The Story Of A Cummins Suburban (Lots Of Pics)

[1985-GMC]

Hey Ive been meaning to ask you what the black paint was that you used on the engine, alt bracket, radiator hold down , etc.. and all kinds of other stuff? It has a nice finish to it, not to shiny and not dull. Thanks

[PAWS 72]

mosesburb great looking picswish i could come out on a journey with ya sometime.but too far away. keepin comein love it

[sovapid]

I love this thread. Have been reading here and on another site way before I picked up my Blazer. Once I get it situated I'd love to tag along.

One of the things that has bothered me about your 'burb is the missing bow tie on the grille.

Just swapped out mine today. The inner grille is a mess, but you are welcome to it and the bow tie if you think you can get it to work (the bow tie is still in pretty good shape).

Consider it a return on all the time you've spent writing up your trail rides.

Gonna hang on to the outer grille for now.

PM me if you want it....

[1leglance]

I am trying to talk Nick into joining this Old Iron run if you want to bring your Blazer
http://www.expeditionportal.com/foru...When-amp-Where

We are looking at St Patty's weekend and an easy trail run with some camping. Should be a blast with a number of old rigs hanging out.

[mosesburb]

Originally Posted by hgs_notes

Switchbacks are awesome. The last 2 pics are great srta reminds me of pics from the outback. As for the truck, you still have the mechanical fan also.

On the electric fan and not blowing fuses, they will usually just pop from a grounding condition. So if the fan has a bad bearing and it is just getting hot from that, it maynot draw enough amps to pop the fuse. The small fan motor is only capable of drawing so many amps based on the windings, etc. and really doesn't draw much for normal operation. When you tested the fan back at home with different fuses the fan had already cooled off and I doubt that you ran it til it got hot again. If you had the heat would have directly caused a higher amp draw and you would have blown a fuse. So the chain of events goes like this, bearing failure causes motor overheating, which eventually leads to insulation breakdown in the windings, which result in a through fault and then the fuse pops or fires happens or both.

Yeah, I figured the lack of temperature probably played a part in not popping the new fuses. I am still surprised that it didn't pop the 20A that was in it.

Originally Posted by Dieselwrencher

Great pics and sweet journey once again! I have seen electric fans do the same thing a few times. The only thing I can come up with is purchase a good reliable set the first time. They may be expensive, but there's a reason for that. lol:

Thanks!! I thought I bought good ones. I have this exact same fan in a couple other trucks in my fleet that have over 100K on the fan with no problems whatsoever. They are used as auxilliary pusher fans that trigger with the A/C control and/or manually.

Originally Posted by 1985-GMC

More awesome pictures! Im gonna have to take a trip out there in a couple of years.

Hurry up!!

Originally Posted by 1985-GMC

Hey Ive been meaning to ask you what the black paint was that you used on the engine, alt bracket, radiator hold down , etc.. and all kinds of other stuff? It has a nice finish to it, not to shiny and not dull. Thanks

That stuff is way cool. It took me a long time and tons of trial cans to find something that has all of the properties you mention. It is an engine enamel made by Pioneer. Everything black on this truck was painted with that.

Originally Posted by PAWS 72

mosesburb great looking picswish i could come out on a journey with ya sometime.but too far away. keepin comein love it

Glad you enjoy them!! You can ride shotgun via pictures (I leave all of the boring stuff out--or at least I think I do...).

Originally Posted by sovapid

I love this thread. Have been reading here and on another site way before I picked up my Blazer. Once I get it situated I'd love to tag along.

Sounds good. There are a few of us left that use our old junk on the trails still.

Originally Posted by sovapid

One of the things that has bothered me about your 'burb is the missing bow tie on the grille.

Just swapped out mine today. The inner grille is a mess, but you are welcome to it and the bow tie if you think you can get it to work (the bow tie is still in pretty good shape).

Consider it a return on all the time you've spent writing up your trail rides.

Gonna hang on to the outer grille for now.

PM me if you want it....

I appreciate the offer, but I actually removed my bowtie because I like the clean look of the eggcrate grille with no visual deterrents on it. Very nice offer though!!

Originally Posted by 1leglance

I am trying to talk Nick into joining this Old Iron run if you want to bring your Blazer
http://www.expeditionportal.com/foru...When-amp-Where

We are looking at St Patty's weekend and an easy trail run with some camping. Should be a blast with a number of old rigs hanging out.

Sweeet!! Another tour of "rustic" gas stations!!

(1leglance) Does this gas station look burned out to you??

(mosesburb) Dunno man, looks kinda scary.

(1leglance) I'm going to try it.

(mosesburb) I think I'd wear gloves if I was you.

(1leglance) Oh look!! It has pay at the pump!!

(mosesburb) Dude, I'm surprised they even know what credit cards are here.



Always an adventure running with the old iron. The fact that these trucks came from the factory with a 21 gallon tank is ridiculous. It is blatantly obvious why so many got hacked up with auxilliary tanks.

I still have to finish posting the pics from this run and others since, but Photobucket is sending me hate-mail threatening me with a total meltdown from over-usage. I think I will try my luck and see what happens. So if all my pics go away, that's why. They'll be back.....

[1985-GMC]

Originally Posted by mosesburb

Hurry up!!

That stuff is way cool. It took me a long time and tons of trial cans to find something that has all of the properties you mention. It is an engine enamel made by Pioneer. Everything black on this truck was painted with that.

I will!

Cool! Im gonna have to order some of it.

[Coboyle04]

nice work....what kind of MPGs do you get with that diesel

[mosesburb]

Originally Posted by Coboyle04

nice work....what kind of MPGs do you get with that diesel

Filled up on the way home and got 20.79 over 451 miles.

[Coboyle04]

Sweet. Better than any new comparable rig! I'm hoping to get at least 25mpg with the 4cyl
Posted via Mobile Device

[mosesburb]

Just opened the Truck Of The Month thread HERE and realized that I qualify for it this time. Then I saw that jbclassix and a couple others had already nominated me. Thanks a bunch guys!!

[kikkegek]

Originally Posted by mosesburb

Just opened the Truck Of The Month thread HERE and realized that I qualify for it this time. Then I saw that jbclassix and a couple others had already nominated me. Thanks a bunch guys!!

voted for you! Love your K20 and pics you post....Burbs are the coolest!

[pickup67man]

I voted. Been reading all your adventures. I like built trucks that are driven.

[Mr Pops]

I voted for you too!

[jbclassix]

Funny thing... if you saw on my burb build thread the CUCV that I was working on? The guy who owns that sent me a link to your build thread on the diesel forum!

[mosesburb]

Originally Posted by jbclassix

Funny thing... if you saw on my burb build thread the CUCV that I was working on? The guy who owns that sent me a link to your build thread on the diesel forum!

Was it on a diesel forum or was the link he sent to here??

[jbclassix]

a diesel forum

[1leglance]

voted for ya...
how else am I gonna get any help with my rig?

[1985-GMC]

You know we are all going to vote for ya!

[mosesburb]

Ok, I am so far behind right now in posting pics of just about anything, that I need to post something to get a little closer to current.

So this trip was not finished yet. We actually had not gotten to camp yet so here we go. I had wanted to go up to a spot that I along with some friends of mine used to go to up by Flagstaff, but that area is full of elk and this was during elk season, so I decided that probably was not the best time to do a Flagstaff camping trip. I amended our plans and rolled through the Verde Valley over through Jerome and back down 413. On our way through the area we stopped at one of the scenic lookout points along the way and I noticed something that I had never noticed before.



At the top of the pic is a trestle setup that carries a pipe on it. I had never seen that before--kind of neat:



This is a look out toward the valley from the lookout:



So we head back into the hills and get a short glimpse of fall colors:



We got back into the area we were heading for and got camp setup and got to have a fire. This is the first time I have camped with my boy that there was not a fire restriction in the area we were camping.

Gratuitous truck shot in campfire lighting:



On the way out the next morning I noticed something odd. The power poles were very unique. I don't know if I have ever noticed them before, but if I did, it did not ring a bell with me.



I had actually seen some just like it yesterday, but did not realize it then.



Right in the service yard at Childs was another one. I was doing some research when we got back and I found out that the transportation guys were not able to get the wooden poles needed for the power transmission cables through the switchbacks and down to the plant (along with other areas that poles needed to go), so being the huge Erector Set transmission structures that crossed the west in the 60's and 70's were not invented yet, they came up with their own idea. The got with a company that made windmills and had them supply the windmill stands that could be transported as bits and pieces to the site and then get erected. The tower that is on the side of the road transported power from Childs to Jerome back in the day. Very cool.

We got back into Jerome the next day and did some aimless wandering. There is an old car dealership The New State Motor Company that has been transformed into a store on the street level and a museum like display on the lower levels.



The math kind of defeats the purpose:



We went on a walk that I can not admit to taking, but at the end of our walk I remembered this was down the street from where we were:

[FrankieD]

On the way out the next morning I noticed something odd. The power poles were very unique. I don't know if I have ever noticed them before, but if I did, it did not ring a bell with me.



Funny I was just reading this last night and my brother and I saw the same thing going to my buddy's place off rt 60 east he has a Miami address and has a sign hanging out front saying Sidewinders if you get a chance stop there he is a very interesting person an has some really diffrent stuff including his v8 bikes. he has a red 1800's RR car in the front.


me on the ZL-1 bike



We are loving the weather in AZ

[justcuz]

Nick I looked at the pictures of yours and Lances Suburbans parked next to each other. The front fenders and grille surrounds look interchangeable. I am asking because I have a line on a 1968 Suburban, but it has no front clip. Do core supports, fender wells, fenders and hoods interchange from 1967 to 72?

The one I am looking at is a 3/4 ton 2wd. If I get it, I will convert it to 4wd using longer 88 and up rear springs and 56 inch springs in the front. Most likely 350/4spd and some kind of married t-case, probably a passenger drop NP241 or if I can find a F*#d dana 44 8 lug front axle I'll just do a drivers drop NP241.

[mosesburb]

Originally Posted by justcuz

Nick I looked at the pictures of yours and Lances Suburbans parked next to each other. The front fenders and grille surrounds look interchangeable. I am asking because I have a line on a 1968 Suburban, but it has no front clip. Do core supports, fender wells, fenders and hoods interchange from 1967 to 72?

Yes and no. 67-68 Chevys used short front fenders and hoods which use a corresponding core support. 69-72 Chevys used a taller fender and hood which have their own core support. You can't interchange bits and pieces (fenders or hoods) between the two, but you can interchange whole assemblies (whole front clips).

Originally Posted by justcuz

The one I am looking at is a 3/4 ton 2wd. If I get it, I will convert it to 4wd using longer 88 and up rear springs and 56 inch springs in the front. Most likely 350/4spd and some kind of married t-case, probably a passenger drop NP241 or if I can find a F*#d dana 44 8 lug front axle I'll just do a drivers drop NP241.

Sounds like fun.

[mosesburb]

Originally Posted by FrankieD

me on the ZL-1 bike



We are loving the weather in AZ

I think I have seen that bike somewhere before. Has he ever taken it to car shows??

The weather is starting to get warmer now. I think it was 104 today.

[FrankieD]

Originally Posted by mosesburb

I think I have seen that bike somewhere before. Has he ever taken it to car shows??

The weather is starting to get warmer now. I think it was 104 today.

I am pretty sure he has probably Apache Junction or Globe. He used to do 1/4 mile smoke show's here in he midwest then hit some jet fuel and it almost killed him. He has a small block with Hilborn injection for a regular driver.

[mosesburb]

So we do some more wandering around town. I talked to a food service driver who did not get paid nearly enough money to drive a semi where he was driving it. I ran into a nice lady from the historical society and we had a fantastic chat about all kinds of topics related to Jerome and the surrounding area. She was very knowledgeable about the town and I really enjoyed talking with her. She realized that I knew a fair bit about the dirt roads leading to Jerome and was asking detailed questions about certain locations and points on the trails. It was really cool to be able to answer questions from someone in the historical society with information that I had learned while wheeling. Really cool. I got to help an old lady that decided to run her three wheeled electric scooter down a nasty road and put it over on its side. I did not see it happen, but I heard it and by the time I turned my head, she had already laid it over. My boy and I ran up the hill and another guy came down from the top. The old lady was mostly ok. We got her uprighted and I got the scooter uprighted then she sits down on it, swings her legs in and hits the "GO" switch--back down the hill she just dumped it over on!! WTF?!?!?! I run down the hill to get in front of her because I know if she puts it over again, she won't be as lucky. So I finally get her down to the bottom (no small task as she alone outweighed me by a fair bit, then add the scooter and the fact that she was giving it power to go down the hill...) Ugh.

Let the fun (the real kind) continue. What is it with us, snakes and roads??



We headed down the hill, through Clarkdale, past the slag pile up toward Sycamore Canyon. Once around the bend you are greeted with the TAPCO power plant. It was an oil fired plant built to supply power to the smelter in Clarkdale when the power from Irving and Childs was not enough. It ran a fair bit more than just that, but it was not as significant to the mines as Childs and Irving were.



Coming back, this is the slag pile in Clarkdale from a lower view point:



So we head back up the hill, through Jerome and out the other side. Along the way I spot somethig that I had always wondered where it was. The Jerome Swimming pool:



It was fed by a spring at the far end of it. The water collected to the depth of the spillway at this end, then flowed into a trough that crossed the ditch and then into pipes for the ride into Jerome to become drinking water. Yup, swim in the drinking water. You can see the steps leading down to it on the right side of the pic and the spillway in about the center of the pic pointing at you. The spring still flows and still supplies Jerome with drinking water the same way it has for over a hundred years. I guess the only difference is you can't swim in it anymore.

So we head down the hill into Prescott Valley, get some fuel and keep on moving. Well, we get down to the Dewey Humboldt area and I can't resist taking a few pics. This area is very contaminated and is an EPA Superfund site. That is not good, but there is still a bunch of history around here.

This is the smelter in Humboldt:



It processed ore from the Iron King mine about a mile away. This is another structure on the smelter site:



These are foundations on the Iron King Mine site:



Old scale house:



Sign proving I am not making this up:



This is the mine dump from the Iron King Mine:



It has been "mined" recently. The product "Ironite" came from these piles of mine waste. IIRC, it was outlawed in Canada because of high levels of arsenic. I could be wrong (it has been a bunch of years, but it seems like it was something like that).

So we head out from that and look back at the mountains we just came out of and are greeted with this parting shot: