So today I did motor fuel maintenance.

And I thought it a good excuse to post diesely engine eye candy..

So this is just me posting 10 identical pictures of one fuel filter for my amusement.

She got - a new fuel filter and return cap o-rings.

I believe this one is the Delphi brand, it's given me good service.

The hoses on the pics look different now, when I got this one, it had brand name American made hoses on it.

The new pic of that brand looks the same but maybe they now come with unbranded hoses, or maybe it's just in the pic, my observations.

I smear a whole lot of lithium complex grease (grease gun / I like - interchangeably the brands / StaLube Red Lithium, and Lucas Marine Lithium)

On all on them, till it's oozing out the bottom and top when they're pressed into place, it keeps them from leaking, and stops the o-rings from drying out and cracking.

This kit has been on the truck like 14 years, I packed them super with grease simarlarly at that time.

She held bone dry all that time, until just this week she abruptly started leaking out of all 4 passenger side injector o-ring sets.

I couldn't figure why just one side was still perfectly good, and leak free.

Yet when I took them off the other side was dry as a bone and all the o-rings had begun cracking.

Then I remembered, that since I first installed that whole set, new, I had serviced 2 injectors each on the driver side, and had pulled that whole bank and re-greased them at those times.

So taking a learning lesson for myself, if I take em' all down and regrease the o-rings - every so many years, they may last much longer or indefinitely (or not), but at least a much longer time.

The 3/16 hose was still good.

That whole bank that had been regreased 2 extra times in that 14 year span, were still supple and not dry at all, and not leakin.

So I think, maybe every 3 years, I will take all the return caps off and pack them with grease.

Also - a tip I discovered..

There is a larger Fuel Filter, that fits this base, it's kindof like my own - fuel version of the FL1995 oil filter upgrade - but for the fuel filter..

It's a WIX 33403, and it's about 50% larger than the stock filter.

To fit on the bracket though, only one bolt can be used, and it sits slated.

I use washers to grip around the other side from the top.

I do lean on it, like always, and just that one bolt has always held it on strong.

I do think that I will add a nice tab'd bracket extension to bolt through, but it's fine for now.

In the pic I have sockets as spacers, but these are not required to fit, I just want an inch of extra space betwingst the filter and bracket for routing hose through there later.

That WIX filter is 10 micron, (don't quote my microns, because it's been 10 years since I looked) but the early idi fuel filter was like 6 micron, and later idi motors were stock like 12 micron, so 10 is smack dab in the middle and a good number for me.

Early on I had mucho problems with fuel delivery plugging in the lines and tanks ect, but this WIX filter been there all that time, it has never clogged.

It's lasted about 14 years, through early fuel contamination, and it's still fine.

I just got a new one, because it's been on there a looong time, and it must - surely someday plug up.

And it just has to be wet, but still give me no problem.

So anyway I put on a new one, this is preventative maintenance after all.

I did lose my beautiful timing - after reinstalling the pump, despite my best efforts at lining it up, meh it happens, it never goes back like I wish it would perfectly.

But, thats of no consequence, I'll time it tomorrow, back in a jiffy.

Mo fresh fuel + no leaks diesel.

Enjoy

 

Nice... Thanks for the greasing tip. Your soft fuel lines are a good answer to many problems. I'll run them if I have any problems.
Anyways, I'm not a professional photographer but I can tell you your lighting is all wrong and there is not enough context to capture the full beauty of those images

 

Did you delete the fuel filter return to the #1 injector? I was thinking I need to do that to my 6.9l. I checked my spare fuel return caps and I don't have a spare with 1 port. I guess I need to buy a return cap kit and reuse the cap that's on my #2 injector right now.

BTW, your custom grill is bad@$$!

 

Hah - good observations, I concur, I totally had greasy fingers, used an old phone that is usually now a glorified flashlight, it was dusk, and I just couldn't get the subject to both pose and smile at the same time.

 

I did delete the return off the number 1 injector, I just put a small bolt in the return hose.

It's fine like this, the only difference is that the fitting has a tiny oraface that lets overpressured fuel that exceeds what the IP is calling for has an escape route back through the injector return caps and hoses.

The fittings are 1/4 male pipe thread on the filter housing.

I just put the fitting to a barbed hose for soft lines.

I do plan on re-adding a 3/8 x 3/8 x 3 /16 brass tee and putting that bypass back into the fuel circuit.

I deleted it just to get the fittings in, and eliminate a potential source of leaking and air intrusion, but everything is tite, so eventually when I get to it, I'll add it back in.

It's just there to reduce surge overpressure at the IP inlet and leaking from the stock doughnut o-rings.

Soft hoses x1000 f* those hard lines&

Yep she got that gangsta grille.

 

Ok, so - This mornin' I got it timed real nice..

.. Then I decided to just give everything a good once over.

Put on my stethoscope+rod and found #8 cylinder had a bit too much injector knock ..

Sooo.. After getting it all apart back fixed and timed, I just figured - hey it's a beautiful day, better to just do it now than never.

Removal of #8 injector confirmed my suspicion, the diagnostic of the listening test -

Inspection was clear that something was very wrong.

I've had them wear out before, causing the pintels to not fully seat, and push that cylinder pressure back up into the fuel circuits, causing leaks and openings for intrusion.

This injector was probably about nearly bad enough to start making bad trouble worse, so I'm glad I pulled and swapped it for something better.

I had a few spares, oem junkyard IH grey sticks, off an organ donor.

I had no way of testing it before going in.

.. Everything went fine, and it turns out that the original, old, used stick, was still good, and click clacks just fine.

Good sound, not - knocking, missing or stumbling...

For the Win !!

So I got it back together, regreased that bank, and timed the pump..

All in all - she ended up gettin, 1 repacement injector, all new o-rings, and a fuel filter..

Running strong with no leaks..

Now Pics - I am - guilty of still having smudgy hands and using that ***** spare phone as a camera, and a twilight photo shot.

- but - this time I took a video ..

So maybe this is still a bad camera angle - but with a motion pictures and most importantly sound.

Enjoy

 

 

 

Seems like she's running fine now. Are you running just one battery on the passenger's side? It looks like you've got an aftermarket stereo with an amp situated near where the driver's side battery would go.

I love the 80s padded steering wheel cover.

BTW, I bought a core 7.3l IDIT years ago and the salvage yard I bought it from said it was no good. I swapped the injectors in my 6.9l for the injectors I got from the turbo engine. I never got the engine to start. All it would do is knock pretty bad while cranking.

I think one or more of the injectors was hanging open. So, I ended up buying new parts store cheapies and I've been running them since.

 

Yep, she's on one battery. It's an everstart Marine Start/Deep hybrid type battery.

It doesn't spin the crank quite as super fast, but it has depth and reserve capacity to keep cranking for a longer time..

I guess you could say 75% cranking speed but 2X the persistence.

And i've deep cycled it down accidentally and it has come back up and charges like maybe would have killed a start class battery.

Had this one on since 2019, and I think, I will get another and put dual batts in, but the one had been doing it just fine.

Also - I run glo plug delete, so it takes less battery.

I do want to add another battery, especially as this one is aging, and I don't want to stress it out and have one go out, while 2 can pull with more durability in the long run. Just batts are very expensive right now.

Yep, I used to have a solid - old 1st gen Rockford amp for years, but it burned up, it's hard to find a good spot to mount one.

They get so hot under or behind the seat, I found the best place is under hood, but they are sensitive to rain water splashing in under there.

I put it under hood, as high as I can, tucked to the underside of the hood itself.

Keeps dry, yet can stay cool enough.

That BOSS amp is okay, it runs a single sealed 10 pretty good, I snagged it for like 45 bucks on eBay some years ago brand new in the box at a no reserve auction.

The old 45.2 rockford pounds way harder but all the old American made real RMS amps are old and gone now.

Kenwood deck, pioneer speakers, pioneer sub, boss amp.

Yes, I bought that steering wheel cover at K Mart before they went out of business..

It's the last of the real old school.

That would be tough to figure when swapping out a whole set, could be confusing to figure the failure, I think the body if this new, old injector is different, it looked a tadd wider, though it may just be my imagination..

It fit the hole the same, and runs like it should but just looked a little more 'swole' .. It was marked - D whilst I believe whatever else in there are BB's.

 

Love the pics and video, that engine runs smooth! That grille is awesome! I remember your thread on the install.

I see you have a little idler pulley to keep the alternator belt from dancing around, that’s pretty cool!

 

Thank you so much for the compliment, I really put great care and effort into it.

I really like how that grille turned out, probably in the medium future, i'd like to make some fender flares, to look good yes, but more really to keep the mud from splashing.

Longer term, I'm gonna cut a convertible top. I've always been putting off to do the roof, I want to gather all the best materials, and replace some tools to do it nice, a new windshield, first drip rails, gaskets, a lot of stuff, but eventually she'll be a hard top convertible.

Yes, and I'm gonna get a second idler pulley pretty soon for the bottom, and it's gonna get dual alternators pretty soon, the dual alt is on the shorter list, i've been collecting small parts. I'm actually excited about that one, and a nice ammeter installed into the dash cluster.

 

A hard top convertible IDI would be epic! It’s nice having upgrades to look forward to instead of always repairs lol.

Dual alternators is pretty sweet, the more juice going around the better. I’m waiting for my alternator to retire, it’s original but so far it’s keeping up

 

Right !!

I kept the original alternator a looong time, it did just fine, it charged and it lasted a good long life.

I must say I really like everything about how they engineered the 3g series.

I gotta have more though, really for more power not just redundancy, because, I have plans for more fun upgrades, super secret ones, that nobody should ever even try to do that ther'.