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PeacemakerJack

Vintage Trucks

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EricF
6 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

I'd agree with that and add that many of the commercial parts are inherently performance parts as well because of the desire to increase efficiency.

 

 

Stick with the good quality HD parts and they'll serve you well.

 

I've often described commercial diesels as high-performance engines specced by accountants! :lol:

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ebinmaine
2 minutes ago, EricF said:

I've often described commercial diesels as high-performance engines specced by accountants! :lol:

Sounds about right.

 

 

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chip61

That's a nice Dodge! I have a '91 auto and an '07 6sp. The best forum I've found is https://www.cumminsforum.com/. Lots of knowledgeable guys on there willing to give advice - much like this forum. As mentioned above the heater grid takes a lot of current. I usually plug mine in at night during the winter. They start fine without being plugged in, but the engine heats up much quicker and it's easier on the starter and electrical system 

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Pullstart

@12 hp Kohler Robbie, do you have any knowledge if the “Killer Dowel Pin” or KDP has been dealt with?  

 

I have no first hand experience, but there is a dowel pin under the front cover that is treated as “not IF but WHEN” about falling out and landing in the timing set I believe.  It’ll wreak big havoc.  There is a little tab that can be bolted in the hold the dowel in place and eliminate the worry.

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WHX??
14 hours ago, 12 hp Kohler said:

I am only 16 so I have a good bit to learn about these trucks.

I am only 60 and will be learning right along with you! :handgestures-thumbupright:

Sounds like @EricF knows a thing or two... keep talking buddy! :handgestures-thumbupright:

Would my '17 have that silencer ring Eric? 

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12 hp Kohler
1 hour ago, pullstart said:

@12 hp Kohler Robbie, do you have any knowledge if the “Killer Dowel Pin” or KDP has been dealt with?  

 

I have no first hand experience, but there is a dowel pin under the front cover that is treated as “not IF but WHEN” about falling out and landing in the timing set I believe.  It’ll wreak big havoc.  There is a little tab that can be bolted in the hold the dowel in place and eliminate the worry.

I have read some about this and I need to look into it further. My truck is reasonably low miles for a diesel so it probably hasn’t been replaced yet. 

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12 hp Kohler
14 hours ago, EricF said:

@12 hp Kohler Everything under the hood looks to be in decent shape. All in all, diesels aren't that intimidating to work on. Just bigger, heavier in all respects. Very dependent on fuel flow, so fuel filter changes are critical. If you don't know when the fuel filter was changed last, just get it done straight off. Oil changes and oil condition is critical. See that little tube screwed into the turbo housing, on the left as you face it? That's the oil supply to the turbo bearing. It's the lifeblood of your turbo -- oil keeps it both lubricated and cool. So you can imagine how vital it is to keep the oil pressure up and oil flowing freely through there.

 

Particularly when it's cold, start the engine, wait for the oil pressure to come up, then gently raise the engine RPMs to around 1100-1200RPM and listen for the turbo to come up to speed and stabilize with engine RPMs. Then you know the oil is flowing smoothly though the turbo bearing, and it's not starved for oil.

 

Plenty of other "old heads" here at Red Square can offer good pointers on dealing with machinery like this. Much like our beloved tractors, these engines are made to work hard and last forever, given proper care and treated well. (The Dodge bodywork can be a different problem altogether...)

 

Other piece of advice -- when it comes time to replace or upgrade parts, don't waste money on "performance" and fancy custom parts unless they're intended to be functional above all else. Go for high-quality commercial-grade parts. Durable, decent value for your money, and made to satisfy the penny-pinching efficiency demands of commercial use. With diesels, performance=efficiency and durability.  The Internet is littered with Cummins and Dodge forums... advice is everywhere, but good advice takes a little digging to find. 

 

 

Thanks for the great info ! Right now my motor is all stock. I plan to keep it that way until if/when I swap a 5 speed in. I don’t think the 47 or 48re could handle and more power. They sure don’t have a good reputation. 

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EricF

@12 hp Kohler The "Killer Dowel Pin" seems to be an issue with the '89 to 98 models. Apparently the fixes to replace or anchor the pin aren't hard to do, but you'll generally have to take out the radiator and A/C condenser assemblies to clear enough space to pull the timing cover to do the work. Even if you can do all the mechanical work yourself, dealing with the A/C system (if it's filled and working) generally requires a trip to a shop because of the environmental rules on coolant recovery. If you have adequate service records for the truck, you might see if the dowel pin was ever replaced or had one of the common fixes applied to it; by now many conscientious owners might have had it done to be safe. But you never know.

 

@WHX24 I haven't kept up with the modern ones much, but apparently they're a completely different design on a different turbocharger. And instead of the tacked-on plastic ring setup, they have a metal flow-smoothing device that's pinned in. Silencer or no silencer doesn't really make any difference in engine output on the old ones. It's more of a safety issue -- you never want a turbo to ingest foreign objects, and putting plastic parts right up in the turbo intake just doesn't make good sense. Seems like over the years, Cummins re-thought the whole concept of the turbo silencer -- probably because noise laws started closing in. It's not just a trick to improve customer acceptance like it was in the 80s and 90s -- now everything has to meet stricter noise standards, even in the commercial market. And the newer setup is designed to provide the maximum, smoothest flow of air into the turbo anyway. No need to mess with it any more.

 

There have been several versions of the air box assembly over the years, some of them have plastic baffles in the rubber inlet duct to smooth and direct airflow into the turbo, which isn't a bad thing, other than that they're more plastic. Something to check once in a while along with filter changes, but they're generally far enough away form the heat of the turbo housing that it's not so likely the plastic will get damaged over time. But with a truck that's 20-plus years old, it's not a bad idea to check on them and just replace the whole thing if the plastic seems dried-out or brittle.

 

The newer trucks have a totally different intake baffle assembly that does some of what the old silencer ring did to minimize turbo whistle. On the new trucks, it's a soft foam lining trapped in the inlet duct with a plastic inner structure. Apparently, the assembly can be taken apart and the foam liner slides out, then the plastic structure should probably go back in as a stiffener for the rubber duct. Not sure if I like the idea of foam in the intake; when foam degrades over time, it breaks down. Again, I'm just not fond of adding any chances of foreign objects and debris getting too close to a turbocharger. :confusion-shrug:

 

 

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WHX??

Thanks again Eric.. I lurked abit on that Cummings forum and yah those guys speak their own language about tuners and mods and these engines in general. 

It was interesting learning about the different generations. It seems they are big into changing turbo inlets and filters on early years. 

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ebinmaine

What're we using that for?

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Daron1965

Decided to finish the duel 4 inch exhaust today.  Installed Flowmaster 44 mufflers.  Also was able to install the new tarp.  Still need to install the radio and also the line lock.

 

20200403_165910.jpg

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Pullstart
15 hours ago, Daron1965 said:

Decided to finish the duel 4 inch exhaust today.  Installed Flowmaster 44 mufflers.  Also was able to install the new tarp.  Still need to install the radio and also the line lock.

 

20200403_165910.jpg

 

She’s puuuurdy.  

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ACman

Just catching up with this thread and it’s got me all fired up to get working on mine. We were was just getting ready before all this lockdown occurred . He moved tractors around and dug out parts for pictures  (aka some  funding for the 84 C10)  .He built a frame table using some free I-beams as he’s planning on grafting on C4 corvette suspension . All on hold until he starts working again . We’re all fine for time being as of health, food, and TP :) . On a up note my son preordered a cnc plasma table this past fall and it’s in route for delivery . Now it’s going to be learning Autodesk 360 and trying to remember G-code . So after he gets everything up and going he’ll be offering up his services for costume projects . 

 

With all this downtime been searching CL , FB and came across a rarity , a Blazer Chalet . I’ve known of these but never seen one in person. Just thought I’d share what I found . Unicorns do exist ! :lol: ...https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/416437205903366 and a short YouTube video 


A6845CB6-16D3-4C24-99C4-C51FCF4F3D68.jpeg.66c2cafabacb2d44a6e7e40c2a58f812.jpeg

 

Edited by ACman
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D_Mac

All this talk about Dodge's got me thinking about mine. It wasnt a diesel or even 4wd but it was a great truck. 1996 with 300k on it. The other truck was also one of my favorites. 1998 Chevy 2wd. Would drive that thing anywhere. Mounted the ladder rack on it to haul a canoe around. Again neither one of them were anything special but just good old trucks with a lot of memories with them.

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ebinmaine
7 hours ago, D_Mac said:

neither one of them were anything special but just good old trucks with a lot of memories with them

That's what MADE 'em special...

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EricF

Pretty or ugly, didn't matter. The older trucks were made to get work done or get you from one place to another without any fuss. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

 

I still have a problem every time I look at the cabs of some of the new ones that come with more fancy features than a Cadillac, back when Caddy had the corner on the market for power- and automatic-everything. :scratchead:

 

My first truck was a no-nonsense used '83 F150 with the bulletproof straight-6, manual steering, heavy duty all-mechanical clutch (no hydraulics!) and the 3-on-the-tree column shift. No A/C. Crank-up windows. No fancy headliner-- just painted metal. It did have the fancier new bodywork and the spiffy-looking new plastic dashboard and door panels, but that was it. Just a hard-working truck. And you did have to develop a certain amount of strength and skill to whip that beast around -- the steering was heavy and the clutch would be quite happy to kick your knee back into the steering wheel if you didn't pay attention. Back then there was a reason why power-everything was a luxury. I kept that one until the late 90's when the "new" F150 first came out, and the old ones got a bump in value. I've got a picture of that truck somewhere that I need to digitize once I get all my stuff unpacked from a cross-country move.

 

Had a Jeep TJ and then a Land Rover Discovery for a while; the Rover was a serious all-around beast, and not nearly as unreliable as they're made out to be, at least not if you know how to work on vehicles.

 

Along the way I had this '85 Chevy that I picked up relatively cheap. Somebody had done a shade-tree mechanic job of "rebuilding" the engine with an Edelbrock cam and intake combo, and then didn't know how to set the timing to match the cam, so it ran terribly. A day or two of cleaning the carb, fixing some messed-up vacuum tubing, and a few minutes with a timing light was all it took. Thing had a set of headers and Flowmaster mufflers under the cab. Sounded like an old aircraft engine starting up in the cold, coughing and misfiring for a second until it could fire on all cylinders. On the plus side, it had power everything but the seat, which made it a "luxury truck" to me, in spite of its age and looks. :lol: Parts on those old Chevys are cheap, and I ran it until rust started eating the frame, and sold for more than most scrap vehicles were going for, since it was full of good parts to keep more oldies on the road.

 

XHeh0hG.jpg

 

I still need to find a picture of two of my current Dodge diesel. Not a looker, either, but a reliable workhorse for sure, which is all I've ever expected of my trucks. All my pickups came to me used, and so far each one has cost less than the last. The Ford set me back $3000 in the late 80s; it was still fairly new and in great shape. The Chevy was $1400 during the "cash for clunkers" mess, when any decent used car was stupidly over-priced, so it was a bargain for the time. And the Dodge was only $300, because the owner just wanted it gone. I'll never get a steal like that again! Heck, my Wheel Horse cost way more than that! :P

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JCM

More pics of the K-20 before the refurb returning a borrowed log splitter before I bought one. And moving a friends travel trailer that i stored for him as I was in the process of having some large Pine trees taken down and did not want that camper to get squashed.The last pic is the 86 waiting till spring to avoid the salt.

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8ntruck

A storm blew through last night.  Left a bunch of sticks in the yard.  

Picked them up and gave Big Nasty a little exercise with a trip to the city's yard waste dump.

20200605_151708.jpg

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Pullstart

Saw this old square body... no I didn’t inquire about price...

 

 

4FBFA960-23A4-4D02-82C8-868B836BC618.jpeg

6A489937-9FD2-405B-88A7-8C9821AAAE27.jpeg

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elcamino/wheelhorse

@pullstart I think that is the first time I have seen fender skirts on a square body.  I like the full size mud flap on the back.

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PeacemakerJack

This here is a pretty uncommon “truck”...

D4E162AB-41D4-493B-B104-427C1B6FE759.thumb.jpeg.fb5591400caefe5b6cd8faa6fb765409.jpeg

almost put it in the Muscle Car thread 😳

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Any of our Blue Oval guys want to chime in about it???

AD1F96FF-1B63-4B07-B93A-6F8CAA25628B.jpeg.74c6ff8fdc3358cc35b239c367152266.jpeg

Looks to be a mid 60’s model:popcorn:

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elcamino/wheelhorse

My dad had one of the Falcon Rancheros (sp) . Had a 6 cylinder three on the tree. Ugliness green I ever saw. It should have been in a junk yard, but the ole man drove it a few years .  

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ebinmaine
6 minutes ago, PeacemakerJack said:

mid 60’s model

Agreed.

 

 

2 minutes ago, elcamino/wheelhorse said:

Falcon Rancheros

Worked with a fella back in 99/2000 that had one o them.

Small 8.

Dark green I think?

 

Unusual in New England because it was a California emissions vehicle with all the emissions equipment still in place.

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8ntruck

This nice square body lives a short way up the street.

 

20200619_140008.jpg

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