Won an M1083A1 - 1900 mile recovery trip soon! (ND to CA)

[dxhend2]

Hello everyone,

Been on the site for a while, finally joined the club and won an M1083A1 - our first MV! Plan is to fly to the recovery site in about a week, and get the vehicle thoroughly serviced locally before starting the trip. My wife is joining me as co-pilot and navigator (how's that for dedication!), and we're looking forward to a great adventure. Our plan is to convert it into an awesome expedition vehicle.

First up, a big thank you to everyone on this site for all the information you've shared - that's what makes all this possible. In particular, a big thank you to Duckworthe for some detailed guidance on these trucks, and especially to Recce01 for his hospitality with a test drive in his M1083.

I think we have a good list of recovery tools and supplies from some great threads on this site. I've had time to study up on all the TM's (retired Navy - that's how we learn stuff...). Two questions we have for the group here for planning this recovery mission:

1) Does anyone have a recommendation for a good mechanic/truck repair shop in Fargo, ND? We want to get a thorough going over of all fluids/filters/belts/driveshaft/brakes/etc. before getting underway for the long trip back.

2) Any opinions or recommendations on replacing these tires (see photos below) before such a trip? I'm guessing these are the original ten year old tires, some of which are showing some bulges and ripples in the sidewalls. I'd rather err way on the side of safety and change them out before risking any major issues on the trip. If so, any recommendations for sourcing new tires and getting them shipped to Fargo (quickly)?

Planned route is to stay on interstates as much as possible (in the slow lane). I-84 west across North Dakota and Montana, take a left at Butte on I-15, south through Idaho, Utah, Nevada, and on to southern California (north San Diego county). Keeping it to 400-500 miles a day, and using http://www.findfuelstops.com/ to plan our fuel and rest stops. Will have an IR thermometer for checking temps frequently on wheel hubs, differentials, etc. (thanks, Recce01!). We plan on posting updates to this thread each night (with some awesome photos) to keep everyone updated on our progress (or issues). If there are any SS members along that route, we'd be glad to meet up if we're passing through your neighborhood.

Again, thanks for all the collaboration and hospitality on this site - looking forward to meeting more of you, and adding to the knowledge and experience here.

Best Regards,
Captain Dan

 

[MWMULES]

Not a tire guy but just about everyone of the style look like that, just make sure they have the proper air and after about 20 min driving get out and check. Some guy carry a Harbor IR heat gun to check tire and hub temps. https://www.harborfreight.com/catal...,f,EAFeatured+Weight,f,Sale+Rank,f&q=temp+gun

 

[tennmogger]

Like MWMULE said, those bulges on the Michelins are 'normal'. I am running tires with those bulges that are 15 years old. The important check is for cracking (weathering) that is deep enough to matter. But, you can't go wrong with new tires, if you can find them.

 

[Jbulach]

Sounds like you have a plan! I would see if you can get a complete set of tires and wheels (likely not much more than just tires) and either put them on, and throw your old ones in the back for spares, or throw the new ones in the back, if you feel comfortable changing them on the side of the road. Also a plan to get a blown tire and wheel back up into the truck is a good idea.
The big thing I would reconsider is the interstates, running 55 mile an hour in those high-speed states out there, scares the heck out of me. I would also consider a strobe, lots of reflective tape, or delineator plates, I would also rent a chase vehicle, interstates or not, a lot of area without cell service out there.

 

[someoldmoose]

Wow ! i knew you Navy folk are brave ( you take Marines where they need to go ) but 1900 miles in an unknown MV ? I was nervous bringing mine 60 miles from Philly and it HAD been gone over from stem to stern by Eastern Surplus where I bought it. Sounds like you know what yer up against though so I wish you ( and Soldier B ) a safe and "hasty" trip. Take twice the amount of EVERYTHING you need for survival ( water especially at this time of year ). Not that you can hear anything when in the driver's seat anyway but if you THINK you sense something even a little bit "off" pull over and check it out. Will you have good open comms with Soldier B not reliant on cell service ? The tailgunner is often the first one to see the smoke, smell the fuel, run over the parts falling off . . . Hopefully NONE of which occur but remember the 6 P's. Plan well. Stay Safe. Take lotssa pics !

 

[98G]

Tires look fine to me. I'd carry spares, but run those.

Weigh stations along the first part of your route want you to stop, commercial or not. (Ask me how I know...)

It'll be an adventure. Enjoy!

 

[Jbulach]

More reason to avoid the interstates! Also a lot of the 75mph roads have recently been bumped up to 80. Good thing was, I was averaging 83-85 and not many people passed me, swear I saw some 85mph signs somewhere, Idaho maybe???

 

[Bhpdbrad]

I brought along my lovely wife for the ‘recovery’ of my new purchase and she loved it. I acquired this 5-ton in Maryland and desired to get it to our place in California.

I didnt want to take a chance on that length of a trip, where a tow bill would erase any savings from self transporting, so opted instead to just drive it to a place we have on Ohio. That was only about 400 miles and it still took us two days to do (granted we got a late start by the time we picked it up). I arranged for a flat bed transport afterwards and was happy I did. Way less stress for my situation (time off work, etc)

My point is - 300 Miles a day was very doable.... much more will wear you out soon. I can (and have) hopped in my Silverado and drove 1,000 miles non- stop from OR to CA without being fatigued. The 5-ton however is a different beast. I do think you’ll have a better ride in the M1083A1 though.

Tip: For music, I just brought along a JBL bluetooth speaker and placed it on the dash and played music from my I-phone. It worked out great and was audible even with the roaring deisel and tire noise.

 

[dxhend2]

Bhpdbrad, thanks for that post and photos - showed it to my wife and co-pilot - she loved it - very inspired! She's very excited about our trip (although I'm not allowed to call it a vacation...).

Good points on the miles per day. We'll take it easy - absolutely daylight hours only, not pushing it; fortunately our schedule is flexible, so we can pace it out as we need. The truck is a 2007 model with 1850 miles on it, so we hope the odds are in our favor for a good trip.

Great idea on the bluetooth speakers and phone! We'll download plenty of music and audiobooks (our favorite for long trips). Now if I could just find the audiobook version of the FMTV TM's read by Gunney Ermey - nah, let's don't go there...

 

[someoldmoose]

Don't know what the laws might be out your way but instead of the Bluetooth speaker I wear over the ear Bluetooth headphones. Get some noise cancellation and can hear the music and take phone calls ( only in emergency ). Not sure it's legal, per se, but several LEOs have seen it and I even had one at a "quick stop" ask me where I got em. He has a Humvee and wanted the benefits I described. I'm excited for y'all and hope everything goes well. The lack of age of the vehicle should help but ya never know with pre-owneds.

 

[dougco1]

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I brought along my lovely wife for the ‘recovery’ of my new purchase and she loved it. I acquired this 5-ton in Maryland and desired to get it to our place in California.

I didnt want to take a chance on that length of a trip, where a tow bill would erase any savings from self transporting, so opted instead to just drive it to a place we have on Ohio. That was only about 400 miles and it still took us two days to do (granted we got a late start by the time we picked it up). I arranged for a flat bed transport afterwards and was happy I did. Way less stress for my situation (time off work, etc)

My point is - 300 Miles a day was very doable.... much more will wear you out soon. I can (and have) hopped in my Silverado and drove 1,000 miles non- stop from OR to CA without being fatigued. The 5-ton however is a different beast. I do think you’ll have a better ride in the M1083A1 though.

Tip: For music, I just brought along a JBL bluetooth speaker and placed it on the dash and played music from my I-phone. It worked out great and was audible even with the roaring deisel and tire noise.

What a lovely smile, your a lucky man.

 

[Karl kostman]

Hello Dan I Have just been going over the needs on the truck as far as filter needs the obvious ones are covered the question ones are going to be the trans fluid, air cleaner and I am not sure if this truck has a coolant filter or not but if the coolant looks crappy we will be changing that also. I will keep in contact with you and be ready to dive in Thursday morning! Will obviously talk before then Dan.

Karl

 

[dxhend2]

Hi Karl, thanks! Sent you a Gmail with more details. It's all coming together!

 

[dxhend2]

Well, major mistake on my part - I didn't account for the EUC process - two week delay of game. GP says we're already in the system and that it should clear within two weeks. Already gave a PM apology to Karl Kostman who's been an incredible help with this recovery and planning - thank you!!

This will give all of us some more time for planning - a zillion details in the mix, all good. Right now we're shooting for the week of Aug. 13 for a launch date. Thanks for all the thoughts and suggestions from everyone so far. Stay tuned, and we'll be posting some great pictures and videos soon.

Best Regards,
Captain Dan

 

[98G]

Skepticism is warranted when talking about EUC approval dates.

I wouldn't schedule vacation time etc until you actually have approval.

 

[dxhend2]

Latest update: the EUC was approved this morning (8 days - possibly a land speed record...). All the paperwork and permissions are cleared, and we've made arrangements to pick it up on August 13. From there we'll ease over to Fargo, ND to meet up with Karl for a round of maintenance together and get it ready for the voyage. More to follow...

 

[dxhend2]

We made it to the reovery site, and after changing out all four batteries, we finally were able to get its tarted after some electronics magic troubleshooting. We had 12v power to all the lights, but could not power to the dash and for starting. After a remote suggestion, we tried cycling the three switches next to the alternator, heard some relays click, then starting power was available, all good. After a couple of hours (and stops) along the way to Fargo, stopped and saw a mild shower of fuel coming down from the engine. Shut down immediately and raised the cab to try to find the leak, no luck with the fuel system depressurized. Looks like it was hitting the radiator fan and going everywhere; couldn't localize the leak area.
Plan was then to start and raise the cab again with the engine running to try to quickly find the leak, but again - no starting power. Trying the three switches behind the alternator didn't clear the issue like before. Swapped out the "start inhibitor" relay in the circuit breaker panel, no luck.
Ran out of daylight and shut down for the night (for a few hours). Will be hitting it again first thing, along with some help from Karl Kostman from Fargo. I had read that the A1's were more prone to electrical gremlins - I think we have them - but may be missing some obvious things that we overlooked. Also, there's a toggle switch by the driver's left knee that we don't understand what it's for - unique to the A1, and somehow part of this?

If anyone with A1 experience (electrical) has any troubleshooting suggestions, we'd greatly appreciate it!

 

[mkcoen]

Good luck. Sorry I can't help with the A1. You might try Suprman or scottmandu as they've both got A1 experience.

 

[Recce01]

Best of luck Dan!!! Sorry for the issues, but best to get them sorted out of the gate I guess. I can't believe how clean that truck is. Really stoked for you and the wife! I know you are going to stop in on your way home ������

 

[dxhend2]

We're ok and underway! Huge thanks to Karl Kostman - came out and met us where we had shut down at a rest stop for the night. Connected us with a local diesel repair shop that came out and quickly found the problem - a crack in the fuel return line (yellow piping in photo below - damage is on left end). (You were right, Recce01!). Looked like one end was tightened down improperly and weakened the joint; a couple hours of vibration, long rigid piping run with no support, and you get a piping rupture and a diesel fountain. Made a replacement line with flexible hydraulic line and good to go!

The electrical issue is a bit of a mystery, but we hit the right sequence and it powered and started right up this morning! Current plan - don't mess with it! It works!

Made it on over to Fargo and into Karl's shop (nice HEMTT there!). Got started fitting up some extra spared that I bought from Feltz tires and had shipped in t Karl. He showed my son and I how to assemble the tires and wheels, CTIS fittings, etc. Karl has an incredible amount of experience with all this, and has been a fantastic host and mentor!

Plan for tomorrow is to replace fluids and filters, lube it up, and rig a temporary crane in the back to handle our "spare" spares". If all goes well, we'll be out of drydock and underway on Thursday. We should be able to update each night; thanks for all the help and suggestions from everyone!