owenst7
1/2 ton status
I'd post pictures, but apparently I have to make a bunch of posts first. Seems kinda dumb but oh well. Maybe in another couple years I'll find 10 more useful posts to make...
Today I pulled not one, but two E-series van pitman arms. I've seen people discuss the part numbers and dimensions of it here and on Pirate, but I've never seen anything conclusive. Hope this clears that up and maybe becomes easy to find on Google.
The vans are easy to spot:
1) They were the first Ford vans with a real "hood" (not the flat-faced, VW-looking ones).
2) They were the last Ford vans to have round headlights. Starting in '80 they had square headlights.
It is 1.75" drop. I checked with a dial caliper.
I've read that the indexes should be at 12, 3, 6, and 9 o'clock. If you someone can't figure out the body style and pull the wrong arm, you'll be able to tell by those indexes.
Looks like they might fit a standard GM TRE. A DLE is too big, so it will obviously need to be reamed if you're going that route.
I found it easiest to get the pitman arm retaining nut off with the box bolted to the frame. It's a huge nut (like ~1 3/8"), so I had to make a trip back home to get a big crescent, keep that in mind if you're headed to a junkyard. I was using a cheap Harbor Freight puller that I ground out a bit (not wide enough). I preloaded the arm as much as I dared to do to a Chinese tool. I had the box on the ground now, so a couple good whacks near the splines with a sledge sent it shooting away.
I'd really recommend using anti-seize on your own stuff so you don't have to get a sledge out to work on it on the trail. I use anti-seize on everything though.
Today I pulled not one, but two E-series van pitman arms. I've seen people discuss the part numbers and dimensions of it here and on Pirate, but I've never seen anything conclusive. Hope this clears that up and maybe becomes easy to find on Google.
The vans are easy to spot:
1) They were the first Ford vans with a real "hood" (not the flat-faced, VW-looking ones).
2) They were the last Ford vans to have round headlights. Starting in '80 they had square headlights.
It is 1.75" drop. I checked with a dial caliper.
I've read that the indexes should be at 12, 3, 6, and 9 o'clock. If you someone can't figure out the body style and pull the wrong arm, you'll be able to tell by those indexes.
Looks like they might fit a standard GM TRE. A DLE is too big, so it will obviously need to be reamed if you're going that route.
I found it easiest to get the pitman arm retaining nut off with the box bolted to the frame. It's a huge nut (like ~1 3/8"), so I had to make a trip back home to get a big crescent, keep that in mind if you're headed to a junkyard. I was using a cheap Harbor Freight puller that I ground out a bit (not wide enough). I preloaded the arm as much as I dared to do to a Chinese tool. I had the box on the ground now, so a couple good whacks near the splines with a sledge sent it shooting away.
I'd really recommend using anti-seize on your own stuff so you don't have to get a sledge out to work on it on the trail. I use anti-seize on everything though.
