'75 W300 repair/mod project - Ol' Blue

Thanks for that link and the feedback on the ratio adapter Cows. I've bookmarked that link for when I'm ready to get one made.

BTW: I got the shipping confirmation email from RA today. The updated shipping ETA for the clutch is now April 28th. I'll still have to wait until I get paid again before starting on the clutch R&R job so I can get the flywheel turned. I'll spend the time until then getting the engine, trans and T-case cleaned up as much as possible. I"ll run it through the pressure washer at the car wash to get the worst of the crud, gunk and oily mess off of there first.
 
The FSM on CD showed up in the mail today. I wish I had looked a little harder for it as I found the exact same CD available at Rock Auto for just over half as much as I paid at the other place. Live and learn I guess. :doh:
 
Looking over the FSM for the clutch job, I decided to pick up a rear main oil seal. As leaky as this engine is, there's a high likelihood that that could be the source of the clutch slippage.
 
Also grab the input shaft seal for the NP 435. 50/50 chance, and you'll only be in there once, right?
 
Good call. As cheap as they are ($1.69), I'll have to wait till that dang money tree starts blooming to pick one up though. The only way I was able to order the rear main oil seal from RA today was to use the 5% off code. :shifty:
 
FYI: According to the VIN decoder in the FSM, this truck is pretty legit.

Digits 1&2 are W3, which is a 1-ton 4x4.
Digit #3 is 1, which is the conventional cab with no bed.
Digit #4 is B, which is a G.V.W. rating between 6,001 and 10,000lbs.
Digit #5 is D, which is the 440-1 engine option.
Digit #6 is 5, which is the 1975 model year.
Digit #7 is S, which is the Warren Plant No. 1 factory.
The remaining six digits are the sequential Plant Building Sequence number.

Everything on the truck possibly could be original from the factory. Now I'm curious to see if the numbers stamped on the engine block match the VIN.
 
I just got back from a drive with the truck, so I'll need to let it cool off for a while before I can check for a VIN serial number match. The engine serial should be located on the bottom right side of the block, just above where the oil pan meets the block.


I've already confirmed the upper engine stamping is correct for the truck. It reads 5T440 which translates to 1975 model year, Truck specific block and 440ci engine displacement.:dance:
 
I'm having trouble locating the engine serial on the side of the block due to all the oily gunk everywhere. Can someone give me a hint as to where exactly I should be looking for it?
 
On the passenger's side of the engine, there's a machined pad approximately between the block drain and the center core plug, at the bottom with its lower edge intersecting with the pan rail itself.

Interestingly, I just went and looked at my 6T440, and it is not stamped at all. That engine came from a '76 CB300, and is obviously not a service-replacement engine. There are no chassis ID numbers on it whatsoever, just what's on the ID pad to the right of the distributor. Factory goof? Last-second assembly-line replacement? Truck engines weren't stamped? I haven't the foggiest.
 
Maybe I'm not seeing it there since it was never put there by the factory? I know the machined pad you're referring to, that's the place I cleaned up looking for a number earlier. I was thinking that I was missing seeing it due to the crud, or it might have been stamped somewhere else, but now I'm not so sure.

Thanks for the feed back anyway. I'll check for it again after I get it pressure washed.
 
Just jotting down a priority shopping list of parts to get for the truck.

*Exhaust studs, nuts, bolts as required. (FLAPS or Fastenall)

(already ordered these other parts)
*clutch kit: (received 4/28/17)
*rear main oil seal: (received 4/28/17)
*engine paint (old Ford blue): (FLAPS);(bought 1/30/17)
*oil: (FLAPS);(bought 1/30/17)
*radiator fluid: (FLAPS);(bought 1/30/17)
*engine gasket kit for 440-1: (Fel-Pro, #KS2110, $43.79 @ Rock Auto);(ordered 4/30/17)
*intake gasket kit: (Fel-Pro, #MS90175, $13.31 @ Rock Auto);(ordered 4/30/17)
*trans input shaft seal: (National, #482163N, $1.69 @ Rock Auto);(ordered 4/30/17)
*oil filter: (Wix, #51068, $3.71 # Rock Auto);(ordered 4/30/17)
*Holley rebuild kit for 3310-3 carb: (Holley, #37-754, $28.65 @ Ebay);(ordered 4/30/17)
*metal TO bearing: (National, #V1505C, $15.85 @ Rock Auto);(ordered 4/30/17)

Current "To Do" list in order of priority:
*pressure wash engine, trans and T-case
*separate trans and T-case from engine to access clutch
*remove clutch, pressure plate, T/O bearing and flywheel
*get flywheel turned ($35)
*clean and paint rear of engine (inside bell housing area) while accessible
*replace rear main oil seal and trans input shaft oil seal
*replace flywheel, clutch, pressure plate and T/O bearing
*reattach trans and T-case to engine
*remove pulleys, brackets, power steering pump, water pump, exhaust manifolds, oil pump, fuel pump, distributor, carb and intake
*rebuild carb
*(edit: add)repair and/or replace exhaust studs and bolt hole threads as required
*clean and paint (turquoise) engine block, heads, intake, oil pump, water pump, power steering pump and brackets
*clean and paint (clear) alternator, distributor, carb
*clean and paint (black) pulleys, exhaust manifolds (hi-temp)
*reinstall all parts onto engine with new gaskets and O-rings
*test drive and check for leaks

That should keep me busy for a while...

EDIT: added additional info to the list (in blue) on 4/27/17
EDIT: added metal TO bearing to the list (in red) on 4/28/17
EDIT: updated shopping list (in green) on 4/30/17
 
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I saw a regular blue listed somewhere online as being the correct color for a 1975 440. I can't remember which website that was, but they said that info supposedly came from Mopar Performance. Going by what I can see on my engine, turquoise is the correct color for it. The only thing below that color is bare metal.

What turquoise paints I can find listed look like come color blind person mixed them up. So far I've seen aquamarine (MP), mint green, forrest green (Eastwood), etc... Just about everything BUT turquoise. :doh:
 
There was just a thread 5 pages long about engine paint, that I started.. of all people. At any rate, it was mentioned more than once that the factory didn't care about the engine paint, and that the pigments weren't standardized. Also that heat and time can make a red look orange (in my case), which means that a blue will fade to a turquoise (safe bet). In the end, it's your motor. Zebra stripe it if it gets you your jollies
 
My block has been completely cleaned. It is not stamped anywhere other than the front ID pad.

All non-HD engines were painted blue after 1971. My low-usage '76 engine is very obviously Corporate Blue, looking turquoise in high-heat areas like the manifold crossover and near the exhaust ports. That being said, the D500 across the street from my house when I bought the place (a '73 if memory serves) had a turquoise 361-3 in it... but that was an HD truck, which yours ain't. Could be a factory error, but as CarbideClamdart said, it's your engine and you should do what moves you. Besides, it's a truck... beyond personal preference, correctness means nil unless it's got red paint and factory exhaust stacks.
 
Zebra stripes? Hmmm...:hmmm:

Nope, I'm not feeling any jollyishness. :huh:

I guess I'll most likely stick with the regular blue if I can't find an engine paint in the correct looking turquoise. I found a shade of blue on the lower bell housing inspection cover that looks a bit like what they're calling the correct blue. Honestly, I just want it cleaned up (and not leaking) more than worrying about being the "correct" color. Any engine paint color I find that I like will do I suppose.
 
When I told Diplomat_Wagon the color I plan for the turbo engine in the Imperial, he may have actually barfed. Most others will too, but tough shit. It's my joke and I'm gonna run with it. :dance:

The rest of you will have to wait and see. :toot:
 
gold?..era corrrect as i recal since the color came up..i gotta ask who DOES have that pre 1970 turquoise ..its the color i want on the 440 going in my ramp truck ..i assumed it was fully still availible for some reason, besides i have always liked that color
 
I think Eastwood is the only place that you can get the turquoise engine paint. :hmmm:
 

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