Builds Max Powerzz gets Max Power, or Watch Me Pull a Rabbit out of my Hat!

[alaska60]

From the speedo calibration thread: (sorry to plagiarize but my quote button isn't working right so sorry to the original posters )


So Tuesday, I ordered a Ratio Adapter (P/N 800F 1.1555) from CSS (Commercial Speedometer Service) in Sacramento, CA.

Greg Burlin was my contact (916.371.5873) and shipped me out the adapter same day. Because I'm in Nor Cal, I got it next day via UPS. J

Speedometer Service in Portland ,OR also makes the conversion gear boxes. I had one on my recently (last night) sold FJ60. When I changed gearing again I called them up and they just sent the gears to replace to correct the speedo and it was spot on both times.

Thanks for the calibration info....GOLDEN!

Thanks Finnyfam, sorry you parted with your rig Are you going to replace it?

Tom, are you guys okay? It looks like a massive fire up by your place, this whole state is on fire right now: Quail Fire burns in hills above Alpine, evacuations ordered | ksl.com

Yeah were okay...the fire is really close to us though. Its right on the other side of American fork canyon from us. In fact the evacuation line is on the next neighborhood north of the canyon.
Prolly wont sleep to well tonite as they are letting it burn overnight.

Tom, I didn't realize that you were building this rig! I'm tuned in now

Good work my friend!

Hey Johnny!
yeah, its been a fun build so far. some set backs here and there but over all its been smooth. but then again what build doesnt have set backs?
Hows Moonshine rollin?

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Hey Johnny!
yeah, its been a fun build so far. some set backs here and there but over all its been smooth. but then again what build doesnt have set backs?
Hows Moonshine rollin?

Setbacks are a part of life it seems.

Moonshine has been experiencing some setbacks of her own. I need to get motivated to get the next round of things done on her. Soon I hope

 

[alaska60]

Setbacks are a part of life it seems.

Very true....

Heres a shot of the fire by my house from last night...it was very cool looking at night, but very scary at the same time.

 

[alaska60]

happy 4th to everyone.....
Please be careful with your fireworks too.

 

[Max.Powerzz]

Very true....

Heres a shot of the fire by my house from last night...it was very cool looking at night, but very scary at the same time.

Woah. That looks like it's straight out of a movie, I'm glad we've finally got some rain today.

 

[disassociative]

Heres a shot of the fire by my house from last night...it was very cool looking at night, but very scary at the same time.

Wow, what a shot!

 

[alaska60]

Wow, what a shot!

Truly remarkable in person as well.

The rain we had was the first bit of moisture we have seen in over 40 days. It helped get the fire under control and we are in a safer environment for sure.

I was able to get a hold of one of the A/C lines I need. Just waiting on one more and the ratio adapter. Been busy working on boats the last month it has been hard to commit some devoted time on bullwinkle.
Im comin up for air here real soon.

 

[LandBruiser69]

Dude that SUCKS!!!

Tom, sorry to see the fires there man. I hadnt even heard about them... Hope you are doing well!!! by the way is that your 62? Give me a shout bro! I PM'd you my number just in case you lost it... Later, Nick

 

[Max.Powerzz]

Any suggestions on a temp sensor solution keeping the stock gauge? We are getting really close!

 

[phishincruisin]

Any suggestions on a temp sensor solution keeping the stock gauge? We are getting really close!

I tapped the port on the passenger side head to accept the stock sender. I spent quite a bit of time at Napa trying to find a sender with the correct thread and resistance range to fit in the hole without tapping it, but had no luck.

Use plenty of grease on your bit/tap, and remove/clean/regrease frequently and you should be fine. After tapping my head I blew the water jacket out using compressed air. I did this all with the head still on the engine. No problems yet, and its interesting to see how the stock gauge corresponds to my Scan Gauge II

 

[Max.Powerzz]

Got this helpful tip from Georg:

"you won't be able to use the oem temp sender, it's too large. but autometer makes an adapter that'll screw in the side of the passenger head towards the rear. they also sell a temp sender that's close to the same ohm reading as the oem unit."

Has anyone gone this route and have part numbers? It would be mucho appreciated

 

[dbleon]

Got this helpful tip from Georg:

"you won't be able to use the oem temp sender, it's too large. but autometer makes an adapter that'll screw in the side of the passenger head towards the rear. they also sell a temp sender that's close to the same ohm reading as the oem unit."

Has anyone gone this route and have part numbers? It would be mucho appreciated

check this out: https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/541352-1994-fzj80-5-3l-4l60e-swap-9.html#post7440188

That is the best solution.... its not worth the risk of tapping the head IMO. Just get the autometer adapter and a 16 mm tap. Golden.

 

[Max.Powerzz]

"check this out: https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-te...ml#post7440188

That is the best solution.... its not worth the risk of tapping the head IMO. Just get the autometer adapter and a 16 mm tap. Golden."

Just what the doctor ordered, thanks!

 

[Max.Powerzz]

We had to go with a skinny front drive shaft to clear the oil pan. Gaylens driveshafts did the work and it turned out well. The frankentransfer case grenaded because we put the gears in backwards, so we went with a 60 TC. It's nice but now the speedo is way off and the DS flanges needed to be changed from the 62 version for he 60 TC. There are just a few things left: speedo calibration, temp gauge, and AC. Uglyoinker has been helping us out and helping get this beast ready for the road! the last big glitch is it won't start when cold, but it fires up with the hand throttle pulled out. After 5 min it's good to go, but the cold non start is a mystery. Also adding an inline input on the AC line so we can fill the AC. The toyota was on the compressor but GM does it with an inline port.

 

[alaska60]

sorry for the disappearance guys.... some of you know my situation.
Im not a bad guy, just made a mistake. I should be home sometime in september. I just need to get some paperwork finished up and get some approvals back from Utah.
again i am sorry for not being upfront with some of you. please forgive me. You can call me or text me if needed.

glad to see it didnt die.....(thanks jake)

 

[Max.Powerzz]

No worries Tom, you've been a good friend and I didn't doubt you'd be back soon. You're awesome and I am sorry for the stress. You've done an awesome job on Bullwinkle (and Rocky) and it shows. I towed her home this weekend to get new tires, I'll post up pics. I'm going to try and tackle the DMV process this week, knock on wood, then we'll finish up the last little things and Bullwinkle will be on the road again!

 

[Max.Powerzz]

I also had another idea about the cold start issue. I was reading on some cheby forums about similar issues. Someone suggested it may be a gas flood sensor? When you flood the engine there is a sensor that tells it to dump the fuel. This sensor could be telling it to dump the fuel on start-up so there's no gas getting to it because it thinks it's flooded? Someone had their wires crossed and it caused this problem, it would be nice if it's an easy fix like that.

 

[dbleon]

I also had another idea about the cold start issue. I was reading on some cheby forums about similar issues. Someone suggested it may be a gas flood sensor? When you flood the engine there is a sensor that tells it to dump the fuel. This sensor could be telling it to dump the fuel on start-up so there's no gas getting to it because it thinks it's flooded? Someone had their wires crossed and it caused this problem, it would be nice if it's an easy fix like that.

I've never heard anything like that on these (5.3) engines.. i could be wrong.

Are you running the drive by wire throttle-tac-pedal setup?

You say it runs well after it starts... just having a cold start issue?

I would start with checking fuel supply side of things, Get a pressure gauge to see what you have at the test port should be ~60 psi. A condition whereby the motor has to crank over several times could mean you are losing fuel pressure after shut off. I would run a corvette fuel pressure regulator/filter(installed downstream of the pump only).

Then I would move to sensors and CPU programming. There are very few sensors on these trucks, MAF, CAM, Crank, TPS (throttle body) etc...

I also assume you did normal tuneup items like spark plugs. Make sure you have the right plug and right gap. triple check all electrical connection while you are at it.

I think a lot of issues guys see on these 5.3 swaps is either in the wiring or CPU programming. I can imagine an issue in this area to be challenging especially if you have never performed a swap on these.

In the end, you may be better off reverse engineering all the work your mechanic performed during the swap. You will learn how everything works and will be able to do some QA/QC while you are at it.

Feel free to PM me if you want to talk on the phone about this...

good luck and stay on it...cheers

 

[Max.Powerzz]

Thanks for the brainstorming dbleon. We didn't go with the drive by wire because it was a tight fit for the pedal mechanism so we went with the stock mechanical set up with the throttle still connected. The fuel pump pressurizes on start-up. Once it's warmed up you can shut the motor off and start it as much as you like, it's only when it's cold (even slightly cold) that it won't start. Pull the throttle out and it starts right up, but if you push the throttle in before it's warmed up it dies. Once it gets to temp it seems fine so far.

 

[dbleon]

Thanks for the brainstorming dbleon. We didn't go with the drive by wire because it was a tight fit for the pedal mechanism so we went with the stock mechanical set up with the throttle still connected. The fuel pump pressurizes on start-up. Once it's warmed up you can shut the motor off and start it as much as you like, it's only when it's cold (even slightly cold) that it won't start. Pull the throttle out and it starts right up, but if you push the throttle in before it's warmed up it dies. Once it gets to temp it seems fine so far.

Hmm.. interesting it starts with the hand throttle... what year is the motor? Does it have the matching ECU? Who did the programming? Fuel pressure could be slowly losing enough pressure (over hours during cool down) to cause the no start condition. Still I cant wrap my head around the hand throttle. You may want to get the chevy FSM and test the TPS per the guidelines. Do the rpms seem to wander at all (at steady speed on road)?

check fuel pressure with gauge upon cold start....