This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
Hojack
♠️Project Snowball❄️
4BT 3.9L Cummins
- Thread starter
- #243
Meta time... anyone know what the rules are around editing posts? I can no longer edit the OP of this thread which is a real bummer.
Are you getting an error? or just cannot find the edit button?
- Thread starter
- #245
The edit button is no longer there. I see it on my more recent posts but not on the OP for this thread.
i just looked at one of my threads thats a couple years old and I'm still seeing this at the bottom:
Maybe try closing you browser and reloading?
Otherwise it looks like @Cruiser Jimmy is the mod online, maybe send him a note.
- Thread starter
- #248
Some of the big things that I've tackled over the last week...
Replacing the side cover gasket (broken bolts and all)
The engine's PO @blbuck mentioned that the side cover gasket was leaking so I needed to replace it. Two of my side cover bolts broke when they were removed. I tried to extract these on my own but eventually called in a mobile mechanic to get the job done correctly. He actually broke a tap in one of them before finishing the process of extracting the studs but was able to remove it. I was expecting to need to tap up to 8mm so I think the money was well spent. I used a shop vac to clean up and then used all new bolts, a new gasket, and some red RTV along the bottom half to put the panel all back together.
Mating the engine to the transmission
I opted to leave my 4 speed transmission in the truck when removing the old block and took on the potentially more painful task of mating the new engine to the transmission that way. It was a slow process to get everything lined up properly. My front bumper didn't come off easily so I extended my hoist to the 1/2 ton capacity bolt in order to get the reach needed to place the engine. At some point my chain collided with my firewall and prevented me from getting the engine and trans fully mated. I was able to wrangle the engine mounts into place and pulled the last 1/2" gap together with the transmission/bellhousing bolts.
Removing, cleaning, and reinstalling the gas tank and replacing lines
I've known that the gas tank was in rough shape for a while. After draining the gas (the now-famous "How to drain a full tank of gas" thread) I decided I'd remove the tank to evaluate and clean as well as possible. The attached photo is what I found... I called all over Seattle and could only find one shop (Performance Radiator in Tacoma) that would clean an auto gas tank but it would have taken 3-4 weeks. I'm not that patient so I pressure-washed it inside and out, used an 8-hour rust bath to burn some of the crud off, rinsed it with gasoline, and used a magnetic wand to clean up the larger bits that I could see. I'm really happy with how it turned out! The tank is now reinstalled and serving gas to the engine. I may still pick up a fully renewed tank at some point but if my fuel filters are looking good after a couple of months then I'll consider it money saved. I replaced the hard lines from the tank to the engine bay with the lines off @blbuck's truck and replaced the soft lines in the engine bay with freshies from Oreilly.
Replacing the side cover gasket (broken bolts and all)
The engine's PO @blbuck mentioned that the side cover gasket was leaking so I needed to replace it. Two of my side cover bolts broke when they were removed. I tried to extract these on my own but eventually called in a mobile mechanic to get the job done correctly. He actually broke a tap in one of them before finishing the process of extracting the studs but was able to remove it. I was expecting to need to tap up to 8mm so I think the money was well spent. I used a shop vac to clean up and then used all new bolts, a new gasket, and some red RTV along the bottom half to put the panel all back together.
Mating the engine to the transmission
I opted to leave my 4 speed transmission in the truck when removing the old block and took on the potentially more painful task of mating the new engine to the transmission that way. It was a slow process to get everything lined up properly. My front bumper didn't come off easily so I extended my hoist to the 1/2 ton capacity bolt in order to get the reach needed to place the engine. At some point my chain collided with my firewall and prevented me from getting the engine and trans fully mated. I was able to wrangle the engine mounts into place and pulled the last 1/2" gap together with the transmission/bellhousing bolts.
Removing, cleaning, and reinstalling the gas tank and replacing lines
I've known that the gas tank was in rough shape for a while. After draining the gas (the now-famous "How to drain a full tank of gas" thread) I decided I'd remove the tank to evaluate and clean as well as possible. The attached photo is what I found... I called all over Seattle and could only find one shop (Performance Radiator in Tacoma) that would clean an auto gas tank but it would have taken 3-4 weeks. I'm not that patient so I pressure-washed it inside and out, used an 8-hour rust bath to burn some of the crud off, rinsed it with gasoline, and used a magnetic wand to clean up the larger bits that I could see. I'm really happy with how it turned out! The tank is now reinstalled and serving gas to the engine. I may still pick up a fully renewed tank at some point but if my fuel filters are looking good after a couple of months then I'll consider it money saved. I replaced the hard lines from the tank to the engine bay with the lines off @blbuck's truck and replaced the soft lines in the engine bay with freshies from Oreilly.
Hojack
♠️Project Snowball❄️
Mine worked.
- Thread starter
- #250
I pulled and re-installed the dizzy last night per FSM instructions and the engine is MUCH happier now. Idles lower, no more backfires, no more dieseling. I still need to fine-tune the timing with a light and adjust idle with the tach on the light. I also put an OEM clutch slave spring in and it fits much better than the two (?!) springs that were on it before.
Timing, air in the tires, and fluid in the PS pump are all that stand between me and a drive.
Timing, air in the tires, and fluid in the PS pump are all that stand between me and a drive.
Cruiser Jimmy
Moderator
I just unlocked it fellas.
- Thread starter
- #252
The Treebuild has entered a new phase... driving! It still runs rough and needs steering, brake, and suspension work but it can now make its own trips to the auto parts store!
NeverGiveUpYota
Dare me.
Confuckingrats! And hey aren’t we all happy when they become a little more independent?
Hojack
♠️Project Snowball❄️
The fun shake down process
- Thread starter
- #255
Thi rough idle concerns me a bit. It clears up at higher RPMs. If my timing is right does this sound like a vacuum leak or a stuck float in the carb? It smells rich but that could be for the lack of cat on the exhaust. Maybe this is just how a running 2F sounds?
- Thread starter
- #257
I replaced the rear main seal, the side cover gasket, and the crush gasket between the exhaust manifold and the pipe. I never removed the manifold from the engine so there should be no new leaks there. I did remove the carb at one point and the two gaskets on either side of the insulator fell apart. I have replacements but haven't put those in yet... could that cause an idle like this? I read that those gaskets might not be necessary.
How is the EGR port on the exhaust manifold sealed? Just because you didn't take the intake/exhaust off the head doesn't mean that it didn't have a leak before you got the engine. I would start by checking to see if all the manifold to head bolts and nuts are tight.
- Thread starter
- #259
I'll double check the EGR port. I saw the engine running before I bought it and it idled better than it does right now. Transit and cleaning could have introduced a new leak but I know it didn't have any a few weeks ago.
