Dad's Toy

[Kota]

Originally Posted by dadstoy

I'm staying the night in Mt Shasta. So beautiful. I can smell the pine trees. Mh did great over the mountains southern Oregon/northern Calif. Engine temp only varied from about 178 to 182. A recored radiator is the key to all your worries! Only issue this trip is a new problem with the starter. Sometime I turn key to start and absolutely nothing. Keeping my fingers crossed!

Probably a dirty commutator or a brush hanging up. That's one that will bite you at the worst possible time.

[Kota]

Originally Posted by Dakota

Probably a dirty commutator or a brush hanging up. That's one that will bite you at the worst possible time.

Or starter solenoid.

[dadstoy]

Originally Posted by Dakota

Or starter solenoid.

Starter is one of the last few things not yet replaced! I'm guessing time for another one! LOL

[ScrapIrony-2]

The 454s are notorious for overheating the starter, and the current solution is time and cooling...not a great solution, but pretty much the only one...Banks may help, but I get conflicting stories on this...some will swear by this, others will say that mileage does not change...my jury is still out there...it's a pricey investment, and I'm not yet convinced that it's worth it...6 mpg to 7 mpg is not a strong inducement...granted, we haul more stuff than should be allowed, but the 454 is a workhorse, and properly fed, should give at least 300,000 miles...in the past, I have learned that less 'tinkering' can actually improve your motor lifetime...I know a lot of you will disagree with me, but I'm on the road a lot more than most of you, and I'm enjoying what I bought it for...figure a minimum of 2 grand a year for maintenance, the big expense of tires every 5-7 years, and piddily crap just jumping up there, and yer gonna live cheaper than in the house-without-wheels. Quality and a bit more in spending far outweighs " Oh hell, now what do I do?"...side of the road sucks, and the extra bucks don't always give you satisfaction in that situation, but if you have some kind of warranty, you should be covered...and Good Sam offers a great coverage for the "Oh hell..." situations...m

[dadstoy]

Originally Posted by ScrapIrony-2

The 454s are notorious for overheating the starter, and the current solution is time and cooling...not a great solution, but pretty much the only one...Banks may help, but I get conflicting stories on this...some will swear by this, others will say that mileage does not change...my jury is still out there...it's a pricey investment, and I'm not yet convinced that it's worth it...6 mpg to 7 mpg is not a strong inducement...granted, we haul more stuff than should be allowed, but the 454 is a workhorse, and properly fed, should give at least 300,000 miles...in the past, I have learned that less 'tinkering' can actually improve your motor lifetime...I know a lot of you will disagree with me, but I'm on the road a lot more than most of you, and I'm enjoying what I bought it for...figure a minimum of 2 grand a year for maintenance, the big expense of tires every 5-7 years, and piddily crap just jumping up there, and yer gonna live cheaper than in the house-without-wheels. Quality and a bit more in spending far outweighs " Oh hell, now what do I do?"...side of the road sucks, and the extra bucks don't always give you satisfaction in that situation, but if you have some kind of warranty, you should be covered...and Good Sam offers a great coverage for the "Oh hell..." situations...m

The starter problem that just started on the last trip happens hot or cold...sometimes at first start in the morning, so not a hot starting issue. I have the Banks system (dad put it on yrs ago to stop manifold cracking issue) and it has a heat shield for the starter and oil filter. This one has to be solved before heading to the desert for Burning Man! I always try to buy quality parts from a local parts house...no more parts from Autozone!

[ScrapIrony-2]

OK, first would be battery connections, even if they look good, second would be ground connections, third would be the regulator under the doghouse(front, maybe sightly right of center), and then the alternator connections. My AS is the 3rd 454 I have owned, and I can tell you that cranking a start almost invariably takes three separate cranks...living in a cold environment sometimes requires using the glovebox hot switch to 'encourage' the beast...if it was a starter issue, I think you would have reported the 'skinning' noise associated with a bad kicker...carry a battery charger with you, use the gen to fire up AC so you can plug it in, and you can proudly limp to where you are headed...I have done this more times than I can count, but I got there, had a good time, and have replaced a lot of things I didn't previously know existed...it's all about the adventure...m

[dadstoy]

Originally Posted by ScrapIrony-2

OK, first would be battery connections, even if they look good, second would be ground connections, third would be the regulator under the doghouse(front, maybe sightly right of center), and then the alternator connections. My AS is the 3rd 454 I have owned, and I can tell you that cranking a start almost invariably takes three separate cranks...living in a cold environment sometimes requires using the glovebox hot switch to 'encourage' the beast...if it was a starter issue, I think you would have reported the 'skinning' noise associated with a bad kicker...carry a battery charger with you, use the gen to fire up AC so you can plug it in, and you can proudly limp to where you are headed...I have done this more times than I can count, but I got there, had a good time, and have replaced a lot of things I didn't previously know existed...it's all about the adventure...m

I'm thinking I have a ground issue!

[dadstoy]

I learned one thing on this last trip...I have the 60 gallon gas tank and not the 40 gallon.

[Keyair]

Originally Posted by dadstoy

I'm thinking I have a ground issue!

Trick I learned years ago and its free... kinda.
If you carry a set of jump leads... and who does not in reality...

Attach Black lead to a good point on the engine and other end to a good point on the chassis. Then attach the Red lead to engine again and the other red to the earth strap on the battery tray. Route them so they are away from exhausts etc... Not too tricky if you look and plan. Leave them in place.
If you dont have another start issue, then its one of the earths... you can disconnect one or the other to isolate the problem area...

[dadstoy]

Originally Posted by Keyair

Trick I learned years ago and its free... kinda.
If you carry a set of jump leads... and who does not in reality...

Attach Black lead to a good point on the engine and other end to a good point on the chassis. Then attach the Red lead to engine again and the other red to the earth strap on the battery tray. Route them so they are away from exhausts etc... Not too tricky if you look and plan. Leave them in place.
If you dont have another start issue, then its one of the earths... you can disconnect one or the other to isolate the problem area...

Steve, I'm definitely going to give this a try. Im thinking the engine to frame ground is ok since I have removed the engine to frame ground strap and wire wheeled the connection points. I'm going to guess it may be the battery to frame cable. On the rainy travel days I was getting a 09 error code on my brake controller (no ground). The ground wire on the controller is fairly short and goes to the firewall subframe. That all looks good. So maybe the subframe to frame is not grounded well, but I'm thinking it is the original battery ground connection on the main frame at the battery box under the door/step.

[Keyair]

I recently had a similar issue on my '73 Blazer...
Fully charged battery... Click.. on start...
Added stand alone battery boost box attached to battery posts... Click...

Checked all connections, noticed the engine has at least 2 additional grounds, but felt the one from the battery ground side to the frame rail... it was HOT!
Took it off, cleaned it up.... tried the starter again... Click but a slow spin of the starter.
Added the Boost box again... about the same...
Swapped the Ground from the boost box from the battery post to the alternator bracket...
Tried again... spun over like a dream, and started fine...

Wondered if it was a weak battery or weak starter or what...
Removed the boost box, and substituted a jumper cable between ground of battery and alternator bracket...
Started just fine..
Clearly an earth issue, that I will get into when I have a moment!

[dadstoy]

I need to replace the right side air injection pipe. Only supplier I have found is rockauto (no problem with that) for $30. Anyone know of any other suppliers?

[Keyair]

Thats where I got mine from...
They came in as one black and one chromated..


FYI... when I had to have the manifold skimmed on my Suburban, the tubes were stuck in there and were never ever coming out alive...
I would start soaking them as soon as you get a chance with penetrating fluid and plan for a fight!
Drills and taps at the ready!

[dadstoy]

Originally Posted by Keyair

Thats where I got mine from...
They came in as one black and one chromated..

FYI... when I had to have the manifold skimmed on my Suburban, the tubes were stuck in there and were never ever coming out alive...
I would start soaking them as soon as you get a chance with penetrating fluid and plan for a fight!
Drills and taps at the ready!

Well these parts are getting harder to find. Lucky for me it is the right side that is rusted through and has the exhaust leak and rockauto seems to be the only supplier that has it...they don't have the left side! Right side has shipped and I'll have it on Monday. And Steve, your right, I'll have to soak the $&@? out of it with liquid wrench to get it off!

[dadstoy]

I'm not sure I'm happy with the second clutch fan that I installed on the MH. The first replacement was from Autozone (never again). But to be fair, I had also put in a 180 degree thermostat. That is a big mistake after doing much research and from seeing my actual experience! The 454s need to run at 195 and the thermostat and clutch fan need to be matched. The first replacement engaged for 70 seconds then disengaged for 70 seconds. This was continuous for the previous 700 mile trip! Just before my 1000 mile trip to Coos Bay and back, I replaced the thermostat with the stock 195 degree unit and replaced the clutch fan with a unit from Napa. The Autozone and Napa units are made by the same company, but the Autozone one is made in China and the Napa one is made in the U.S.

On the trip over the mountains from Redding to Coos Bay, the clutch fan engaged for a 5-10 minute period after each start. It engaged at about 25-30%... Not too noisy. It only engaged maybe once or twice at about 25% on the long throttle to the floor grades.

On the trip home, the clutch fan seemed to be engaged at about 25% percent of its capacity on the entire trip. I don't think it should have come on at all. at least it was not on at full every other 70 seconds. There is still a noticeable difference in noise at no engagement and at 25% or so. Damn engine is very quite when that noise maker is not engaged!

My engine temp gauge only varied from about 178 to 182 degrees, assuming that it is correct. I'll tell you this, if you have cooling problems, recore the radiator. It will be the best money spent!

[Mike Leary]

Originally Posted by dadstoy

My engine temp gauge only varied from about 178 to 182 degrees, assuming that it is correct. I'll tell you this, if you have cooling problems, recore the radiator. It will be the best money spent!

I thought that was my problem as well. My mechanic buddy from the local Fire Dept. did some tests and found it was not only the sender, but the gauge, as well, that were worn out!

ISSPRO.com - Quality Gauges, Tachometers, Speedometers and more!

[dadstoy]

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Lassen is about 100+ miles from the ranch property where I keep the MH. The ranch is in the foothills about 50 miles west of the valley and about 500 feet above sea level Lassen is about 50 miles east of the valley at an elevation of 5000 to 10000 feet above sea level. This last week, the temperature in the valley and at the ranch was heading up to 100-105 degrees while Lassen was 75 to 80...it was definitely time to head to Lassen!

I entered the park at the north entrance and spent two nights at Manzanita Lake Campgrounds. For the third night, I headed south through the park and stayed at Summit Lake Campground. On the last day, I drove out through the south entrance of the park. It's a beautiful drive up to the summit at over 8000 feet and then down to Red Bluff in the valley. The speed limit through most of the park is 35 mph so no need to worry about those nuts cases sitting on your rear bumper.

Lassen is at the top of my list along with Yosemite as a great destination point for camping with the Motorhome. Lassen, like Yosemite has no RV hookups, so you have to be self contained.

[dadstoy]

More Lassen photos...

[crazeevw]

Dean, all pics are from iPhone? DAMN! Another place to add to my travels bucket list!
Thanks, Derek

[dadstoy]

Originally Posted by crazeevw

Dean, all pics are from iPhone? DAMN! Another place to add to my travels bucket list!
Thanks, Derek

Hi Derek. Yup all pics shot with iPhone. The Nikon SLRs and point and shoots are all in the closet somewhere collecting dust. I lost interest in carrying all that equipment around. IPhone pics look really good on the iPhone and they are not too bad viewing on larger format like the iPad as well.

Lassen is so beautiful...stay tuned for my Lassen video shot from the MH dashboard coming soon!