Just Got My Deuce, and of course a few new questions.

[Reaper651]

Hey All,
Well, I finally got my truck! Its now at its temporary home about 45 minutes from my house. It hadn't ran in 7 years and it fired right up for me to load it on the trailer. It does have a couple issues, all gages with electric senders don't work, headlights work but no other lights do, the alternator isn't charging, it needs new seat cushions etc. Nothing too serious. The only problem that has me a little nervous is it does not want to idle. It tries to idle, RPM surges a few times then dies. If you use the hand throttle to hold the idle up a bit it stays running. I only drove it a tiny bit, (I know but I couldn't help myself) but I also noticed that upon giving it throttle just after a shift, there is also a short lag time in the RPM coming up. The fuel in the tank smells a little old but looks clean and the electric pump is working. I know I need to change the fuel filters and get fresh fuel in the tank before even considering anything else, but if that doesn't fix it is there anything else to consider before diving into the IP? I was also wondering if the FDC could cause this problem? There are a few good threads on this problem but they all seem to point at the hydraulic Head aside from the obvious issues of dirty fuel filters, fuel leaks etc. Might anyone have any tricks or things to look at? Aside from this issue, the engine seems to run great and has good power. I might be getting ahead of myself by asking such questions before changing fuel filters and fuel, but I figure its worth being prepared for the worst. I'm also hoping that the little drive I took didn't hurt anything, as I only drove it about a quarter of a mile and I must say, it was an awesome feeling sitting behind the wheel of this fine piece of green Iron. Thanks in advance.

 

[rustystud]

Drain your fuel, replace your filters, replace your fuel, and then run it for awhile. If after that you still have problems we'll talk.

 

[swbradley1]

Yes, change fuel and filters, primary and secondary and maybe put Seafoam in it. Then see how it does.

 

[Reaper651]

SeaFoam? Is that some type of IP cleaning additive? When I change the fuel filters, I was going to pour a little ATF in the final fuel filter can. Its been said that the ATF will help clean and lubricate everything as it goes through. Is that a good idea? Thanks for the help. Time for me to buy some filters.

 

[bonedoc]

Seafoam is a fuel system cleaner. It will dissolve carbon build up and fuel residue. Remember diesel is an organic compound and after sitting for 7 years there is bound to some nasty residue in your tank, lines, and filters.

 

[EWhytsell]

As for the electrical gauges not working, I wonder if they are getting power from the master switch?

 

[ATPTac]

I'm going to agree with everyone else. If the truck has been sitting for 7 years, chances are the fuel is garbage. Get that changed along with the filters, run some Seafoam or something similar through the tank and then take it out and give it a good drive. It's extremely likely that you're going to develop some leaks that weren't there before from it sitting for so long, so keep that in mind as well. Let us know how everything turns out. Good luck and congrats on the new truck!

 

[brianp454]

Get ready to check out the entire brake system, re-do the axle seals, re-pack bearings, etc. Search the thread stepxstep

 

[Reaper651]

As for the electrical gauges not working, I wonder if they are getting power from the master switch?

This is a good question. I'm going to try to do some diagnosing this weekend. I will start at the master switch. And I might look into the alternator also. I can't find the regulator and there is only 2 wires coming out of the alternator, so I'm assuming it has an internal regulator. Oh, is there any fuseable links on military trucks or just circuit breakers and buss fuses?

Get ready to check out the entire brake system, re-do the axle seals, re-pack bearings, etc. Search the thread stepxstep

Yes Sir this is all on the list. I was told that the brakes didn't work and was surprised to find out that they actually do work. Made it a lot easier to load and unload. But I'm definitely going to RR the master cylinder, air pack, brake lines and wheel cylinders. I would like to have some nice steel braided lines made up eventually. I also want to check into finding some very good high quality grease for the bearings. Also, what seals do you recommend? It looks like Ouverson Offroad makes all the seals for the Rockwell axles, and judging by their other awesome parts, I'm assuming these are the best. Thoughts?

Thanks again to all for the help.

 

[whiskey357]

Howdy and congrats on the green machine hehehe....now that you are bite good and hard.....folk are right go thru everything...all filters and fluids change and replace.....Good idea from a friend of mine....get out the smartphone and record everything on top and bottom....looking leaks of any kind....Do all your PMS and then drive it ...then take phots again ...compare then there you go with the new leaks and stuff to play with ....have fun it is a gas...

 

[Reaper651]

I almost forgot, here are a couple pictures of my truck.

 

[brianp454]

Reaper get the basics dialed in before getting into too much hotrod stuff. I've been at it for a year and am shopping for parts and wondering if my front axle in a boat anchor...

 

[cattlerepairman]

What does the data plate on the passenger side of the dash say about your truck? It appears from the pictures as if the cab were 1970' MERDC camo and the bed was the later 3 colour camo. I wonder what happened there.
The truck looks solid, cosmetics aside.
Is it a non-turbo multi (thin exhaust stack)?

 

[Scar59]

Reaper,
Nice old truck, hard top is a plus. Follow the advice recieved so far, leave the ATF out of the mix for now. After the Seaform treatment, run Diesel Klean fuel additive with your fill ups. I recovered a '73 that sat for a long time and had the same idle issues, clean the fuel system and run the Diesel Klean product and it should clear right up. Give that truck a good home.
JC

 

[Reaper651]

Reaper get the basics dialed in before getting into too much hotrod stuff. I've been at it for a year and am shopping for parts and wondering if my front axle in a boat anchor...

I agree, I will be getting everything dialed before I think about doing any mods. About the hotrod stuff, I'm not sure I understand. Do you mean, don't bother with the Ouverson seals and try to find NOS? I think Ouverson makes seals for stock Deuce axles too but I could be wrong?

What does the data plate on the passenger side of the dash say about your truck? It appears from the pictures as if the cab were 1970' MERDC camo and the bed was the later 3 colour camo. I wonder what happened there.
The truck looks solid, cosmetics aside.
Is it a non-turbo multi (thin exhaust stack)?

Thanks for bringing up the paint as I forgot to mention it. I'm wondering about this too. Its hard to see in the pics, but the cab also has a few stripes of desert tan on it, not sure if that's significant. The dash plate says: M35A2 WO/W. The Id Number is 04F-63271 0525-209xx Maker is General Products Division, Jeep Corporation. I have heard that the 71 in the I.D. number is the year. I hope this is true because there is no year stamped anywhere. The engine is a non turbo White LD-465-1C. Block date is 3-23-71. It has a TMC 3053 Trans, Rockwell transfer case and Rockwell axles. The front axle has the newer silicone rubber boots, which seems strange. The numbers on the bumper have been painted over but I was able to make them out. I can post them later.

Reaper,
Nice old truck, hard top is a plus. Follow the advice recieved so far, leave the ATF out of the mix for now. After the Seaform treatment, run Diesel Klean fuel additive with your fill ups. I recovered a '73 that sat for a long time and had the same idle issues, clean the fuel system and run the Diesel Klean product and it should clear right up. Give that truck a good home.
JC

I'm hoping its just the old fuel and filters, and not the IP. I figured the ATF in the fuel was a cheap version of a fuel system cleaner. After hearing about Seafoam, I won't bother with the ATF. To be honest with you all, I probably jumped into a hobby that is a little over my head and current budget but I have wanted one of these since I was a little kid, the truck was a great price and I couldn't let the previous owners scrap it. Yeah, that was their plan. Once I finally find a job, I will be able to start throwing some serious money at it but for now its going to be a slow process of getting the truck up and running. Lol I needed a all terrain vehicle and this truck was a lot cheaper than a blazer or jeep, not to mention the cool factor. I just hope the parts availability will remain the way it is for a long time. I also need to decide on what I want to do about electrical connectors as some of them need to be replaced.

I can't say enough how much I appreciate all of your help. If I hadn't found Steel Soldiers, I probably would have not bought this truck. Thanks again everyone.

 

[porkysplace]

This is a good article on figuring the year out .
Deciphering the codes: Kaiser-Jeep and AM ... - Military Trader

 

[SteveKuhn]

Over one's head and beyond budget seems to be an entry requirement for the hobby. Don't feel like the Lone Ranger. Look at the bright side. There's usually a lot of crawling around looking and elbow grease stuff to do on these trucks that costs little to nothing to keep you busy until you find that gig. Biggest problem will probably be finding time off from the truck work for job interviews.

Good luck with it. Personally, I like MERDC.

Steve

 

[Reaper651]

Over one's head and beyond budget seems to be an entry requirement for the hobby. Don't feel like the Lone Ranger. Look at the bright side. There's usually a lot of crawling around looking and elbow grease stuff to do on these trucks that costs little to nothing to keep you busy until you find that gig. Biggest problem will probably be finding time off from the truck work for job interviews.

Good luck with it. Personally, I like MERDC.

Steve

Thanks for the encouragement. I'm definately glad I bought the truck. Lol of course all my friends said I was crazy to buy it. Well, that just made me more determined to get it. The paint scheme on the cab does look cool but I do wonder what happened with that. Maybe the bed was replaced for one reason or another. Eventually I will probably re paint it with the proper camo pattern. However I hate to cover up that nice lead based paint. I like that old paint. Once I wash it, it will probably darken up a bit. It has a thin film on it and I have cleaned it up in a couple places and the paint looks great. I wish I could still get the lead based paint. My pickup truck is a 1991 and the paint has all but come off, but this old 1971 Deuce's paint still looks good. That's got to say something about the older paint quality. I have to finish paying it off before I can really start throwing money at it. A good friend of mine loaned me the money to buy it,(yeah that's how broke I am right now) because the previous owners decided it needed to be gone a little earlier than I expected. I agree with you in that I can do a lot of work on the truck without costing too much $$. This has already been a fun project and I have only scratched the surface. I can't wait till I can really get after it.

Thanks for the help everyone.

 

[SteveKuhn]

Keep in mind that 'proper' camo for your truck might well be MERDC depending on the period you want to paint it. Here's a starting place:

www.google.com/#q=merdc+camouflage+

 

[EWhytsell]

I'm not 100%, but I think the alternator is also energized by the master switch. Might have to check a manual for that though.

On this trucks "KEEP IS SIMPLE" applies when checking about anything and especially electrical problems. Remember its old and the grounds can be rusty. The gauge cluster grounds to the dash and sometimes just turning the screws that hold it in place can cause my gauges to twitch, LOL.