Scarecrow

Sorry to hear you're having problems. Minnesota rule of thumb used to be $1000.00 per foot of lake front just for the land, not sure what it is now.

Good luck getting around TRF with all the construction. Seems like they want to make it impossible to get there from the north, south, and west. Mark

A third party may be the answer, but until things change it will never have a chance. What I believe would truly help is term limits. I really don't think the founding fathers ever envisioned anyone spending 20, 30, 40 years in congress/senate. In many cases these representatives are now millionaires (kind of funny how that happens) and have little or no contact with most of their constituencies until it is time to get re-elected. I've also got a real good feeling that this whole Corona thing is going to magically disappear or solve itself come December. Just my opinion, and that and a buck will get you a cup of coffee. Mark

Welcome to the land of sky blue waters! Just a couple of things that are different here than the Springs. First, as you have probably noticed, it can get a little "buggy", but that's what they make bug juice for. Second, the winters can get kind of cold, sometimes into the -40 f range. Once you get past those two things it's really a nice place. You ever go through Red Lake Falls, stop into the parts store and say Hi. Mark

Sorry to weigh in so late, but I've been kind of busy lately, and haven't been keeping up. The LED kit is a great idea, but LED headlight bulbs are NOT legal for on road use. I'm in the automotive parts business, and our company checked into this. This is from Philips lighting on why they don't make LED headlight capsules and for those using other may want to reconsider. The US Federal Motor Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108 specifically states for forward lighting (headlamps) that "You cannot replace your filament type light source (bulb) with anything else other than another light source" The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has concluded that it is impossible to produce a conversion kit (converting a halogen system to LED) that would be compliant with the federal lighting standard, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) no. 108. These noncompliant kits frequently include LED modules, control boxes, relays, and wiring harness adaptors. The NHTSA believes this equipment presents a safety risk to the public since these kits can typically produce excessive glare to oncoming motorists. In one investigation, NHTSA found that a converted headlamp exceeded the maximum allowable candlepower by over 800 percent. We are able to produce the LED Sealed Beams (which replace Halogen Sealed Beams) because the sealed beam unit in itself is a headlamp (contains a lens, reflector, and light source). When it is replaced, all these components are replaced with something new. When the integral beam was tested and passed to DOT/SAE requirements for beam the entire unit is passed, not just the light source. This is the same thing the OEM does to validate headlight assembly on a new vehicle, and why they can sell vehicles with LED headlamps. Long story short, (I know its already to long) it is illegal to replace a filament bulb (light source only) with a nonfilament bulb in the United States. Again, this is our suppliers reply, so if you want to use LED conversion headlight kits in you rigs, remember, this is at your own risk. Mark

One person sneezes, and 40 people crap their pants!

I installed the group 31's when my 34's went bad after 10 years. I just used a body saw to trim the edges of the battery tray and dropped them in with no problems. As to whether or not they're worth it, all I can say is when it drops to -30 to -40 f around here, and it does regularly in the winter, 1900 cold cranking amps is a very nice thing to have. Mark

Lot of good stuff here, but has anyone done anything with 215-235 85R 16 tires that us dually's have? truck currently has 235s on it, but am thinking of going back to the factory 215.

Running 305/50r20's with a dually would definitely kill your mileage. Mark

With factory replacement injectors going for about $100 over the counter, performance sticks don't really cost that much more and will really wake the truck up. Places like DAP will pop them to whatever spec you want. Mark

What injectors do you have? Stock, or something bigger? Without any leaks, I would think you should be able to hit at least 27 PSI with stock injectors. The other thing that comes to mind, is how many miles do you have on them? One of the biggest things I've learned is it takes fuel to make boost. Mark

The only reason to use #2 and treat it is that it has more BTU's, in other words, more power than a winter mix, which is normally about a 70/30 mix of #2 and #1. As I've said before, in Minnesota, we don't have a choice about biodiesel, the state says that's all you get. The reason I'm doing these tests is to find out: 1. Is the increased (maybe) mileage of #2 and treatment a better cost effective plan or: a) This also brings the question, what works if I gel up, (or for you southern boys, if you come a little too far north in the winter with untreated fuel) 2. Is the higher priced and less (maybe) mileage winter blend overall cheaper. This is what happens when you have time to think on long cold winter nights in northern Minnesota. Mark

Unintended consequence of this is I can say that Roadmaster XL diesel will not gel to at least -30 f. Got a little soupy, but would still pour. Mark

Okay, just tried the scanner we have at the store here (innova 3100), and it won't read my truck. What are you guys using for scanners for our cummins trucks?

I was going to experiment with 911 and Meltdown to see if they preform as advertised, and if so, which is best. Went to local Cenex with a couple of pickle jars and put about a quart in each. Left the jars outside last night, I mean why put it in the freezer when it's -10 F outside? Bad news is it was Roadmaster, which is somewhat winterized, and still not gelled. I'll leave it out until it gels or spring, whatever comes first. I did some reading on B5 and B20 studies by NDSU and U of M, and how cold affects both in farm equipment. The studies find that B5 blends have minimal effect on the CFPP (cold filter plugging point). B20 that is not treated with anti-gelling additives freezes about 3 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit faster than No. 2 petroleum diesel, depending on the cold-flow properties of the biodiesel and the cold-flow properties of the petroleum diesel. Guess I got to go to a truck stop to find some "straight" #2. When I find some, I'll try this again just for my own curiosity, and let you know what I come up with. Mark

If you're on a budget, and who isn't these days, you can buff the lenses clear and try to get the moisture out of the housings. The trick to buffing them out is by cleaning the lenses, you just took off the UV protection, and they will turn yellow and cloudy that much quicker. After you buff them out, give them a coating of clear spray paint for UV protection, and they will last longer. Just a couple of body shop tricks learned over time. Mark

Simple answer is no, the lights are cracked or are not sealed in some way. You can dry them out as posted above, but the condensation will return. The non sport headlights are pretty cheap online.

FPPF makes a product called Melt Down that is supposed to liquify gelled bio diesel, haven't had to use it yet, so I can't say how good it works. I have used their bio diesel ant gel, and I do know it works down to around -35 F

Here in Minnesota we are required to use biodiesel, so even though I don't really like it,we're just stuck with it. Summer fuel is the B20, and starts April 15 thru the end of Sep, when they switch to B5 or winter bio blend. I guess I've never noticed a mileage difference between the two, but that could be just the normal mileage drop in the winter making the difference between the 5 and 20% brews. I usually treat #2 than use the winter blend unless it gets real cold (-40). Big problem if you get caught with a tank of summer fuel and we get a cold snap in Oct. You probably know that bio starts to gel at around 40 F, and the higher the % better chance for a problem.

The heater elements of block heaters rarely fail, the main failure is usually the cord going bad/shorting. I work for a parts house( good way to pay for the hobby/addiction ), and the cord should be available for about 30-40 bucks

I was thinking about Mike's switch for a while now, but want to check my tps and flash to be sure that's not the problem. As I understand Mike's switch to work the high idle has to be enable. The MPG feature would be great as winters up here tend to be long and cold. The real fun is to have a cold snap in Oct, and get caught with B20 in the tanks!

Will I have to unplug the Edge to have it flashed?

Okay, From the top. Not sure how to verify tps is at 0%, idles at about 750-800 rpm No brake lights on or foot on brake when starting Manual trans, no neutral safety switch Speedo reads 0 Just trying to figure this out, high idle/ 3 cyl idle would be really nice when it's -30

Okay, so as I read this, the high idle will only work with a automatic?

Had my truck flashed years ago by Dodge for the high/3 cyl idle, but has never worked. Truck is a 98.5 3500 5spd with Edge EZ, living in northern MN the temps get down to -20 and lower routinely. Replaced the IAT sensor and still nothing, anyone got any ideas what the problem is?