Tom's new T-all

["J. Grammer" <jkdaley@domain.elided>]

>I'd be cautious about using this truck as a regular tow vehicle for a
Scout II, car hauler, and all your >race gear 'cause in my mind it's not
quite stout enough(hard to believe, eh?) Biggest reason is the >lack of a
full floating rear end.

Note the key words cautious, regular and quite. Strictly MHO, and based on
lots of hauling 4-5000# trucks around on rented 1000-1500# trailers with
surge brakes in various states of repair. I'll also confess to a bias
against towing with anything at or over the GCW of the tow vehicle, as I've
seen some pretty scary stuff on the road(guilty as charged...)

>What's the big deal about the full floating rear for bumper towing?  You
>want the bigger D60 center for longer wear, but a 6000lb trailer (for
>example) @15% tongue weight only adds 900 lbs- which is no big deal for a
>D44, let alone this axle.

Of course the axle can handle the weight, but.....ever break a semi-floater
axle while towing? Not a happy day....better safe than sorry IMHO.

>Same goes with the extra frame stoutness of the 3/4 ton- who cares?

IH must have, and maybe you should talk to Doc Stewart about the busted
frame on his old 1100 T-all. Every little bit helps....

>I assume the spare tire goes - between the passenger rear tire and the
>tailgate, right?

Yup, that's the place. Mine has a folded up tarp down there underneath the
toolbox ;)

>This would be the tailgate itself then?  It *looked* fine from the
>outside.. 

Yup. The body area below the hinges is a bad spot as well. If it's really
rust free, pat yourself on the back and take a picture for the 'Believe it
or not' folks...

>Oooh.. engine fumes.. yuck.  I suppose this isn't an easy thing to fix
>"right".. though I could always just patch up the vents, right? ;-)  

You can pull the front quarters and slap a 'hot patch' on the holes.

>Are these the cab corners, or behind that area?  

Them's the ones....on the frame 'horns' what stick out to the sides.

>Hmmm... I guess it's time to buy a tubing bender to fab up an interior
>roll cage for the T'all!

Won't Brodsky be jealous.... ;)

>OTOH, for what they're asking.. I could just drive it 'till the body
>fell off from rust.. and hopefully by then I would've found a 3/4T
>Travelette, and gut the T'all when it gets to that point..

Well, Mr. Tom.....there just happens to be a '73 T-ette sitting here at
Bindertown that I was pondering last night. Think I'm going to sell it to
free up some space, eventhough it's a real fantasy project for me. 4x4, 392
auto, A/C, 164" W.B., 8' Bonus Load bed, etc......maybe we should talk....

>Would 3.73 or 4.09/4.10 be a better ratio?  The Travelall has 235/75R15s
>on it now.. they need replaced (anyone say, Dry Rot?).. but I have a set
>of new 235/75R15s.. actually two sets.. that came on two of the Scouts I
>bought.. I was thinking 3.73 would be a good compromise even if I went
>to 31s.. 345/auto should have the grunt with smaller tires and 3.73s to
>do tow duty, right?

My 392/4.09 combo turns 31" tires, and the truck redlines just over
70(remember, gotta factor torque converter slippage into the equation). The
'68 304/3.73 combo tows fine with 235/75's on it, but when I had 31/10.5's
on it was a towing dog and stopping could be kinda sphincter clenching if
you weren't on the ball. The real killer with bigger tires seems to be
centripital(sp?) accelleration, both going and stopping...OTOH, big tires
have a nice flywheel effect that can be exploited on rolling hills(esp.
with an automatic).

> Brakes....esp. if you need drums, 'cause they basically don't exist.
>Fronts or rears?  I bet drums for that Ford Dana 60 can be had..

Both.

>Interstingly the door tag says... 6,000lbs GVWR???  That's the same as
>my '72 Scout II, and less than my '77!  And the Travelall MUST be closer
>to that figure unladen!

Yes, it's true. Most T-alls have surprisingly low GVW's. I believe that
most were ordered/built without uprated rear springs(opposite of most
pickups, IME) in a nod towards ride quality.

>Now, a little further down the line, I'd like to see about a 25'
>flatbed/car hauler.. build one if I can.. a car trailer big enough to
>haul TWO Scouts on (or, for wheelin' trips, one Scout and a friend's
>EBronco).  Would this Travelall be up to the task?

That's a lot of tow. I'd prefer a 1 ton somethingorother minimum. Actually,
I don't think you could talk me into bumper towing that much weight in
anything smaller than a Loadstar. Wag the Dog is my least favorite game ;).

>Convert the front to disc brakes using Ford n' Chevy parts.  If I roll
>the full floater in, that would mean some 8-lug Ford 3/4T (or Chevy,
>right?) rotors.

Don't know anything about doing a disk swap on an 8 lug closed knuckle
front, just 5 lug on 5 1/2 circle. Anybody?

>Any advantages to ditching even the jumbo drums on the Dana 60 for
>discs?

Weight. Ever pull the drums on a full floating 60? Lift with your legs, not
your back!

>So.. "as-is" (assuming the brakes work), it should be suitable for a
>3500lbs flat-towed non-braked Scout II racer, with a set of race tires
>in the back of the T'all, plus camping gear, etc.  Does that sound
>reasonable?

With a little car it should do just fine, my cautious comments aside...

>How do I stop this IH Addiction?

Therapy, I'm sure, but I think you'll find the cure more expensive than the
disease....

Jim