all that built in. There’s an SD card in there. It takes video and pictures. The screen is right there. This just plugs right in. It’s USB charged. It’s really great, and one of the things I really like about it is it’s got three cameras on it. So there’s a camera on this end and a camera on this end and over here. So side to side, right? You get a camera both all three ways, and that’s really going to help me out going inside of here.

So this is actually the cheapest one that they make. On Vivor, it’s like 60 bucks. Use the link in my description to get 5% off, and yeah, you know, I have used endoscopes with my phone, right? So I’ve got a Samsung phone that I use for videoing right now, and those are always kind of rough because you got to get the right software, the right app, and they’re, you know, they’re all different kind. I’ve got two or three of them in the garage. They’re all different kind of apps that you got to use with them, and sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t. This is really plug and play. You know, I can’t say enough good things about it for 60 bucks. It really is worth the time to check it out.

So, you know, I’ll get into it. I’ll take some video with it. You can see the quality of the video, and we’ll get in and take a look at it. So, all right, enough about this. Let’s take a look inside these cylinders. I am super interested to see what it looks like in there.

So one quick thing about this, guys, is I’ve already got a video on how to fog an engine. I can’t really get into any more detail than that video gives. It’s really, really simple to do. You just need some fogging oil and a spark plug wrench, and that video goes into how to do it. So, you know, go ahead and check that video out if you need to figure out how to do this. Since I already have a video about it, I’m not going to get into it. I’m just going to open this up and take a look.

Spark plugs are still wet. Hopefully that’s oil. Oh, it smells like oil. All right, all the spark plugs are out. Now is the moment of truth. Let’s take a look.

All right, so we’re going to fire up my V-bore endoscope here. Oh, we’re upside down. That’s because of this thing here. There we go. Yeah, you can kind of see it. And we’ll get down inside. I’ll start the recording, and we’ll see what it looks like.

Okay, it’s recording. Hello. Oh, hello. All right, we got to turn the light on. Hello, light. There it is. Okay, now let’s take a look down inside of here. Oh, that cylinder looks like it’s pretty much up top. Yeah, you can kind of see where I scraped on there. It looks pretty wet in there still. It’s hard to tell cylinder number two or the second one. Oh, look at that. Yeah, so you can see those cylinder walls are in pretty good shape still in there.

Let’s flip this to a side view, and you can clearly see the crosshatch on that cylinder wall. And there’s the other side. Oh, wow. With that side view, you can even see inside the valves. That is cool, man. I didn’t expect to see that. That’s neat. Man, those cylinder walls look good, don’t they? And then back down. All right, let’s try the next one.

Oh, yeah, it looks pretty good. Oh, look at that. Okay, can you see there’s a valve top up there? Let’s go to the other side. Yep, you almost got it. There we go. See, there are lights on the side of this and the front. Dude, guys, you know, they’re not paying me for this. They really aren’t. For 60 bucks, this thing is really cool. I didn’t expect to be able to see the valves like this in here. That’s great.

And next. Yeah, cylinder looks pretty good. Piston head looks pretty good. Cylinder walls look nice and clean. There’s my valves. One of them, anyway. Now, I don’t know enough to know which one’s intake and which one’s exhaust, so sorry about that, guys. I keep saying it. I’m not an expert. So, it’s a little bit tricky to maneuver, and it’s kind of hard to see to know what you’re looking at sometimes with this.

All right, there’s one side. We’ll go check the other one. Yeah, there’s actually still a little bit of oil sitting down there. I don’t think that’s corrosion. I think that’s just a layer of oil that’s kind of, it’s old, right? It’s been here for three years, so it’s going to be a little gunky.

Oh, look at that. So, so far, my only real gripe about this camera is that it’s kind of hard to get a feel for which buttons change to which direction. Oh, this one’s close to the top. That’s what’s going on there. So, this flips back and forth, and this button flips front and side, and it’s kind of not super intuitive because they’re just arrow buttons. But other than that, in terms of like quality, oh, that’s right on top of there. In terms of quality and what it can do, that’s pretty impressive, and I got to say that it looks to me like the cylinder walls in this thing are just gorgeous. Look at that. I mean, this engine has been sitting out here in the New Mexico sun uncovered for three years. Pretty impressive.

All right, guys, now for the real test. 15 sixteenths on a breaker bar. Let’s see if this puppy will turn. Oh, yeah, that’s nice and smooth. That sure got a ratchet. Come on, get in there, you. There we go. Oh, well, the engine is smooth. The pulley’s out here, not so much. But, yeah, that moves nice.

All right, guys, there you go. I feel like I accomplished a couple of really great objectives with this video. First of all, I verified that this engine still turns three years later, and I confirmed that fogging an engine is a great way to make sure that it stays in tip-top shape while it’s in storage. And secondly, I confirmed my contractual obligation to VIVAR, so I get to keep this cool piece of kit.

Guys, this thing is awesome. I’m telling you, you see the video, right? It’s amazing what this thing can do. I love the camera on either side. That is so handy. This little handheld dealie that I have to go out and get my phone or hook up to a laptop or whatever. Guys, I’m being serious. These guys aren’t paying me. They’re not, right? But they reached out to me and said, you know, hey, Ed, would you like to do a review on this? We’re looking for some YouTubers to do some reviews on our products. And so I went through the stuff to become part of their program. And man, they’ve been really great. And this thing is cool. I should’ve got a long time ago. And I’m being serious. I’m not even, you know, I’m not doing the whole YouTube sponsored content, blah, blah stuff. I’m being serious.

Guys, I’m gonna be honest with you, transparent no matter what happens. This thing’s worth your time. If you need to look inside of engines or get down, I’ve used, not this one, but I’ve used endoscopes like this to verify whether or not my exhaust bolts are broken on my other truck. I used to get down into drain pipes in the house. This stuff, you need to have one of these laying around. If you don’t have one already, you’re gonna use it. There’s gonna be times where you don’t have another choice. This thing’s gonna save your butt to get into those places where you can’t see. I’ve used it to diagnose blockages in my air conditioning system inside the house, right? So these things are a lifesaver. And this one in particular for 60 bucks, I mean, you’re gonna pay 20, 25, 30 for one of the phone ones connected. And this is so much more convenient. It’s got cameras on the side.

I am sure that I am rambling on and I don’t really need to because you guys are gonna think I’m a shill and I’m not trying to be. I really am just that impressed. Okay. So again, fog your engines, guys. If you’re gonna leave them sitting out in the weather, again, three years, no tarp, New Mexico sun. Brutal. Guys, it’s brutal sitting out here like this. I tell you, it’s brutal.

All right. You guys gotta fog your engines. If you have any questions, comments, concerns, gripes, internet ramblings, wanna call me a sellout, comment below. Thanks again for watching. And we will see you next time.

Howy folks, Ed here. Welcome back to Bullnose Garage. Today I’m here with my trusty 1985 F-150, and I’m going to talk to you about the engine that’s in this truck. It is one of the most rock solid and bulletproof engines that Ford has ever produced, and maybe one of the most rock solid bulletproof engines ever made for the consumer vehicle market. And that is the Ford 300 inline six. So let’s get into it.

Hello, bulletproof. That’s the word people use to describe the Ford 300 inline six engine. Let’s see what makes it tick. This information is aimed at those interested in learning more about this robust engine or considering it for a project or a swap. Much of this data is sourced from various places on the internet, and while I haven’t had direct personal experience rebuilding this engine, I’ve driven it a lot and done my best to fact check and verify the information presented here. I hope it serves as a useful guide for anyone looking to dive into the world of the Ford 300 six.

So what is the Ford 300 inline six exactly? The Ford 300 inline six engine, often simply referred to as the 300, is part of Ford’s straight six engine family produced between 1965 and 1996. The 300 was known for its durability and torque, making it a popular choice for trucks and heavy-duty vehicles. The 300 refers to the engine’s displacement in cubic inches, while its metric equivalent is 4.9 liters. The engine is known for its simple design featuring an overhead valve setup and inline cylinder configuration, which contributed to its longevity and ease of maintenance. The 300 six was produced primarily at Ford’s Cleveland engine plant in Ohio, contributing to the association with the region. Over its production span, Ford manufactured over 4 million units of the 300 six, making it one of the most produced engines in the company’s history.

The engine shares some components with other Ford inline sixes, such as the 240 and 200 engines, but it’s distinguished by its larger displacement and more robust construction. This engine was widely used in Ford’s F-series trucks, as well as in vans, industrial applications, and even in some agricultural equipment. So let’s look at the stats. The Ford 300 has a displacement of 300 cubic inches or 4.9 liters. The engine features a bore of 4 inches and a stroke of 3.98 inches, which contributes to its exceptional low-end torque. The deck height is right at 10 inches. The engine’s compression ratio varied slightly depending on the year and application, but it generally ranged from 8:1 to 9:1. The 300 six is known for its ability to produce high torque at low RPMs, with peak torque often occurring around 1,600 to 2,200 RPM. The firing order for the Ford 300 six is 1-5-3-6-2-4, which is a standard configuration for inline six engines. This helps it maintain a smooth and balanced operation.

The block is cast iron, contributing to the engine’s considerable weight of around 500 to 550 pounds. Despite its heft, the 300 six is valued for its ability to withstand extreme conditions and heavy loads. The engine is equipped with a two-bolt main bearing cap design, although some heavy-duty versions featured a four-bolt main configuration. The 300 six was first introduced in 1965 as a successor to the 262 cubic inch inline six engine. It was designed to offer more power and torque while maintaining the reliability that Ford’s inline engines were known for. The engine was initially used in light-duty trucks but quickly found its way into a variety of vehicles, including the Ford Bronco, E-series vans, and even some sedans and station wagons.

Over the years, the 300 six underwent several changes to improve performance and meet evolving emission standards. In the late 1970s, Ford introduced changes to the cylinder head designed to improve airflow and combustion efficiency. These changes included the introduction of hardened valve seats to accommodate unleaded gasoline, which became standard in the U.S. around this time. In the 1980s, Ford introduced electronic fuel injection, or EFI, to the 300 six, which significantly improved fuel efficiency and drivability. This version of the engine, known as the EFI 300, became a mainstay in Ford trucks throughout the 1980s and 1990s. The engine also received updates to its ignition system, including the transition from a points-based distributor to an electronic ignition system.

One of the most notable features of the 300 six is its exceptional torque output. The engine was designed with a long stroke and a relatively low compression ratio, which allowed it to produce a significant amount of torque at low RPMs. This made it ideal for applications that required pulling power, such as towing and hauling heavy loads. Another key characteristic of the 300 six is its durability. The engine’s robust construction, with its heavy cast iron block and cylinder head, allowed it to withstand harsh conditions and extended use without significant wear. This durability made it a popular choice in industrial and agricultural applications where reliability and longevity were paramount.

The Ford 300 six was used in a wide range of vehicles over its three-decade production run. Some of the most common applications included the Ford F-series trucks from 1965 to 1996, the Ford Bronco from 1966 to 1996, and the Ford E-series van from 1968 to 1996. This engine was a popular engine choice for Ford F-series trucks, particularly in the F-100, F-150, and F-250 models. Its torque and reliability made it a favorite among truck owners who needed a dependable workhorse. The 300 six was also available in the Ford Bronco, particularly in the early years of its production. The engine’s torque made it well-suited for off-road use and towing, and the 300 six was commonly used in the Ford E-series vans, where its durability and low-end torque were assets through both commercial and passenger applications.

Identifying a Ford 300 six engine can be done through several means, including casting numbers and physical characteristics. The engine block typically features a cast number on the driver’s side just above the oil pan rail. This number can provide information about the engine’s production year and application. Additionally, the 300 six’s distinctive inline six configuration and overall size make it easy to identify visually. While the Ford 300 six is similar in design to other Ford inline sixes, such as the 240 and 200 engines, it is distinguished by its larger displacement and more robust construction. The 240 engine, for example, shares many components with the 300 six, but it has a shorter stroke and lower displacement, making it less powerful and torquey than the 300. The 300 six also differs from Ford’s smaller inline six engines in terms of its applications. While the 240 engines were often used in lighter vehicles, the 300 six was primarily used in trucks and heavy-duty applications where its torque and durability were most needed.

Now, while the 300 six is not typically thought of as a high-performance engine, it has a dedicated following among enthusiasts who appreciate its durability and torque. With the right modifications, the 300 six can be transformed into a powerful engine capable of impressive performance. Popular upgrades for the 300 six include porting and polishing the cylinder head, installing a performance camshaft, and upgrading the exhaust system. These modifications can help the engine breathe better and produce more horsepower while still retaining its characteristic low torque. For those looking to take the 300 six to the next level, kits are available that can increase the engine displacement and further boost its torque and power output. With the right combination of parts and tuning, a well-built 300 six can produce over 300 horsepower and 400 foot-pounds of torque.

Now, from what I’ve said here, you may wonder why anyone would ever want to swap out a 300 six. I’ll give you my reasons because that’s exactly what I’m planning on doing: taking the 300 six out and putting a 351 Windsor in. There are a few reasons, but the biggest is what I mentioned earlier. The 4.9 liter inline six just isn’t a high-performance engine. It wasn’t designed for it, and trying to shoehorn it into that role doesn’t make sense to me. I’d rather take out the engine in good working order and let someone else use it like the workhorse it is in their truck. While the 300 six is a workhorse, I’m aiming for something different with my build: a street truck with a high horsepower V8 that delivers a throaty growl and a rumbling idle. Those characteristics just don’t manifest in an inline six, no matter what sort of mods I do. And as they say, there’s no replacement for displacement. More cubic inches mean more potential power and torque, which is exactly what I’m after.

Now, I’ve been told that pulling a perfectly running 300 six to put in a 351 Windsor is practically sacrilege. But if I want to ruin my own truck by replacing the most reliable engine ever built, well, that’s my God-given right as an American, and I’ll do it with a smile on my face.

Hello, the 300 six engine is a testament to Ford’s engineering prowess and commitment to building durable, reliable engines. Its combination of low-end torque, durability, and simplicity make it a favorite among truck owners and industrial users alike. Whether you’re looking to restore a classic Ford truck or build a high-performance inline six engine, the Ford 300 six is a solid foundation to start with.

If you’re a Ford 300 six enthusiast, own one, want to build one, or even would just like to support the channel, you can now get an exclusive 300 inline six hat, coffee mug, shirt, or sticker over in my merch store. It’s a great way to show off your love for this incredible engine. Check it out on my website, bullnosegarage.com/merch.

So there you go, everything I know, or pretend to know, about the Ford 300 inline six. I’ve had this engine in this truck, obviously, ever since I bought it four or five years ago. It has never failed me and never given me a hard time. Now, I’ve had to replace a couple components: the alternator, a fuel pump, a couple things like that. But the engine itself has never failed to start and never had a problem with my NP435 in granny low first. I feel like I could probably pull the house off of its foundations using this truck. So if you’re thinking about doing a build or maybe even keeping your old 300 six around and doing some modifications to it, making it better, hopefully this video has helped you get a little bit more information.

If you find videos like this helpful, if you think I did a good job, or you just want to kind of give me some kudos, then hey, you know, hit that thumbs up, give me a subscribe. It really helps out the channel. I’m planning on doing some more videos like this about other Ford engines, maybe even transmissions, that kind of stuff. Right now, I just don’t have the time to devote to working on the truck like I’d like to, but I still want to make videos. So I’m thinking about doing an informational series about, like I said, engines, transmissions, that kind of stuff, just like this one that I just did. So if you like that kind of content and want me to do more of it, then just let me know. Drop me a comment, say, ‘Hey, Ed, can you do one about the Cleveland?’ or ‘Do one about the 460?’ or whatever you might want to see. I’d be happy to do that kind of research and put it out for you guys. So again, thanks so much for watching, and we will see you next time.

Howdy folks, Ed here. Welcome back to Bullnose Garage for the first time, and man, it’s been almost two years. Uh, life, pandemic, all kinds of stuff just got in the way of me working on this truck. And I’ve gotten several comments on many of my videos asking where I am and what’s going on, and people even actually worried about me, and I appreciate that. I really do. Uh, everything’s fine.

But today, the reason that I’m out here right now is because something broke on the Bullnose, and I need to fix it. And the last thing that I want to do is fix something on that truck without bringing you guys along with me. So what broke is this. It’s a mechanical fuel pump. So I try to start my truck every couple of weeks at the very least just to get it running and make sure that it’s okay, make sure the battery stays charged, all that fun stuff. Then about once a month or so, I’ll go out and, uh, actually stretch its legs, run it for, uh, you know, 10, 15 miles, something like that, and then bring it back and make sure that it’s running all right.

And this last time I went out to start it, it was kind of hard to start. I had to give it a whole lot of gas, and it cranked and cranked and cranked and wouldn’t catch. And then eventually it did catch and then die, and then it caught and then died. And then I gave it even more gas, and it caught and then it ran, but it sounded kind of strange, and I started smelling a little bit of gas. And so I turned it off and opened up the, uh, the hood back there and looked underneath, and there’s a big puddle of something, and it wasn’t oil, and it smelled like gas. So I’m guessing it was gas.

And sure enough, I turned the truck on and, uh, went back around to the front, and you could see it was running, but you could see, uh, where the fuel pump was just draining fuel, um, out onto the driveway here. And I don’t know if you’ll be able to see this or not, but these mechanical fuel pumps are designed with a little weep hole right here. So they’ve got a diaphragm inside of here, and then this, this, uh, right here rides on top of a cam inside the engine. And, uh, if that diaphragm goes out, it leaks out of this hole as an indicator to what, you know, that there’s something wrong and you got to replace it. And there’s no fix in the diaphragm. You can’t get in here, and there’s no serviceable parts. This thing is like a one-piece unit, and it’s like 30 bucks, so it’s not worth even trying to fix anyway, even if you could.

Um, so just go out and grab yourself a new one if you’ve got that problem. And these are actually, uh, pretty easy to change. You just get in there, takes a, uh, I think it’s like a 12 millimeter or a half-inch driver with a ratchet, and, uh, you got to get yourself the fuel pump itself. Like I said, it’s about 30 bucks. I got myself a Felpro gasket, like two bucks, and, uh, I didn’t have any of this, so I went out and grabbed some Permatex Orange. Um, that’s what’s good around fuel, uh, just to go around the gasket there. Now, there shouldn’t be any fuel touching that gasket. It’s in between the block and the fuel pump itself. There’s some oil in there, but there shouldn’t be any gas. But anyway, it’s around the fuel line, so in case something were to break or bust, I don’t want that getting out of the gasket material and giving me problems, so that’s why I’m using that.

So let’s get to it. All right, so that right there is the fuel pump. The, uh, line on the bottom of your screen, let me move this up a little bit so you can see, that’s going to the fuel tank, and the one on the top in the back there is going up to the carburetor. And you can see that, uh, there’s a bracket right there, and, uh, that bracket holds the ignition coil connector. Uh, so we’re going to have to remove that bracket as well. Now, not all vehicles have that, but mine happens to. Um, let’s see, and again, this is on a 3006. Uh, your mileage may vary, but, uh, on my ’85 36, this is how everything’s set up.

Now, a lot of these fuel pumps actually have the can facing down. In my case, it faces up. That’s just the way that it is. So I’m not sure if you can see it from this angle here. There’s a couple of bolts that hold that on, so it’s a fairly easy replacement, and we’re going to start by taking off the lines. So we’re going to start with this fuel line from the tank. Um, now, because my truck is outside, I’ve already leaked a bunch of fuel on the ground. I don’t really care that much, but if you’re going to be inside of your garage or in a place where the floor kind of matters, you want to make sure to put something under the truck because you might get some fuel leaking out of here when you take it off. And you just, uh, loosen up this hose clamp here and wiggle it off. Takes a little bit of force, especially if it’s been on there for a while. You just take it right off, and you want to cap this with something. I’m just using a driver extension and then kind of tuck that out of the way.

Now for the other one, we need to get a wrench in there and loosen that up. Now for the line going to the carburetor, I’m going to use a 5/8 flare nut wrench, and I’m going to use that because I don’t want to have to round this nut off and replace this line. So, um, whenever you’re working on, like, brake lines or lines like this, it’s always a good idea to use a flare nut wrench, um, because they have a more positive grip and you’re less likely to round things off. It makes them harder to get on. They’re a little bit, takes a little bit longer to do, but it’s just a little bit of insurance.

All right, that took a while, but we are on. Okay, I’m trying to get you guys a pretty good angle. Um, it’s a little hard to get down in here and see what I’m doing, but the next step is to actually unmount it from the block. And if you can see there, a couple of bolts there, they are half-inch, and so I would use my half-inch ratchet to take them off. Oh, and I was wrong. They’re not bolts, they’re nuts. That’s what happens if you’re not a mechanic. You think you know something, and then you’re not. Because, um, I have this, uh, um, ignition coil bracket behind there, uh, and it’s down by where the gasket is, I’m going to have to take that off so that I can get to the existing gasket and make sure that I get all that gasket material out of there. So this is a 9/16, and it’s right up here, and now I can move this out of the way and actually get to the pump.

So here’s something that I actually didn’t know about and expect. Um, the first bolts that I took, or the first nuts, excuse me, that I took off of the bottom where the fuel pump is at actually held this bracket on. So the actual fuel pump mounting, uh, nuts are still on there. So now I have to remove those, and they are also a half-inch. And up she comes. Now that I’ve got the fuel pump out of there, you can see inside the cam that’s down there that the fuel pump, um, arm rides on. You can also see all the, the gasket material that’s left on there. We want to make sure we get all that gasket material off so we have a nice clean mating surface with the block again for the new pump.

I want to start by using a, uh, a nylon brush just to kind of peel away the gasket material that’s there. You don’t want to be too harsh because you don’t want to, so there’s not actually even a gasket there. It looks like there’s just some gasket material that someone had put on before, and I have an actual gasket that I’m going to use. But, uh, make sure this is nice and clean. You don’t want to be too harsh and rough up too much, but you do have to make sure that it’s nice and clean. And now finally, get this as clean as, uh, I can. Oops, out of the way. I’m going to use this brass bristle brush. Brass bristle brush, um, it’s a little rougher than nylon but not as rough as steel. And this is just, uh, if I had a scratch pad, I’d probably use a scratch pad, but I don’t have one. Um, you could probably use steel wool, but that may be a little bit harsh for me. So that’s just to make sure that I got any remaining gasket material or any other kind of contaminants, uh, definitely off of there. And then I’m going to, uh, take some isopropyl alcohol and dilute it just a little bit. It’s not quite so strong, and give it a good final rub down with a shop rag just to make sure I don’t have anything going around there. Then we will let that dry and take a look at the old pump.

All right, so there’s our old pump, obviously, and our new one. And, uh, you, I mean, you can’t visually look at this and tell that it’s bad. Um, yeah, there’s not really any kind of diagnostics that you can do, um, except run fuel through it and watch it pour out of the weep hole. Um, that’s about it. But, uh, as you can see, they’re not exactly the same, but, uh, they’re definitely going to fit. So now the next job is just to install the new one. Just a quick note here, um, there can be some difficulty with installing these because of the position of the cam. Um, sometimes you’ll have to actually turn the engine. Um, you have to get on the crankshaft pulley with a ratchet or something or a breaker bar and actually turn the engine a little bit to get that cam into the right position to put this in. You can muscle this in without doing that. It’s kind of up to you how you want to do it. This one came out really, really easy, so I’m hoping that my engine is in the correct position to make it pretty easy to install this one. Uh, we’re going to find out.

So my first job here is going to be getting this gasket, um, onto here. The easiest way to do that is to take some of your gasket maker and just run a little bit seal area here, okay? And then you can put your gasket on, and what that’s going to do is that’s actually going to sort of lock the gasket to this part, and that way you’re not fighting with the gasket to stay on, um, while you’re getting it actually on the engine itself. And then while you’re out here, you actually do the same thing the other side, just a real light thin coat here. You don’t want too much. You don’t want it really oozing out, just enough to go around all the surface areas so that, uh, it mates real good and it fills in any micro gaps or anything between this gasket and the block itself. So let’s get to it.

All right, here we go. This is kind of hard with the camera here, but this is a little tight, but you just keep at it, and it’ll get in there. It’s a little hard to work with. I don’t really have a lot of space here for my fingers. There we go. Getting these in is kind of the hardest part, and I can see my gasket starting to get tacky, so I want to make sure that I get this tightened up really quickly. Sorry if you’re wobbling around. Sometimes this stuff is hard to do with the camera in the way. There we go. Now we want to slide our bracket back on. Should be fairly simple, just like that. I’ll get this thing tightened up and be right back with you.

All right, so it’s now installed. The only thing that remains is to put the, uh, the hoses back on. Now this is going to be tricky. You want to make sure that you’re not going to cross-thread that as it goes in. There we go. Now, like I said, wh off my sunglasses. Now, like I said, you want to be careful that you don’t cross-thread this nut right here. Um, it took me a little bit to get it in the right position. You may have to actually bend your line just a little bit to, uh, to get it to line up. You’ll know when you get it right ’cause it’ll start going on, uh, fairly easy. If it’s real, real hard to get on there, then you’re probably cross-threading it, and you don’t want to do that because then you have to replace this nut, flare nut right there, and, uh, that means replacing the whole line. So you want to make sure you’re careful.

And the last thing is putting your fuel line back on, and you just shove it on there, make sure it goes on all the way, and you can, uh, tighten up your hose clamp. All right, now we should be good to go. Now when you go to start this, it’ll probably take a long time because that have to pre, so, uh, be patient, and we’ll see how long it takes.

All right, here we go, and success! There is no fuel leaking out of my new fuel pump. Keep an eye on it just when you first, uh, get it started up. Make sure all your connections are dry, and you put your finger on it, you can actually feel the vibration of that pump lever in there moving up and down on the cam. At this point, I think we’re good to go.

All right, guys, well, there you go. Pretty simple job, a little bit dirty, but what is it? And, uh, pretty cheap too. Actually, it’s about, uh, I think, uh, 30, 40 bucks for all the parts that you need to do it. Um, it’s about an hour’s worth of work for me, and that includes filming. So for, uh, somebody who doesn’t have to worry about dealing with the camera and getting the right angles and going through all that stuff, it’s probably really a 20, 30-minute job at the worst. If you’ve never done it before, um, it’s a little fiddly getting in there sometimes, get those bolts out, and you got to be careful with that fuel line that you don’t, uh, cross-thread that flare nut or round it off or anything like that. But I mean, as long as you’re careful, you’re not going to worry about, uh, the truck runs like a top once again. It’s nice to have the old inline six running great again. Um, sounds as good as it did before, or actually probably better now with the new fuel pump. Uh, took it around the block a couple times, no issues at all, no leaks, no nothing. So it’s very nice to have that thing back on the road again.

As always, if you have any questions, comments, concerns, gripes, internet ramblings, stick them below. Thanks again for watching, guys, and we will see you next time.

Howdy folks, Ed here. Welcome back to Bullnose Garage. About a month ago, I had a comment on one of my videos telling me that my truck was screaming for a buff and a polish. Well, who am I to deny the screaming requests of my truck? Today, I will be starting the process of giving this truck a good thorough cleaning and then a good thorough buffing. Now, I don’t plan to do the last stage of polish. This truck has really old paint, and this paint’s going to be replaced and repainted at some point, so I’m not too worried about this. Actually, this is really sort of a test for me, a learning experience. I’ve never buffed a vehicle before. Like a lot of the things on my channel, I’ve never done this, so this should be interesting.

But the first thing I’m going to do is give her a good cleaning. I’ve got a pressure washer here behind me, so we’re going to use some McGuire’s Gold Class soap and my pressure washer to get it all washed down. And then once that’s—the basic heavy-duty grime is washed down, I’m going to give it a hand washing. Once the hand washing is done, I’m going to do a clay bar on it. Um, actually, before all that’s done, before the clay bar, then I got to go through and get rid of some of this peeling clear coat. I got peeling clear coat everywhere, so I need to get underneath that and sort of get that back to a good line between the old paint and the clear coat. I’m not going to worry about sanding off the old clear coat or anything like that. We’re just doing this as is. We’re going to see how it turns out. I mean, no matter what, it’s got to be better than what it is because this paint is really, really bad.

So after the clay bar, then I will get my buffer polisher out, and we will use some McGuire’s Ultimate Compound and some different levels of buffing pads to see what we can do to this old paint. Once that’s all done, I’ve got some ceramic coating that I bought just to see how that works. A lot of this stuff is just me testing things out so that once I do get the real final finish on this truck, I know exactly what sort of products that I want to use. So I’m really interested to see exactly how this turns out. Like I said, it’s got to make the truck look better, no matter what, basically, unless I take all the paint off. But hey, you know, even then, I get it down to metal, clear coat it, and call it patina.

All right, so let’s get to washing. So before I continue, there are a few things that I’d like to talk about or point out. For one, I’m really washing this truck at the wrong time of day. I’m in an actual middle of the day. The sun is at the highest in the sky that it could be, and I did have some problem with the soap drying before I could get the rinse coat on there. But I’m not too worried about that because I’m gonna do a hand wash on this anyway and get some of the stuff the pressure washer didn’t because I didn’t want to get too close to the pressure washer.

The other thing is that this hood has some really thin paint on it. There’s a lot of places, actually, where the metal is coming through. So if I were somewhere else in the country, I would probably clear coat this hood. I would sand the clear coat that’s already on here. There’s a little thin strip of clear coat on the front of this. I would probably sand this clear coat back to make it nice and even with the paint and then sort of, you know, feather it in and then probably get some of that same 2K clear rattle can stuff that I had before and just tape things off and do a real quick clear coat on the top of this just to seal in all that exposed metal. Because I’m in the southwest, rust really isn’t a thing down here. I mean, it is, but it takes a long, long time, and I’m going to repaint this thing well before I have any problems with rust eating through the hood.

And on top of that, I’m not even sure that this is the hood that I’m going to keep going forward. I may want to get a hood with a scoop or some other stuff. Hoods are relatively inexpensive, especially if you can, you know, go into a pick apart or something. So the hood is the least of my worries. It’s the other body panels that I’ll be worried about, and all the other body panels are good. There’s a few chips, but for the most part, the paint is pretty good on those and nice and thick, so I’m not real worried about that. I did get an ultra-fine buffing pad for the hood specifically just to make sure that I don’t take off any more paint than I have to. I do expect—see, I’m getting red on my fingers just doing that. So, um, yeah, this paint is really ultra-thin and is going to come up super easy, so that’s why I got an ultra-thin pad for this.

So anyway, I just wanted to get that stuff out there. I’m going to do a hand wash on this probably later this afternoon once the sun gets a little bit lower and the weather or the temperature starts to drop a little bit. That way, my water doesn’t dry quite as fast. I’ve got a little bit more time to actually do the hand wash. Once the hand wash is done, I’m going to get her into the garage so that the crazy amount of dust in this New Mexico air doesn’t fall on the truck while it’s sitting outside. And then I’ve got time over the course of the next week or so to do my clay bar, to do my buffing, and all that fun stuff. So I know that was a long explanation, but I just want to let you guys know exactly what my plans are, what I’m doing, and you know, that way I don’t have to do a voiceover later, which is kind of a pain in the butt.

Okay guys, before I start doing this, I want to give you a little tour of the paint on this hood. Now you can see here where the clear coat is delaminating, and then along these front quarter panels also, it’s delaminating. And then front up here on the hood. And so this portion is going to be an issue, but I’m not too worried about it. What I’m worried about is things like this. Um, this, of course, is bare metal. And now, like I said before, I’m not too worried about it rusting, but you can see here where I actually painted over it with something just to keep the bare metal from being exposed. Um, I didn’t bother to do that over here because I think that looks ugly. I wasn’t gonna do it again anyway. Um, what I’m really kind of worried about is like this. Okay, now this is not—I haven’t buffed this. Um, I haven’t done anything to it. This is simply what’s come about as a result of me giving it a good wash. I haven’t clay barred yet. I haven’t really done much of anything to it yet. And here you can see some more of the clear coat delamination. There’s also a spot over here where it’s starting to do the same kind of thing. So it’s going to be really interesting to see what happens to this hood when I buff it. I am still planning on using the buffer on this hood because I want to find out what happens to these spots when you buff them. And I’m sure that a good detailer or body man could tell me exactly what’s going to happen, but I learn by doing, and so that’s what I’m going to do.

My next major task is going to be the clay bar of the truck because this paint has a lot of really rough spots. I can feel it. And before I buff it, I want to make sure that it’s as clean as I can possibly get it. But before I can even do that, I need to take care of these little areas here where you can see the clear coat is coming off. Now, I’m not going to worry about sanding or blending or doing anything like that. I just want to get as much of this little flakiness off as possible. So what I’m going to use is actually a paint brush. This is a new paint brush, and if you run it along, you can see it’s kind of bringing this back right to the edge here and removing a lot of the flakiness. And I’ll have to go back over this real quick just to get all these little bits and pieces. Anything that this doesn’t pick up, I will just run over with the clay bar and then eventually hit with the buffer. But there’s a lot of this on the truck, but you can see where that’s actually doing its job. It’s not going to be perfect. This is really old paint, really old clear coat. But if I can get some of these chips off of here, that’s one less thing to snag on the clay bar and one less thing to deal with when I’m actually doing the buffing. And it should make it easier for me to sort of buff blend, if that’s even a term, these little delaminations here so that they’re not quite as obvious. As you can see, there’s a whole line here that needs the same treatment done to it. So we are going to go ahead and do that. Uh, so that works pretty good. Yeah, I’m going to run through this a couple more times, hit it with a microfiber towel to get some of these little flecks and stuff off the panel here, and then I will go do the rest of the truck. Mostly it’s just around the front and on the hood. Um, and then we’ll be back to start the clay bar.

Now I got a Mother’s California Gold clay bar kit. It comes with everything you see here. This is the lubricant, a couple of bars of clay, and a microfiber towel to rinse things off or wipe things off when you’re all done. Now I am not going to use this entire bar of clay. I’m going to open this up and divide it probably into two different pieces. That way, if something happens—I mean, if you drop one of these on the floor, it’s garbage, so you got to throw it away. So, and then, of course, once it gets full of garbage and crap, which these will because my truck probably hasn’t been washed in 20 years, then you got to throw it away then too. So I’m probably going to split both of these bars into two pieces right down the middle, and that should give me plenty of clay to do what I got to do, but also give me a spare piece. I’m hoping I could do the whole truck with just one bar. If not, I have a second one, so we’ll see how it goes.

So quick update, here is the truck after being clayed all the way around. You can clearly see on the hood there I’ve lost a little bit more paint. It was easy to see on the bottom of the clay bar that that paint was coming up. But again, the hood is my biggest concern. You can see here, especially on the ridge, where some more of the red paint has come up. And then over here, so red paint has come up there. So what I’m going to do is when I buff this hood, I’m going to tape off these ridges with masking tape and this one and this one. And then I’m going to hand buff these ridges, and they won’t get nearly as shiny, but hopefully that’ll help protect some of that paint. So that’s my hope.

So here’s the rest of the truck. It looks much better than it did. You can actually see some reflection in these back panels. I have not buffed this yet. This is just cleaning and clay bar, so there is no clear coat on this paint here. I think this is just single-stage paint in the back. I’m not sure what they did to this truck. Clearly, those front quarter panels are two-stage. There’s a base coat and a clear coat, and then these back parts of the truck are single-stage. So I’m not sure who repainted it and when and how and all that stuff, but there’s been some paint work done to it. But it does look way better than it did. So when I buff, I’m going to start with the bed because that’s where the paint is the thickest. The old paint is there, and there’s a few scratches and stuff, but it’s an old truck, so there’s going to be. So the bed is where the paint is the thickest, so I’m gonna go ahead, since I’ve never done any buffing, power buffing before, I’m gonna start back there. That’ll give me the most leeway and get me used to the feel of the buffer before I go up front and do the hood. So that’s what’s next.

A few things here before I get started. I’m going to start with this panel here. It’s relatively simple. It’s relatively flat in comparison to the rest of the stuff on the truck. I’m going to sort of cut my teeth, so to speak, since I’ve never done this before, on a pretty simple panel. Now I’ve got this panel all taped up. You want to tape up anything that you don’t want the buffer to touch, so my chrome—this chrome bar up here—and I’ve also taped off the fuel door because it’s got some sharp edges, and I don’t want to run the buffer over top of these sharp edges and remove more paint than I’d like to.

So what I’m going to do is I’m going to come at this at angles like this and not back so I don’t hit this edge here going back this way. It turns out that a lot of the preparation I did here didn’t make any difference. I wasn’t using a strong enough buffing pad or compound to cause the kinds of issues I’m talking about, at least not on the bed of the truck. I even ended up using my old buffing pads on the chrome when I was done since the Ultimate Compound and the buffer made the chrome parts shine up really nice. And I’ll always try to come at it like this, and then when I’m done, I get the whole panel done, then I’ll come back and take the tape off of this door and tape around here, close the door back up, and then I’ll buff the door just that little bit. I may actually just buff this door by hand rather than use the power buffer.

So what I have is this Tacklife rotary buffer. I picked this up from Amazon. It’s got a digital readout on it, and it’s got really good reviews, so we’re gonna see how well it works. And I’ve also got these seven-inch Bauer foam pads I got from Harbor Freight. I’m using yellow for the entire truck except for the hood. For the hood, I’m using white because white is sort of an ultra-fine. It should do a lot less cutting than the yellow does. The yellow is just a little bit harsher than what the white is, so I can be a little bit more aggressive on this paint, but it’s nowhere near as aggressive as I can get. Again, this is my first time. I’m not going for a show-quality finish, far from it. I’m going for better than it was, so hopefully I can get to that by doing this. I’m using McGuire’s Ultimate Compound because supposedly it kind of does everything all in one compound. Again, not going for a show-quality finish. I’m going for an Ed in his garage better than it was before finish, so hopefully this works out fine for me.

Along with the yellow buffing pad, we’re gonna find out because I’m about to kick this thing off, so we shall see. So, so, so, real quick, let’s take a look at this. Obviously, this is where I have buffed, and this is where I have not. And I haven’t spent a whole lot of time on this. I’ve just gone over it once. You can see, um, if I get real close into here—actually, it’s kind of hard to see on the camera. There we go. You can see scratches and stuff that exists in there. Man, this is 30-year-old paint. This is 30-year-old paint, so there’s gonna be scratches and stuff. I’m pretty happy with how this is turning out. I’m trying to be real gentle with it, so I’m not being real aggressive. I’m not putting hardly any pressure on it at all, and this is really buffing out nice, so we’re just going to keep going.

So, so, if my goal for this truck was to make it better than it was, then I think it’s pretty obvious that I have met that goal and actually, at the very least, met and maybe even exceeded my expectations for my first time ever doing this. Now, I could probably get better than this. In fact, I know I could. But for, you know, Ed in his garage doing this for the first time ever, I’m pretty happy now. I don’t know if you can see over here what it used to look like because I haven’t done any of the cab stuff yet, but this is way shinier than that. And as a matter of fact, if I back up, I can see myself in the finish here, whereas over here on this side, if I’m looking straight on, I can’t see anything like that. Now, I don’t know that I could actually—I can actually shave in there. Maybe like if it was the apocalypse and there were no mirrors available anywhere, I could probably get away with it. But, uh, the bottom line is that I’m really happy with it.

Now I’ve got to do the rest of the truck, and I am not going to bore you by having you watch me buff the whole rest of the truck. But I am going to bring you back when I do the front quarter panel, one of the front corner panels and the hood because those are the other areas on this truck that are sort of special consideration. So the front quarter panel has a line where the clear coat meets the base coat, and I want to try to see if I can feather that line out a little bit to make it as nice looking as possible. And then, of course, the hood has really, really thin paint, and so I’m really interested to see just how much of that paint I’m going to take off and what that hood’s going to look like when I’m done. And I’m going to do the hood last. That way I get as much practice on the thicker paint of the rest of the truck as I can before I tackle the hood. So I will bring you back when I am doing the front quarter panel.

Okay, so I looked. I will make you watch me buff this door. I’m just so impressed by the difference it makes. And I think looking straight on as I buff out the door really showcases just how quickly I go from dull paint to shiny paint. Remember, this door is as clean as I could make it with hand washing and clay bar. It’s not like I’m just wiping off dirt here. I’m actually restoring the shine on this 35-year-old paint. I said I was going to bring you back when I’m ready to do the quarter panels and the hood, and here we are. I’ve actually already done the other quarter panel on the other side just to get a pretty good idea of how it’s going to go and how it’s going to look. It turned out pretty good, not perfect, but it’s not going to be, so I’m happy with it.

There’s a couple of things that I want to note before I go forward. So I’ve done the rest of the truck, and I found that on this older single-stage paint, 1800 RPM, which is the third highest setting on my polisher, works much better than 1400. It just sort of does a better job, does it quicker, and this paint is pretty robust, so it’s not really digging in too much. I’m not having a real hard time with my edges or anything like that, especially with the polishing pad that I’ve got, which is not real aggressive. I probably could have got a much more aggressive pad and done this a lot quicker and easier, but I’m trying to be cautious because I’ve never done this before. And to be honest, it’s turned out really, really well. The quarter panel on the other side, the clear coat obviously looks fantastic, and this base coat underneath shines a little bit, but it’s not gonna shine like the clear coat does. So, uh, these base coats aren’t really designed to be polished. They’re designed to be covered with a clear coat. You can polish them, and they do shine up, but one thing that you want to be careful of is that these are way thinner under this clear coat than this old single-stage paint is. You’ve got a lot of paint here. It’s real thick that you can go through before you start hitting any kind of primer or metal or anything else, whereas this base coat here, it doesn’t take a whole lot of time, even with a light grit pad and some fairly mild compound, to get down to where you’re starting to get into the primer underneath. And in fact, I did that on the other side, just a small little piece. You’ll never even know it’s there unless you know what you’re looking for, but that’s something to be careful of when you’re doing blending like I’m gonna be doing between clear coat and base coat.

Other than that, I’m gonna turn the machine back down to 1400 RPM for this, so it’s not quite as aggressive, and let’s just see what I’m doing. I’ve also found that using an applicator pad like this to put down your initial coat of compound works really well to prevent the machine, the polisher, from splattering compound all over the place. So I’ve been using this just to get my base sort of layer of compound on the paint and then coming back behind it with the polisher to polish it up. Now it actually looks much better on camera than it does in person, but really it doesn’t look bad. You can clearly see the old area that I have not yet buffed versus the area that I just got done buffing, and if you look pretty close, you can see the line where the clear coat ends and the base coat begins. But if you stand far enough away, it’s really kind of hard to see. It almost just looks like I’ve got a strip of matte paint going across the top when you step back away from it. Overall, I’m pretty happy with that.

So I’m going to go ahead and finish this panel, and then I’m going to do the cowl and the top part of the roof, and then we will move on to the hood, which is going to be one of the most interesting parts. I’ve got the hood sectioned off like this so that I can do one part at a time, really sort of pay attention to what I’m doing, and also because these ridges are a spot where the polisher will eat into the paint the most because that’s where the most pressure is going to be applied. And a lot of these ridges actually already have some paint missing, so I don’t want to grind into these too hard. Once I’m done with the whole thing, I’ll take this tape off, and I’ll do these by hand. So I’m using about the finest pad that I can. It’s this white pad from Harbor Freight, and I’m going to be on 1400 RPM, which is the second lowest setting, just to try to make sure that I can get some cutting done, but not too much, again, not to take off too much of this paint. So we’re going to go ahead and lay our compound down and get the buffing.

So, so, bye. Mmm, well, it’s far from perfect, but considering how careful I’m trying to be not to eat into this paint, I think it’s as good as I’m gonna get. And I think once I get a coat of the ceramic on here to protect it, no matter what, it will definitely look better than it did. So, well, the hood’s done, and as you can see, it’s better but not great. And I don’t know what I could do to make it look better. The paint here is really thin. I don’t know how much correction I could do to this to sort of shine it up or gloss it up. I could clear coat it, but I don’t know if clear coating it would make it look a lot better because I would just be clear coating over a lot of these paint defects and splotchiness and that kind of stuff. Um, you know, I could have used a more aggressive pad and probably got a more uniform look, and I’m sure that you can tell looking at that there’s splotchiness and sort of weirdness all over it as far as the paint goes. But I’m afraid that if I would have used a more aggressive pad or a more aggressive setting on the polisher that I just would have started really eating into the paint. And you can see, I’m not sure you can see from the angle that you’re at, but I think you can see it from the angle with giraffe before. There are some darker spots on this hood, and that’s actually where I’m getting down into, um, you know, the primer or maybe even the previous paint. I mean, who knows? This could have been painted black at some point, and there’s some other kind of paint coming through here.

So, I mean, interestingly enough, I know that this cowl isn’t original to the truck because this pinhole cowl is on the next generation of truck from ’87 to ’91. So at some point, this cowl was replaced, and I’m guessing that at some point maybe this entire front part of the truck was replaced because this front part, the two quarter panels of the hood and the cowl are the only parts that have clear coat. So the rest of the truck may very well be original, and these parts may be added on from another truck. Now, I mean, obviously, they’re bull-nosed parts because the wheel wells, you know, have the bullnose shape to them, and of course, the hood has to be able in those hoods. So, um, I don’t know what happened in the history of this truck, but something happened to where these parts were coated and the rest of the truck was not.

Anyway, back on topic here. So, um, the hood definitely looks better, but I’m not super happy with it. So I think we’re gonna do something else to it. Um, I’ve already got a paint sprayer on the way, and I think I’m gonna plasti dip the hood just probably satin black, maybe put some glossifier on there. I’m not sure yet. Um, you know, I thought about maybe even now once this truck is sort of done and fully painted that I might use plasti dip for the two-tone or maybe a wrap or something else. I don’t know yet, but I do know that I’ve never plaster dipped anything before. Sounds like fun. Should be interesting. Looking forward to doing that and then, of course, making a video on it.

So the next thing that we’re gonna do is get all this tape off the truck, get it all wiped down, nice clean cloth all the way around every single surface, get nice and wiped down, and then I’m going to put a ceramic coating on all this so that it stays nice and clean and sealed. So that’s next. Oh, by the way, I’m sure that you can see this right here, this swirl mark. Yeah, that wasn’t done by me. Okay, what that is is I had one of these guys, you know, these guys that come door to door, and they try to sell you this cleaner junk, right? And they try to get you to buy all these big bottles of their super magical wonderful cleaner. And this guy had the nerve to walk over to this truck and get a rag out and spray some of his cleaner on the rag and start grinding it into the truck to show me how amazingly it cleans. Yeah, yeah, I was not very happy with that guy. But obviously, the cleaner works fairly well because even after buffing, I still can’t get the crap that he cleaned the marks off the hood. Jerk.

The entire truck paint-wise has been buffed. I’ve gone around and polished the chrome and other little metal bits, and I’ve also cleaned my windows, which is pretty everyday simple stuff. I’m not going to bore you with. The last thing that I’m going to do for this video is I’m going to spray on this ceramic spray coating. So ceramic coatings are relatively new. Typically, in the olden days, you would put on a coat of wax, and a lot of people still do put on wax. And as a matter of fact, um, I’ve never used a ceramic coating like this before. So, um, I say that a lot, right? Like I’ve never done this before. Let’s do it for the first time ever on camera on YouTube. So, but that’s, I guess, what my channel is about. So, um, this is a Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions ceramic spray coating, and I’m using this because Project Farm actually did a sort of a test of a whole bunch of different ceramic coatings, and this stuff came out pretty close to the top. So, I will link that video in the little card or something somewhere. You should go check that out. It’s a pretty cool video. He does a really great job on this stuff.

But anyway, it’s pretty simple. All you’ve got to do is wipe everything down. So sometimes the polish or the compound leaves a little bit of a residue, and I have gone over the truck already with a cloth after I was done, but I’m gonna go over it one more time real thoroughly with just a real clean microfiber cloth just to make sure I got everything off. And then once that’s done, um, you’re supposed to spray two shots of this on every panel. Um, but I’m—it doesn’t really say what a panel is. I’m guessing a panel is probably like that sort of an area. So we’ll do two good shots of that, and then I got this little applicator that I’ll use to rub it on there and do the whole truck that way. And that should serve as a replacement for a wax coating, and this stuff is supposed to last for like about a year if you do two coats. So that’s what we’re gonna do, and hopefully, um, it’ll last that long. We’ll see how long this paint job is—this polish job, anyway—is it gonna last. So let’s get to it. This is the boring part right here.

Now the bottle says once you’ve got one coat applied, you should dry it with a microfiber towel, so that’s what I’m doing. The bottle also says that for 12-month protection, you should apply a second coat, but it does not say how long you should wait between coats or anything like that. Mm-hmm, yeah, no information about that. So I am just going to go ahead and put my second coat on now so that I can say this panel is done. Uh, it already looks really good. It feels super smooth. So, but while we’re here and I’ve got the stuff, we’re gonna put a second coat on to give me as much protection as possible. So let’s do that.

All right, well, there’s one panel completely done and the entire rest of the truck to go, so I will do that and see you on the other side.

Do do do, here we are with the final product, and I gotta say I think it looks pretty good. That’s not a professional job, but I think it’s probably a pretty solid, pretty solid amateur job, you know, for a couple of weeks’ worth of work—washing, clay, buffing, and then putting some ceramic on top. I think it definitely makes a big difference. Now this paint is never gonna be perfect. I can look at it right now and see lots of little tiny scratches, some haze areas where the paint has just been worn away. And, uh, you know, that’s what you get for a 35-year-old paint job. At least in the back part here where this is the old single-stage stuff. And, uh, you know, you’re never gonna, without some serious correction, make it perfect. And I am in no position in terms of my time or my experience level to do any serious correction on this truck, but I am again real happy with this.

If you’ve got an older vehicle that’s got some oxidation on the paint, um, that just needs a little bit of a refresher, especially if it’s got this old single-stage stuff on it, uh, you know, a buffer and some buffing pads and a little bit of compound will really just bring the shine right back out, and I highly recommend that. You know, I’m really happy that that guy on YouTube was like, ‘Ah, this truck is screaming for a buff and a polish,’ because I, you know, I think it was right.

The other thing to talk about real quick is this hood and the top of these quarter panels. Now I’m not sure if you can see it from where you are, but there’s definitely a demarcation line where the clear coat on this quarter panel ends and the base coat begins. But in terms of color, they’re very similar. It’s just sort of the shine. So the top of this looks kind of matte, and of course, the bottom looks glossy. As you get back far enough, I mean, yeah, you can see it, but it doesn’t jump out at you like it did before, so I’m really happy with that.

This hood is another story because it’s not just about the clear coat of the shine of the hood. The paint on this hood is actually really pretty badly damaged, and there’s a lot of places where the metal is coming through, and it’s just kind of ratty. So no amount of paint correction with a buffer is going to fix that, which is why I’ve decided to plasti dip this hood. I figure the hood will be a really good practice ground for some plastic dip practice. I’m planning on plasti dipping parts of my other truck because it’s having the same problem with the clear coat peeling, and I think plasti dip is an easy and sort of undamaging way to make that look much better without having to go through the whole thing of, you know, sanding and painting and all that stuff. So, I mean, you have to do some feathering and stuff to eat the plasti dip to stick, but that’s a whole other thing. Well, we’ll cover that in that video where I’ll either make it look a whole lot better or we’ll turn it into a gigantic debacle, which could also be fun.

So bottom line, glad I did it. Looks way better. And, uh, until next time, if you have any questions, comments, concerns, gripes, internet ramblings, stick them below. Thanks again for watching, guys. We will see you next time. Oh, that was terrible. Thanks for watching, guys. We will see you next time.