Halavid Services
Registered User
Greetings All,
This is my first post to any forum anywhere ever so I hope I'm posting this correctly. What I've got is a 1989 F-350 that I bought a few months back from a guy that knew basically nothing about the truck. Being an 89 I figured it was a 7.3. When I first saw the engine I thought it odd to find it had V-belts on it instead of a serpentine but didn't think much of it past that. It hadn't ran in quite a while at that point so it took a little bit of doing to get her to fire up but finally got it done by pull starting it. It was rough at first but we had driven 45 miles to pick it up so I had to drive it 45 miles back home. It ran a little better with every passing mile and by the time we got back to my home town it was purring like a kitten. I was extremely happy with it. I got up the following morning and went to start it and of course the glow plugs weren't working so I sprayed it a little bit with ether. I know its not good to use ether, but I've been using it to start my '92 for better than a year and haven't had a lick of trouble. Well this particular morning was very different. I gave it a good snort and turned the key. It cranked over a couple times and then just stopped. Admittedly I was ignorant of ether locking at that point, and thought my batteries were just simply not strong enough to turn the engine, so being as I live on a hill side and the truck was pointing down the hill I simply pushed the clutch in and went to rolling it down the hill. Got up a little bit of momentum and let the clutch out in 3rd gear. She fired right up but was making some pretty strange noises from under the hood. I knew there was something not right but I pulled out in the street and as soon as I gave it a little bit of throttle all hell broke loose, I shut the switch off. Walked back home and got my wife, a chain, and the '92. We drug it back the house, and parked it in the drive way where it sat for several months while I gathered up the nerve to take it apart and see what had happened. Well this weekend was the time and I pulled the motor out and tore it down to find the number 1 piston missing its skirt and was completely loose from the rod which is bent in sort of a weird s shape now, and there is a small hole in the top of the oil pan just below the flange. Aside from those things the cooling nozzle is broken off. Amazingly enough everything else is in excellent condition. During the time the truck was sitting in the driveway my wife got the casting numbers off the block and looked them up, and found they came back to a 6.9 but I was skeptical right up until I got my caliper out and checked the bore size after I took it apart and sure enough 4.00 inch bore. The cylinder wall did receive a little bit of damage, that I've been able to hone out, but I don't think it was enough to need to use a 4.010 piston. So I am needing to locate a single std 4" bore 6.9 piston, hopefully with usable rings still on it, along with the connecting rod, and one cooling nozzle for a reasonable cost as I am very limited on funds at present. Also I am always interested in advice and or constructive criticism. I'm relatively new to the diesel world and am still learning. I've had the 92 for just over a year now and it is the first truck I've ever lifted the hood on that had a diesel engine in it. To those who have had the patience to read my novel to this point I thank you very much and look forward to any and all responses.. Thank you.
This is my first post to any forum anywhere ever so I hope I'm posting this correctly. What I've got is a 1989 F-350 that I bought a few months back from a guy that knew basically nothing about the truck. Being an 89 I figured it was a 7.3. When I first saw the engine I thought it odd to find it had V-belts on it instead of a serpentine but didn't think much of it past that. It hadn't ran in quite a while at that point so it took a little bit of doing to get her to fire up but finally got it done by pull starting it. It was rough at first but we had driven 45 miles to pick it up so I had to drive it 45 miles back home. It ran a little better with every passing mile and by the time we got back to my home town it was purring like a kitten. I was extremely happy with it. I got up the following morning and went to start it and of course the glow plugs weren't working so I sprayed it a little bit with ether. I know its not good to use ether, but I've been using it to start my '92 for better than a year and haven't had a lick of trouble. Well this particular morning was very different. I gave it a good snort and turned the key. It cranked over a couple times and then just stopped. Admittedly I was ignorant of ether locking at that point, and thought my batteries were just simply not strong enough to turn the engine, so being as I live on a hill side and the truck was pointing down the hill I simply pushed the clutch in and went to rolling it down the hill. Got up a little bit of momentum and let the clutch out in 3rd gear. She fired right up but was making some pretty strange noises from under the hood. I knew there was something not right but I pulled out in the street and as soon as I gave it a little bit of throttle all hell broke loose, I shut the switch off. Walked back home and got my wife, a chain, and the '92. We drug it back the house, and parked it in the drive way where it sat for several months while I gathered up the nerve to take it apart and see what had happened. Well this weekend was the time and I pulled the motor out and tore it down to find the number 1 piston missing its skirt and was completely loose from the rod which is bent in sort of a weird s shape now, and there is a small hole in the top of the oil pan just below the flange. Aside from those things the cooling nozzle is broken off. Amazingly enough everything else is in excellent condition. During the time the truck was sitting in the driveway my wife got the casting numbers off the block and looked them up, and found they came back to a 6.9 but I was skeptical right up until I got my caliper out and checked the bore size after I took it apart and sure enough 4.00 inch bore. The cylinder wall did receive a little bit of damage, that I've been able to hone out, but I don't think it was enough to need to use a 4.010 piston. So I am needing to locate a single std 4" bore 6.9 piston, hopefully with usable rings still on it, along with the connecting rod, and one cooling nozzle for a reasonable cost as I am very limited on funds at present. Also I am always interested in advice and or constructive criticism. I'm relatively new to the diesel world and am still learning. I've had the 92 for just over a year now and it is the first truck I've ever lifted the hood on that had a diesel engine in it. To those who have had the patience to read my novel to this point I thank you very much and look forward to any and all responses.. Thank you.
