The list

[FordGuy100]

So I'm sure everyone has one. You know the list of all the things that you are going to do/buy for your truck. Anyways, I need a little bit of help with mine.

My summer job is about to come to a close, only a couple more days at the most, then its all over. I have around $2300 so far, should be close to $3000 when its all said and done. I love minimum wage being $7.95 here (they pay me an even $8 an hour).

So I need help with deciding on things and what not.

The list:

1) Send money to DieselJD for sending me those injector lines, I'll drop some cash of in the mail tommorow

2) Injectors: I'm going to get BB codes, new, from oregon fuel injection, and a return line kit.

3) Since I pulled the top off the tranny to take off the shifter, and the speedo cable/gear out of the T/C, and since when I lowered the jack and the tranny twisted and all that oil came gushing out both, I'm going to go ahead and order up all my Amsoil stuff tonight.

4) Clutch. I went ahead and got a Luk 12" upgraded clutch kit. What is the the Kevlar piece that everyone says they should upgrade? Hopefully the kit comes with that

5) AutoRx: I'm going to buy enough for 2 doses to clean things out before I switch over to Amsoil synthetic oil.

6) Starter: I have the factory starter in it. We all know that the gear reduction starters are better. Where should I go to get one? And how much do they run?

7) Battery cables: Mine are basically toast, 20+ years of wear and tear has taken its toll on them. Should I buy from that one guy that others have ordered from, or should I just make up my own from stuff I can get at Napa?

8) Stereo: I have beaten this to death over the years, but still havent done it. Is it really all that easy to do, or would be I better off just going to car-toys or something like that and having them do it? I'm not looking at anything to crazy.

9) Spray in bed liner: What everyone opinion? I'm thinking that I'll just go with Line-X cause they have a dealer close by.

10) Tires: This is probably one of the bigger questions. I'm wondering if I should go with a narrower tires, the same height or maybe a little taller. I would like to stay with an A/T tire like my BFG's, with a tread parttern about that aggresive, but I'm open to suggestions. What is everyone running, and do they like them or not. I would like to keep the price at or under the price of my BFG's (an arm and a leg FYI , like $250 a tire if I remember right).

11) Lighting: I would like some more exterior lights. Dont know how I'm going to do that, but I like the look of peterbilts running down the road at night with a bunch of them glowing. Dont know how that would look like on my truck, but I would like to think it would be cool. I'll have to research that one a little more.

12) Head studs: Yup, I might as well do it. It'll only be a matter of time till my head gaskets crap out on me . Anyways, I know there was another thread, but where is the cheapest place to buy from?

13) Intercooler: I'm going to fab up an intercooler for my truck. Maybe I can call upon the help of Russ

Thats all thats coming to me right now. Any thoughts or advice on any of the above would be great .

 

[Diesel JD]

Hey thanks for remembering about the injector lines, just cover shipping and send back anything you don't need and some old injs. like we talked about and we're cool. If you need them all, use them all.
1) BB injectors, make sure you can't get a better deal online even though OFI is close. Pensacola Diesel has been cheap.
2) ARP studs, usually come cheapest from Summit Racing, around $257 and shipping, check any local ARP shop though, you might get a deal(probably not)
3) The Kevlar thing you want is called a kevlar pilot bushing from South Bend Clutch. I haven't had the factory one but mine seems to be very smooth even with the T18 and mech. linkage. I doubt it came with the kit.
4) Just have NAPA or any good electric shop make you up a set of cables. It'll be a heck of a lot better than a worn out pos. cable. You can get the negative ones cheap off the shelf at any store.
5) Starter you might just leave it alone cause I bet it gets a lot better once you fix the cable issue. If you must replace it, you want the Mitsubishi although towcat says the Nippondenso are a little better if your ring gear has any damage. Autozone or Advance/Ceckers, whoever's big in your neck of the woods should have them. They are around $140 but come with a lifetime limited warranty.
6) Autorx, expensive stuff, impressed with the testimonials and RLDSL's endorsements, I'm surrently running it. I only have 60 miles on the oil so too soon to say if its doing anything good or bad. They said use a cheap mineral based oil so I'm using Valvoline 15/40 cause it was the cheapest nationally recognized oil there that was diesel rated. Its moot cause like you when I do the AutoRX treat, chase down any big leaks etc. I'm switching to AMSOIL through RLDSL.

 

[FordGuy100]

Yeah, I was thinking about that today when I saw the package in our shop.

I'll look into pensacola, if they are cheaper. That would be great if they are, cause oregin fuel injection is wanting like $29 an injector.

Yeah, I know they are ARP. I dont know if any ARP retailers around here, or places that stock them, so I will have to order them over the net. Thats not that bad of a price. I will have to get gaskets as well I guess

Yeah, thats what I was thinking of. A kevlar throw out bearing. I just dont know where to order south bend clutch components from, I've looked, but it seems like all the dealers sell is cummins and PSD stuff.

That might be true. My truck did turn over and start up real fast before my batteries went out on me, and I had to get new batteries. Ever since then its turned over slower and taken longer to start. I'm thinking cause I messed with the battery cables.

I know AutoRx is expensive, but I would like to cut down on oil consumption before I switch to Amsoil. And yeah RLDSL is the man when it comes to that . I have half a case of Delo 400 that I will use, might only do 1 dose of AutoRx if it does good.

 

[Diesel JD]

Its the pilot bushing not the throwout bearing that you want. It goes in place of the stock pilot bearing. They sell them direct on their website, not cheap about $40 plus shipping. Also you might want to change your rear main seal while the tranny is out and you really should do the oil cooler orings while the heads are off. Now is the time. The parts are cheap, maybe 30-45 dollars for the orings from Ford or IH and a few bucks max for the rear and front header gaskets from a big box auto parts house. You must get both mating surfaces perfectly clean to make this a success. As far as head gaskets Fel-pros or Victor Reinz are both good. Napa for Victors and Advance or anywhere else pretty much for Fel-pro.

 

[david85]

The mitsubishi reduction starter is the one that was OEM. I agree with Diesel JD, fix what you know is wrong first (cables in this case) and worry about the starter later if cranking problems persist. How recent are your batteries?

For head studs, summit racing has generally a good price. In my case the machine shop that did the work on my 6.9 was able to match the price and get it sooner. Supprized the heck out of me because usually local canadian prices are off the wall. Call around locally before ordering online, you might just get a better price in your own back yard.

My vote is to get the things done that affect reliability first and see whats left over afterward.

 

[FordGuy100]

My bad, I was thinking pilot bushing when I typed out throw out bearing...geez long day I guess .

The list was in no specific order. I was just listing all of them. And I agree, I will do the things that'll get it back on the road and driving first. Things like tires, intercooler, and such can wait a while.

I was thinking new starter cause its the stock one, with 120k+ miles on it now, and the old one is already out, and its the perfect time to replace it anyways. Kinda like how I should do the rear main seal and oil cooler o-rings while I do my head studs, wouldnt have thought of that, thanks

Looks like Victor gaskets cause Napa is the closest parts store, Auto zone is another 15 miles away each way.

 

[Diesel JD]

I thought the OEM starter was an AC Delco direct drive? Maybe I've been wrong all these years.

 

[lotzagoodstuff]

Great list Justin, but why don't you set a budget, say $1000-1500 and bank some of your summer money. You never know when something is going to break on you later on and if you have some savings it will speed up your future down time.

Just a couple of thoughts: I would do the injectors/return lines, battery cables, studs/head gaskets, and oil cooler.

Look into building the cables yourself, I used to buy all the wire from a welding supply house although copper is freaking hideous right now and I have seen some very nice reports on complete kits on this site. Studs, head gaskets and oil cooler seals are all great preventive maintenance.

Unless you've cranked your starter to death I wouldn't change it, and if I did I would have your factory starter rebuilt. In my not so humble opinion, all the Duracrap electrical parts from Autozone suck. Look at all the postings for folks who take back their Autozone starters yearly. My buddies 7.3 Excursion had the original alternator last well past 100K, put two Duracraps on inside of 20K, and now has a Ford replacement unit that has over 50K on it. Don't get me wrong, you can and should shop price but not on starters and alternators.

Put the bed liner, stereo, and tires at bottom of your list. In regards to an intercooler and lighting, look around for a used intercooler and get some cab lights off of a wrecked truck at a wrecking yard. I have a factory PSD intercooler I paid $75 for (I might part with it by the way) and there are lots of them floating around due to upgrades.

One final note: I think AutoRX is the best additive on the planet. It has nearly eliminated all my oil consumption and I can climb hills in taller gears than I could prior to a single two bottle treatment. It is expensive but I would still use it if it doubled in cost.

Good luck, see you in Silverton in September.

 

[FordGuy100]

I was planning on setting aside some for emergencies like you stated. Cause we all know that something will go wrong

Well I was thinking getting the clutch in, and the tranny bolted back up (need to pull the flywheel now and get it re-surfaced), injectors/injector lines. I also need a new rear U joint that goes between my driveshaft and rear axle, anyone by chance now the p/n for that? That would get my truck back up and operating so I could stop driving the parents rigs (which isnt all that bad in my opinion ).

Looking back at my list I'm thinking I woudl go in this order. 1) Send money to Diesel JD (thats the easiest one lets get it out of the way ). 4) Clutch. 3) Synthetic fluids (might as well now cause my tranny and transfer case are empty). 2) Injectors/injector lines. 7) Battery cables. 5) AutoRx. 8) Stereo. 12) Studs (thats a must ). 9, 10, 11, 13 are all the things I would put off for a while, things I dont need right away.

 

[kcw12]

So I'm sure everyone has one. You know the list of all the things that you are going to do/buy for your truck. Anyways, I need a little bit of help with mine.

My summer job is about to come to a close, only a couple more days at the most, then its all over. I have around $2300 so far, should be close to $3000 when its all said and done. I love minimum wage being $7.95 here (they pay me an even $8 an hour).

So I need help with deciding on things and what not.

The list:

1) Send money to DieselJD for sending me those injector lines, I'll drop some cash of in the mail tommorow

2) Injectors: I'm going to get BB codes, new, from oregon fuel injection, and a return line kit.

3) Since I pulled the top off the tranny to take off the shifter, and the speedo cable/gear out of the T/C, and since when I lowered the jack and the tranny twisted and all that oil came gushing out both, I'm going to go ahead and order up all my Amsoil stuff tonight.

4) Clutch. I went ahead and got a Luk 12" upgraded clutch kit. What is the the Kevlar piece that everyone says they should upgrade? Hopefully the kit comes with that

5) AutoRx: I'm going to buy enough for 2 doses to clean things out before I switch over to Amsoil synthetic oil.

6) Starter: I have the factory starter in it. We all know that the gear reduction starters are better. Where should I go to get one? And how much do they run?

7) Battery cables: Mine are basically toast, 20+ years of wear and tear has taken its toll on them. Should I buy from that one guy that others have ordered from, or should I just make up my own from stuff I can get at Napa?

8) Stereo: I have beaten this to death over the years, but still havent done it. Is it really all that easy to do, or would be I better off just going to car-toys or something like that and having them do it? I'm not looking at anything to crazy.

9) Spray in bed liner: What everyone opinion? I'm thinking that I'll just go with Line-X cause they have a dealer close by.

10) Tires: This is probably one of the bigger questions. I'm wondering if I should go with a narrower tires, the same height or maybe a little taller. I would like to stay with an A/T tire like my BFG's, with a tread parttern about that aggresive, but I'm open to suggestions. What is everyone running, and do they like them or not. I would like to keep the price at or under the price of my BFG's (an arm and a leg FYI , like $250 a tire if I remember right).

11) Lighting: I would like some more exterior lights. Dont know how I'm going to do that, but I like the look of peterbilts running down the road at night with a bunch of them glowing. Dont know how that would look like on my truck, but I would like to think it would be cool. I'll have to research that one a little more.

12) Head studs: Yup, I might as well do it. It'll only be a matter of time till my head gaskets crap out on me . Anyways, I know there was another thread, but where is the cheapest place to buy from?

13) Intercooler: I'm going to fab up an intercooler for my truck. Maybe I can call upon the help of Russ

Thats all thats coming to me right now. Any thoughts or advice on any of the above would be great .

1. GO GO GO
2. Injectors, Find a good shop and talk to them you might be able to get a set of worked over injectors for 30 a piece, which would be a nice upgraded.
3. I have a mix opinion on oil. In my search of good stuff, so far I've found castrol 20w-50 to be about the best. Reason being is, A good friend of mine truck (junior some of you guys have met him) has a 7.3 with 408k on it, they change the oil in it every 50k, cause its a diesel you know and you have to change it like every 50k.....Anyways the motor still has good presure and runs great.
4. I don't see how everyone hates on a bearing, we normally swap bushings for bearings, let me know what I'm missing on that.
5. I wouldn't AutoRx it, bad things may occur if you do.
6. Junk yard
7. Do they start they truck, if so why fix something that ain't broke????
8. Stereo is SUPER easy, buy an adapter kit, if someone hasn't cut the wires, and if you don't have speakers behind the seat, get some boxes for 6x9s and a good kenwood headunit or something like that. STAY FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR away from walmart units
9. Get the roll in stuff you do it yourself. Much cheaper.
10. For Mileage you want the tallest skinnyest tire you can get. For the cool factor get a set of 33x12.50s (they fit on this truck if its 4x4)
11. Cab lights are cool, but thats where i stop.
12. Id save up some more money, and get a minor for your motor and do that too.
13. get one out of a volvo, they're freaking huge.

 

[FordGuy100]

1. GO GO GO
2. Injectors, Find a good shop and talk to them you might be able to get a set of worked over injectors for 30 a piece, which would be a nice upgraded.
3. I have a mix opinion on oil. In my search of good stuff, so far I've found castrol 20w-50 to be about the best. Reason being is, A good friend of mine truck (junior some of you guys have met him) has a 7.3 with 408k on it, they change the oil in it every 50k, cause its a diesel you know and you have to change it like every 50k.....Anyways the motor still has good presure and runs great.
4. I don't see how everyone hates on a bearing, we normally swap bushings for bearings, let me know what I'm missing on that.
5. I wouldn't AutoRx it, bad things may occur if you do.
6. Junk yard
7. Do they start they truck, if so why fix something that ain't broke????
8. Stereo is SUPER easy, buy an adapter kit, if someone hasn't cut the wires, and if you don't have speakers behind the seat, get some boxes for 6x9s and a good kenwood headunit or something like that. STAY FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR away from walmart units
9. Get the roll in stuff you do it yourself. Much cheaper.
10. For Mileage you want the tallest skinnyest tire you can get. For the cool factor get a set of 33x12.50s (they fit on this truck if its 4x4)
11. Cab lights are cool, but thats where i stop.
12. Id save up some more money, and get a minor for your motor and do that too.
13. get one out of a volvo, they're freaking huge.

I've thought about rebuilding mine....like Russ did and have them set the pressure a little higher than what they are rated for. I just dont know if thats worth it or not.

I'm pretty set on switching over to synthetic. Thats just me though.

I dont know, I hear some pretty good testemonials about AutoRx....what do you think it will do to harm things? Its a slow acting thing designed to slowly dissolve things over the course of thousands of miles, its not like its going to disolve all the sludge in 20 miles and send it floating around in there. Or at least thats what they claim.

The stereo is stock, the analogue where you have to dial it in yourself. I guess I might as well go and do it myself, probably save me some money. I was planning some 6.5" 3-ways in the doors and 6x9" 3 ways behind the seat in the boxes like you mentioned. I know better than the buy the Wal mart stereo stuff .

My battery cables are bad. The plastic is cracked in many places and the copper wire inside is breaking apart and corroding. Like I said it started good until I replaced the batteries and moved the cables around (breaking a bunch of copper strands inside of it).

I guess I will stick with my regular starter. That isnt that bad of an install if it goes out on me.

I basically have 33x12.50's on my truck right now. Although I love the size, I hate the tire (live on a gravel road and my paint is starting to show that. Maybe I shoudl invest in some mud flaps ). Who knows, I've almost gotten 20mpg with these tires, so maybe I shoudnt switch size.

What do you mean get a minor for my motor?

I dont want to go too huge, turbo lag comes to mind. Out of what kinda Volvo....car, truck...ect...?

 

[FordGuy100]

Ok heres a question. What brand of injector is good? I remembering hearing that one brand of injector, weither it was Delphi, standyne, ect...they said that spray pattern doesnt matter or something along those lines. Anyways, I would like to stear clear of that brand of injector. It looks like I'm ordering from Pensacola, cause they are rediculously cheap compared to OFI, but they sell Delphi injectors, are they good?

 

[david85]

I replaced a set of dying delphi BB injectors with a set of stanadyne D injectors that I have since run for nearly 2 years without any problems. Quality doesn't seem to vary that much between brands, but getting reconditioned injectors can lead to trouble if the shop is not good. I bought NEW injectors so that wasn't a problem for me.

 

[RLDSL]

You can't get the Victor Reinz gaskets at Napa anymore. When Napa switched their focus from prefessional mechanics to competing with the DIYer market, they switched their stock to Felpro. About the only place to get the Reinz gaskets now is from Car Quest They have one in Woodburn and a couple in Salem.

When I did mine, I did it the same way we do on the fancy european diesels and used the reinz gaskets and sprayed them down with a few light coats of Hylomar on each side. I don't plan on having any leaks

 

[FordGuy100]

You can't get the Victor Reinz gaskets at Napa anymore. When Napa switched their focus from prefessional mechanics to competing with the DIYer market, they switched their stock to Felpro. About the only place to get the Reinz gaskets now is from Car Quest They have one in Woodburn and a couple in Salem.

When I did mine, I did it the same way we do on the fancy european diesels and used the reinz gaskets and sprayed them down with a few light coats of Hylomar on each side. I don't plan on having any leaks

I know, I know, its been beat to death. But honestly I havent paid attention to it, but I gotta ask this. Is there any major difference between them, or is it all just personal preferrence? I'll go the extra mile to get the better parts, but if its just everybody's own preferrence on them then I will stick to whatever Napa is carrying.

Woodburn is known to me as little Mexico.....yeah not to excited to go and visit their car quest