Gary Cole

I have a VIN in the same place as Ivan. In Oregon they require a visible stamped number. One of three I was told.  They will not accept an embossed decal.

The required 12 V + signal comes from the Allison ECM. I also installed a switch so that I can use my stereo as a rear view monitor. Did the same for my truck.

Chad if your mechanic is going to remove the pump then I would suggest that he separate the end housing and braze the fitting in place. Sounds like your pump is good so this would be a permanent fix for you for the life of the pump. Brazing is relatively simple such that even I can do it. Good luck.

Chad the fittings all correspond to SAE specs so there is not a fitting with a longer shaft. It would be better to start with a new fitting. However if that is not possible your mobile mechanic come out a file and some kind of two part epoxy or anaerobic sealant.  Even lock tite thread locker would be a good option.  The ideal would be to bottom out the fitting in the right direction. The threads are not tapered so it will not tighten like a pipe thread. You might leak a gallon or two of oil however hopefully you could get home. 

That is a boss o-ring fitting. The fractional size corresponds to a dash number.  The only way that fitting could have blown out is because the lock nut was not tightened down when it was installed. I would be concerned that over time the vibration might have wore the male thread and female pump thread.  Vito has a good suggestion. That would extend the new fitting deeper into new female pump thread territory. Lock Tite makes a sealant specifically designed for hydraulic applications. You probably could get by with the old fitting and without the o ring lock nut temporarily with the sealant. File the end of the fitting until it tightens in the desired direction.

It doesn't appear that the metal which they are using has been coated to prevent corrosion. You can also see that there is no real seal between the filter element and the cups which hold it. That is exactly the problem I had with a counterfeit fuel filter some years ago. The inside of the filter rusted severely and the filter element, which was little more than a soggy piece of paper,  did not prevent the rust particles from passing thru to my six carburetor motorcycle.

Can't tell too much from your picture. Probably Amp or Deutsch. They are the dominant players in the auto industry.  I would start with with TE Connectivity. They have charts which you can use to identify the shell, type and associated pin terminals. Helps to have a pair of calipers so that you can measure the pin dimension.  You can buy what you need directly from them online including the release tool in case you need to change the pin out configuration. I've had to do that more times than I care to confess.

This issue has come up often enough over the years on different projects that I have collected the release tools and spare terminal pins such that I can change the plugs when necessary. Faster and looks nicer than splicing.

On 5/21/2024 at 9:40 PM, VinceB said:

I've considered applying straight carnauba wax

Your wheels look great Vince. Now you have me thinking that I should do something about mine.

I've used lacquer clear in the past when I did not want to mix up 2 part clearcoat. I've found that enamel clearcoat has a yellow tint to it. Clearcoat out of the can seems to wear pretty well. I would use a good cleaner first because buffing compounds can leave an oily film

You can use a dye to determine if your wheels are clear coated or anodized. If the dye doesn't stain the aluminum the start with a medium top coat polishing compound. You should see quick results.  If they are clear coated then use the same process one would use to polish an automotive  top coat. If nothing happens then the wheels are anodized. Its much more difficult to obtain a bright finish as the coating is very hard. In that case you would have to use a hard metal polishing compound. I have polished some small anodized motorcycle parts with mixed results. Good luck tackling something the size of a wheel.

On 5/12/2024 at 1:50 PM, wamcneil said:

“Lay two aluminum struct channel in parallel (10' or 20' depends on location) and with glue the channels to the roof with 3M tape (that will be much stronger than just glue the bracket), I know I will use much much more 3M tape this way and I am willing to pay for the extra tape.”

With the long sections of channel, I’d be concerned about different rates of thermal expansion between the AL and the roof fiberglass. 

Walter that is the method I used. Best to use solid strut rather than the perforated style for increased adhesive contact area. I would highly recommend the expensive 3M pre cleaner. I did some tests and it doubled the adhesive strength of my samples. I was able to clearly identify some roof struts from vent locations.  At those points I used 1/4" X 1/4" X 20 aluminum rivet nuts just in case. I use these on occasion so I invested in the official setting tool. If due to a faulty installation the rivet nut turns before the bolt tightens you are going to have a difficult problem to deal with.

For those who are concerned about the tape adhesive many of the 53' vans on the road use the system to attach outside panels to the trailer structure. Of course this system is better suited for those with a metal roof.

Congratulations Doug.

NM crosswinds. Know those well. 

I've never been satisfied with the performance of my ISL 400. Trucks with similar horsepower go by me like I'm parked. I understand that they are larger displacement engines with more torque. I don't know why Cummins phased out the very reliable ISM. Seems like the perfect displacement for a midrange engine. 

If you have drum brakes remember that they are designed to use forward motion to increase shoe application force. So using reverse would be your safest choice.

Might take a look at the rotor the next time you have to take it apart. They are nitrile and don't last forever.  I installed a 115v marine unit in the bay a couple of years ago. It successfully ground up a piece of plastic however lost a lobe on the rotor and had to replace it. They will pump thru a 100 ft 3/4" hose uphill as advertised. I plumbed it with a flexible 90 degree elbow so that I can turn it down bypassing the pump and dump my holding tanks by gravity

ATF fluid is not just a low viscosity oil. It must lubricate the metal components of the transmission while not being so slippery as to compromise the clutch band function. So compromises are made in the formulation. Some manufacturers have used Dexron in their air shift transmissions in order to facilitate shifting at cold temps at the expense of increased wear and noise level because not are operators could be trusted to take operating temps in consideration.

33 minutes ago, Happycarz said:

The bolt head doesn’t move in relation to the tire.

That's true Ben. The head of the  bolt appears to be too close to the tire. In the picture it seems to be polished by the tire.  Which is why I suggested the two possible solutions. Spacers would work however they seem to be a rube Goldberg solution which one would have to explain and keep track of every time a tire was removed

I might consider replacing the offending bolt with a flathead bolt with the head on the tire side. The head would be flush with the flange as it would seat in a countersunk bevel.  Countersinks are available which match the angle of the bolt head. No fancy tools other than heavy duty drill required. Hard to tell from the picture however it might give you 3/4" or more clearance. A serrated blind nut on the tire side would be also be another candidate for consideration.

I have the very same problem. I suspect that removing and resetting the windshieId is the only option. I also have a short stress crack running along the lower right hand corner. Decided to do nothing until I get around to replacing the windshield as it would probably make matters worse. In the meantime I taped around the existing windshield moulding with black Gorilla tape. Carefully overlapped and tapered it about 1/2" along the body and it is almost invisible from the ground. Used a surface cleaner first and the tape is holding the windshield in place better than the rubber moulding ever did when it was seated properly. I didn't go overboard with the tape to allow for flexibility. I'm very careful when usingy jacks. My jacks operate too abruptly. They jolt the coach when operated. Wonder how one could soften or modulate the jack movement?

Harry you have a very nice looking engine.

Ed I think that it would be easier to just buy a new water fill hose than mess around trying to sanitize your existing .

Driving an engine hard? I have no idea why anyone would think that increased heat, vibration,  and material stress would increase the life of their engine. Detroit once provided data on their 71 series of engines which plotted horsepower rating against mean time failure and engine life. Engine life and component failure was indirectly/directly proportional to horsepower rating. In other words, engine life and failure is indirectly/directly proportional to where you generally keep your foot.

9 minutes ago, Rocketman3 said:

9 minutes ago, Rocketman3 said:

Not in a race. So true.

 

Clamp the meter around one compressor conductor.

Joe have you taken an amp reading? That is a good indication of charge state. Should be close to marked amperage on a warm day with full charge. If you have a low charge it will cause below freezing temp of the remaining refrigerant due to low evaporator pressure. Try disconnecting the freeze protection probe from the evaporator. Does anything change? If it did then maybe the probe was near a refrigerant puddle and sensing freezing temps which would short cycle the compressor. In this condition the evaporator fan should remain running.

I replaced my Norco with a Samsung RF18.  I didn't have any problem getting it thru my Diplomat door. I didn't even have to remove the screen. I was concerned about the negative reviews. Out of curiosity I changed the search from Samsung to every other brand and it seems that they are all the "worst refrigerator anyone has ever owned and no one should  buy one". Then just for fun I changed it to "fill in the blank brand automatic transmission problems." Apparently the same people are never going to buy another automatic transmission from any car maker.  The internet can be an interesting place.

7 hours ago, jacwjames said:

ice maker freezing up. 

I have tinkered with mine for years. Shortened the stroke, added a roller bearing, balanced with a weight, etc. It has quite a complicated and unusual mechanism. Puts on a good show. Does make a cute little ice cube when it works.