I was shopping for Broncos but then I bought a truck yesterday. Oops. Anyway, I picked up a 1995 F150 4x4 with just 150k for $3500. Only has a couple things that need fixing before I can get to the fun stuff. Figure I can ask how to fix stuff here and show off my sweet new ride at the same time.
PS: the headlights will be fixed soon. The seller had one of the factory ones, a pick n pull will have the other.
First up: theres a pretty big dead spot in the middle of the steering. Where do I start troubleshooting? I've seen references to some sort of steering box adjustment...
No idea on the steering adjustment, but: nice truck!
I want one like that, I'd build it up as a "what-if" extended cab Lightning.
Nice! That is my favorite body style of Ford truck. I had one about 12 years ago but yours is in much better shape. I paid $2200 for mine and it was used as a farm truck in Nebraska. And yes, it had rust.
As far as the steering; maybe the pump? Is the dead spot no assist or just vague feeling?
On my silverado (95) we found that following the procedure to set tbe worm gear preload in the steering box made the difference between towing being scary rnough to lose sleep over to almost enjoyable.
This was due to about 30 degrees of dead space in the center of tbe steering range.
But check all the front end components for play as well ad the rag joint first. Box adjustment is the last resort.
Love the color! Have fun.
They all do that!
I'd check for worn steering-related parts, then tighten up the box.
https://www.f150forum.com/f10/tighten-up-steering-power-steering-box-18655/
Rock Auto has new headlight assemblies for dirt cheap with bulbs. I think I paid $30 for a pair a few years ago when I had my truck.
Steering I believe is a nut adjustment on the steering box.
Nice truck. I wish I had kept mine but had no more use for it.
IIn reply to thatsnowinnebago :
The steering sector is worn. If it’s too bad it’s time for a new steering box. But you might be able to tighten it up.
Be judicious, if you tighten all of the looseness out when the steering is at full lock it will bind and not come back.
Tighten it some and drive around a bit. If it sorta “sticks at full lock you’ll have to back off a bit and decide if you can live with it or need to replace the steering “box” Unless you have access to the tools required (more than just wrenches and hammer) it might be something to farm out.
Thanks everyone, I guess I'll pop the hood at some point soon and check that rag joint and then start yanking on the steering linkage underneath. I do love how affordable everything is for a domestic.
Very nice!! I had a similar one with the i6 and three on the tree. Great vehicle to just get things done with.
Nice grab! It's really just a Bronco with a longer, open cargo area... 
As far as the front end... I just finished rebuilding most everything on the front of our '92 Bronco. Axle pivot bushings, radius arm bushings, tie rods, ends and drag link. It made a HUGE difference. I thought the steering box was shot, but it's really not bad now that everything else is new.
This thread has info on steering parts from F250/350/E350 that bolt in on a Bronco, and should on the F150 as well. These parts are much beefier than the Bronco/ half ton parts, and it's worth upgrading if you're replacing everything anyway. IIRC it was ~ $300 in parts, including poly bushings. Ignore the tie rod flip part... that's for lifted trucks.
Also, rock auto used to have pretty good stock replacement headlight housings for ~$35 if the stock ones you've got are sun hazed.
In reply to Rodan :
Nice, thanks! I see that Desolate Motorsports has a kit to replace the whole steering system with stronger factory pieces. I bet they're just packaging the same stuff as shown in that thread.
In reply to thatsnowinnebago :
I just looked at Desolate's "factory style steering" kit, and that looks like the same pieces, but I bought them for considerably less....
All the part numbers are in the thread linked above.
In reply to Rodan :
You paid less or Desolate charges less?
The parts are a lot less expensive than Desolate's package price... I got them from Amazon, with prime shipping the total price worked out cheaper than RockAuto.
I'll edit my previous post for clarity.
In reply to Rodan :
Haha, thanks on both accounts. The wonders of the english language right?
Lately I've been checking things off my to-do list as I find time. Someone here said something like "if you have 30 mins, do a 30 min job" and I've been trying to abide by that. Got new tires, fixed the inner driver's side door handle, reattached the door panel with new screws and clips, and replaced the windshield washer reservoir/coolant overflow tank. In doing that, I came across these plugs under the hood. I didn't see anywhere to plug them in to. Any of y'all know what they're for? I also noticed the hood lamp was unplugged so I "fixed" that and now I've got light!
I've also got to replace the rear window seal (no idea how yet, but that's what YouTube and google are for). The PO sprayed something over it, in an unsuccessful attempt to stop the leak. What do we think it is, and what's the best way to remove it while preserving the paint? I was able to peel off a little by hand.
The odd shaped connector is a diagnostics plug for the EEC-IV. It's an OBD1 (IIRC) deal.
Here's a photo of the new 33x10.5 BFG ATs. My buddy helpfully reminded me that four flats tires basically would total my truck from a cost standpoint. We have a stupid hobby.
I'll slap on a leveling kit and some decent shocks soon enough. Likely Bilstein 5100s as I can't find anything from Fox to fit.
Funny story: I couldn't believe how small 33s looked on my truck when I first saw them. The next day I realized the tire shop had installed 31x10.5s. Oops. Cleared that up with a phone and some of my worthless time.
This might need to get moved to Build Threads now that I think about it...
new tires and w heels make the truck look legit!!
Rodan said:The odd shaped connector is a diagnostics plug for the EEC-IV. It's an OBD1 (IIRC) deal.
Oh nice, thanks. Should there be some kind of cover on it?
In reply to mr2s2000elise :
Thanks! Those are actually the stock wheels, just with better lighting than the first photo. I really like the Alcoas some of these trucks came with. I'd be lying if I said they didn't affect my choice to buy this particular truck...
thatsnowinnebago said:Oh nice, thanks. Should there be some kind of cover on it?
Well, I don't recall one, but it's been a while. I do remember the tool communicated codes by blinking an LED at you.
I still have the tool... 
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