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Decided to go ahead and paint up the door bottom while I was at it. Door finished. Still need to put the seal back on. I'll have to deal with this hole at some point as well. I'll also be learning how to do body paint too... Clamped up to dry All done!
Looks good. I am doing about the same to mine. Except I replaced the lower half of the c pillar dog leg and full length inner rocker panels on each side. You going to fill in the hole on the dog leg or leave it?
You spot weld cutter looks like the one I got on Amazon. I was able to use the other end of the head though. I cut 80-90 spot welds with the first one then didn't have the same luck with the rest though
I’ll patch up the dogleg hole at some point. Need to practice filling in with steel before I tackle that as it looks to need some bending of the new metal going in. I thought maybe I could glass it in, but I think cutting a patch and putting it in would be a better fix.
I had to use fiberglass to get the contours where it transition from the door towards the back and down under. To complicated to do it with just metal. Maybe tomorrow I'll post some pictures in my thread of where I'm at now
So, I got the rebuild kit for the 12V last week and figured I'd do a quick review of the kit and the supplier. I've been through a few paces with them since last week, so I'll provide the review in it's entirety (from my other build thread on another site):
This all happened, play by play style on 10/15:
I purchased it from Diesel Care and Performance out of Memphis. The kit was priced fairly well and the MaxiForce Kits they sell are all Made in USA. So, I did a bit of research on MaxiForce. They've been around since at least 1994 and have mostly done aftermarket kits for farm equipment, starting with John Deere. Seems that they've got quite a good reputation in the equipment industry. So, I took a chance. Overall, the kit came very well packaged and was very complete. It even comes with wrist pin bushings and cam bearings. I pulled each piece out and inspected it and found two issues. Two of the 6 pistons are dented/scraped along the very top machined edge. I'll call them today and see how they take me wanting replacements and post back. Other than that, all the gaskets seem to be of good quality and the materials are even Made in USA. I will not be using their head gasket, but it is identical in every way to the original that came out of the engine. It feels like the same material and is the same color, texture, and thickness. Overall, I'm pretty happy with it and we'll see how they take the piston issues.
The kit was $649 to my door and it was at my house 2 days after I ordered it. Standard bearings and 40 over pistons and rings. I did forget to mention, the guys at DCP were SUPER nice to talk to on the phone when ordering.
Talked to DCP about the pistons. They had me text pictures to the supervisor and once he checks them out, they'll let me know what they want to do. Preliminary track was likely that I'll have to send the two damaged ones back to MaxiForce for evaluation.
Based on the pictures they just called and said they'd send me two more with a return label to send the damaged ones back. So far, they get a 100% on customer service!
Fast forward to today...I have marine pistons, which lower the compression ratio and can cause hard cold starts and hazing at idle, especially when cold. My choices are: see if they'll give me new pistons that are standard size bowl, or keep the marine bowl and get marine injectors. Typically, folks that run these conversions end up adding power over and over because 1. a 12V Cummins is SUPER easy to add power to; and 2. It get's in your blood. I'm trying to stay away from that. I want to keep my X forever. This is ending up being a full resto/mod build and I'm going into the engine portion of the rebuild wanting at least 500K out of this engine. Adding fuel and air to get more power, I feel, diminishes that possibility (obviously anything can happen).
I just got off the phone with them and the engine guy said that 040 over pistons always come with marine bowls. This is apparently to counteract the compression ratio due to the oversized pistons. In other words, if the 040 over pistons had a standard bowl, the compression would go up vs. a stock Cummins piston. So, in essence, he's telling me that they are the same compression as a standard size piston with a standard size bowl. I have not confirmed this with research, but I'll try to find the math and post up. For now, here's some more pics!
This rust just makes me want to cry! Did the passenger front today. I was thinking I wouldn’t have to replace the fronts, but this one will have to go at some point. Ugh! Ground it all down, ospho, prime, bed liner. Door bottom is toast too. It’ll have to wait. I did get my camshaft, tappets, oil pump, water pump, and plastigauge in! Parts pile is getting bigger...my pocketbook is suffering.
Getting a little excited as I finally picked up a transmission. I've been going back and forth between a G56 and the ZF6-750. Both of these transmissions will suit my needs, but the ZF6 is a stronger transmission due to the center support. But, it boiled down to what I could find in the price range I budgeted for the transmission. At the end of the day, the G56 will be just fine for what I need it to do. It has a bit of input shaft end play that I'll need to address, but other than that it seems to be in good shape. Also got a South Bend DD clutch assembly with it, but I'm not planning on using it. First, it's probably in need of a rebuild, and second, I sit in traffic quite often and a DD clutch just isn't friendly for that. So, I have a 100 pound paper weight sitting around. Also have a bunch of other parts in: crankshaft dampener, head bolts, push rods, freeze plugs, etc.
I've been hibernating on the build this winter, but it's time to kick into gear. Come hell or high water, this block is getting some paint this weekend. Looks like high water as we're supposed to get 4" of rain in the next 24-48.
Front cover is a bit warped Stock Valve Springs This is an old Snap On unit that I borrowed. Pretty cool and works like a charm! 60# vs. Stock spring Seriously, this thing is super easy to use More paint prep!!
Got a little more work done last night. Swapped out my valve springs for the 60# variety and cleaned up my garage a little. If you're ever changing out valve springs, an air powered spring compressor is the bees knees. I did have to smack a couple of the retainers with a deadblow to loosen them up as the clamp doesn't have enough pressure to break them loose if they're stuck. I also found that shims under the stock springs on some of the valves. The guy that checked the head at the machine shop likely put them in there, but it probably behooves me to check the height. So, I may break it down after paint again and see if I can measure them.I also found that my front cover is a little warped at the crankshaft seal. I'm gonna try and straighten it out, but not sure how successful that'll be. I certainly don't want it leaking later or worse.
Was able to get the engine block and oil pan painted this weekend. Learned a few things for sure. I used Klass Kote 2 part epoxy primer and paint, in satin finish (tile red).
Looking at the paint color online, it seemed like it would match the Torreador Red of my X, but I think it's a little deeper/darker and possibly the "Deep Red" color would have been better. Water under the bridge. Being that it was in the 20's and 30's this weekend, I needed to warm things up a bit so the paint would flow correctly. I ended up setting up a small "paint booth" in my small garage and using a propane heater to get the block and oil pan warm to the touch, removed the heat, and shot the primer/paint. Couple lessons learned.
1. The primer and paint are two totally different animals. The primer was very easy to work with and mix. The paint was a little tougher and less forgiving it seemed.
2. Mix THOROUGHLY before removing from the can. I'd recommend shaking vigorously and then mixing with a paint stick for a while to get all the solids mixed together. Again, the primer was easier than the paint. Once it's mixed up, put both parts (according to instructions) in a pail and mix again. When you think you're done mixing, mix some more.
3. Add the lacquer thinner sparingly, and mix again. And then mix some more. I used the high quality thinner you can buy from Klass Kote and it worked very well.
4. The harbor freight "expensive" paint gun worked VERY well. Make sure you get acquainted with all the functions well before hand and make sure everything is set up before mixing any paint. I realized after I had primer mixed and in the gun that I didn't have the air chuck on the gun, so I had to find one (and of course I didn't have it).
5. When shooting the paint, keep everything perpendicular to the workpiece, AND the same distance away. If there are ins and outs to the workpiece, make sure you move side to side AND in/out.
6. Don't get impatient (I have a problem with this). I did 2 coats of primer and 4 coats of paint. You'll need to let it sit between coats to flash off (again, follow the instructions for timing).
7. Have a place to sit the paint gun between coats, and always check the settings on a piece of cardboard before going back to spray the piece. With the primer, I kept the settings the same. With the paint, I started with a wide, fine mist and by the 4th coat, I had a more compact, heavier mist. Overlap each stroke.
8. Safety equipment: USE IT!! I used a bunny suit with a hood, a respirator (not a dust mask), and safety glasses. I should have used goggles. That epoxy paint, especially in an enclosed space, gets everywhere as a fine mist. I could feel the paint getting in my eyes behind the glasses. The primer didn't have this issue.
For having never done this before, it turned out pretty well. Can't wait to paint the rest of my parts!
Makeshift paint booth Primer. I have one small run on the left. Foam ear plugs work great for plugging up holes! Oil pan primer Here's how I heated it up for paint. First coat of paint Fourth coat of paint It looks a little orange, but I think it's the lighting and hasn't flashed off yet.
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