Snowball 94 Limited

[FR-425]

Too bad there's never a good limited grille in the junkyards I go to. I wish they made reproduction pieces.

I can source you one, out here the bone yards currently have 14 limited first gens. At least 5 of them have good grills.

Plan to grab a grill and bumper for myself when I get back from Moab.

Two minute deal to grab another grill.

PM me if you want to have me get ya one.

 

[willindsay]

Small Projects

I've been slowly knocking things off my list and using parts i've had sitting around for far too long.

First up was a battery hold down. The stock wedge and bolt were missing when I first bought the rig, I've never really been a big fan of that design so I came up with a design that I think is more secure and best off all it was free. I decided to use a seat belt as I figured if it can hold a 200lb person in place it should be more than sufficient for a 20lb battery. I think the one I used came out of a mid 90s Taurus.

Next up was a fishing pole rack for the interior roof as I was tired of having to fold down the back seats to fit them in and having them bouncing around with all the other gear back there. I looked online and couldn't find any that I liked so I bought the materials and enlisted my mother to help me sew it together.

I used 1.5in polypropylene strapping in tan and fasteners that I got from Strapworks.com along with 4 footman loops from ebay to put it together. It went through several different stages while I figured out the best design. I started with just 2 straps on about a foot from the rear and one strung between the back seat grab handles. This worked alright for the longer rods but my short trout rods flexed in the middle. They also slid around way too much. In the end I ended up with 3 straps 2 in the previously mentioned locations and one right above the back seat belts. I also added 5 loops to accommodate the rod handles and one big loop at the front strap to prevent the rod tips to keep the rods in place.

V1

Final Version

 

[willindsay]

Maintenance.

I've also done some maintenance on things that I've been neglecting.

I changed the oil and the 2nd trans filter last week and put in Valvoline High Mileage SynBlend and 2 Motorcraft filters. Last time I changed it was 9 months ago but I used synthetic then and I've only gone 6000mi so it wasn't really that far out.

I also started on replacing the rotors and break pads today. After acquiring all the needed tools I got both sides disassembled in about 2hrs. This is probably the largest task I've tried yet so I was pretty happy with myself only had a few hiccups but I chock them up to it being my first break job. With any luck I'll have it back together tomorrow with enough time left to hit the water park for a few hours.

I let these breaks go far to long and the rotors and pads show it. Both are worn out the passenger side rotor also has a few deep groves in it. I should have attended to them a few months ago when I first got the parts but lack of time and fear of the unknown kept me from doing them.

Here's some pics of where I left off for the night.
Passenger rotor

 

[mr cribb]

That's nothing. You should have seen the rotors that came off my 94 ranger. The brake pads came off in two pieces and the rotors had so many grooves, it was amazing I could stop at all.

 

[willindsay]

New Car and a Little update.

Not much has happened on Snowball since I changed the breaks I did add some rear mudflaps that my GF bought me a couple months back. And I do have a sticky headlight relay that needs changed out but slamming the door gets it to work so I haven't got to it yet been focused on other things.

Mudflaps.

I also acquired a new DD. It's a 01 Ford Escape with a 3.0L V6. It was my sisters till she ran it into a ditch and cracked the oil pan and deployed the airbags. Insurance totaled it so I had them buy it back and I payed my parents for it. It only needed a new oil pan to get it back up and running.

I got the oil pan replaced with a updated Doorman unit that uses the better 04+ gasket and replaced the O2 sensor that had the wires broken off too close to the sensor to fix. Now I'm just working on getting the Y pipe back in place. I'm stuck on one of the studs as it broke when I was removing the exhaust. I cut it off flush with the flange and tried to drill it but the drill kept wandering so I tried heating the flange with a torch and then and smacking it with an air hammer. That didn't make do anything besides cause me a few minor burns. I called a local exhaust shop and he said it be 100$ just to remove the stud so for now I bolted the exhaust back up and my plan is to use the flange on the Y pipe as a drill guide and get a couple sharp 3/8in drill bits and try drilling it again. But that will have to wait till Friday as classes started back at school today.

Anyone got any tips on removing the stud??

So far I'm into the rig about 850$ for the buy back price and parts. And baring any unforeseen issues the only thing I plan to do else is replace the window and I'm budgeting 400$ for that and hoping it'll be less. So for around 1300$ I'll have a great running car with 140,000 miles on it with less than 10,000mi on a new Jasper warrantied transmission and that has had a new battery put on 2yrs ago and new plugs,breaks, and numerous other parts replaced within the last year.

My plans are to leave it pretty much like it is and mod a few cheap things here and there but just drive it tell the wheels fall off.

 

[Benjam]

I really like that fishing rod idea.. May have to do that myself sometime.

Very creative.

Oh and good score on the escape!

Benjam

 

[willindsay]

Benn drivin the Escape for the past two weeks Daily so the Explorer has only moved about 20mi. So today I thought I'd give it a little attention. I ordered a rubber eraser wheel from ebay and today I removed the pin stripe from the car since the passenger fender had a different stripe and the original was chipped in a few spots.

Before

During

I thought I took after pics but apparently I didn't I will get some tomorrow after I wash it while I'm out getting some parts for the Escape. Overall I'm very happy with the new look I am thinking about adding back a single orange stripe though but it'll probably be awhile before I do that.

 

[CDW6212R]

I have an old NOS stripe kit someplace that I got for my 91 cream colored Explorer. I'm not sure of the color now, it was either a green mix or a red mix. It was last Winter when I saw the box last.

 

[willindsay]

Finally got around to finishing up and installing a mod I'd been working on for a while.

It's a 50cal casing I polished up and coated with lacquer to keep the shine. I then removed the factory plastic handle from a spare shifter I picked up at the junk yard then epoxied the casing to it. I think it compliments my 9mm door locks well and adds a unique touch to the interior. It's a bit smaller than the stock handle so it feels weird in the hand but I figure you only hold if for a few seconds at a time so it doesn't mater.

Next projects is valve stem caps from some 45's.

And I know I keep forgetting to get pics of the exterior without the stripes. Hopefully I'll have time and remember this weekend.

 

[mr cribb]

I like the shifter mod.

Too bad there isn't anything similar to do to the 5 speed shifter.

 

[willindsay]

I like the shifter mod.

Too bad there isn't anything similar to do to the 5 speed shifter.

There's always the grenade shifter.

 

[mr cribb]

Eh, it's alright not my top choice.

 

[willindsay]

It's been a while since I've updated this. Nothing too exciting has happened lately with the rig. It's been too cold and I've been busy finishing school so I nothing has happened.

Since I got my Escape my dad has been driving the explorer but only about 10mi a week since he has a work van he only uses it to run errands when he gets off work. I did take it out a few times when we had all the snow and it performed flawlessly. I was surprised the first time when it sat all week in below freezing temps, I jumped in it and it fired right up.

I lent it to my girlfriend for 2 weeks while she found a new vehicle after her was totaled as we were coming back from spring break at the beach. Some how while she had it she managed to knock loose 3 vacuum lines from the tree on the intake. Plugged them back in and used zip ties to secure them till I get around to replacing all of them this summer.

The check engine light is still on and it's throwing EGR related codes. For now I'm just ignoring it as it still runs great I might get back to chasing the source down this summer as seeing that light on every time I get in bugs me.

 

[willindsay]

Been doing a little bit of maintenance to the rig lately to get it ready for fishing season. First up was repairing the drivers window as it would not go down. Opened up the door and found that the motor and the gear on the regulator had bound up. Turns out that using ball bearings instead of the bushing the window motor is suppose to have allows too much torque and cause it to jam. So I replaced the bearings with some spare bushings I had and now we're back in business. Hopefully this will be the last window issue as I feel like I've worked on the windows every time I drive it lately.

Took the rig down the dirt trail to the pond that day and drove home with no issues. Next day though my dad jumps in it to run a few errands and it wont turn over at all. I had no time to track down what the issue was so it sat for about a week till I finally got to diagnosing the issue. Turns out the battery had finally given up the ghost.
So being Memorial day I jumped online to fins who had the best deal going and ended up getting a AutoCraft Platinum AGM 750CCA battery for a little over $150. I went with the AGM as they're suppose to be better with vibrations and better at sitting for awhile without being put on a charger. Seemed like a good match for the rig and a decent price since it also has a 3yr free replacement warranty.

Rigs back running in almost tip top shape now. Hopefully sending it to the shop next week to get an alignment.

 

[mr cribb]

It must be battery season. I had to drop some cash for a battery as well.

I picked up a similar style of battery. I think mine is a 1050 ca and 850 cca. I think it cost me $125

 

[willindsay]

It's been way to long but I finally did a little work on the rig this past week.

I started by replacing most of the vacuum lines with new High Temp Orange Silicone hose I picked up off Ebay.

Still need to replace the Brake booster hose but couldn't get the right size in orange so I'm gonna look around or I might just go by the auto parts tore and get regular black line.

I do need a little help tracking down where one line goes. It's the one that starts on the right side of the image where the orange line ends. I know it heads down below the fire wall somewhere but it's wrapped in a bundle of wires so it's hard to trace.

I also re-secured the drives rain guard as the tape let go about a year ago and I finally got more double sided tape to re hang it.

Then lastly I installed the new door pull I picked up at Pull-A-Part a few months back. Instead of gluing it I used double sided tape to hold it in. We'll see how long it lasts like that.

Just need to get a new door handle trip piece and it'll be like new.

Hopefully this week I'll get time to replace the passenger side door pull and trouble shoot the CEL I have. I'm getting code 327.

 

[NICE59FORDF100]

love the truck bud!!

I did get some other odds and ends I need for a few projects.
I grabbed 4 key pads to add to my vehicle using the write up one of the Bandit guys posted

well now I feel all bashful, lol. glad the write up helped bud, did you ever install the keypad? keep up the good work, everyone knows how much I do love the limiteds!

 

[willindsay]

love the truck bud!!



well now I feel all bashful, lol. glad the write up helped bud, did you ever install the keypad? keep up the good work, everyone knows how much I do love the limiteds!

Thanks!

I have not got to the Keypads yet, I'm hoping to get to them this winter. Truck kinda got pushed to the back burner the past year with my Senior year of college and starting a new job. Sadly the rig only gets driven about once a week. But I've got some time off from my job this winter and hoping do to several upgrades to the rig.

Update:
Yesterday I' was dong some work cleaning up the carport in prep for working on teh cars this week. While I was outside I decided to let the EX warm up so I could check over all the fluids and make sure the 4X4 was working for the winter.
While doing so I rolled down the drivers side window that had been getting stuck for the past few weeks. The window went down with no issues but upon trying to roll it up on the the rear part of the window went up. So i removed the door panel and found the front part had fallen out of the holder that keeps it on the track. I drilled/Dremeled out the rivet that hold the window holder to the actuator and reinstalled it with a short 1/4" bolt and some black silicone to hold the window (didn't have any clear on hand). And while I was in there I sprayed the track with some white lithium grease . Hopefully this will be the last window issue I have. I seem to be plagued with them.

I'm hoping in the coming weeks I'll have some more exciting updates as I have a shed full of parts waiting to be installed.

 

[CDW6212R]

I know that feeling of projects piling up etc, and the window troubles.

Try to find a NOS window channel for the door, even a 95-01 might work. I had some rust building up in the channel of my LF door(1991 door). R&Ring the glass and swapping that fixed the problem. It's a big part, not cheap back in 2006ish.

 

[willindsay]

Well I'm long behind on updating this let's see if I can remember all I've not, or more accurately not done, to it in the past year.

Well right after my last post I was let go from my primary job so that put everything for this truck on the back burner. Luckily I had my part time job still and they were desperate for help so I picked up full time hours there but it meant giving up my weekends and evenings but i was able to make ends meet so that's all that mattered.

My part time job is seasonal so the first of January I was laid off from there also but I was prepared since I knew it was coming.

Also at the first of the year I took a little get away down to Atlanta for a Photography Convention and while down there I had a little suprise for my Girl Friend planed.

She said yes and immediately started planning our Wedding.

Between then and the wedding I was busy working my butt off to pay for the wedding. I managed to find another full time job that is better than the last. I am now a Property manager for a cabin company and wedding chapel.

And this brings me to an update on the Ex. Around July we signed the lease on a house for us and started moving all of her stuff in. I was busy working everyday so I wasn't much help. But I did lend her the Ex to move stuff with. But that didn't work out too well for her...

When she went to pick it up from my parents house she moved it closer to the carport to remove some fishing gear I had in it. Well she left it running but didn't set the parking break. Being an automatic it shouldn't matter but my gear selector is a little out of whack and it rolled backwards into a tree with the hatch up resulting in this damage.

So the poor ex has been sitting in the carport under a car cover as I haven't had time to track down a new one with working full time and getting everything ready for the wedding. Which happened on August 18th.

Finally everything is starting to slow down and today I'm on a mission to get a new hatch as I need this rig ready for the winter.
I'm stricking out with my local sources though. it seems everyone is getting rid of the first gens.
So if anyone has any idea where I can find a white hatch in East TN let me know.