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Thread: The 396-6.2 swap project

  1. #271
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Wichita Falls, TX
    Posts
    603

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    Quote Originally Posted by Von View Post
    I tried using the same cable on mine. Was browsing at Autozone for more bits to MAKE it work on the foot feed end and came across this:

    http://www.amazon.com/Spectre-Perfor.../dp/B0008G5FZ6
    that fancy cable I used didn't work out. It broke at the foot feed end while I was hauling my nephew's car across the scales for him.

    I remembered your paracord fun and had a spool of 12 ga wire in the cab... That stuff frays pretty quick coming through the firewall, had to do it twice.
    fun day....

    BUT I scored some new seats! My fee for hauling his Lincoln off..


    Haven't decided if they'll go in the M715 or the Fairlane.

  2. #272
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Giddings, Texas
    Posts
    7,729

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    It has been a year since any updates from me. My fleet has seen some changes that affect the way the M715 is used.

    The unusual rain mentioned in my last post continued that May. We had severe flooding Memorial Day weekend of 2015. Colton was in Austin at a state finals for band competing. He got home ok in some high water in RED. However, his girlfriend at the same competition but different events was delayed several hours due to tornado sightings. When the school bus finally got her back to school, most roads in our county besides the major highways were closed. She was stranded at the school.

    The first I knew about it was Colton walking in with all his rain gear on and announcing that he was going to take the Whistler to go get her since she lived 8 miles down a back road with several creek crossings. I put him on hold and called her parents. We agreed that Colton and I going to get her in the M35A2 would be a good idea.

    We both get our rain gear on and fired up the Whistler. By the time we got to the school, the rain had stopped and the sun was shining. Radar showed nothing else coming our way. We decided that they would ride in her SUV and drive behind me. I would go through any water crossings first and if the water was up to my rims, they would not attempt to cross. 11.00 tires means 11 inches of sidewall.

    As soon as I got out of town and on the throttle, smoke started pouring into the cab of the Whistler. That was new. Before I could do anything about it, I was down on power. Less power meant no smoke inside anymore. Hmm. We were going the longer way to her house that was mostly FM roads which are better and only a single creek crossing. We got to that crossing about the time of the smoke and power loss.

    I went down to 1st gear hi range and idled through a very long stretch of standing or slightly moving water. Basically, run off from fields backed up by a flooded creek that couldn't take anymore water. The actual bridge over the creek was above water. Some of the pavement was washed away, but we made it through just fine. I got back on the power and had nothing above 1500 rpm. I kept loosing rpm range over the following few miles.

    At a road intersection, there is a church and a volunteer fire station. 8 miles or so from my town and about the same distance from her house. The volunteer guys were driving around in their pickups patrolling their little "island" that had been cut off by floods for several hours. Since we were the first vehicles to get through, they all waved as I made the turn and the engine died.

    I got it fired back up and went about 1/4 mile before it died again. I coasted to a side road out of the main path. Draining all 3 fuel filters had me running again but no confidence the truck would stay running. I had lots of "help" with draining the filters. I asked one of those guys if he would escort the girlfriend on to her house. He agreed and they left.

    I got turned around headed home and made it about 1/2 mile before it died again. Drain the filters and it fired after cranking a bunch. 1/2 mile later and back at the intersection, it died again. I called the girlfriends mom to let her know her daughter should be home soon and why we weren't with her. She offered help and I declined. I called Jennifer instead. I had no tools in the Whistler and no spare fuel since I haven't been driving it much. I told Jennifer to come to us in the M1009 with all my tools and a Gerry can already in it. I warned her about the high water and such too.

    Colton and I spent the time waiting trying to figure out what was wrong. We had 4 inches of fuel in the fuel tank. 15" tall 50 gallon tank means every 3 inches is 10 gallons. We had fuel in the tank. The filters were clear too. Jennifer showed up, we added another 5 gallons and it fired right up. I drove home 20-30 mph without trouble.

    I pulled the in tank fuel pump out the following day and found the screens were gummed over. It was only pulling from the top of one screen. I was out of fuel. A test drive found it smoking inside again and throwing oil all over the passenger side of the truck. Checking the oil showed I had waaaayyyy too much. It holds around 4 gallons and I drained more than 12 out. IP issues.

    There are 3 seals inside the IP that could allow fuel to get into the crank case. One I had already bypassed years ago. Another is kind of hard to get to, but can be done standing on the ground while leaning over the fender. The other requires either pulling the IP or moving the 2,000 pound engine over a few inches.

    I have done neither because about the time this all happened Warthog decided to get out of the MV/square body Chevy SUV world. Plus, the Mini broke its crankshaft while autocrossing, Colton got into mountain bike racing, his girlfriend went off to college which meant he was gone most weekends and I found another car I couldn't live without.

    A year ago this week marching band practice started. The dad of a girl in the band had a heart attack. The mom was at the hospital and asked me to drive the girl home after practice. Jennifer and I were taking her home. A home I had never seen before. As we got close, Jennifer say the puppy dogs and started asking the girl about them. As I pulled into park, I saw a sad looking 1981 Mazda RX-7. The car looked lonely with low tires and stuff laying on top of it. I asked the girl about it and she said her mom wanted it gone but I couldn't talk to the dad until he was out of the hospital.

    He got out of the hospital and we talked a few weeks later. I used the M715 to go get the car which was in much worse condition that I originally thought. However, by Christmas time we had it on the road and doing great. It took pretty much all of my time and money for last fall, but it has proven to be a very fun and reliable vehicle addition to my fleet.

    Starting the week before Christmas until mid March I was spending every spare weekend and holiday making trips to Warthog in OKC. 3 Suburban's, 2 M1009's, a bunch of parts and 7 6.2 engines in cans got moved.

    4 of the vehicles and 1 of the engines are being used to build a 1987 4x4 3/4 ton Suburban into a CUCV look alike with every upgrade I can think of and some I haven't even imagined yet. My class looks like a CUCV repair facility. 383 green parts and containers all over the place.

    Why write all of the above in a long dead 6.2 conversion M715 thread? Because it goes to demonstrate how the M715 has been pretty much ignored for more than a year. Yet, because I don't have it stocked full of tools and personal items. It is ready to go through a search and security inspection required to get onto my campus and drive to my room. It has been used weekly if not more by me to bring in RX-7 parts, CUCV parts, Suburban parts and to take all the old ones out. It is my "shop" truck basically. At one point a month ago there were 3 TH400's, 2 NP208's, a 700R4 and a NP241 getting moved between home and class and often back again. Along with everything except the shell that got removed from the 1987 Suburban going to my house.

    Sometimes I would leave it here and let the student fill it up as they stripped the Suburban which is officially named "Cowdog." (Joe bought it in the same town the Hank the Cowdog book series was written about and in. Other times I would drag in a M101 and leave the trailer until it was full and then return with the M715.

    The reliability and lack of attention needed to keep it functional has made this truck so much more user friendly than it was with the carbureted 396. Of course I am adding a turbo to the GEP 6500 going into Cowdog. Every time I mess with the turbo stuff, the throught crosses my mind that the M715 would become a very happy truck with one. Then I realize it already is exactly what I wanted when I did the swap. Dependable, reliable, easy to operate and much more functional.
    Remember if you didn't build it you can't call it yours.

    6.2 powered M715, 5 M1009's, M416, 2 M101's, 2 M105's, 3 M35's, M1007 6.5 turbo Suburban project called Cowdog.

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCz...HGkBCfhXZ5iuaw

  3. #273
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Giddings, Texas
    Posts
    7,729

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    This thread was started because rain water fell through the hood footman loop screw holes. Went down the 396 Big Block air cleaner stud, through the carb and into cylinders 7 and 8. I didn't know that had happened and threw those rods when I tried to start the hydro locked engine.

    It happened again last week. The 6.2 doesn't have a central air filter stud like the gas engines do. It has a pair of hold down studs. The top of the air filter is like a big dog bowl. Perfect for collecting water that leaks through.

    I have seen standing water on the edges of the bowl over the last few years and never really thought about it. I just grab a rag and soak it up. We had a bunch of rain since I last drove it. Looking under the hood I noticed the water was pretty high in the bowl, but not up to the hold down studs. I used a rag to soak it up and remove it as normal.

    I went to start it and got that same dreaded r-r-r-r-THUNK! I had 6 years ago. OH NO!

    I had to be somewhere in a few minutes and just got in a different vehicle to do that. When I got home after thinking about the truck engine the entire time. I pulled all the glow plugs. 6 came out dry and numbers 4 and 6 came out wet. To get water into an indirect injection chamber on an engine means the cylinder was full.

    Because of the fan shroud I built, I can't get a wrench on the front crank bolt to turn the engine over. My bellhousing completely covers the flywheel teeth. So, I decided to try turning the engine with the starter while the injection pump was off.

    Just a little tap got water gushing sounds. I did a tap to the starter a good number of times until it seems the engine just wanted to keep spinning. Then I gave it a good 10 second spin on the starter. It was dark out and I had a shop light under the hood. It looked from the drivers seat like I was running a fog generator. I think all the cylinders had moisture in them. Because no fuel was getting delivered. Oil pressure over 60 psi while spinning and no weird noises.

    I put the glow plugs back in and it fired right up and ran perfect.

    I now have a upside down dog bowl over the footman loop on the hood until I can figure out how best to seal up those two screw holes.

    I can remove the footman loop and weld the holes. I actually use the windshield tie down for its intended purpose and don't want to do this.

    Make a gasket for the plate under the loop and use 3M weather strip adhesive to seal the plate to the hood is another option. I think it is the best way to go.

    Another is to put O-rings on the screws under the footman loop. I'm not sure how good they will seal without something around them to hold them. They might also come apart from the heat and I wouldn't know it until I get the dreaded r-r-r-r-THUNK! again.

    Always an adventure.
    Remember if you didn't build it you can't call it yours.

    6.2 powered M715, 5 M1009's, M416, 2 M101's, 2 M105's, 3 M35's, M1007 6.5 turbo Suburban project called Cowdog.

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCz...HGkBCfhXZ5iuaw

  4. #274
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Wichita Falls, TX
    Posts
    603

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    That was a close one..

    I joined after you'd put the 6.2 in and didn't read about the death of the 396. So when I read that it took me a minute to figure out where you'd said the water came from.

    Maybe a rubber washer between the hood and loop, but with a hole a hair smaller than the bolts?

    On mine it seems the military paint applied with a brush did a good job of sealing it... rust helps too.

  5. #275
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    New Haven, CT
    Posts
    1,954

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    Dodged quite the bullet!

  6. #276
    Join Date
    Sep 1998
    Location
    North Central Wisconsin
    Posts
    11,520

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    WOW Tim...holy moly...glad it didnt waste this motor one you...most average folks wouldnt have been able to save it...its good you are as sharp as you are!!

    Would it work to fill the holes with silicone and then punch a very small hole through it with something sharp...like the tip of a drywall screw...then put the regular screws in through the hole? Could use any color silicone...even clear...

    Maybe theres a better idea but seems it would be easy and workable...
    Lord send your Holy Ghost into our hearts and make the desire of our hearts Your Will.

    Pro-choice, that's a LIE, babies don't choose to die!!

  7. #277
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Giddings, Texas
    Posts
    7,729

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    I thought of slathering something on there as well Jon. It has been 12 years since I had that part off while painting the truck. I haven't put a screw driver to those Phillips screws yet, but I seem to remember they weren't happy moving and I couldn't get them all the way tight tight.

    I am going to need to repaint the truck in another few years. The faded "That's the way they were in the service" look can only work for so many years before it just looks old and neglected. So, I want something I can take off again if I need to. New screws and chasing the threads on the plate will for sure happen.

    Thanks for the suggestions everyone.
    Remember if you didn't build it you can't call it yours.

    6.2 powered M715, 5 M1009's, M416, 2 M101's, 2 M105's, 3 M35's, M1007 6.5 turbo Suburban project called Cowdog.

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCz...HGkBCfhXZ5iuaw

  8. #278
    Join Date
    Sep 1998
    Location
    North Central Wisconsin
    Posts
    11,520

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    Thanks for posting it...hopefully anyone who starts getting a little water there can avoid the bigger problems that could easily come from this...
    Lord send your Holy Ghost into our hearts and make the desire of our hearts Your Will.

    Pro-choice, that's a LIE, babies don't choose to die!!

  9. #279
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Giddings, Texas
    Posts
    7,729

    Default

    It seems I need to redo all the pictures here too. One of these days…
    Remember if you didn't build it you can't call it yours.

    6.2 powered M715, 5 M1009's, M416, 2 M101's, 2 M105's, 3 M35's, M1007 6.5 turbo Suburban project called Cowdog.

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCz...HGkBCfhXZ5iuaw

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