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I'm not planning any major performance upgrades. 4" exhaust and free flowing intake are pretty much all I intend to do, since they will be no more expensive than going with the stock size/style.
I may install a higher RPM governor spring, since these early engines begin to cut the fuel back as low as 2200, even though the stock internals are capable of going beyond 3500 safely. Hard to believe the early ones were limited to 2500, and they just kept bumping it up a bit with every major change, until the 3200 mark was reached.
The governor spring can be done later, if I feel that I need it.
Monday brought news that will impact me for quite a while. My father passed away. He would have been 76 September 14.
Condolences to you and your family on your loss. I lost my dad several years ago and miss him very much. He was a clown and joker together, but did not even think twice about getting under my truck with me. He was 87 when he passed.
Ya, those first gens are easily modified for a little of nothing and for a lot more power.
Yeah, but I'm not really looking for a high performance rig. I drove this truck for over 16 years with a 300 I6. Only pulled it out due to having a rattle, that sounded very much like a broken piston skirt.
Originally Posted by pmasley
Condolences to you and your family on your loss. I lost my dad several years ago and miss him very much. He was a clown and joker together, but did not even think twice about getting under my truck with me. He was 87 when he passed.
Dad was the person that first got me interested in trucks, and especially diesel powered trucks. He was a truck mechanic, and taught me quite a bit. Had he still been able to do so, I'm sure he would have right there beside me on this project. He was very keen to see me get it done.
In other news, had a decent week at the shop. 2 big jobs, and a couple smaller ones in between. Head gasket on a PT Loser, and a clutch upgrade in an 09 Dodge diesel. The PT Loser took a bit longer than I hoped, since the head had to be sent off for milling. The clutch job was a workout, for sure. The factory dual mass flywheel used on the 6.7 Cummins with a G56 MB 6 speed trans is rather heavy. I bet the old clutch assembly and flywheel were heavier than the south bend dual disc setup I replaced it with.
Nice setup, even included a complete new hydraulic system, pre-assembled and pre-bled, with a braided stainless clutch hose.
I have a feeling I will be doing another in the very near future, seeing as we just ordered it for another truck. At least that truck is just 2wd.....
So, a good week at the shop, means more money for parts. I needed a good week too, been a bit slow for the last month or so.
I also went and signed some paperwork on dad's life insurance policy. Would rather have him still around, though.......
Glad you had a good week. But signing paperwork like that is no fun. Feel for you. (Dad would have said "I feel for you, but can't quite reach you." I said "would have" since he doesn't remember any of his old sayings. None. )
Progress has resumed.
Got to the shop around 2 PM, and decided to shove the truck inside. Took out the auto trans column and brake pedal assembly. Grabbed the firewall reinforcement plate from terrapin mfg, and went to work fitting it into place. Had to slightly massage the firewall beside the pedal box in order for the plate to fit well. I ignored the instuctions where they say to use a clutch master cyl bolt hole to hold the plate in position, since there weren't any holes (or punch-outs) where the clutch master is supposed to go. Instead, I bolted it to the firewall with the screws that hold the base of the column to the firewall. grabbed a center punch, and marked the holes, then started drilling.
Once all the holes were drilled to 1/4", including the clutch master mounting/center holes, I took the plate off and drilled them just a hair over 5/16", since that is the size bolts used to secure the plate to the firewall. Then I started drilling out the center hole for the clutch master. Got to 1/2", and grabbed the step-bit. Took it out as far as that could take it, and switch to a die grinder with carbide bit.
Luckily, I have a used ZF clutch master handy, to make sure I had the proper fit.
The boss was there, and I discovered he traded off his 6.0 PSD truck, for a dodge. The body on the dodge is pretty beat up, and the engine (5.9 cummins common rail) tossed a rod. He is going to build a new engine, rob the trans and electronics from the dodge, and stuff them into his 05 F350 that is currently powered by a 12V cummins......
He said he wished he had gone with a common rail, and has not been able to make the 5 speed auto work the way he wants it to, behind the mechanical injection cummins. I guess he made the decision to solve both issues in one fell swoop.
Anyways, here's a few pics. Not the greatest, but at least I remembered to take some.....
If you look close at the 2 pics from inside, you can see where someone had the column out previously (before I bought it) and missed the holes for the seal plate. Well, 4 out of 5.... They had the "new" holes rather well puckered. I knocked them flat during the massage.
I may go back and do a bit more tonight, after eating. Dunno.
I will for sure be going back tomorrow, whether I do any more tonight or not.
I lucked out on the manual column. Turned out to be tilt, but best of all, a good turn signal switch! My old TS switch was toast. Did not self cancel, nor did it lock into any position. Had to hold it for R/L turn indicator, and make sure it was centered correctly or only 1 brake light would light up. Hitting a bump would cause the weight of the signal lever to move the switch off center....
The column was cheaper than a new TS switch, and the ignition lock had been taken out the correct way, so I can just transfer mine over to it.
There were 2 wires that were partly cut, so I cut out the bad spots, and crimped them together. Not the greatest fix, but it is inside the cab, and under the column cover.
The only auto trans items left are the frame mounted shift linkage pivot, and the gear indicator. I don't have a blanking panel, so that will stay there for a bit. The pivot will be removed soon.
FWIW, it is way easy to swap the column when there's no engine/trans in the chassis. Just climb over the front bumper, and the crossmember, to stand on the ground under the hood. Stupid simple. Good thing too, as the column did not want to separate from the extension shaft. Had to coax it apart, with the same tool used during the massage stage.......
Missed the "new holes", but there they are. And, I used the same sort of persuader to get my column out. Those splines seem to grow rather fond of each other after a few years.
Spent a couple more hours finishing up the column/pedals swap. This includes final installation of the firewall reinforcement plate. I had all the holes drilled, and the plate ready to install, when I got hungry yesterday evening.
Today, I mounted the plate, test fit the clutch master to insure it was good to go. Most of the plate is rather simple to bolt into place, but there are 2 holes that go into the underside of the firewall, below the cowl panel. I had originally planned to leave those 2 alone, and do them when I had the cowl off. Until I realized it would be impossible to drill the holes with the column in place, as they are directly over the top of it. Bummer, I really didn't want to remove the cowl panel, as it's a pain to get in/out with the hood still in place. Getting it loose is relatively easy though.
I got it loose enough to lift up in the rear, and used an ingenious solution to hold the plate with the 2 threaded inserts in place. I threaded a couple studs into the inserts, used a long magnet to stick it in place, and set the spare input shaft from a NV4500 on top of it to keep it in place. Worked like a charm.
Got the pedals and column all buttoned up, and started putting the dash back together, where I discovered that the plastic shroud that covers the column is longer on a non-tilt auto, vs a tilt manual. Will either have to find one for a manual column, or cut down the one I have.
I even took the time to pull off both steering wheels to swap them over. The one that came with the manual column had several cracks, and the rim of my original wheel has not seen the light of day in years. Had a cover over it when I bought the truck, and I replaced a few years back when that one got tattered. Time to do it again, though.
While the wheel was off, it was simple to pop out the ignition lock (lock pin is pointed up in 80) and slide it into the replacement column. Same lock unit, just oriented 180 degrees different.
Installed the steering wheel, but did not fully tighten the nut, in case I am off a spline or 2 from centered. Hard to tell with the front standing up that high.....
More pictars, as I actually remember to pause along the way to take them.
Plate on with clutch master loosely in place
Inside view of plate with clutch master
Holding the threaded plate in place so bolts can be inserted and tightend
Working alone we tend to get creative. Good job! I remember drilling all those holes and it was a bit of work. But, the results will be a rock-solid firewall.
It is also possible I have one. Or, let me say that correctly - it is possible I have a 2nd one as I know I have one that I'm going to use on Dad's. But, I'll look.
09-17-2014, 08:03 AM
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