THE ADVENTURES CONTINUE - DFO gets a truck and hops on Schneider's IC Choice Program

You can order it online from here:

http://shop.parkmyrig.com/

 

Yes thankfully avoided the snow. After sitting around Kathleen, GA for about 3 hours they finished loading my trailer from 17%. Last time it took over 10 hours from a similar percent. So, I took off for Richmond. Didn't want to goatpath up through GA again, so I ran some OOR and shot across to 95 on interstates and made it to a rest area in SC last night. Finished up the run to Richmond today. Same **** as last time in the Frito Lay lot. Same trailer from what, a frickin WEEK ago STILL in the delivery van doors. LOL.

Also, the reason why I still have my 5th wheel way back. Literally the only way to get turned around in this place without removing a fairing... with force. Sorry for crappy pics but my camera sucks in the dark. As well as the day.





Then, bobtailed back home to NC. Time to enjoy some time off.

While I was down in Kathleen waiting for my load to finish I got bored and pulled out some sensors and my MAP sensor was sooted up again, and I pulled out another sensor (I believe some kind of a temp sensor for the EGR system) that I hadn't removed before, and cleaned it off. Hand calculated 7.5 MPG for this trip with tanks filled to the exact spot as before. Getting better. Also drove a consistent 59-60 MPH with only a little bit of passing at higher speeds.

Still gonna see if that little tube is plugged this weekend, assuming I can get it off. Hopefully PB blaster did the trick?

 

CW, only had a chance to try out what you sent me twice, but so far, so good! I like it, haven't been able to find any issues with it so far. I'll try it out more next week and let you know more.

Like CW said check the website, also give them a call and I'm sure whoever you speak with can answer those questions for you. Unfortunately I don't know them off the top of my head what they are, especially since you haven't worked for SNI before.

Well... today was... uhh fun.

Every time I work on something I always seem to run into problems, I can watch videos and look at pictures and read about how someone does something, then try it myself, and 5000 hangups make it so much more difficult.

But, hey, that's how it goes LOL.

Obviously my PB blasting attempts were in vain, as it did absolutely nothing in loosening up the corroded threads of the tube on the manifold.

I tried and tried with a line wrench to work it loose and it wouldn't budge.

So, next I removed the top end of it, which was fine, then bent the tube out and slid a regular wrench with the closed end all the way down the tube and tried to get it to budge.

Finally, by wedging a long extension against the open end of the wrench, and hitting it with a sledge hammer (not beating, but giving it a good wack) it started to budge.

But not really, it didn't get me anywhere. I could have done this for 3 days and not made any progress.

So the only option was to cut the line. Of course my air hose got cut, so I had to fix that and then it was all of 15 feet long so I had to err put the truck in the garage... kinda. LOL.



Then I got out one of my favorite little tools that goes BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE and went to town on the tube.



Now, I was able to get a socket over the tube. I had to use a 1/2" breaker bar on this thing to get it to budge, I'm not joking.

I would get it to move a little, then I'd tighten it up again, working it back and fourth and back in fourth in my best attempts to not shear it off.

Eventually I did get it off. But its not good.



Look at how much metal from the manifold came off with it. Very little in terms of threads left in the manifold. Corrosion and heat did it in bigtime, it all just became one.

I'm really really hoping that when I put the new one in, it will grab.

If not, I might have to helicoil it. That would really suck. But honestly, as long as it will hold enough not to leak, who cares. I'll try that before I go to the extent of drilling and tapping and installing a helicoil in it.

For those that don't know what a helicoil is, check this out, they are pretty cool:

http://www.rustyheaps.com/2011/10/05/exhaust-manifold-helicoil-repair/

Anyway, called Cummins and the tube is $20. Of course they didn't have any and had to get it from Atlanta. And of course I called at 3:45, and any parts orders after 3pm have to be air freighted to get there the next day. Since I want to leave on Monday, and they're closed on the weekends, it was my only option, so my $20 tube became a $50 tube with the addition of air freight costs.

Just another day in the life, LOL.