Advice on 12.7 series 60

While checking that bull gear, might as well replace the crankshaft damper while at it. According to the Series 60 manual, it should be replaced at 500,000 mile intervals, yet is one of the most overlooked components.

I am partial to the Bully Dog ported/polished/coated exhaust manifold I put on my 60. Pitts Power sells them also, as does PDI. BD had the lowest cost at the time I got mine. I also dumped the wastegate turbo and put on a Borg Warner 171702 non waste gate version and put a T6 turbo blanket on it from PTP Turbo blankets. Then I put Walker high flow mufflers on the stacks behind the cab. Though not required, maybe putting on one of the Pitts Power crankshaft balancer rings would be a good idea. I have one on mine. Not terribly expensive and it never wears out.

I also did wide based drive rubber, but that is not critical. Only for weight savings, as there are many very low rolling resistant standard drive tires on the market. The difference in economy between wide based and standard duals now is nominal if you put the correct tires on. Since mine is a glider I ordered from the factory, I did wide based right out of the gate. If the truck was one that already had duals, I would probably just buy some really low rolling resistant drive tires the next go around.

I don't use a FASS, though I have considered it. I am rather fond of the Davco unit I have and have not felt the need to do anything different.

 

I did, just can't remember the thread they got put in.



Update: Just posted a bunch of the pics of my glider when I bought it in an album on my profile page. You can see it there.

 

That would be good advise from cowpie1. Cowpie1 what makes you fond of the davco I get mixed reviews?

 

One thing to add about davco. Don't wait for the fuel to reach change mark before you replace it. I do it on all our trucks at every service with the rest of the filters. I have heard of the element breaking down over time and plugging up the injectors. Other then that have had zero problems with davco.

 

i have a davco that dont work for crap no leaks but still makes air

 

Since i stay up north all winter, I like that I can see how my fuel is doing, and I can catch when the filter needs changed before I am on the side of the road. I can have the filter changed out in a jiffy. The problem with canned filters is that you really can't tell what is going on until you are losing power or something. With the broad range of fuel quality today, I want to see the fuel and the filter. It makes it easy to catch something like an algae problem starting, before it becomes a nightmare.

It is quite possible that the FASS gets more of the air out, which is a good thing, but it has the negatives that I mentioned. It is not a clear bowl that you can see what it going on. To really tell anything, you would have to cut the filter open to look at the media to see what it is catching. For me, that is more important than whether every little bit of air is out of the system. The Davco does a great job, and actually the design allows more air to separate in the unit than the typical stock can style fuel filters. And you don't waste time changing out filters that still have useful life left. With the Davco, you see how much filter is left. No waste. And the Davco unit itself, will catch and hold a lot more water out of the fuel than the FASS ever thought of. The Davco has a very large sump below the actual filter, and that combined with the filter area itself, is over half a gallon of storage for water if you had a bad load of fuel. And my Davco is heated, so that is a plus. FASS can be had as a heated unit also.

It is just a simple matter of balancing the positives and the negatives. For me, the positives of the Davco exceed the positives of the FASS. That could change in the future. I may not always stay with the Davco. But for what I do and what I want, it is the best choice for me now.

Now as a side note to this, I prefer Donaldson filters in my Davco over the Fleetguards. That is just a choice also. I have no real hard data to prove the point, but I like the quality of Donaldson filters overall, so I prefer them as my fuel filter also.

 

That kind of engine is perfect for glider kits. Stay away from California. It is known as low power engine, but gets excellent mpg. Fitzgerald claims their Coronado with Detroit 12.7 get 6-7.5 mpg. Cowpie1, try Fleet air filter. It may help to get mpg. Aircell is pointless.

 

I did use Fleet Air Filter early on. No appreciable results. But when I would go down an incline and the engine would rev up, then when I went back to the accelerator for the next pull, I would get a backfire out of the engine. Also I was getting some fuel dilution. Since i changed back to a Donaldson air filter, no more issues. I have a Fleet Air in the box at home I will sell you cheap!