TornagdGT's M931A2 "Miss Ava Lynn" Mods and Repairs

[maccus]

On the air intake parts check with markmontana as he is parting out a M931A2 and might have what you need.

 

[fielddrab]

This is great, I am picking up an M931A2 to pull the halftrck to shows. This mod is exactly what I need to do! Thanks for the great examples!

 

[Tornadogt]

Ok I was able to get a little work done today. I did get the bed mounted, it is a moved 4 inches back further than where I had it sitting before. the shift back did require a little modifying on the front cross member on the bed for transfer case clearance. I was able to round up a extra fuel tank (thinking it is in the 60-80 gal. range?) that I intend to plum it into the current tanks and just let it gravity feed them with ball valves to shut it off. All it cost me was lunch for a friend.. Thank you Tracy. Next Rerouteing the Passenger Side Fuel lines not to much involved. Then to the Spare Tire rack with we found out is about 1 1/2 inch to wide to fit in the bed I removed about 3 inches and reinstalled the mounting C-Channel. The tire rack looks good but I want to put the tire in it before final placement. Next step is to reinstall the plates above the fuel tanks.. Tomorrow...

Plasma cutter came in handy

 

[maccus]

Looking good. Nice work. Can you get some pics tomorrow of the box from the side? I want to get a feel for the placement front to back. And a shot of the rear overhang in reference to the bumperetts. Looks by your picture of the front of the box that it is mounted pretty much in the same spot I will have to mount my box. Thanks.

The darn bumperetts and pintle I think are going to need a frame extension to be able to do their thing properly. Just a guess.

 

[Tornadogt]

Looking good. Nice work. Can you get some pics tomorrow of the box from the side? I want to get a feel for the placement front to back. And a shot of the rear overhang in reference to the bumperetts. Looks by your picture of the front of the box that it is mounted pretty much in the same spot I will have to mount my box. Thanks.

The darn bumperetts and pintle I think are going to need a frame extension to be able to do their thing properly. Just a guess.

The Bumperettes I have are from a Deuce and are shorter than the 5 ton ones on top of the shorter frame of the Tractor it look like they are about 3-4 inches short of the tailgate stops... It doesn't bother me though I like the look and plan on Modifying the back of the bed for ramps and will address the tailgate stops then. As far as the Pintle Hook goes it is a bit further back than a standard M923 but I don't see it to be any problem with any trailer I can think of.. I'll take photos of the overhangs tomorrow, and when I pick up my Ammo Trailers and M105A2 i will also take photos of them hooked up..

 

[Tornadogt]

Update for Maccus and anyone else interested.

Distance between Cab and Bed 9 3/8 inches
Frame to back of bed 19 3/4 inches, Bumperettes to tailgate 7 inches,

Just and F.Y.I. Center of Lynnette ring (Pintle Hook centerline) to back of bed would be 14 inches compared to a stock M923 is 6 1/2 inches. I see no problems hauling trailers with this distance..

A few other pictures, I did get the spare tire mounted today looks pretty good with 10 feet 11 inches of usable Bed length. and a full 12 feet of length for anything shorter than 3 inches tall that would slip under the tire rack. The tire Crane is looking pretty high I will have to work on that and come up with a plan maybe make it removable or just shorten it some how.. Keep you updated.

 

[maccus]

Looks very nice. I like the deuce box on a M931A2 a little better than the standard 14 footer. Makes it look beefier. You have done a good job. Thanks for the pics.

With the fact that I left the exhaust as is my box will sit a little more to the rear. Looking at the side view the "laid over"C"" mount will be centered between the rear axles. Also I do not have a drop side so I cannot use the tire mount and tool box as you did. I will have to mount the tire on the inside of the box front much like the M813s did.

 

[Wjackson11x]

What kind of seats are those that you are putting in? I'm liking the build and hopefully get to do one in the future.

 

[Tornadogt]

Seats from 2000 ish Dodge Caravan (Middle Row Buckets) not all caravans have buckets in the middle row most are a bench seat but they are out there, I only have $100.00 bucks in the set.. the factory mounting is pretty nice, They were designed to be removable an lock into the floor.. When i get around to mounting them I'm going to try to retain the brackets so I could still just pop them out if I need to for cleaning or something. The driver side seat has a cup holder built into the base pretty cool. I didn't even notice it until i got them home... base height is pretty good for our trucks also the bracket I will need to make should only be between 1-3 inches tall.

 

[Wjackson11x]

Those seats look perfect and comfy. There are a bunch of Caravans at the local boneyard, I'll have to go back and see if I can find some. Thanks!

 

[Tornadogt]

A Few people have been asking about starting/Priming the fuel system this is how I do it.........

M939 A2 Series
Priming Procedures

1) Make sure there is fuel in the tank.
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2)Loosen the inlet fuel line on the injection pump (3/4 box end or Line wrench)
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approximately ½ turn.

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3)Hand pump the fuel pump plunger quickly until no more AIR appears to be coming out from
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around the Inlet fuel line fitting on the injection pump(I hold a rag over the fitting with my hand to keep the fuel from making to big of a mess)

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4)Retighten the Inlet Fuel line on the Injection pump. (just snug it doesn’t need much torque)

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5) With a 11/16 Line wrench crack open the 6 injector line on top of the injector pump ( should only have to turn them about ¼ turn)

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6)On the Air inlet tube (before the turbo) with a Flat Head Screw driver or ¼ nut driver remove the hose clamps around the 90 degree rubber tube and turn it allowing you access to the inside of the intake tube. This is the tube just above the engine that turns rearward toward the cab. (this tube will be about total length of 2 feet from the turbo inlet once separated)

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7)Use Ether (starting fluid) to start the truck and keep it running as the injector pump primes. It does not take much to keep it running just a little squirt every 5-7 sec. If it dies out its ok just do it again (keep the RPMs of the engine under 1200) it doesn’t have to run fast just keep it running this will save your batteries and starter.. (Normally I use under 1/3 -1/2 small can of Ether to get a truck going this way and do not kill the batteries or overheat the starter)

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Within about 15-30 sec. you will see fuel start squirting out of the injector lines above the injector pump (normally starts at the rear and works it’s way forward) As soon as you see any fuel come from each injector line snug it up. Once you have 3 getting fuel the engine will run on it’s own and self-bleed the rest of the lines. Idol it up to 1000 RPMS and let it warm up..

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9) Do NOT shut off the truck. There is still air in the lines and filter at this point. Next I crack open petcock on the bottom of the fuel filter and normally get a bit more air out. You might want to do this 2 or 3 time over the next hour just to make sure all the air is out…
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Let me know if anyone has any suggestions or changes.....

 

[Tornadogt]

Ok haven't done much work on Ava (M931A2), But I Picked up this little jewel last weekend. It is a M934A2 with 510 hours and just under 3000 miles. It was missing the AC/Electric Heater but I picked one up from GL this week. I have several ideas and plans on what to do with her but I also have to many projects going and don't know when I will get around to it. So I'm going to post it up for sale, I am going to ask $11,000 for it locally and on the net but for SS members my bottom dollar sale it $9500.00.. I have no need to sale it just don't and will not have time to work on it for at least 6-8 months.... If it sit until I get to it I win, if it sales I guess I can always find something else or another one later.

 

[TurboMustang370]

A Few people have been asking about starting/Priming the fuel system this is how I do it.........

M939 A2 Series
Priming Procedures

Let me know if anyone has any suggestions or changes.....​

Have you seen/heard or had issues with an 8.3 needing priming often? I've had to prime the fuel system twice. Truck ran low on fuel and wouldn't start after setting for about 3 weeks. Primed the fuel system (I did not do the fuel filter trick tho), truck started right up, ran great. I added 10 gallons of fuel, let the truck set for 2 weeks, no start again. Primed the fuel system again, started right up, ran great again.
I'm going to add more fuel, change the fuel filter/water seperator and see if that changes anything. Any suggestions?

and I've had the truck for awhile, always started right up, never an issue until the fuel level got very low one time. Hopefully the filter is clogged or air is trapped in the filter. Sorry to hyjack the post.​

 

[Tornadogt]

Have you seen/heard or had issues with an 8.3 needing priming often? I've had to prime the fuel system twice. Truck ran low on fuel and wouldn't start after setting for about 3 weeks. Primed the fuel system (I did not do the fuel filter trick tho), truck started right up, ran great. I added 10 gallons of fuel, let the truck set for 2 weeks, no start again. Primed the fuel system again, started right up, ran great again.
I'm going to add more fuel, change the fuel filter/water seperator and see if that changes anything. Any suggestions?

and I've had the truck for awhile, always started right up, never an issue until the fuel level got very low one time. Hopefully the filter is clogged or air is trapped in the filter. Sorry to hyjack the post.[/LEFT]
[/LEFT]

I have had the same problem and if you crack open the drain on the fuel filter while it is running you will get some fizz/foam Air out, also I have cracked open the return line on the pump (the line on the front of the pump closes to the timing cover) and the line just above the fuel filter just to get any more air out of the system... It does help to have the engine ideled up to 1000-1200 rpms when your doing it.. hold a rag over the fittings so you don't spray yourself with fuel ..... also make sure your vent tubes on the tank are clean and not clogged that all so will cause it to loose prime. (it pulls a vacuum on the tank) good luck

 

[TurboMustang370]

I have had the same problem and if you crack open the drain on the fuel filter while it is running you will get some fizz/foam Air out, also I have cracked open the return line on the pump (the line on the front of the pump closes to the timing cover) and the line just above the fuel filter just to get any more air out of the system... It does help to have the engine ideled up to 1000-1200 rpms when your doing it.. hold a rag over the fittings so you don't spray yourself with fuel ..... also make sure your vent tubes on the tank are clean and not clogged that all so will cause it to loose prime. (it pulls a vacuum on the tank) good luck

Great info, thank you.

 

[Tornadogt]

Update, I was able to get a few hours in today installed the new exhaust system Straight 5 inch stack no muffler fabricated out of an Air Inlet tube (Thank you mdmorgan).. Also installed the tray back over the Passenger-side fuel tank. Still need to get to the drive-side... only some much time in a day.

 

[Rambling Wreck]

Update for Maccus and anyone else interested.

View attachment 412458Distance between Cab and Bed 9 3/8 inches
View attachment 412463Frame to back of bed 19 3/4 inches, Bumperettes to tailgate 7 inches,

Just and F.Y.I. Center of Lynnette ring (Pintle Hook centerline) to back of bed would be 14 inches compared to a stock M923 is 6 1/2 inches. I see no problems hauling trailers with this distance..

A few other pictures, I did get the spare tire mounted today looks pretty good with 10 feet 11 inches of usable Bed length. and a full 12 feet of length for anything shorter than 3 inches tall that would slip under the tire rack. The tire Crane is looking pretty high I will have to work on that and come up with a plan maybe make it removable or just shorten it some how.. Keep you updated.
View attachment 412476View attachment 412477View attachment 412478View attachment 412479
View attachment 412481

I really like this concept of a deuce bed on a M931A2. What is the overall length?

Looking Jam up and Jiffy tight!

 

[TurboMustang370]

View attachment 418070

Just a word of caution, that exhaust pipe will get warm. Be sure to warn passengers.

 

[maccus]

Tornadogt truck is looking good. You are doing good work. My deuce box should be here Thursday morning as hendersond and Squeak are bringing it out from Wisconsin. As mentioned before the M931A2 is ready for the installation. The next challenge is to get 3 M923 sections of troop seats ( from Glen ) ( transported by hndrsonj) and fab up a set of deuce fiberglass troop seats. Have all the deuce seat hardware to do it except the two little hooks that go on the front rack to hold the top of the rack to the side rack..........twright is sending them up from GA..

As one can see this MV monkey business is successful only because of the SS members assistance. Thanks guys. Just have to wait until someone is going the direction needed to move stuff around.

 

[Tornadogt]

Just a word of caution, that exhaust pipe will get warm. Be sure to warn passengers.

Agreed it seems to be especially warm at the 90 deg. turn down by the cab corner I haven't decided if I am going to wrap it or maybe some kind of shield.