My M931 Recovery and Restoration thread...

[Csm Davis]

I will look this week and see where the military hooks them up.

 

[goldneagle]

I will look this week and see where the military hooks them up.

Thanks Jeff. I didn't know they had air ride seats in the M939 series trucks, but they sure need them!

I am also thinking of replacing the bench seat with some buckets sets attached to the top of the battery box. I think one out of an extended cab truck would be best if the back tilted forward so I can raise the battery box cover.

If anyone has any suggestions they are welcome.

 

[Derrickl112]

Thanks Jeff. I didn't know they had air ride seats in the M939 series trucks, but they sure need them!

I am also thinking of replacing the bench seat with some buckets sets attached to the top of the battery box. I think one out of an extended cab truck would be best if the back tilted forward so I can raise the battery box cover.

If anyone has any suggestions they are welcome.

The m939's with the armored cabs have air ride seats.


Suggestions? Ditch the bench seat for 2 air ride seats!

http://www.steelsoldiers.com/5-ton-...0-special-delivery-morning-6.html#post1143346

 

[Beerslayer]

A safe place on any 939 series truck to tap an air line for the seats is on the firewall right before the air horn solenoid valve. Typically that line is copper and you can just put a tee in it.

 

[goldneagle]

The m939's with the armored cabs have air ride seats.


Suggestions? Ditch the bench seat for 2 air ride seats!

http://www.steelsoldiers.com/5-ton-...0-special-delivery-morning-6.html#post1143346

I would have loved to install a 2nd air ride seat but the battery relocation kit was priced at $750 on the internet. Way out of my price range for that kind of upgrade. I think installing bucket seats on top of the battery box lid will make a good compromise. Thanks for posting the pictures. Nice looking cab.

 

[goldneagle]

A safe place on any 939 series truck to tap an air line for the seats is on the firewall right before the air horn solenoid valve. Typically that line is copper and you can just put a tee in it.

I like your suggestion. I will look into it tomorrow to see what it will take to tap in.

 

[Derrickl112]

I bought mine for $300.

 

[goldneagle]

I bought mine for $300.

Can you give a seller and location?

 

[goldneagle]

I found some new folding bucket seats from a van conversion on Ebay for $220 delivered for a pair (2).

They measure 21 inches wide each. I measured the bench seat on the M931 at 41 inches wide. I think the two seats can be squeezed together to reduce the footprint by 1 inch.

Since they fold over forward i can fold them in order to lift the battery box cover to access the batteries.

 

[goldneagle]

I got the seats over a week ago. They weigh more than i expected! 50 pounds each approximately. That makes my original plan unachievable as designed. 100 pounds is to heavy to lift to access the batteries! The solution is to design a way to easily remove the closest seat to the door before lifting the battery box cover. Something similar to the way the seats are removable from the back of a mini-van. The seat can then be placed on the floor in front of the battery box until the work on the batteries is complete.

Since I wrote the last entry i was able to visit Jeff Davis and pick up some replacement parts for the truck in order to bring it closer to factory conditions.

Here is a list of items gotten and installed:
-Mud flap brackets
-Replacement cover for trailer outlet
-Fender on front passenger side
-Trailer lights feed cord
-Spring for cord support
-2 longer battery bridge cables
-Horn button
-Round mirror for drivers side

I am attaching some pictures with the parts installed

 

[goldneagle]

This weekend I finally got a chance to installed the styrofoam blocking around the batteries. I have a hot wire cutter that I use in my shipping department to cut large blocks into custom size pieces for packing large heavy items. It's the cleanest way to cut styrofoam without the flaking mess a saw will produce.

I cut the blocks into pieces that would surround the batteries and keep them from moving around in the battery box. They also keep the batteries from hitting each other. I have done this before with my M820A2 and they worked great!

I also printed out my Vin Number in 2" letters to go on the side of the hood as required by Louisiana DMV as a Permanent (lifetime) tag for MV's. Spray painted it on the passenger side of the hood.

See pictures attached of battery box and vin stenciled:

 

[goldneagle]

While I was waiting for Timntrucks to show up yesterday I decided to tackle the replacement of the toolbox behind the passenger side of the cab. The door hinge has a crack in it and the door and face i bent.

I had a box left over from the m820A2 truck since Shane didn't want it. It is in much nicer shape than the one on the truck.

After a lot of struggling with the fine thread rusted bolts i was able to remove the old box from the frame and install the replacement. I used course thread bolts with lock washers instead of the military fine thread. (did i mention I hate the fine thread bolts?) The replacement tool box had 2 unistrut tracks already mounted on the top from the previous install where i double stacked 2 of them. I decided to keep the tracks in place.

I took a break for a few hours to get some other tasks done. When I had a chance to think about it I decided to add a 2nd box on top of the first like I had in the M820A2. I decided that the box I removed could go back on top as the 2nd box and i would repair the door and front at a later time.

I had been watch some of the American Restoration TV shows and saw how they managed to repair bent sheet metal and make it look new. So I thought I can make an effort to restore the front of the tool box as well.

Since the unistut still had the flat nuts installed it didn't take long to attach the 2nd tool box to the top of the first. Now I have 2 tool boxes to store tools and supplies in.

 

[goldneagle]

I decided to try to repair the fan clutch actuator on my truck. I was having overheat issues since the fan didn't seem to spin properly when the engine got hot. I read a thread that dealt with the same issue and decided to try to fix the actuator thermal switch that controls the fan clutch.

I removed the 2 air lines attached to the valve/switch. I took the valve apart and it looked good inside except that it was DRY. The o-rings looked fine. I cleaned the valve body and lubricated generously with WD-40. After reinstalling the actuator/valve and tested it. It kicked in under low air pressure, and then released after pressure built up.

The fan kicked in when the temperature went over 200 degrees F. It makes quite a ruckus when it is engaged. So it looks like I fixed the fan clutch actuator switch/valve.

 

[goldneagle]

Today I started to flush the cooling system in my truck. The coolant came out green/brown! I inserted a garden hose into the coolant tank above the engine. I started to flush the cooling system. I got black water coming from the radiator drain. It just kept coming out black to dark brown for a long time.

I shut off the drain and topped off the cooling system with water. I ran the engine until the thermostat opened up and let the water circulate. I reopened the drain and saw more black water come out. I kept water flowing and it came out brown. I repeated it over and over for hours!

Finally I decided to call a friend and he suggested I remove the upper radiator hose and let more water volume flush out the engine cooling system. I removed the hose and turned the water pressure on full. I am using a 3/4" industrial hose so I get a lot of water volume. I ran the engine several times and saw a lot of black/brown water come out f the cooling system. Finally after over an hour the water was almost clear!

I am not sure how much water I used to flush the cooling system, but the middle of the back yard is flooded! I drained the last of the water out of the cooling system through the drains in the radiator.

I decided to add a bypass coolant filter to my system. I will remove the heater hose connections to the engine and install inline brass T's and ball valves for the bypass filter. I went to Home Depot and purchased all the brass fittings for the project tonight. i will install them in the morning.

 

[juanprado]

Goldneagle,

The bracket on top of my coolant reservoir is cracked so I took it off this morning. My antifreeze is pretty green and I had partially flushed it when I changed my water pump in Feb.

When I inverted the tank and started to wash it out to bring to the welding shop, lots of nasty rusty sludge came out. It was not apparent as I drained it dry and all was good but at an angle with the jet of the hose, I had some nastys come out for a few minutes.

Since you are doing a thorough cleansing, you might want to think about the reservoir.

Good Cleaning,

Juan

 

[goldneagle]

Goldneagle,

The bracket on top of my coolant reservoir is cracked so I took it off this morning. My antifreeze is pretty green and I had partially flushed it when I changed my water pump in Feb.

When I inverted the tank and started to wash it out to bring to the welding shop, lots of nasty rusty sludge came out. It was not apparent as I drained it dry and all was good but at an angle with the jet of the hose, I had some nastys come out for a few minutes.

Since you are doing a thorough cleansing, you might want to think about the reservoir.

Good Cleaning,

Juan

Since the reservoir was the flushing point of my cooling system clean out it got plenty of cleaning. I had the hose on full for quite a while! I appreciate the info. Every little bit helps.

Today I am installing the bypass filter assembly and adding coolant.

 

[goldneagle]

Here are some pictures of the plumbing work I did for the bypass cooling filter project. I ordered the bypass filter kit from NAPA and it will be in tomorrow morning. More to follow!

 

[juanprado]

Looking good. I like your Idea!

BTW, NAPA sells the coolant filter with the chemical additive loaded into the filter and it comes in different lengths but they use the same base. Check wix webpage if you need more info.

 

[goldneagle]

Looking good. I like your Idea!

BTW, NAPA sells the coolant filter with the chemical additive loaded into the filter and it comes in different lengths but they use the same base. Check wix webpage if you need more info.

Thanks! Will be picking it up tomorrow. I'll check into it.

 

[goldneagle]

Went to NAPA this morning to pick up the bypass coolant filter kit i ordered yesterday. WHile I was there I ask for a price quote on a replacement thermostat. Price was right so i ordered one. I was told it would be there around 2:00 PM. I also picked up a transmission filter and some 10 weight oil. Figured I needed some to replace whatever I lost during the filter change.

Went home and installed the bypass filter on my truck. Everything went well. Just used some scrap unistrut and aluminum angle as the support for the filter housing. I hooked up the 5/8" hose from the barbed fittings I installed yesterday.

I replaced the transmission filter with the new one i just got. The old one was marked 9-xx-02.

I proceeded to remove the fitting that was holding the thermostat and removed the thermostat.

At 1:30 PM I went to NAPA to get the thermostat and sealant. I cleaned out the area around the thermostat housing and installed it. i closed up the housing and attached the hoses back.

After 2 hours i added the coolant back into the system. I will wait until tomorrow to pressurize the system.

Photos attached: