M715 6BT vid

[tamangel]

unknown if this link was posted before, but just in case:

1967 M715 6BT first fire up

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iB_CZyFIIJU[/media]

Mike

 

[91W350]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3vL9RGJ3ek&feature=fvsr[/media]

With 4BT

 

[Pasaway]

[snip]Awsome vid of a M715 dragging a fullsize bronco and TJ around a pound[/snip]
With 4BT

Love that vid, it's the one that helped me sell the M715 to my wife. Now she says after we buy some more property, I can buy 2 M715, plus parts trucks, and convert them to deisels.

I do have a question, what is the MPG difference between a 6bt and a 4bt in a truck the size of an M715

 

[tamangel]

you would'nt catch me sitting in the bed of that 715 with 'pull and snap' actions happening with a tow cable..you could lose your head..

Mike

 

[91W350]

I always loved the M715, it looked so much heavier duty than it actually was. I had four and miss driving them in the summer. I always wanted to do diesel swap, with those super low gears, I thought a 6.2 would be perfect. The extra rpm ability would not hurt any either. I often wish I had kept the one I put lockers, a 305 Chevy, and winches on both ends. Glen

 

[Recovry4x4]

you would'nt catch me sitting in the bed of that 715 with 'pull and snap' actions happening with a tow cable..you could lose your head..

Mike

Although it was a snatch strap, I still wouldn't be caught dead in the bed of that truck. Broken straps can do some nasty damage.

 

[Barrman]

The first video with the 6 BT was shot by me in my class room. The truck is still sitting about 30 feet from me right now. We are trying to make a Banks intercooler bolt to either the hood or the top of the engine and then figure out how to get air to it. I made the video to prove to Sermis that we are actually doing something with all the parts he sent me. Now if he sees this, he will start calling and writting again asking when it will be ready.

The second video is of Lee playing in the mud.

I know Lee got 28-32 mpg with the 4BT, NV4500 and CUCV axles going down the highway at 55-60 mph. The guy that bought the truck from him reported 20-24 at 70 mph. The next guy that bought it reported about the same on the road. He has since sold it and I have not heard anything from the new owner here or on the Zone.

Sermis has a set of 12.50-20 XL's for this truck which should give him lots of road speed with the 5 speed manual to keep the 6BT happy around 2,000 rpm at highway speeds. We are both thinking 20-25 mpg. I am almost done making the 205 mounts and then we get to pull it all apart to paint, make a brake system, seat frames and wire it. I figure late Spring or early Summer before we know what kind of numbers it puts up.

 

[Pasaway]

The first video with the 6 BT was shot by me in my class room. The truck is still sitting about 30 feet from me right now. We are trying to make a Banks intercooler bolt to either the hood or the top of the engine and then figure out how to get air to it. I made the video to prove to Sermis that we are actually doing something with all the parts he sent me. Now if he sees this, he will start calling and writting again asking when it will be ready.

The second video is of Lee playing in the mud.

I know Lee got 28-32 mpg with the 4BT, NV4500 and CUCV axles going down the highway at 55-60 mph. The guy that bought the truck from him reported 20-24 at 70 mph. The next guy that bought it reported about the same on the road. He has since sold it and I have not heard anything from the new owner here or on the Zone.

Sermis has a set of 12.50-20 XL's for this truck which should give him lots of road speed with the 5 speed manual to keep the 6BT happy around 2,000 rpm at highway speeds. We are both thinking 20-25 mpg. I am almost done making the 205 mounts and then we get to pull it all apart to paint, make a brake system, seat frames and wire it. I figure late Spring or early Summer before we know what kind of numbers it puts up.

Barrman did you ever get to ride in the 4BT truck? what was the throttle reponce like? did it like crusing on the highway? how was it in town, between lights? I'm not looking for speed racer, but I don't want to get run over because I can't keep up with traffic.
what tranny are you putting in the 6BT? NV4500? do you have a build thread posted on here or the Zone? would love to see the updates, and ask tons more questions.

I'm still doing my research so i aska lot of questions
I think my ideal set up would be simular to the 96 dodge 1ton dually I had(cummins and NV4500). it could cruise on the freeway easily empyt/loaded/towing, and was fine in town. kind of miss that truck

 

[Barrman]

There is a 4 or 5 page thread on the Zone about it started by me. I am a teacher at a juvenile correctional facilty. That means my students are year round, ages 13-19, can get paroled or sent to prison at any time. I have had 8 different students working on it in the past year that it has been in my room. Everytime I get a student to where he can really start getting stuff done, he gets in a fight, transfered to prison or sent home. The hold up for the past month has been the welding class. They are installing new ventilated booths and have been pretty much shut down since Thanksgiving. I should be able to get a welder (machine and student) down in my room next week again. That will get the t-case mounts, seat frames and radiator mounts all finished up. We try to let the students do the work instead of just watching us do the work. Otherwise, it would be done already.

I never drove in the 4BT truck with Lee. However we all played at Land Between the Lakes park for a week in 2004 together. I was riding in a 350 powered K5 Blazer. Lee kept up on the roads and trails with the Blazer, Tom, Spicergear, and his Tall Deck 427 Rockwell axled M715 and several other 454 powered M715's just fine.

Lee also had air conditioning on his truck. He drove it daily in Baton Rouge for a year or two. He never had any complaints about around town driving. We talked for hours on the phone about how he was wearing his XL tires down driving on the road so much and if 35x12.5 BFG tires would be worth putting on for his daily driving. He decided against it due to lower top speed. He said the increased accelation wasn't needed.

The man Lee sold the truck to had it in a shop in TN a few years later. Kwai and I stopped in to pick up some other parts on one of our long range parts trips. The shop owner said the truck was amazing to drive around. Plenty of pep and good high speed manners. He never mentioned what he considers high speed.

The super smooth aerodynamic shape of the M715 really starts sucking power above 60 mph. My 396/NV4500 powered truck needs much more throttle to hold 65 than it does 60. 70 has the fuel gauge moving faster than the odometer. That is why I normally drive around 54-58. Wind noise is exponetially louder above 60 as well. Lee used to brag about how he could still hear his super pumped up sound system at 70 with the top off going down the interstate. My point is that he drove it that fast often. I am just not sure if he did any hours long highway speed runs.

 

[Pasaway]

Found the thread at the zone, great read, good source of info if I decide to go the 6bt route.
but what you said about Lee's truck makes me keep the 4BT in the running.
Decisions decisions.

Thanks, keep up the good work.

 

[tamangel]

Found the thread at the zone, great read, good source of info if I decide to go the 6bt route.

what's the title of the thread over there?

Mike

 

[Barrman]

I would go 4BT as well. Here is why:

800 pound engine compared to a 1200 pound 6BT No lift or axle swap needed.

Mechanical fan possible with no cutting of anything.

Intercooler possible because the short engine lets the radiator be pushed back some.

Smaller engine means less fuel used and I don't really want to go 90 mph through the mud and now that I have a M35. I won't be towing 20K pounds with the M715.


I try not to post links from the Zone here because me being a moderator over their it could look like I was playing at self promotion on this site. However, since it has been asked for, here it is:

6BT, CUCV Axled M715 Build - M715 Zone

 

[poolmike]

I have a 4bt/NV4500 in mine. I find the 4500 to be a problem. Too much spread between gears. A 5600 or a good automatic would be a better choice. The engine runs great and make plenty of power.

 

[jeepranch]

I have a 4bt/NV4500 in mine. I find the 4500 to be a problem. Too much spread between gears. A 5600 or a good automatic would be a better choice. The engine runs great and make plenty of power.

Lees M715 is back in Alabama. I agree, the gas nv4500 takes some getting used to, but just a matter of learning to drive it. Ive made several mods and upgrades to the truck including getting it painted (linex the bed is next) Its a pleasure to drive, albeit a bit loud, it gets 20 mpg at 75 and solid as a rock. At 55 its close to 30 mpg. However, a tow rig it is not, I have another m715 I would like to build for a tow rig with a 6bt, but that is down the road after 4 other projects get finished.

 

[camoyj7]

Barrman what trans did the M715 run?

 

[bcowanwheels]

I,AM GOING TO install a 6bt in the truck I,am building now "if" I dont have to cut the m715 any. Its going to be 99% on road use tk. I,am going to do a spring over ft. and shackle flip rear ( d60 & 14 bolt) , this will give me plenty of oil pan clearence to ft. axle. when doing a 4bt and not doing the s/o front you have to use a gm 7 degree tilt to keep ft. axle out of oil pan and then still you have to limit the travel on ft. axle. last tk. I did i had to install 1 1/2 in. blocks under bump stops or under harsh off road use oil pan would still hit diff. these b engines are so tall !!!!

 

[defbob]

Here is a video I took this morning of my truck. I am half way through installing a Cummins 6BT into my truck

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxDLPQq43SY

 

[bcowanwheels]

To me its seems like it lopes, a cummins idles smoothly. Show some vidieo's of detailed engine mounts etc. Does the engine smoke at idle ?

 

[defbob]

It doesn't smoke. It puffed the very first time I fired it on the floor. The reason it lopes is I have not hooked up the KSB solenoid yet. It was 40degrees in that video

http://i870.photobucket.com/albums/ab262/defbob/M715/CumminsM715002.jpg

 

[defbob]

I have a 4bt/NV4500 in mine. I find the 4500 to be a problem. Too much spread between gears. A 5600 or a good automatic would be a better choice. The engine runs great and make plenty of power.

When I bought a bread truck for the 4BT (going in my Willy's Wagon), I drove it home. It had the SM465 and it seemed like a good choice of gear for the motor. It was peppy. The Frito truck had 4.10 with 215/85R16 tires. It had enough grunt to go up a long steep hill at 50mph in 4th.