So get the truck with a 8.3 and a Allison is a better option for 3 grand?

 

Here's what I'm looking at https://sacramento.craigslist.org/cto/5448023712.html

 

There you go , get that drive line and put in your chassis or shorten the frame and set your body and bed on it.
I don't like the looks of the front ends on those models, I prefer 93 and older

 

Me too homie! I'm down with a parts truck and my budget for the body work is 10 Gs and I honestly don't have the time to do all the work myself but I think I got the right guy that's down with the sickness to get her together. But what do I know I just fix elevators

 

Could I build some real power with a cummins?

 

I'm trying to come in less than 60Gs

 

I just got on the oil burners forum and goodness what a bunch of knot heads

 

8.3's are good strong engines with lots of torque, most came with the p7100 inj pump like the ones that came on 2nd gen Dodges and respond well to minor fueling mods, but they do not like to be revved much past 2500 rpm.
The 7.8 you have came from the Ford ag line and was a good farm tractor engine but was under powered in a truck, there are no after market performance upgrades for these engines that I know of, although and good pump shop can increase it's fueling for more power I don't know how the engine will react to the changes.

The truck on clist looks like a good deal having an 8.3 Cummins and newer od allision trans. The cabs on Ford md chassis are the same from 1980 to 1998? or what ever year they changed the body. You could get a set of fender extensions and dog house to convert yours to a flip front that would work with the 8.3's rad support, I think it would be cool to have a pick up with a flip front.
Only down side I see is the truck on clist has hub pilot wheels like all newer trucks (don't remember what year they changed) and yours has the older stud pilot wheels, so your aluminum wheels wont fit the newer chassis. The good part about big trucks is they all have the same wheel bolt pattern so wheels from any brand of truck or semi trailer with hub pilot wheels will fit.

 

Thanks for your input it's incredibly useful. I'm going to look into a custom converter then as a backup plan go for the 8.3. The clist truck, does it have a lock up converter.

 

So the converter is a no go because the transmission doesn't have what was described to me as not having oil galleys to lock the converter. I found an 8.8 Cummins on a stand, is that considered a computer controlled engine? I'm just looking to do a engine and transmission swap and don't really want to deal with a electronic project in the process. I've been told that the 8.3 is a computer controlled engine, is that true? What would you recommend as a good replacement engine and transmission swap? Like a 5.9, I'd really like to go big but I don't know

 

Not sure if they put electronics on an 8.3 or not, if they did it was probably around 99-2000 like the 5.9. My 93 F-800 has an 8.3 with mechanical ppump like my 95 5.9 has, the 94 8.3 our FD water tender has is same as mine.
I believe they changed to an 8.9 about the same time as the 6.7 replaced the 5.9 and all 8.9's are electronic.


What happened to the 8.3 on CL, that was your best deal.

 

You're lucky. Our fire department has one with a dt466, another with a c7 clatterpillar and the tender is a 2010 international with a Maxxforce 9.

The c7 and Maxxforce have plenty of giddy up. The more I think about it, the less I'm an IH fan.

 

I didn't get to it in time and it was sold. I'm looking at a transmission for a little easier way out before I gut the girl. Here's the transmission I was looking at

https://sacramento.craigslist.org/wto/5506795286.html

So pardon my ignorance but is a computer controlled Diesel engine just a fuel pump that's computer controlled? I have some experience with integrating computer control components to engines that never had computer controls. Being that this is my first experience with diesel engines I'm wondering what components are computer controlled? I'm trying to find out what I need to keep and what could be removed

 

Allison MT653 does have a lock up torque convertor which is better than your AT543 but does not have over drive so you could still have a gearing issue. You'll need to know if it has the same size SAE bolt pattern that your 7.8 has. Finding a different flywheel housing for a 7.8 could prove difficult.


The early 24 valve Cummins had a computer controlled timing in the mechanical injection pump, later Common Rails, Power Strokes, Dura Max, C7 Cats and IH Max Force engines have computer controlled electronic injectors using an electronic throttle pedal that has no linkage to the engine other than wires.