mountainexplorer
1/2 ton status
This event used to be called "Krejcis Mud Bog" and was in Peterson's 4-Wheel Magazine a couple years ago. Since then it has grown.
We went up late Thursday night. As usual, our big group cancelled again and it was me and a few of us in my motorhome and I drove my '80 GMC up after putting 235 miles on the motor since changing 2 valve springs the night before.
We got a decent camping spot, and Friday morning I put the other two Boggers on the front, finished bolting up my crossmember, and uncorked the header dumps.
When the pit opened, I ran through 7 times. Then the motor seized. I was thinking possible more valve spring issues... possibly dropping a valve and breaking a piston and things similar to what happened to my SB400. I hit about 6 grand with the 454 a few times.
Pulled valve covers and everything looked good. Pulled plugs, and all were clean and buring proper. Still wouldnt turn over. Pulled the oil pan and found these pieces of main bearings.
Since I chanced driving the truck there, we were stranded except for the motorhome. Our campsite neighbor nextdoor hooked us up with his buddy who worked at Car Quest in Bonners Ferry, Id, and I pulled a main and rod cap finding mains to be .010 and rods .020 under... and we got a set of bearings ordered.
After Car Quest closed, I pulled the rest of the bearings out and found the crank to be worse off than I thought, and found that the front main bearing slid forward out of its journal and into the bottom gear of the gear drive. I needed a different crank to make the motor last even another pass.
Time to pull the motor out again... about 1 week since it went in. I had all the tools except my balancer puller was stripped, so we put out a "needed" sign, and our neighbor camping up the hill hooked us up with one. I remembered I had a freshly turned 454 crank that was .020/.020, and started making phone calls.
Got my friend Keith to grab my "Utah Crew Cab" and car trailer and cherry picker from Ione on his way over to the mud bog Saturday morning. Meanwhile in Spokane, I had a friend Travis pick up some .020 main bearings and a pilot bushing in Spokane and Joe grabbed those from him and my crank, dropped them off with Crystelle (aka former "girl at the Schucks counter) and she drove them up to us. During the wait time I tore the old crank out and watched others run through the pit.
Crystelle showed up with the crank Saturday afternoon and I went to work polishing off some surface rust from sitting. (note the "nice" conditions for doing engine work in the background). Both her and Keith took off that afternoon and a couple other friends showed up later on.
As soon as I started laying bearings into the motor and the crank, people kept driving by blowing up dust... then is started raining and we had people throw a tarp over us as we worked.
When the bearing seized in the bottom crank gear, it sheared off the keeper key... then we lost the other one, so I had to make some by cutting some washers with a sawzall.
One flywheel bolt cost us over 45 minutes in looking for it, then another 30 minutes in travel time to go pick up one. One of the security guys knew a friend who had one, and a used oil filter (better than re-using the one that we had).
The entire day, people were walking by making comments and talking with us, and even stopping by when they needed bolts or belts which I had spares of. We helped one guy bend back his rim and air up his tire, and small crowds of people would stop and watch at times.
By nearly midnight, it was back in and ready to fire, and the crowd cheered us on as the motor came to life and ran.
Sunday, I ran it 4 times through the different pits then loaded it on the trailer before I could blow it again. (I know it wont last with the filthy conditions).
Then we loaded up and left for home Sunday. I felt bad trailering it home. In the 11 years we have owned the GMC, it has NEVER been towed anywhere before. It has always been the truck to drive itself everywhere and usually tow everything else in the past (in my Pre-Crew Cab days)
As strange as it may sound, I still had fun.
And heres a couple other rigs from up there:
We went up late Thursday night. As usual, our big group cancelled again and it was me and a few of us in my motorhome and I drove my '80 GMC up after putting 235 miles on the motor since changing 2 valve springs the night before.
We got a decent camping spot, and Friday morning I put the other two Boggers on the front, finished bolting up my crossmember, and uncorked the header dumps.
When the pit opened, I ran through 7 times. Then the motor seized. I was thinking possible more valve spring issues... possibly dropping a valve and breaking a piston and things similar to what happened to my SB400. I hit about 6 grand with the 454 a few times.
Pulled valve covers and everything looked good. Pulled plugs, and all were clean and buring proper. Still wouldnt turn over. Pulled the oil pan and found these pieces of main bearings.
Since I chanced driving the truck there, we were stranded except for the motorhome. Our campsite neighbor nextdoor hooked us up with his buddy who worked at Car Quest in Bonners Ferry, Id, and I pulled a main and rod cap finding mains to be .010 and rods .020 under... and we got a set of bearings ordered.
After Car Quest closed, I pulled the rest of the bearings out and found the crank to be worse off than I thought, and found that the front main bearing slid forward out of its journal and into the bottom gear of the gear drive. I needed a different crank to make the motor last even another pass.
Time to pull the motor out again... about 1 week since it went in. I had all the tools except my balancer puller was stripped, so we put out a "needed" sign, and our neighbor camping up the hill hooked us up with one. I remembered I had a freshly turned 454 crank that was .020/.020, and started making phone calls.
Got my friend Keith to grab my "Utah Crew Cab" and car trailer and cherry picker from Ione on his way over to the mud bog Saturday morning. Meanwhile in Spokane, I had a friend Travis pick up some .020 main bearings and a pilot bushing in Spokane and Joe grabbed those from him and my crank, dropped them off with Crystelle (aka former "girl at the Schucks counter) and she drove them up to us. During the wait time I tore the old crank out and watched others run through the pit.
Crystelle showed up with the crank Saturday afternoon and I went to work polishing off some surface rust from sitting. (note the "nice" conditions for doing engine work in the background). Both her and Keith took off that afternoon and a couple other friends showed up later on.
As soon as I started laying bearings into the motor and the crank, people kept driving by blowing up dust... then is started raining and we had people throw a tarp over us as we worked.
When the bearing seized in the bottom crank gear, it sheared off the keeper key... then we lost the other one, so I had to make some by cutting some washers with a sawzall.
One flywheel bolt cost us over 45 minutes in looking for it, then another 30 minutes in travel time to go pick up one. One of the security guys knew a friend who had one, and a used oil filter (better than re-using the one that we had).
The entire day, people were walking by making comments and talking with us, and even stopping by when they needed bolts or belts which I had spares of. We helped one guy bend back his rim and air up his tire, and small crowds of people would stop and watch at times.
By nearly midnight, it was back in and ready to fire, and the crowd cheered us on as the motor came to life and ran.
Sunday, I ran it 4 times through the different pits then loaded it on the trailer before I could blow it again. (I know it wont last with the filthy conditions).
Then we loaded up and left for home Sunday. I felt bad trailering it home. In the 11 years we have owned the GMC, it has NEVER been towed anywhere before. It has always been the truck to drive itself everywhere and usually tow everything else in the past (in my Pre-Crew Cab days)
As strange as it may sound, I still had fun.
And heres a couple other rigs from up there:
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Most people I know would have just given up and gone home. 
, most people would just have gone home.
