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Just brought home "Brutus" with pics

mountainexplorer

mountainexplorer

1/2 ton status
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Spokane, Wa./Ione, Wa
Just brought home \"Brutus\" with pics

Brutus is a 1977 K30 Crew cab with a 402BB, TH400, NP203, Dana 60 single wheel front and 14 boltFF Dually rear with a Utility box; so named by the previous owner. /forums/images/graemlins/crewcab.gif

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Brutus was a bit stubborn at first, overheating on the way home and forcing us to stop and cool off for 35 minutes, but made it to the next gas station (and coasted in cause it ran out of gas about 2000 feet before the pump).

With Brutus's thirsts of fuel and water quenched, we finally made it home without getting struck by the large brewing lightnig cloud to our backs. Despite knowing the motor is in need of a rebuild or at least major help, I'm still glad I got it.

Brutus is sleeping right now, but tomorrow I'll take some pictures of him. (Brutus is a guys name, right? So I have to refer to the truck as a he instead of a she? Does that work?) /forums/images/graemlins/screwy.gif
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\"

Cool score!! /forums/images/graemlins/peace.gif /forums/images/graemlins/peace.gifHow many trucks do ya have anyway man???????Sounds like it has a good start. /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gifjake
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\"

Well, this one is complete and runs which is more than I can say of the other 20 or so I have sitting around.

I was hoping that I could just start driving it and using it to tow, but the motor is running pretty sad. They guy said it needed a cam. From driving it home, it sounds to me like they advanced the timing quite a bit to account for it. It didn't backfire once, but it pinged alot.

It has a horrid rattle/knock to it. I wouldn't think it would be bearings, cause I drove it for about 45 minutes, half that at 2500-3000 RPM, and it didn't seize or get a whole bunch louder than it already was. It did smoke quite a bit going up hills.

I want to pull the valve covers off and have a look at all the rocker arms and see if any push rods are bent or messed up. But I'm expecting to have to pull the motor and put another one in to be able to use the truck.
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\"

I had a 74 454 motor in my 74 GMC that came from a chevelle-it had a weird rattle in it from day 1,it would be most noticeable at 35mph or so while driving,not noticeable a all while stopped,I checked for a cracked flexplate,excessive end play,ect--never could pin it down,I had to replace the cam because it had no lobes on a few cylinders and it set the air cleaner on fire from backfiring so bad--but the noise was still there.I found a suburban with a 400 small block and swapped that motor in--and a friend with a ramp truck wanted the 454 for a spare so I sold it for 400 bucks to him.About a year later I was at his shop,and he showed me the motor,now all dissasembled for a rebuild--it had 3 pistons that were missing parts of the skirts,and the wrist pins were all "egged" out on those pistons and would fall out onto the floor if you turned them sideways!.It also had one valve stem all mushroomed where the rocker arm "missed"the valve stem and was opening the valve by pushing mostly on the retainer,not the valve stem! /forums/images/graemlins/yikes.gif /forums/images/graemlins/yikes.gif /forums/images/graemlins/yikes.gif--I couldnt beleive I drove that motor over 15,000 miles in four years that way,and I beat it pretty good,got up to 5500 rpm's many times,and it didnt blow up.Guess I was pretty lucky! /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\"

Hmmm... I was kind of wondering about wrist pins or piston slap as possibilities, and your story makes me lean more towards that theory as a possibility.

My friend had a 350 that had a constant rattle noise, and when that motor came apart, we found that two writ pins had slid out and gashed the cylinder walls very deeply.

I hope that this motor is still rebuildable. It's supposed to be a 402 car motor, but I haven't run numbers yet.
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\" with pics

Wow I was just looking at "the fleet". That's quite a few trucks. How long have you been collecting them? Anyway cool truck and good luck with the engine.
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\"

Having it smoke up and down hills definitely points to piston skirt issues IMO.
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\"

I was listening and running it some more tonight after work. It defintely is way too advanced. Just normal driving and at idle it doesn't smoke at all. Does have blow by, and to me the rattling noise is distinct from the pinging.
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\" with pics

I've been collecting them since I was 15.


This one won't be a permanent part of the fleet. I want to fix it up and use if for a while before I eventually sell it.
 
Re: Just brought home \"Brutus\" with pics

With as many trucks as you got, you could start your own off-road club with you being its only member.

/forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif
 
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