The 666 is finally home

[waayfast]

Great find and great save. My hat is off to you for tackleing such a large project.Hopefully your neighbors will come to appreciate what you are doing and not start raising HE!!Really do like the style of those trucks.With the power train upgrade that will be more practical and that means you get to drive it more often= more fun! BTW the June 2008 (issue127) of Military Vehicles Magazine has a pretty good article about that series of trucks.Written by David Doyle so ya just KNOW it's goota be good! Maybe you could get a back issue of the mag.


Jim

 

[White666]

Got the dash out of the cab last night, and pulled out the butchered and rotted original harnesses. Started to string the new wires last night but ran out of day light. Has anyone ever converted there blackout light for use as turn signals? I am thinking about keeping the housings for them, but putting in a thin orange plastic lense in place or the dry rotted and cracked originals.

 

[NDT]

Snag a pair of these type lamps for the M151 jeep, they are the same size roughly. Photo credit atvcat2 ebay

 

[Deuce_and_a_Half_Dragon]

How's the truck comming along there white?

 

[White666]

Slow haha, I've been working nights/evenings the last few weeks only time I get is on the weekends. I am almost done with the wiring harnesses, need to run a couple extra circuts for spot lights and a CB (a must have in the dessert here in AZ, cells don't reach that far out and satelite phones are way to expensive). I still need to order a new 12v gauge set or send mine in to be restored and converted, mine are unreadable and sun bleached from sitting in the AZ sun for years. I've been talking with a couple different heavy truck wrecking yards looking for a newer cummins to swap in place of the one in the truck, but I don't want to the 3800 + core for the used takeouts they have on site. If they get in an NH or an older 280 NTC I might get a much better deal. I found a local supplyer that can rebuild alot of my brake valves and has the copper brake line tubing in bulk, so after the wiring is handled I will be tearing into that next.

 

[Deuce_and_a_Half_Dragon]

Sounds like a load of fun, it'll be a he'll of a truck once you get it finished

 

[White666]

I dug up a second repower option today. I have a '68 mopar 440 that I had built years ago for a tractor pulling truck that was never finished, about 550hp, 600ft lbs of torque, sitting in my storage shed. A friend of mine called me up and said he was parting out his flatbead that has a rebuilt np 435 4sp with a gear vendors under/overdrive setup. This is a 2wd trans that I can put behind the 440, and if not to long, mate to the T-case in the truck. I know the weak link in all this would be the T-case, and the engine would need a cam swap and a de-tune to be used in a rig like this.
So I am looking for opinions now....find a more modern cummins or use the mopar?

 

[Ferroequinologist]

Go Diesel

 

[NDT]

Go diesel. My 400 Cummins powered 915 gets about 7 mpg and even at that it is painful at the pump. I bet that 440 would be a lot worse.

 

[68427vette]

i'd have to think, i rebuild your pump, before spending all that money repowering, re fitting another option. and going gas... not a good choice,, i have a nice 70 challenger that needs a motor.

 

[wdbtchr]

Go Diesel

I agree, then run 50% diesel/50% WMO and cut your fuel price by half. That's what I run in my 4BT Cummins.

 

[White666]

i'd have to think, i rebuild your pump, before spending all that money repowering, re fitting another option. and going gas... not a good choice,, i have a nice 70 challenger that needs a motor.

I need to do a PT pump conversion if I keep the stock engine, since parts for the dual disk pump are non-existant. All the truck wrecking want a premium for they're engines, so the repower is going to take a little saving, depending on what I get for scraping the crane set up and for the original engine. I have a '70 dodge shortbed pickup that will end up with this 440 once I move a few more projects out of the way, but I can give you a parts rundown for a very affordable long block using mostly factory parts that i have ran in heavy B-bodies well into the low 10's/high 9's with out breaking anything after 9 years as a race engine.

 

[White666]

Alright....still looking for a replacment engine, since i am going to keep a diesel in the truck, but I want a little more power and just an all around cool power plant.....I am now looking for a Cummins NHRBS 275 also known as the "Iron lung". These were the supercharged cummins from the 50's-early 60's...not huge on power compared to the later turbo motors but they have a sound all their own. This keeps the truck vintage as this engine could have been transplanted just as easily as the '45 H series that is in there now.

Also, does anyone have experiance with air starters? I ran into a guy with an ingersol rand air starter kit for an NH180(will work on all the H and NH engines with a right hand stater location) and since I am going to run on board air anyways with a separate compressor and storage tanks (already have a large air ride style compressor and 2 12gal storage tanks for it). This would get rid of the last piece of mismatched electrical on the truck. Everything else is converted to 12v but the old starter is 24v.

Let me know what you think, this truck as been built so far by commitee vote, and that has kept me from doing some crazy stuff that may or may not have worked.

 

[73m819]

Air starters work OK if you have a good starting motor, a air starter will spin it over faster than a elect starter, repeated start attempts drops the pressure QUICK, you need a BIG separate air tank, air filter/heated water trap, a oiler , ONE way check valves, then remember, one little air leak and you DOA, possible moisture freeze up in the winter ( alcohol injection helps), one more thing, you will not be able to go down to just any big truck parts house and pick up a air starter

 

[waayfast]

I remember about 20 yr ago an old guy running a Gypo log truck around here had an air starter.Seems I remember that old F. Liner Cabover had a large air tank behind the bang board like salvage from a shop size aircompressor.Don't know if he wanted the extra volume or NEEDED the extra volume.
I'd say go for it--would be very unusual--not many trucks have that=cool
Jim.

 

[73m819]

I remember about 20 yr ago an old guy running a Gypo log truck around here had an air starter.Seems I remember that old F. Liner Cabover had a large air tank behind the bang board like salvage from a shop size aircompressor.Don't know if he wanted the extra volume or NEEDED the extra volume.
I'd say go for it--would be very unusual--not many trucks have that=cool
Jim.

I disagree, I think it will be more then a problem then it is worth, may not be to bad for a EVERY DAY operated vehicle, for a only once in a while use, I see problems

 

[mick.wilson]

I took delivery of my 666 yesterday (Brockway not White), can't wait to start playing with her, I have the Hercules engine in my one, hoping to go DAF turbo Diesel.
A bit of video of the Brockway coming off the low loader and being parked up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg-NxAt9MBc

If your still looking for a manual, I got one off eBay a few weeks ago for $55,
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=380308094511
I guess they must turn up now and then, I got the Quickway manual in CD form from this site, maybe they have one for your truck.
http://www.easy1productions.com

Regards
Mick
www.514th.co.uk

 

[USAFSS-ColdWarrior]

I took delivery of my 666 yesterday (Brockway not White), can't wait to start playing with her, I have the Hercules engine in my one, hoping to go DAF turbo Diesel.
A bit of video of the Brockway coming off the low loader and being parked up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg-NxAt9MBc

If your still looking for a manual, I got one off eBay a few weeks ago for $55,
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=380308094511
I guess they must turn up now and then, I got the Quickway manual in CD form from this site, maybe they have one for your truck.
http://www.easy1productions.com

Regards
Mick
www.514th.co.uk

Mick,
Congrats on the "new" Crane
That recovery and parking video is wunnerful, too.

I think a lot of SteelSoldiers will be jealous of your OD Iron collection. I know I am!

Best regards from the West Texas Detachment of the SS...
John

 

[68427vette]

nice crane!! would love to have one,, they are HUGE,, jc