NIsaacs

Are you saying you change out your fluid every year and disassemble all components front and rear? I change my fluid with a front brake pad job (twice) it is due now but the brakes last so dang long....I have never disassembled any part of my system and it is not likely that I ever will.

This is what happens to the NV4500, 3rd gear boosted launch with 600 hp, not mine

I agree, however, an analog gauge probably can't read the difference. Pretty sure a digital could but probably not enough to matter.

Thanks, these old trucks are a work of art...kind of like the Energizer Bunny...My son gets in the way on a 6% grade with his '16 Ram dually, he is at about 34k GCW v/s my 26k tho, lol https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8L98Y9OK48

I really wanted to go down to the 265's but they didn't have what I wanted in that size. I was surprised they only had two sets in stock v/s 4 sets in the 285. They had a set just like I took off (Mastercraft, economy Cooper) and a set of Ironman's (economy Hercules) I didn't want any more economy's Lol. I did buy the Road Hazzard Warranty this time since the Hercules are an unknown and I go off highway a lot. I had to unload this skidsteer because even in 4x4 I couldn't get up the hill. 2.5 miles to the job site, 4x4 the whole way. My son is spun out on the same hill with a load of rebar, so Ram tows Ram. I do hope these tires last longer....

Which Monroe's? The Magnums and gas Grande are lifetime warranty. I usually change mine out about every 100K, just because.... Like now, they seem fine but they are getting old, so I am looking at the Napa Reflex with lifetime warranty, again just because I don't use the warranty because I really can't say they are bad, just get tired of looking at them. Just like my front brakes, after all my tire rotations and inspecting the pads, I usually get tired of looking at them and change them @ around 30%. I figure in an emergency more pad is better. Still on the original rotors and calipers.

It looks like your oil temp sender is too high, you might be getting a false reading. And your truck is just too dang clean!

Replaced the junky Mastercraft tires today with Hercules Terra Trac AT II's in the same size, 285/75x16E. Only 22K miles on the old ones, rated for 50K. I did get some prorated tread wear credit out of them. They weren't quite to the wear bars but on the roads I travel, I didn't want to go any longer. Nothing I hate worse than a flat tire or dead battery.

OP, what year is your truck? Edit: Never mind, it is in the thread heading, I was looking in the sig.

The two joints pictured appear to be drive shaft joints, I understand you want axle u-joints? Napa performer joint is P374 or Napa SKF is UJ374 for the front axle.

Hoopty car can't hang with the old Dodge. Towing 6.2 tons of mortar sand up a 5% grade, 6th gear, Edge Juice on level 3, pulled me down to 63-64 mph then just hung in there, 26,750 lbs GCW. The next hill is 6% so that required a down shift to 5th. Sorry about the sneeze, I should have edited that out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHW2uGPAVJ8

I have used the Monroe Magnum (Napa) for years, now the Gas Grande (Napa). However, I am looking at these now (Reflex) the specs sound good. https://www.napaonline.com/en/search?text=shocks&q=N%3D5002000%2B5002200%2B200220100%2B10200100%2B50200300%2B50299900%2B1000021600%2B2800863%26Nty%3D1%26Ntt%3Dshocks%26Ntk%3DKeyword&isApplication=true&indices=API

Here is my line up of floor jacks. Left to right, 3.5 ton Napa, 2.25 ton Walmart (old), 1.5 ton Evercraft Napa (aluminum and steel) and 1.5 ton Walmart carried in my pickup. The new 1.5 Evercraft is going in the truck too. Napa has a bunch of them on sale with their "Real Deals" flyer till the end of the year. I think I will get this one for the shop. I really need three for tire rotations. https://www.napaonline.com/en/search?text=2.5%2Bton%2Bfloor%2Bjack&q=N%3D1000001900%26Nty%3D1%26Ntk%3DKeyword%26Ntt%3D2.5%2Bton%2Bfloor%2Bjack&isProduct=true&indices=PIA

Here ya go, also took pictures of where the cracks were.

Nice 1st gen

That looks like a nice hitch, Curt makes some good stuff. I have a gooseneck hitch and equalizer hitch from them. My oem cracked a few years ago so I welded it and then added some gussets at the location of the cracks. Then used a heavy U-bolt around the receiver and bolted it to my bumper, seems to be fine now.

Usually you can turn them with a screwdriver to expose the opening then whack it with a screwdriver and hammer. This one has the external ones. The heavy chisel works really well, even on an axle joint or any double joint/yoke combo, it is slender enough to reach down to the cross. A punch heavy enough to do the job is too fat, won't fit. I like the one with the mushroom top, it protects my hand when I miss I am fortunate that where I live, it is semi arid, not much rain or snow, so I don't have the rust that Mike has. I am sure with his 6# hammer they must have been almost welded in. That road salt or chloride they use is about like calcium chloride, the mix you use in tractor tires. That is some really bad stuff.

You must have one heck of an arm, my two handed sledge is only 8#, I doubt I could even swing a 6 with one hand. This is what I use for u-joints, I posted these a while back on another site. I don't use a vice or press. With a press, it requires you to move both caps at once, that is too much resistance and can bend a yoke. Smack the joint right in the cross with a big dull chisel, you only move one cap that way. Do not use the tools on the left, use the ones on the right. I think my hammer is a 2#, lol But when I hit, I hit, no tap tap.

You can't get the joint in the yoke without pulling both caps off for that cross.

It looks like it has one, just didn't get used much I guess. Since oem are non grease the OP probably didn't know about it till too late.

Good job! That is a cheap joint, note the seal and the size of the needles. The smaller the needle the better and the no grease have a better seal.

In 2016 I was sled pulling for the points championship in my class, so I hit all the pulls for United Truck and Tractor Pullers of Utah. 13,500 miles in 6 Rocky Mountain states and averaged 11.78 mpg. This is with my Edge Juice (to the nay sayers), 3.55 gears and 285/75x16 tires. The combination weighs 19k. I am thinking real serious about going back to 265's soon. For lower final drive ratio, my truck is a little too high for my trailer to sit level and my tire chains don't fit the 285's. They are also a little cheaper which is a good thing. Oh yeah, I did win, lol

Cool video, that guy has some money in that truck. The problem with Cat "back in the day before direct injection" they wouldn't start if you walked by with an ice cream cone. They were heavy, expensive, parts availability/dealer network was slim and no jake brake. Before electronics, Pittsburg Power would build you a 800 hp, single turbo big cam 3 or a twin turbo 1200 hp. They claimed the 1200 hp would go coast to coast without shifting. They must have used I-10 Lol. I think the badest of them all was/is the 1150 cube KT series Cummins @750 hp stock, out the door. For years, Freightliner and IHC were the only oem offerings. We had one 1693 Cat in a Pete and one KTA600 in a KW that ruled the roost in the log woods. However, if they got their front end on the down hill side in a bad turnaround, they were stuck. The rest of us with our little motors had no problem

Yes, my daily driver for the log woods for years, now just a toy. 1975 F-250 w/428, C6 w/low gear kit, NP203, Dana 44 HD front w/limited slip, 14 bolt GM rear with limited slip, 4.88 gears. I need 5.38's or more power, lol.

The 70's were good too! Here is some big block noise, still running the ole FE. Turn your speakers up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAl7Iywh-1s