Unverified Ownership The Whambulance

This past weekend's work consisted of trying to change the blown brake line. Easy! There's so much room for activities under there! It runs right along the frame rail! There's already a union in the middle of the chassis, presumably from the last time this happens and praise be the lord the blown line unscrewed from that without much drama but...

The spot where the line connects to the chassis-to-axle hose is basically impossible to reach without dropping the driveshaft... Which should be easy, except it's blasted on there tighter than we can deal with without air tools (aside from the one bolt that was less than finger tight). And it can't get close enough to the shop for the air tools to be effective (70ft of hose is less than conducive to getting good power output). So that ain't happening right yet.

And it seems like the fitting where it connects to the hose is stripped anyway, so may as well replace the hose. Except the confined space makes it impossible to pull the fugging spring clip holding the hose to the bracket. The bracket is, of course, welded to the frame.

The approximate plan is to extend the brake hose bracket, cut the existing hose, attach a new hose to the bracket extension, run the new line to the new hose, and pretend everything is fine.

After that, I'll get a road service company to come change all 6 tires on site. 8 lugs per corner torqued to like 300ftlb, without air tools. Not having to do that myself is worth hundreds of dollars in road service fees

Then drive it to a truck shop for the safety inspection and have them change the air springs and loosen/retighten the driveshaft bolts.

Ordered:
  • Like $500 worth of professional brake tube bending and flaring tools because I am sick to death of the parts store DIYer ones that don't work for shit
  • A coil of stainless brake line
  • A bunch of stainless brake fittings
  • A new rear brake chassis-to-axle hose
  • 3/4 drive 33mm socket (lug nuts) (just in case)
  • 3/4 drive 10 inch extension because dually
Need to buy in person:
  • Jackstands of sufficient magnitude
  • A bottle jack capable of dealing with this monster
Added to to-do after state safety inspection:
- Tap an air tool system off the air suspension reservoir.


Incidentally, here's a lighter duty, similarly equipped one for sale with not much other than distasteful graphics added and some inexplicable firefighting gear:
3556550

That guy really needs to put down the crackpipe.
 
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Added to to-do list:
Check batteries. They are probably AT LEAST 8 years old.
FG proof photo.
 
Like, I've never even heard of this kind of system. I don't actually understand how it works and that scares me.

Our mid-'80s GMC dump truck (was a Ryder rental in a previous life) has a similiar system. I haven't had to do anything to it, but it doesn't get driven either.
 
Police vehicle decommissioning: SMASH EVERYTHING WITH HAMMERS AND PAINT OVER THE DECALS

Ambulance decommissioning: Peel the decals off, leave the rest (previous owner got it with the light bars and only removed them after nearly being shot by podunk idiots. I have the light bars...
Can you get a clear lens and put amber bulbs in the light bar?
 
Can you get a clear lens and put amber bulbs in the light bar?
There's a permitting process for amber in this state.

Also they're the old-school 90s light bars where the whole damned assembly is a big piece of colored lens with a rotating dingus inside. I'm not sure I ever saw a clear one of those.
 
There's a permitting process for amber in this state.

Also they're the old-school 90s light bars where the whole damned assembly is a big piece of colored lens with a rotating dingus inside. I'm not sure I ever saw a clear one of those.

They do exist, but are problematc. Much like todays headlight lense fogging issue and yellow bulbs don't produce as much light. So it is just better to use a brighter white bulb behind the various color lenses.

Most times they are used by people like you, that want the light bar, but are not allowed to legally run colored lights.
 
I love this, it's just the kind of stupid thing I would like to do if I had the space, really looking forward to see where it goes. I've been watching the Aging Wheels school bus project and although that is going in a totally different direction there are definitely similarities in the craziness of both projects. :D

The only question that sticks in my head is why make do with the shitty engine? Why not go full Sloppy Mechanics and put a junkyard LS with a couple of turbos in the thing and go for broke?
 
I love this, it's just the kind of stupid thing I would like to do if I had the space, really looking forward to see where it goes. I've been watching the Aging Wheels school bus project and although that is going in a totally different direction there are definitely similarities in the craziness of both projects. :D

The only question that sticks in my head is why make do with the shitty engine? Why not go full Sloppy Mechanics and put a junkyard LS with a couple of turbos in the thing and go for broke?
Weight. Would need to retain an industrial transmission (or a very heavily beefed up consumer transmission) which means an ISO bellhousing.

I've been looking at the Cummins in the Ram... They did sell these with 6BT's.... Once a modern diesel is in, it's the easiest thing in the world to chiptune.

Of course, I can just turn the fuel screw and make this a higher rated engine. They're physically the same.
 
Incidentally, there actually is an aftermarket for this engine, thanks to tractor pulls.
 
Weight. Would need to retain an industrial transmission (or a very heavily beefed up consumer transmission) which means an ISO bellhousing.

I've been looking at the Cummins in the Ram... They did sell these with 6BT's.... Once a modern diesel is in, it's the easiest thing in the world to chiptune.

Of course, I can just turn the fuel screw and make this a higher rated engine. They're physically the same.

Don't turn up that DT466 up to much...

 
Don't turn up that DT466 up to much...

About 300 horses max on this pump and valve springs (springs float north of like 3400RPM. 2700RPMish stock redline, yo.) which would really require a bigger turbo.
 
I approve of this level of lunacy. If I had the space, I'd be doing the same kind of crap.
 
Okay. Replacement hardline made. The softline however, is the wrong part. It's correct for the axle to caliper bits, but the center line. I have ordered one of those.

Unfortunately one of the axle hardlines did not survive being undone from the softline (which has the tee integrated to the fitting) so that'll need redoing too.

Tomorrow is all about getting the p-clips undone.
 
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