I hate when things blow up - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

bucky_21_7 · 08-09-2008, 03:58 PM

On a recent trip to the cabin over the long weekend my truck failed to come back on it's own power. After fiquring out that the cheep profourm geardrive i put on my recently rebuild motor blew up causing me to get my truck towed from 150 kilomiters home( whitch caused my tow bar the rip my bumber off and rip the top frame mounts off). WHen the gear drive exploded it caused some of my valves to bend. This sucks. The worst part is, is that the motor is only 2000 miles old. Now i have to rip the heads off and rebuild them. But there is one up side. I'm going to port and polish and hog out the valves to make more power. Anyone else ever had problems with there cheep profourm gear drive. Any car part should last more than that. Not like i drove my truck that hard

dwcsr · 08-09-2008, 04:44 PM

Gear drives have a very high failure rate when used as a daily driver.

**El Jay** · 08-09-2008, 05:12 PM

I've always stayed away from gear drives.

That "whine" may sound cool when you're driving it, but it's not much more than "metal on metal" while you're driving down the road.
It's fine for racing, but not so cool for daily driving.

Just my .02.

1971c20 · 08-09-2008, 05:39 PM

how can i tell if i have a gear drivin engine. sorry if i sound like a noob but i am. lol

**El Jay** · 08-09-2008, 05:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1971c20

how can i tell if i have a gear drivin engine. sorry if i sound like a noob but i am. lol

I'm not sure how to describe it:
But as a judge once said, "I can't define pornography, but I know it when I see it."

It's the same with a gear drive, it has a "whine" to it that is indescribable, but you'll know it when you hear it.

I know all this sounds stupid, but I don't know any other way to describe it to you.

1971c20 · 08-09-2008, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by El Jay

I'm not sure how to describe it:
But as a judge once said, "I can't define pornography, but I know it when I see it."

It's the same with a gear drive, it has a "whine" to it that is indescribable, but you'll know it when you hear it.

I know all this sounds stupid, but I don't know any other way to describe it to you.

well mine kinda has a weird noise but its not a whine, do you mean it sounds in the same ball park as a super charger whine?

**truckster** · 08-09-2008, 06:09 PM

Chances are 99% that you don't have a gear drive. They weren't a factory option on these trucks. And they do sound a little like a supercharger whine.

**El Jay** · 08-09-2008, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1971c20

well mine kinda has a weird noise but its not a whine, do you mean it sounds in the same ball park as a super charger whine?

Ummm.

I'm not trying to be evasive, but a gear drive has a noise unto itself, like not much else.
It's just kiinda hard to put it into typed words.

But I would think that if you did happen to have one, you would definitely know it.

Hopefully, somebody that is a better wordsmith than I will chime in here.

Sorry I can't be more helpful.

cdowns · 08-09-2008, 08:24 PM

you should also give some thought of checking your bearings cause the little metal filings have a way of going all thru the rotating assy

t&tkennels · 08-09-2008, 09:21 PM

from what i understand gear drives take away from your horse power also, but they sound so cool.

**FRENCHBLUE72** · 08-09-2008, 10:08 PM

YouTube - 454

GEAR DRIVE..

bad6772 · 08-09-2008, 10:48 PM

I have ran Pete Jackson gear drives for years......As daily drivers and weekend warriors ...........Never had any problems with the Pete Jacksons nor heard of one blowing a part.....And there is no horse power loss .......And not to be mean.....But it was a Proform...Half the cost of almost ANY gear drive.And no reputation to back em up........IMO you cant go wrong with a Pete Jackson............

sleepertruck72 · 08-10-2008, 12:45 AM

I heard one that sounded like a FO#^ power steering pump running without fluid didnt sound great to me

QKENUF4U · 08-10-2008, 03:02 AM

as stated they DO NOT USE POWER and a name brand (PETE JACKSON) will NOT FAIL like that. i talked to the PETE JACKSON customer service to find out if i had the noisey or quiet and she said they have spring cars running the same gear drive from 20+yrs ago.
like the blower its not actual metal on metal. just how the gears are cut. (blower whistel is actually AIR between the belt-thats why when ya drill holes in the belt drive pulleys they get quiet.) I LOVED MY GEAR DRIVE !!!! (drove it all the time-68 327 camaro)

Cyclone44 · 08-10-2008, 03:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bad6772

I have ran Pete Jackson gear drives for years......As daily drivers and weekend warriors ...........Never had any problems with the Pete Jacksons nor heard of one blowing a part.....And there is no horse power loss .......And not to be mean.....But it was a Proform...Half the cost of almost ANY gear drive.And no reputation to back em up........IMO you cant go wrong with a Pete Jackson............

love that sound....

Sport/Truck · 08-10-2008, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bucky_21_7

Anyone else ever had problems with there cheep profourm gear drive. Any car part should last more than that. Not like i drove my truck that hard

My Proforms didn't make through the build process! Hows that for short lived.

I was at machine shop that sells stuff for sprint cars etc. I was looking for push rods. The owner asks the counter guy "where are those Pro Comp push rods" we find the push rods hanging there and he hand me a set of Proforms!" I thought I'd give him the benefit of the doubt, as checker auto sell this stuff as there lower end performance. But when I was setting the pre load you can see the bend on the rods while twisting.

You should have seen the look on his face when I told him they were junk.
He ended up pulling out this fancy rod checker and all I could see was the backs of the dial indicators, but could see the movement of the plungers!

I wont use anything proform.
s/t

bad6772 · 08-10-2008, 08:35 AM

Wow......S/T........least you saved it.......

LONGHAIR · 08-10-2008, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by QKENUF4U

as stated they DO NOT USE POWER and a name brand (PETE JACKSON) will NOT FAIL like that. i talked to the PETE JACKSON customer service to find out if i had the noisey or quiet and she said they have spring cars running the same gear drive from 20+yrs ago.
like the blower its not actual metal on metal. just how the gears are cut. (blower whistel is actually AIR between the belt-thats why when ya drill holes in the belt drive pulleys they get quiet.) I LOVED MY GEAR DRIVE !!!! (drove it all the time-68 327 camaro)

That is mostly right....The blower noise is just the air getting trapped in the teeth of the belt, just like the primary drive belt on an "open belt drive" Harley Davidson.
But, the noise of a cam/crank Gear Drive is from the cut of the teeth on the metal gears. The "noisey" gears have a more "crude" cut and the "quiet" gears are more refined.

1917c20

Quote:

how can i tell if i have a gear drivin engine. sorry if i sound like a noob but i am. lol

99.9% of the time...if you don't know that it is.......it is not.
A gear drive is a "hot rod" thing that no one would ever use as typical rebuild type stuff.

This is all assuming V8 engines of course....Inline sixes all have gear driven cams. They use a "helical cut" tooth pattern and a fiber/resin cam gear. This made them much quiter then the aluminum gear that came in bigger trucks. There is no idler either, the cam just runs backward compared to the crankshaft.

08-09-2008, 03:58 PM	#1
bucky_21_7 Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Location: Winnipeg Manitoba Posts: 59	I hate when things blow up On a recent trip to the cabin over the long weekend my truck failed to come back on it's own power. After fiquring out that the cheep profourm geardrive i put on my recently rebuild motor blew up causing me to get my truck towed from 150 kilomiters home( whitch caused my tow bar the rip my bumber off and rip the top frame mounts off). WHen the gear drive exploded it caused some of my valves to bend. This sucks. The worst part is, is that the motor is only 2000 miles old. Now i have to rip the heads off and rebuild them. But there is one up side. I'm going to port and polish and hog out the valves to make more power. Anyone else ever had problems with there cheep profourm gear drive. Any car part should last more than that. Not like i drove my truck that hard

08-09-2008, 04:44 PM	#2
dwcsr Hollister Road Co. Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Houston Posts: 6,134	Re: I hate when things blow up Gear drives have a very high failure rate when used as a daily driver.

08-09-2008, 05:12 PM	#3
El Jay Gone to greener pastures Join Date: May 2007 Location: Gateway to the Delta Posts: 7,354	Re: I hate when things blow up I've always stayed away from gear drives. That "whine" may sound cool when you're driving it, but it's not much more than "metal on metal" while you're driving down the road. It's fine for racing, but not so cool for daily driving. Just my .02. __________________ '69 Chevy 1/2 T LWB Stepper: Daily Beater '72 GMC 3/4 T Fleet: Another Daily Beater '72 Plymouth Gran Coupe: ? "Ah women. They make the highs higher and the lows more frequent." Friedrich Nietzsche "Never kick a fresh turd on a hot day." Harry S. Truman GUN CONTROL: Never having to say, "I missed you." Always fire two warning shots into your attacker's chest area before putting a bullet between his eyes. Paraphrased from Louis Awerbuck

08-09-2008, 05:39 PM	#4
1971c20 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Vancouver Washin-tin Posts: 168	Re: I hate when things blow up how can i tell if i have a gear drivin engine. sorry if i sound like a noob but i am. lol

08-09-2008, 06:09 PM	#7
truckster Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Orem, Utah Posts: 7,873	Re: I hate when things blow up Chances are 99% that you don't have a gear drive. They weren't a factory option on these trucks. And they do sound a little like a supercharger whine.

08-09-2008, 08:24 PM	#9
cdowns Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: daytonabeach Posts: 22,956	Re: I hate when things blow up you should also give some thought of checking your bearings cause the little metal filings have a way of going all thru the rotating assy __________________ 71c-10 350/2004r/4:11 lowered3/4 longbed/dead by hurricane MEANING OF DEATH::::: SOMEBODY ELSE GETS YOUR STUFF DONT BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU THINK TAKE MY ADVISE;I DON'T USE IT ANYWAY

08-09-2008, 09:21 PM	#10
t&tkennels Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: creedmoor n.c. Posts: 188	Re: I hate when things blow up from what i understand gear drives take away from your horse power also, but they sound so cool.

08-09-2008, 10:48 PM	#12
bad6772 Official Site Guitar Shredder Join Date: May 2006 Location: Oz Posts: 3,955	Re: I hate when things blow up I have ran Pete Jackson gear drives for years......As daily drivers and weekend warriors ...........Never had any problems with the Pete Jacksons nor heard of one blowing a part.....And there is no horse power loss .......And not to be mean.....But it was a Proform...Half the cost of almost ANY gear drive.And no reputation to back em up........IMO you cant go wrong with a Pete Jackson............ Last edited by bad6772; 08-09-2008 at 11:36 PM.

08-10-2008, 12:45 AM	#13
sleepertruck72 Registered User Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Turlock California 95380 Posts: 2,075	Re: I hate when things blow up I heard one that sounded like a FO#^ power steering pump running without fluid didnt sound great to me __________________ 72 C20 Longbed 05 1500 Z71

08-10-2008, 03:02 AM	#14
QKENUF4U Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: SUNNY WARM BIKE RIDING COTTONWOOD ARIZONA Posts: 2,097	Re: I hate when things blow up as stated they DO NOT USE POWER and a name brand (PETE JACKSON) will NOT FAIL like that. i talked to the PETE JACKSON customer service to find out if i had the noisey or quiet and she said they have spring cars running the same gear drive from 20+yrs ago. like the blower its not actual metal on metal. just how the gears are cut. (blower whistel is actually AIR between the belt-thats why when ya drill holes in the belt drive pulleys they get quiet.) I LOVED MY GEAR DRIVE !!!! (drove it all the time-68 327 camaro) Last edited by QKENUF4U; 08-10-2008 at 03:04 AM.

08-10-2008, 08:35 AM	#17
bad6772 Official Site Guitar Shredder Join Date: May 2006 Location: Oz Posts: 3,955	Re: I hate when things blow up Wow......S/T........least you saved it.......



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