Damn dude, yours sounds way better than mine now. I need to get that IP timed. CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And i liked the star wars intro lol, nice touch

Yeah it makes quite a difference in how it runs. Its a big pain to do though. Haha thanks I figured I'd goof off with imovie a bit. Oh and apparently the nut backed off my alternator pulley and when we started it for the video it launched it across the shop. Guess I need to find a nut.

ahhh y'all did.nt need nat nere alternater belt just then anyway... git her done!...

as fer nat nere paint trouble y'all got ter remember to use nat ner "Hi Heat paint" stuff... an if thet don't work jus go borrer some stove black from granpa and do her up old school..

haha I wus channelin' Mater there fer a minit... ur is int nat Cabble Guy feller?..

thet star wars bit were cool too but it scrolled a might too fast to read so easy...

Haha Aviator! Well all the paint on the engine is high heat stuff. I am still working on using Imovie lol.

Well I have the engine back in the truck and it fired right up with the Toyota starter and ran great. Now to finish plumbing and wiring. I'll continue to grab pics as I continue. I am hoping to have it in the exhaust shop later this week!

One note on your exhaust, I'm not sure how loud you want yours, but I'm assuming you want to hear the turbo as much as possible. To get a better turbo sound, you can take the pipe out of the flex pipe right before the down pipe. It's just a 4" long or so round tube stuck in there, apparently it sounds way better with it out. I'm gonna try it on tuesday.

I'm not sure what difference that pipe makes but mine is off and it has a pretty darn mean whistle to it.

Here is a video for you all of it being fired up in the truck. I am waiting on a fuel pump bracket which should be in in the morning. I should then be able to finish mounting the radiator and finish up all the little odds and ends.

[YOUTUBE]

Ya I just got done taking that pipe out, I could barely notice a difference in turbo whistle. Looks like you got it almost finished! I just need to figure out the ALDA before I really warm it up tomorrow for the compression test so it's getting correct fuel. There appears to be no tutorials online on how to remove it from the om617, and I got a butt chewing about it today from DieselGiant, along with a lecture on why I'm not supposed to run ATF through my engine's fuel system. I'm really not sure what to think anymore...

Sounds sweet Joe... I see what you mean now about the tight clearance for a rad up front.
I was looking at an S class in the wrecking yard the other day with a pair of pusher fans mounted in front of the rad... gave me an idea or two... combine that set up with the [thinner?] profile rad off a Nissan Quest/Mercury Villager... since the e-fan off one of them is a mod we use on the 3.0 the rad should be big enough to do the job... but you already decided to go rad in the bed...

Joe, your compression numbers were the opposite of mine before you rebuilt yours. #2 cyl is my dead one and #2 was your best. I wonder why just one of mine is bad. And would it be worth it to just re ring my #2 cylinder?

Thanks. And thanks again for all your help. I'll definitely have to buy you a beer when we meet up.

Joe you are young enough to be my son. And though you and i have not met up yet i am proud of what you have done here-Dan

Aviator- I think that of I were to go back and do it over I would have gotten a 22ret bellhousing which in theory would have set the engine back. I have literally less than an inch between the pulleys and the front core support which I had to clearance. A thinner radiator would be awesome for sure. One thing to think about is exhaust as the way my engine mounts are it will have to be run as a crossover pipe. I am going to see how the bed rad works out but I honestly see having to do something different.. I am not sure but I figured it was worth a shot.

Joe- Have you put oil in that cylinder to be sure it is the rings. I would lean towards it being a valve issue or even the headgasket. Especially given your minimal blowby. I wouldn't do just one cylinder. You are that close I would just re ring the whole thing if it comes to that. These engines have some very very very tight tolerances so if you end up going through it measure measure, measure. If you want help with it I'd be glad to since it is fresh on my mind. I'm glad to help!

Dan- Thank You! That means a lot! One of the great things about this forum is the family like atmosphere. There is so many great people here.

Well I have the truck pretty much rolling. Just a few wiring things and stuff like that. I still haven't gotten the shutoff figured out. Does anyone know of a key on power source that stays on during cranking. I ran my gauges off the clock but I hate to use that to power the shutoff solenoid as well as the key on for the fan. Also I have a wire that I can't figure out where it goes. Its in the driver side fender. Thats about all for now. I had to cancel my appt for the exhaust in the morning as I blew the 80 amp main fuse and no one has it.

If you haven't removed it already, grab the ignition wire to igniter for the stop solenoid.

Not sure what that wire is. I don't really have many in my '86.

And I put oil in my cylinder, but the cold compression only went from between 120-140 up to 190-200. I hope it's a valve instead of rings. And thanks for that, I forgot about not having any blow by.

nice build wire looks like 22r alternator wire

double post

exactly what it is. it runs up to a small "junction" box, then to the fuse box (alt fusible link)

Key on pwr source = daytime running light circuit...

Exhaust cross over... why not run it after the tranny similar to the crossover you use with a header on a 3.0...

Hey joe I bought an excursion. I passed on the 04 6.0 because I found and 02 7.3 with 55k on it I couldn't pass up. I heard that the 7.3 was better any thoughts. thanks

The 7.3 in my opinion is gutless but it will live a long life. They don't get good mileage though like a 6.0 or 6.4. My friend couldnt get over 13mpg with his 2001. I read into doing some mods on a 7.3 and getting 500 hp is a pretty expensive endeavor, compared to a CAI/exhaust/tuner combo on a new truck. But with 54k miles, you'll be able to get another 200-300k out of it if your not pulling a trailer with it.

Its my wife's new car. So I'm not real concerned about HP hahah just want her safe and reliable

Thanks for the advise on the wire. It was indeed to the alternator. I extended them all around behind the engine so I can hook it up. I hooked the one I was holding in my hand up first that was in my hand. All it was was the hot wire. I hooked the battery back up and forgot to plug in the plug on the alternator. About 30 minutes later the alternator was too hot to put my hand on. I think I fried it. I can't figure out how all the wires going to it were the same as they were. I wonder if just having the one wire connected and no the other would do it. Anyhow I have the truck almost done. I don't have pics but I will try to get some up. It has been a really crazy week. We had to put my grandpa in the hospital early Thursday morning so I have been focused on that for the past few days. It's looking like he will be home and doing well Monday. Key on power I am using the old ignitor wire.
Aviator- The U.S. spec trucks don't have DRL

B-Yodaful- IMO the 7.3 is a great engine and arguably the most reliable of the 2. The 6.0 can be made bullet proof for about $1500 which by todays diesel standards isn't much. I love the 6.0 and it is an awesome engine but when they go down its generally expensive. The 7.3 requires much less maintenance and actually you should see better mileage out of it than a 6.0 and definitely a 6.4. The guy up the road from me had one as a work truck and he saw about 22 on the highway and 15-17 around town. Compared to the 6.0 they aren't as powerful but they still aren't a slouch. I had one in the shop last fall for a while. It had 360k on it and it ran like a champ! Watch the transmission if you tow much with it. Keep O/D off. The 4R100 has a weak stock torque convertor. You have a pretty rare and definitely awesome truck I know you will enjoy it.

My bad, I forgot to mention if you remove the DPF, and straight pipe the 6.0/6.4 they'll get better mileage, otherwise they get like 9 lol. I've never heard of 22 out of a 7.3 though, that's mighty impressive.

Damn Joe... sorry to hear about your grand dad... he's in my thoughts...

from what I've heard the 7.3 is the better engine from a reliability pt. of view though it is a little less powerful and a bit harder on fuel... still way better then any gas engine you might pick...

there is always the 12v cummins...the only big boy truck engine i'd ever purchase. It would have to have the hard-to-find nv4500 5 speed. Hence my lack of ownership. Dodges like to rattle apart though and their chassis are a bit on the light side especially compared to ford. The 12 valve cummins+ allison+ ford chassis...yea buddy!

Joe, when you get the chance, a pic of your tie-rod oil pan clearance would be a big help. No rush though. Family first. Hope your Grandfather is back at it.