First, my story.
I took a few days off to get my K30 ready for the ride. Other than being forced to leave the EGR valve plugged off when I couldn't figure out the problem, my K30 was running like a champ. I got the rear springs built, skid under the x-member, checked/changed diff/case oil, etc. I also created a temp mini-flatbed out of particle board so I could strap my cooler, tools, and supplies in the back out of the way. Other than 31" tires and no lift, things were looking good for my K30s maiden voyage.
That was Friday night.
Saturday I found out that I confirmed my "title" on CK5 when it turned into a reenactment of the "Maiden voyage of the TITANIC!"
I met up with the guys about 5:45 a.m. at Denny's as planned. First thing I realized was that I had forgotten my ratchet strap box (setting in my shop) which also had my oil/tranny fluid emergency supply in it. No problem, Doug (AZ Blazer) had extra room so we threw some of my gear in there (thanks!). I was standing outside talking to Doug when I decided to fire it up on the trailer. For the FIRST TIME SINCE I CRANKED IT, it didn't want to crank, and, when it did, it surged up and down from about 400 rpm (barely chugging/running) up to about 800-900 rpm and back again. WTF! Other than the EGR fiasco (fixed, I thought, by pulling the line) this thing has run PERFECT since I first cranked it. It ran fine when we loaded it on Friday night, but not after driving to the far side of Phoenix on Sat. morning.
Everyone was getting ready to leave, not wanting to delay everyone, I was prepared to head home (and poor some gas over it before playing "flip-the-match"). Some quick detective work by Doug determined that it would actually run at a decent (although high) idle if you manually activated the EGR about 1/4". So, everyone waited while he and I pulled the EGR, checked for deposits and then shoved a bolt into it to simulate Doug's finger. Doug, being a professional mechanic and all around experienced rigger, chose a passable "finger simulator" on the first attempt!
I bolted it up and voila! It ran at about 600-700 rpm (by ear) fairly stable. So, we are off about 30 minutes late.
@#%^ I wish I had known there was 40 odd miles of hilly, switch-back, wash-board fire rode before you get to the trail head before I decided to trailer my K30 behind my poor ½ ton Ram. The Ram does a fine job of towing and the trailer works well on the road but, the fire road had me worried for the tranny and my trailer jack was not clearanced to deal with the dips, washes, and ditch crossings on the fire road. The tranny is fine (thank god) but the lower extension of my trailer jack is foobar'ed. When we got to the camp (some guys went up on Friday night) I decided to leave the Ram and trailer there to continue in the K30 (even though technically you need a tag on fire roads). That's when we found out that the "trick" didn't work once the engine was hot. It would surge like mad, throwing gravel and going all over the road (very light in the back with no bed and the rear is locked) and then sputter and almost die for a few sections followed by, another session of "hang on to your but!"
Relatively fun but not good for starting a trail. I had already delayed the group with the EGR fun at Denny's, and then with my slow progress on the fire road, so I decided to pack it in. A couple of guys (thanks Doug, Fred, and ScoutGuy) insisted on staying to make sure I could get it loaded. Trip home was uneventful if a bit depressing.
Oh, one more thing. When I was rigging something to hold my diesel radiator in place (most of the radiator stuff was missing when I bought the truck and I couldn't find the brackets/shroud before this weekend) I had to pull the front chassis harness (lights and such) out of the way so that the bundle was hanging under the fan. I meant to go back and secure it with zip ties, I forgot.
Those wild surges on the fire road sucked it up into the fan and pretty much ate about 2-3' of it in the center. I did manage to get the front harness rewired after returning home. I still don't know what is wrong with the engine, something has the ECM confused causing it to fire the injectors hard in bursts, followed by periods of almost no activity from the injectors. Probably a bad sensor somewhere, and, I'll bet, related to my EGR problems that I never figured out.
Thanks to all of you who put up with my delays and tried to help me get this thing on the trail for the first time (especially AZBlazer, HaulGas and FWP). The problems I encountered were frustrating in the extreme, but, the only think I regret was the delays I caused for the rest of you guys. One thing that did come out of this fiasco, I decided to try and keep my K30 street legal with a tag. That fire road would have been *nothing* if it had not been for my trailered rig. But it was a royal PAIN with the trailer. In the past I've always wheeled my daily drivers (or beaters that were street legal) so this particular problem never occurred to me. I'll still trailer for things like long trips to Moab (my RAM is much more comfy and I'm getting to old to enjoy loud tires and exhaust on the road) but I want to be able to drive it a ways on the road without the trailer.
Oh well, another day, another ride. That is my story. I'll have to wait with the rest of you for the trip report and (hopefully) some pictures. My digital camera didn't get used at all.
Russ
85 K30 CUCV, 350 TBI, TH400, 205, D60/C14, 4.56 Locked
Some day: 4" lift, 44" tires, massive cutting, shorter wb and rear overhang.
I took a few days off to get my K30 ready for the ride. Other than being forced to leave the EGR valve plugged off when I couldn't figure out the problem, my K30 was running like a champ. I got the rear springs built, skid under the x-member, checked/changed diff/case oil, etc. I also created a temp mini-flatbed out of particle board so I could strap my cooler, tools, and supplies in the back out of the way. Other than 31" tires and no lift, things were looking good for my K30s maiden voyage.
That was Friday night.
Saturday I found out that I confirmed my "title" on CK5 when it turned into a reenactment of the "Maiden voyage of the TITANIC!"
I met up with the guys about 5:45 a.m. at Denny's as planned. First thing I realized was that I had forgotten my ratchet strap box (setting in my shop) which also had my oil/tranny fluid emergency supply in it. No problem, Doug (AZ Blazer) had extra room so we threw some of my gear in there (thanks!). I was standing outside talking to Doug when I decided to fire it up on the trailer. For the FIRST TIME SINCE I CRANKED IT, it didn't want to crank, and, when it did, it surged up and down from about 400 rpm (barely chugging/running) up to about 800-900 rpm and back again. WTF! Other than the EGR fiasco (fixed, I thought, by pulling the line) this thing has run PERFECT since I first cranked it. It ran fine when we loaded it on Friday night, but not after driving to the far side of Phoenix on Sat. morning.
Everyone was getting ready to leave, not wanting to delay everyone, I was prepared to head home (and poor some gas over it before playing "flip-the-match"). Some quick detective work by Doug determined that it would actually run at a decent (although high) idle if you manually activated the EGR about 1/4". So, everyone waited while he and I pulled the EGR, checked for deposits and then shoved a bolt into it to simulate Doug's finger. Doug, being a professional mechanic and all around experienced rigger, chose a passable "finger simulator" on the first attempt!
@#%^ I wish I had known there was 40 odd miles of hilly, switch-back, wash-board fire rode before you get to the trail head before I decided to trailer my K30 behind my poor ½ ton Ram. The Ram does a fine job of towing and the trailer works well on the road but, the fire road had me worried for the tranny and my trailer jack was not clearanced to deal with the dips, washes, and ditch crossings on the fire road. The tranny is fine (thank god) but the lower extension of my trailer jack is foobar'ed. When we got to the camp (some guys went up on Friday night) I decided to leave the Ram and trailer there to continue in the K30 (even though technically you need a tag on fire roads). That's when we found out that the "trick" didn't work once the engine was hot. It would surge like mad, throwing gravel and going all over the road (very light in the back with no bed and the rear is locked) and then sputter and almost die for a few sections followed by, another session of "hang on to your but!"
Oh, one more thing. When I was rigging something to hold my diesel radiator in place (most of the radiator stuff was missing when I bought the truck and I couldn't find the brackets/shroud before this weekend) I had to pull the front chassis harness (lights and such) out of the way so that the bundle was hanging under the fan. I meant to go back and secure it with zip ties, I forgot.
Thanks to all of you who put up with my delays and tried to help me get this thing on the trail for the first time (especially AZBlazer, HaulGas and FWP). The problems I encountered were frustrating in the extreme, but, the only think I regret was the delays I caused for the rest of you guys. One thing that did come out of this fiasco, I decided to try and keep my K30 street legal with a tag. That fire road would have been *nothing* if it had not been for my trailered rig. But it was a royal PAIN with the trailer. In the past I've always wheeled my daily drivers (or beaters that were street legal) so this particular problem never occurred to me. I'll still trailer for things like long trips to Moab (my RAM is much more comfy and I'm getting to old to enjoy loud tires and exhaust on the road) but I want to be able to drive it a ways on the road without the trailer.
Oh well, another day, another ride. That is my story. I'll have to wait with the rest of you for the trip report and (hopefully) some pictures. My digital camera didn't get used at all.
Russ
85 K30 CUCV, 350 TBI, TH400, 205, D60/C14, 4.56 Locked
Some day: 4" lift, 44" tires, massive cutting, shorter wb and rear overhang.
