Project: Tow-Rat (Lil' Blue)

[daveshilling]

Happy for ya! Love this milestone

[6DoF]

started to get the 3D put together for a bed structure with hatch. thinking 1x1 framework with 3/4" ply over it, and lift-off style hinges

[regan wilson]

Congrats on getting it running. It all looks great. That computer 3d stuff is cheating though! lol

[6DoF]

well ... going backwards a bit ...

so after doing the rear main seal on my 93 3x and finally realizing that seal is crazy and has to be installed 100% oil free and dry or it leaks ... i knew i did the '55 wrong early on. it also made a 2+ sqft puddle on the floor from just a few test fires. last night i dive in and pull the trans, found out this requires pulling the down pipe, the hot pipe and s475, and the intercooler to get the 12v to tip back far enough.

get the clutch and flywheel off only to realize there's no oil in the bell housing adapter. looking around it's just pouring down from the oil pan seal! now i have to pull the entire front suspension and crossmember, or pull the engine to replace that. so this weekend, the 12v is coming back out.

[6DoF]

ya ever spend an entire weekend doing something over ... get to the end of the weekend and realize you are only just back to where you thought you started?

turns out, the pan rail was deformed at the bolt holes and about 20% of the RTV i used never touched the block side. cleaned 99.8% the glue off, hammered the pan rail back into shape, and used a greased paper gasket this time. also did a new rear main while it was out hanging there. so far, so good.

[dsraven]

well, at least you persevered and won over.
anytime I do a gasket on an oil pan, valve covers or any other sheet metal style cover, I always clean it well then lay it gasket side down against the flat steel workbench top. I shine a light behind it and look fr the gaps. I straighten as required. also, where the bolts go through, they usually deform because there isn't usually a back up plate under the bolt so the point pressure of the bolt makes a divet in the sheet metal. I use the round end of a ball pein hammer held against that spot, from the gasket side, the hit that hammer head with another hammer to push that divet back out again. usually on the edge of the workbench as a "dolly".
silicone gaskets usually require a bunch of work to seperate the parts so defoprmation of stamped steel pans is pretty common. if I can find a "formed silicone" gasket I will use them over anything. if I need to use a tube of silicone I only use "the right stuff" because the regular stuff, however good it is, doesn't stack up to it. it dries pretty quick also.

[6DoF]

the formed silicone gaskets are nice, that would be solid. the bolt holes are partially why i used RTV to just fill in as needed ... i just didn't get enough on there. next time i'll put way more effort into setting up that seal surface the first time, haha.

i've never actually use "the right stuff" ... i'll have to look into that.

[dsraven]

it is expensive but waaay better than the RTV stuff. trust me, as a heavy duty mechanic you don't want any come backs because that second time around repair not only costs you (or the shop where you work) money, it also costs the equipment owner money in down time, equipment rental if required and the operator loses his time too. for a trucker, it means a lost load or possibly losing favor with the company he works for if he is an owner operator. we had a trade school teacher who drilled this into our heads-do it right the first time and you only have to do it once. if you think of the bolts holding parts together as simply the things that hold the parts together rather than the things that make or break the seal and you think of the two mating surfaces as surfaces that need to fit tightly and match, like a metal on metal seal, then it changes how you look at gasket surfaces. instead of relying on a "good gasket" and sucking the bolts up tight you will start to look at the 2 parts for defects first. lay one part on the other and check for gaps, with no gasket in between. fix any high or low spots, then install the parts with a good gasket and tighten all the bolts finger tght, doing one then the other across from it and so forth, when they are all finger tight then add a little more to each in the same manner until the third go around when they can be tightened to spec. especially on a gasket that is a lot of work if a redo is required.
just the way I do it. I have very few warranty returns so it must work, lol.

[dsraven]

this is the stuff. it comes in a toothpaste style tube, a pressurized can or the caulking gun style. just buy a package big enough for the work at hand because it will harden up quickly in the tube

https://www.permatex.com/products/ga...et-maker-5-oz/

I clean all the gasket surfaces with brake cleaner and dry them. also blow out all the bolt holes (do this fist) because if there is oil, old silicone or liquid on the hole this can cause a hydraulic situation under the bolt when it is installed and fluid can be pushed back out around the threads and cause an adhesion issue with the sealer. it can also cause issues with torquing and, worst case scenario, I have seen it crack castings. then install the sealer, doing a small circle around each bolt hole as you go, and lastly the cover. sometimes installing a stud in a couple of the bolt holes will help line up the parts and if doing, say, an oil pan while it is upside down there are installation helper studs that will hold the gasket in place and then will hold the cover in place while you check all the edges and corners etc and install a couple of bolts. when all the bolts are in and the parts are lightly mated then the studs can be removed. they work awesome even if the repair isn't upside down.

[Rickysnickers]

Originally Posted by 6DoF

i've never actually use "the right stuff" ... i'll have to look into that.

I've used it for intake manifolds and it works well!

[dsraven]

in general, before I found the right stuff and had to use the best high temp RTV I could find, I wouldn't add oil or run the engine, etc, until the RTV had sat overnight so it could get a good cure time without any oil present. pretty tough to do that at in a commercial environment so I would end up only using RTV if a real gasket wasn't available and even then only use it sparingly in corners etc. a light film of aviation form a gasket is what I used to "glue" the gasket onto one surface and I wouldn't let the RTV contact the silicone because that never seems to work out. I know lots of commercial places use RTV for gaskets and say they have no problems. diff covers etc. but I can say I have repaired lots of those "no problems" because the customer doesn't go back for another potential leak and waste of their time.

[6DoF]

why does it seam like i can't officially check something off my list until i've posed it

- Rear axle breather ... DONE
- Throttle return spring / bracket ... DONE
- 2x -8an Engine breather hoses, mount catch can ... DONE
- Last exhaust blanket installed ... DONE

and since there's nothing on the floor after 24h ... Leaks FIXED

[6DoF]

more small check marks, still fighting a leak in the front drivers air lines/bag.

always feels so much smaller when on it's wheels, i get used to it up on stands where it's still shorter than my other truck.

[dsraven]

better put sasters on that big pipe, haha

[dsraven]

casters, sorry.
you get it anyway. lol.

[Dieselwrencher]

Very nice work. We tried running water to air intercoolers like those on street trucks a long while ago and one wasn't enough. We ended up having to do one in between the 2 turbos and one after. It seemed to work alright after that but I don't think it worked as well as an air to air during long trips. It is hard to fit a good sized intercooler in trucks like yours so I get why you're doing it that way. The right stuff definitely is good. I always put a small amount on both sides of the gaskets on the lower end. (Other than the oil cooler and HG) Cummins brand sealer is way good too but it is pretty expensive. That sucks to have to rip it all apart to fix oil leaks but I had to dot he same thing on my orange truck. Do you have a 160hp injection pump? Hopefully not. I've found those are the most finicky to get set up nice after a governor spring install.

[regan wilson]

Keep it coming. Glad you got it sealed up and on the ground.

[6DoF]

Front clip FINALLY got cleaned up. chassis saver drying, paint and the first final install pending tonight! I'm pretty sure the hood cross bars won't clear the intercooler, but we'll see.

rad tank, check. now, it's gota breath and the tank had an o-ring seal. i actually removed the oring, slotted the top of the neck in 2 places and notched the threads in 2 places to make a labyrinth vent. blowing in the tube it worked really well.

same tank, just 2x taller for the intercooler res tank. i couldn't find anything that would let me tie (4) -12an lines on nicely, so here's my attempt to make one. I've never welded aluminum before, but got everything to convert the welder. wish me luck!

the tanks, weld bungs, and these AN hose ends are all 'Evil Energy' a cheap brand from amazon. not the cheapest, but still super reasonable. so far i keep getting more parts from them and they are really pretty nice parts!

[6DoF]

[Dieselwrencher]

That looks great! You're going to need a roadkill deflector.

[Jason 56]

Great progress. Looks like you’re on track to be cruising come spring!

[6DoF]

Originally Posted by Dieselwrencher

That looks great! You're going to need a roadkill deflector.

ride height is about 8", should clear some stuff ok!

Originally Posted by Jason 56

Great progress. Looks like you’re on track to be cruising come spring!

the goal is road trip ready by July ... plans to drive from Pittsburgh to Wisconsin with a buddy to meet up with other guys for the IOLA car show.

[youngrodder]

Looks great.

Marc

[regan wilson]

Man that is Awesome. So cool!

[6DoF]

slowly picking away at things. i ended up sandblasting the headlight buckets to repaint, they are super solid, so that's nice. started a fuel crossover hose, getting a relay and fuse panel together, shifter boot doesn't fit and have to find something new ... moving along

had to remove the hood x-bar to clear the charge cooler ... any reason that would cause issues?