What have you done to your rig today?

NickMaul said:
I’ll report back after I hit a few bridge gaps at highway speeds. But I am assuming the difference will be night and day.
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So I get the shocks.. what were the mounts that were trashed?
 
Welded broke rear shock mount back on
Fixed t-case leak
Added t-case breather (that will probably leak)
Adjusted cable shifters
Tightened jam nuts on trackbar and tie rod
Cut off plastic dust shield on shock that was melting onto tailpipe
Cut a chunk out of skidplate for muffler clearance
Cut OEM muffler support off that was vibing on tranny
Lubed all grease zerks on suspension/steering/driveshaft that would take grease, which was surprisingly most of them
Checked toe-in
Rechecked toe-in because 1.5 inches seemed really high
Decided to send it as is anyway because it was cold and I was tired :D
 
CasterTroy said:
So I get the shocks.. what were the mounts that were trashed?
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Here is a pic from the interwebs but the fat section is under a little load with the lower control arm at rest. At least mine are. The thin part is the final end of travel bump stop. Ride will be a little bit firmer in general now. Just one nut holds them on.

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What he said. They're not just bumpstops. They're more like a secondary "spring". Except they're like a foamy rubber kind of material. Almost like a front overload spring.
 
Croatan_Kid said:
What he said. They're not just bumpstops. They're more like a secondary "spring". Except they're like a foamy rubber kind of material. Almost like a front overload spring.
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The MOOG brand is definitely more of a rubber material compared to OEM but I definitely like the feedback going over bumps and stuff. I’ll be keeping an eye on them over time. Bilstein shocks definitely feel so much better. The old stuff was definitely shot :shaking:
 
I have driven the pure hell out of the tow rig this week! She's been a trooper. Drove home from Florida. 13 hrs at 80+ on Wednesday. Friday, went in to work and then hauled ass to go pick up a dozer in Bear Creek. Yesterday rode right back to Cameron to get a tire machine and balancer. I'm tired of driving!

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So what do you charge for balancing tars now?
 
Clubbs said:
So what do you charge for balancing tars now?
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They're my buddy's...but I'll have free use of them because I have a key to the shop. Just holler at me if you need something :D
 
I hopped in the ol' CUCV and drove it to work Friday night. I lit it off to get some heat going and went back inside to get my stuff together. When I came back out to leave, I smelled fuel. I looked under it and saw fuel dripping off the right hand side of the oil pan, near the back/sump area. Popped the hood and eyeballed the injection pump real quick. Saw a drip, but said "F it" and went on to work.

On the way home that night, the lights started to flicker...then get real bright...then dim...then back to normal.

Of course, it was 34 degrees that night when I got home from work, but I looked it over and couldn't see much. I checked it out again in the daylight. The alternator was charging 14.8 volts, which is alright, but it sounded like a handful of crushed granite in a blender.

I then gandered at the injection pump and finally narrowed it down to the governor shaft. At first I thought (and was hoping) it was the throttle shaft o-ring and/or the bushing in the top half of the pump being worn out. No such luck. That would have been too easy to fix!

As luck would have it, the governor shaft has a depth adjustment and installs from the front side of the pump. The adjuster nut sits (almost) up against the back side of the timing cover. Lucky me, I get to pull the injection pump to replace a 35 cent o-ring! If I had the money, I'd be swapping out the whole deal for a competition VE pump from The Hungry Diesel. Alas, I don't have 1800 bucks to throw at it. I'd prefer to swap the pump because it idles down once it's at operating temperature, but it still runs damn good and hasn't let me down in 15 years. So, maybe later.

A Bosch DGK-121 seal kit is about 25 bucks and the rest will just be labor. I'll go ahead and reseal what I can since the pump will be off anyway. I plan to ditch the 3200 rpm governor spring that I previously swapped in it (stock was 2600 😳) for a 4200 rpm spring. RPM is just free horsepower!

As for good news, I kept the original alternator I had run on the motor after the swap. Luckily, I put it in a box and had wrapped it in a plastic bag. I'm going to pull it apart and snag the bearings, brushes, and whatever other parts I can use to fix the current ( pun...intended :D ) one in the truck. It's a PA Performance 136 amp Nippen-Denso, one-wire conversion. I actually still have the original invoice from when I bought it back in 2010. I may call them and see what a rebuild would cost or if they'd send me the parts. Either way, it should be free/very cheap to fix. Those Optimas are getting shit canned also. They've been dying for the last two years and they're four years old.

I also still have wheel cylinders, brake shoes, springs/hardware, and hub seals for the rear sitting in my other bedroom. I need to pick up some more DOT 5 brake fluid. I also plan to ditch the "weight sensing proportioning valve". They don't do their job and make the pedal feel like crap.

I guess if you ignore something long enough, it'll find a way to get your attention 😬😅

Sorry for the long-winded post. Here's some pictures! I circled where the leak is located. Then a random underbody shot of a leaky wheel cylinder and an underhood shot.

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I really wish I had saved the whole build thread on this truck when Wheelin Dixie shut down. It had a lot of tech, good pictures, and write ups in it. Oh well.
 
I did get a few minutes today to tear the original style alternator apart and rob parts out of it. It was pretty easy and the bearings feel great and the brushes have lots of life left in them. I should be able to fix everything up for about fourty free dollars :D Unless the regulator has crapped out in the one on the truck, but those aren't expensive at all. I'll put it back together and see how it does.

I may try and pull the one off the truck tomorrow before work and get it all fixed up. We'll see.

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Croatan_Kid said:
I hopped in the ol' CUCV and drove it to work Friday night. I lit it off to get some heat going and went back inside to get my stuff together. When I came back out to leave, I smelled fuel. I looked under it and saw fuel dripping off the right hand side of the oil pan, near the back/sump area. Popped the hood and eyeballed the injection pump real quick. Saw a drip, but said "F it" and went on to work.

On the way home that night, the lights started to flicker...then get real bright...then dim...then back to normal.

Of course, it was 34 degrees that night when I got home from work, but I looked it over and couldn't see much. I checked it out again in the daylight. The alternator was charging 14.8 volts, which is alright, but it sounded like a handful of crushed granite in a blender.

I then gandered at the injection pump and finally narrowed it down to the governor shaft. At first I thought (and was hoping) it was the throttle shaft o-ring and/or the bushing in the top half of the pump being worn out. No such luck. That would have been too easy to fix!

As luck would have it, the governor shaft has a depth adjustment and installs from the front side of the pump. The adjuster nut sits (almost) up against the back side of the timing cover. Lucky me, I get to pull the injection pump to replace a 35 cent o-ring! If I had the money, I'd be swapping out the whole deal for a competition VE pump from The Hungry Diesel. Alas, I don't have 1800 bucks to throw at it. I'd prefer to swap the pump because it idles down once it's at operating temperature, but it still runs damn good and hasn't let me down in 15 years. So, maybe later.

A Bosch DGK-121 seal kit is about 25 bucks and the rest will just be labor. I'll go ahead and reseal what I can since the pump will be off anyway. I plan to ditch the 3200 rpm governor spring that I previously swapped in it (stock was 2600 😳) for a 4200 rpm spring. RPM is just free horsepower!

As for good news, I kept the original alternator I had run on the motor after the swap. Luckily, I put it in a box and had wrapped it in a plastic bag. I'm going to pull it apart and snag the bearings, brushes, and whatever other parts I can use to fix the current ( pun...intended :D ) one in the truck. It's a PA Performance 136 amp Nippen-Denso, one-wire conversion. I actually still have the original invoice from when I bought it back in 2010. I may call them and see what a rebuild would cost or if they'd send me the parts. Either way, it should be free/very cheap to fix. Those Optimas are getting shit canned also. They've been dying for the last two years and they're four years old.

I also still have wheel cylinders, brake shoes, springs/hardware, and hub seals for the rear sitting in my other bedroom. I need to pick up some more DOT 5 brake fluid. I also plan to ditch the "weight sensing proportioning valve". They don't do their job and make the pedal feel like crap.

I guess if you ignore something long enough, it'll find a way to get your attention 😬😅

Sorry for the long-winded post. Here's some pictures! I circled where the leak is located. Then a random underbody shot of a leaky wheel cylinder and an underhood shot.

View attachment 386679

View attachment 386680

View attachment 386681

View attachment 386682


I really wish I had saved the whole build thread on this truck when Wheelin Dixie shut down. It had a lot of tech, good pictures, and write ups in it. Oh well.
Click to expand...

I just ordered the seals and bushings to fix one leaking at the throttle shaft . Went ahead and got a governor spring too since I have to remove it to. Should be tearing into that this week.
 
NCJeeplover said:
I just ordered the seals and bushings to fix one leaking at the throttle shaft . Went ahead and got a governor spring too since I have to remove it to. Should be tearing into that this week.
Click to expand...

I was reallllly hoping that's all mine was going to be, but no such luck. I checked it...bone dry and tight. Usually that wouldn't be what I was looking for :D

I added a a handful of things to my cart. Pump seal kit, gov spring, longer full power screw, throttle linkage kit, pump to timing cover seal, and a pump gear puller. It's like 140 bucks all together. Not too bad and I don't even have to remove the timing cover.

It shouldn't be too bad of a job, but I really don't feel like doing it!
 
Managed to get a few hours in here and there over the past few weeks. Finally got the bed secured to the frame and my boards bolted in. Still need to cut two strips to fill the gaps on the sides. Got the lights wired up the other night and finished making a new filler neck for the gas tank today. Finally moved for the first time in a long while and now it looks like the rear seal on the transfer case decided it doesn’t want to exist anymore.

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