2002 2500HD - Solid Axle Tow Rig

My K30 has a 2x8, which is slow but consistent in both directions.

I am thinking about swapping the flow valve in the pump. There was a GM TSB about it a few years ago. I think it costs like 20 bucks or something.
 
jeepinmatt said:
One thing about upgrading the pump is speed. With a 1.5" ram in my TJ, stock pump, PSC big bore box, I could turn pretty quickly in one direction, but then it was a brick wall if I wanted to turn back the other way quickly. I found this out when I went to pull out quickly from a left turning lane back into the straight lane. Gave it gas, steered right, went to steer back left and it wouldn't move. Took about 3 lanes of traffic before enough pressure returned to get it straightened out. Fortunately there was nothing beside me, but the cars that were coming up behind me certainly had to hit the brakes for the WTF moment.
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I think that has as much to do with line sizes and the box limitations as it does the pump. There are 4800 guys having similar issues at speed, and even hydro-locking boxes in similar situations.
 
I have read that at a certain point, the box will be the limitation...regardless of line size or pump flow.

In my particular setup, I'm not that worried about not being able to steer. I DD'ed the K30 with the 2x8 on it for over 5 years and got used to the idiosyncracies associated with the hydro assist.
 
paradisePWoffrd said:
I think that has as much to do with line sizes and the box limitations as it does the pump. There are 4800 guys having similar issues at speed, and even hydro-locking boxes in similar situations.
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I had 3/8 or 1/2" lines with I think -6 fittings. I've seen very many things with MUCH smaller lines. May have been a box issue.
 
jeepinmatt said:
I had 3/8 or 1/2" lines with I think -6 fittings. I've seen very many things with MUCH smaller lines. May have been a box issue.
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The biggest problem is the small channel that runs from the end of the piston to the servo, in the box. Most of the PSC boxes are tapped in the servo area for the ram, but if the box is tapped in that channel, any fluid coming from the ram, will be forced through that channel. Either way, the fluid flowing around the piston has to move fast as well, through the same small channel.

It could also be that the pump was not flowing enough fluid volume as needed, but I suspect you were on the throttle so it should have recovered within partial seconds, assuming there was fluid in the reservoir.
 
Got my tires today! Sorta...the FedEx hub in Greenville screwed up and one of my tires got left behind, so it'll be here tomorrow. The driver said he was pretty aggravated about it this morning because "who the hell orders three tires?!" His words! It's Christmas time though, so we all know how busy they are. I called and it'll be here tomorrow. It's not a huge deal, but I was planning to have put them on earlier this afternoon, now I just have to wait til Sunday.
 
Well heads up on my cooper stmaxx 285/75/16, all I can say is they are fawking awesome!!! Hands down best a/t tire I've ran hopefully they perform in the snow!! Mine have calmed down on the walking 300 miles on em and feel great at 65psi
 
Got my tires mounted up this morning. They balanced out very well for a 33" tire. I think the biggest weight I had to use was a 2.5 oz. The other three were 1.5 oz or lower and one tire only needed .25 oz and .75 oz. I was very happy with that. With the fronts at 55 psi and the rears at 50, I couldn't feel any squirm or walking around like I've seen many people claim. I'm diggin' them.


Old busted...

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New hotness

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Luckily, they don't touch the mudflaps, so I didn't have to bother with taking them off real quick this morning. I was in a little bit of a hurry and didn't want to have to screw with them. I will probably be taking them off though. I'm very pleased with them, aesthetically. They also ride nice, are pleasantly quiet, and have only tossed one rock so far :D

Next thing I need to get off my ass and do is cut the centers out of two center caps for the front. It just looks better with something covering the lug nuts and I need to be able to access the lock outs.
 
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Those are awesome! Digging the new hotness lol. Now ima have to go watch MIB again.

Now, get off your ass and cut the centers out of those caps. :D
 
Rode down to Diesel Addiction today to get my speedometer fixed after the larger tires. I also really need some front wheel bearings...I can hear them roaring. I should have put new ones on to start with, but the factory ones felt tight. Oh well.

I'm slowly but surely knocking out things on my list!
 
Have you felt any diff with the spacers in the rear while braking or in curves? Like the rear pushing ya? I'm considering spacing my rear so it's not 2" narrower than front...
 
I dare say you're overthinking that one a bit. Didn't notice a bit of difference aside from it looking much better.

They're also hub centric spacers. I don't think I'd have any that weren't.
 
I overthink a lot, especially on stuff I put on the road now days lol 13 years ago way diff story...
 
I finally thought to snag a picture of the valving card that came with the coilovers. I forget who was asking about them, but here ya go!

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I've got two new Timken wheel bearing assemblies and two sets of hub studs headed my way. I sorta knew better than to use the wheel bearings that were in the axle when I got it, but they felt fine...after a few thousand miles I've started hearing them roar.

I'm hoping to get over to a friend's house and use his lathe and Bridgeport and get the hubs knocked out Saturday morning. I'm optimistic that this will also cure my ABS light issue...I'm thinking the ABS sensors in the original bearing assemblies are bad.
 
In my 99 I was gettin abs light replaced hub assembly and went away!!
 
I'm also going from a 55 tooth ABS tone ring to a 60 tooth tone ring, so I'll likely have to get in the BCM with a scanner and change the tire size for the front ABS signal so it jives with the rear. They're allowed so much difference before it throws a light, but the light has been on from the moment I first turned the key after the axle swap.

I'm also in need of some new thermostats. My coolant temps are only getting up to 170. The factory thermostats are 180 and 185 degrees. I replaced them a year ago, but they were Stants...it's getting AC Delco or Mishimoto Hi-Temps this go around!
 
Got some new thermostats put in this afternoon and they made a nice difference. While I was waiting on the truck to cool down, I cut the centers out of some center caps and got them back on the truck. It looks much better with front center caps!
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I'm pretty happy with how well that all worked out....it's like they planned for someone to be able to get to a lockout hub one day! It just happens that the hole where the emblem was is the perfect size.

I'm hoping to get the hub flanges turned and redrilled this weekend, so maybe I can ride around and not listen to unhappy wheel bearings :D
 
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It's nice to have coworkers who have lathes, milling machines, and a free Sunday afternoon. These turned out pretty damn good! Everything went a little faster this time since I've gone through this process once before...I hate to say it, but I'm getting kinda good at it. It's almost like I'm a machinist or something :lol:

My drill fixture worked great again also. It definitely makes it a helluva lot easier to drill these things.

I've also noticed that almost everything I ever have to machine (outside of work/for my own use) is usually a borderline sketchy setup. The lathe portion of this has to be just right to be able to have clearance for the chuck jaws not to hit the tool post or the carriage. It has to be inside the bearing flange because the diameter is so big. Not much room for error!


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A mill and lathe are nice for so many diff reasons until I have one available then I can't think of a damn thing I need one for.... drums/rotors lol
 
I'd have the opposite problem...if people found out I have them, I'd be busy all the time.

New wheel bearings went in this evening. I may need to bleed the front calipers again too...the pedal is a little spongy.

I'm thinking the next expenditures will be new carpet and a new headliner.
 
I'm thinking I may have figured out my ABS light issue. I never even thought about passive and active wheel speed sensors! Apparently the 02 2500HD uses passive sensors and the 05+ Ford Super Duties use active sensors. Basically, no matter what I do, the Ford sensors will never jive with the GM ABS module.

Passive sensors create a small AC voltage as the wheel spins.

Active sensors recieve a DC voltage from the ABS module.

See the differences? I'm thinking I'll just swap in the old GM sensors and see how/if that works.
 
Wow, that almost looks like you know what you're doing! Don't worry, I won't tell anyone either. :D

Pretty sure that setup on the lathe qualifies for being accurately described as tighter than a gnat's ass.... damn, Gina!
 
Good news! I was right about the ABS sensors. I put one of my old Ford hubs in the vice and spun it with the multimeter attached and got zero voltage readings. So, I pulled the GM sensors out of the old hubs and put them in the Ford hubs after getting the spacing right. I gave them a spin and boom, AC voltage!

So, all I've got to do is swap the sensors and make extensions. The Ford harness is 43" long and the GM ones are 29" long.

I also had two slightly different length sensors in my old hubs. One was a Moog replacement and one was another brand, so I measured from the mount surface to the top of the tone ring and it was .740. Then I found that the air gap should be .016 to .039. I measured my sensor lengths at .715. That put me in the middle at .025. Good to go!

Can't wait til tomorrow after work to see that damn ABS light go away :D

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