The_Hammer

Local machine shop just quoted me $325 to resurface the head

Thanks for the links! I like the price of the Fel-Pro head gasket but heard that they are inferior compared to a Cummins gasket. Is there any truth to this?

Awesome It's good to hear those bolts will hold up to that kind of use. I much prefer their price and ease of installation. So far I'm looking at a new head gasket, mighty diesel head bolts, thin injector washers, return line washers, valve seals and 60lb valve springs. I'm also going to check the valves and lap them if necessary.

That's good to hear. I'm not all that hard on my truck and my boost is set to 30 psi. After doing some more research I think I'm going to use Mighty Diesel head bolts and save myself $400+ vs studs and having the rocker arm stands machined. I'm not going for more that 450hp tops so I really don't see the need for studs.

A couple years ago I had a slight head gasket leak by the thermostat housing and ended up over torquing the head bolts by 5 or 10 ft lbs to stop it. Not exactly a smart move I know but was in a bind, 3 hours from home, and trying to leave a location. A lot of things have happened since then and I smooth forgot that I ever did that until I noticed a water leak today. It's leaking from the exact same spot as before so I see a new head gasket in my future. Now I've read a buch of different things about the cause of a leaking HG including a cracked or warped head, both of which would suck. With 300k miles on the truck how likely is it to be something serious like a cracked or warped head? I'm wanting to be as prepared as I can to minimize downtime once I'm ready to pull the head. I'm planning to have the head resurfaced, check the valve seats and grind them if necessary, replace valve seals, and install head studs and 60lb valve springs.

I've now got some questions about turbos. I'm going to upgrade my HX35 eventually and I'm not sure which direction to go. I'm not going any larger than the 5x.012's I have now and just want to maximize their potential. I was thinking about going with a 62/65/12 but I'm not sure yet. Thoughts?

We're all dried up and the river is back to normal. Almost done repairing the house, should be back in it within two weeks.

Contaigious Diesel 5x.012 VCO. I bought them lightly used (around 5k miles) from a member on Cummins forum.

Got the injectors in this morning. No more injector knock or popping while under a load and a TON more power! It pulls hard until around 2200-2300 rpm then starts defueling. I can only imagine what a 4k gsk and bigger turbo will do

ETA: Finally heard back from the guy, said he shipped them yesterday and I should have them middle of next week.

Well I'm still waiting on my injectors Guy was supposed to ship them Wednesday but didn't, didn't Thursday because he said he and his wife ended up with food poisoning but promised to ship them yesterday. I sent him a text a couple hours ago asking if he shipped them yet and haven't heard back. I'm starting to get pissed already. If he didn't ship them yesterday I'm telling him to refund my money or I'm filing a claim with PayPal.

Replaced the master cylinder with a brand new (not reman) unit and the brakes feel great. If you pump up the brakes and hold down on the pedal it will still slowly sink down but not bottom out. I'm guessing there might still be some air in the lines?

I managed to get the broken piece brazed back together and installed on the truck. My brakes are working pretty good again, just need to pick up a new master cylinder and it'll be 100% again. At least I can drive it now.

Well, it seems the fitting I need doesn't exist. Why the *&$#% they decided to use such an uncommon thread size is beyond me.

Well the pump threads are 12mm 1.25 pitch, something no one around here has. I'm going to try brazing the old one up and ordering something. If worse comes to worse I'll get a seal kit, pull the pump, then drill and tap it to a common size.

It made me laugh, it's all good man.

You say that as I'm still repairing my house from a literal flood we had a while back I'm for sure replacing all the lines, they're cheap and easy enough to replace. Hopefully everything will still work on without the pressure sensor.

Got the rest of the threads out. I'll head to the co-op in the morning and see if I can match up a new barbed fitting. I'm also going to replace the master cylinder since my pedal would go to the floor if you held it even before the vacuum issue. Does anyone know the difference between the 7500 gvw and 8800 gvw master cylinders? Will the 8800 gvw cylinder work on a 7700 gvw truck and if so does it offer any performance benefits? Found yet another vacuum leak, the line going to the vacuum pressure sensor was split. Tried to remove the line and the plastic nipple snapped off on the pressure sensor. WTF is up with everything breaking today? Damn already.

Was reading on Cummins forum that it's a discounted item. Once I get the threads out I'll see what size it is and order a fitting.

Here's where I'm at. There was a vacuum leak around the vacuum pump check valve that screws in to the vacuum pump, it's not leaking anymore as at broke right the EFF off. So, where the hell does a person find one of these check valves? Not my picture but this is what happened to mine, except I still have to get the rest of the fitting out of the pump.

No. Checked the check valve and it's working correctly.

Would a malfunctioning check valve cause this? It has ABS but no lights are on.

My brakes just started acting up, the pedal gets hard and can barely stop. I have vacuum brakes and not hydroboost. I pulled the large vacuum line out of the booster to inspect it and when I did you could hear it suck air. This was after the truck had been sitting for 15 minutes or so which means I don't have a vacuum leak. I have no fluid leaks anywhere and the master cylinder is still full. Only thing I can think of is the booster just took a dump.

I just remembered what the shop that popped my injectors a couple years ago told me. He said the P7100 wears out before the injectors do and that it was probably time for a rebuild

I should have the new injectors this weekend. Oh, and