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I keep forgetting that most of the parts on the M656 are standard, ordinary, "farmer" parts. I'm used to buying Unimog parts which are only made by elves in the Black Forest of Germany! It's a standard Bendix TP-2 valve, and is no longer available. I can't complain too much - they were made...

I was going to take the M656 for a spin yesterday, but couldn't get my air pressure above about 50 psi. I discovered that the tractor-trailer protection valve was releasing a lot of air through its vent. The valve is FSN 2530-907-0668 or part 8738146 I removed the valve and am ready to take...

Unfortunately you're not close to me (Blaine) and you're a long way from Bjorn (Virginia). However, there are lots of Steel Soldiers members in the Tacoma and Portland areas. There's a big rally in Graham in July. There's also a big July event at the Arlington Air Show. I also have a Unimog...

I have an M656 that I bought from another member of the forum. It's terrific. Search in the five ton post Viet Nam forum for lots of pictures and info. We need pix of your vehicles. This forum loves pix. Where in WA are you?

Here are a few pix of my new shop with my vehicles. The shop is 50x74 with a 14 foot door and 16 foot ceiling. There are also a couple of 12 foot doors. The shop is just basically complete. Shelves and workbenches and storage and weld area and compressor are yet to come. I have lighting and...

I use a pair of 12 ton hydraulic jacks in sequence to lift my axle. I raise the first jack as far as it goes. Then I put the second jack on blocking and raise it. Then, the first jack is removed and reblocked, etc. I follow the jacks with either a 12 ton or 6 ton jack stand, depending on...

In Washington state, a CDL is not required by drivers of vehicles with air brakes that don’t otherwise qualify as a commercial vehicle. See "Who doesn’t need a CDL?" at the Washington Department of Licensing link: WA State Licensing: Who doesn't need a CDL? Here's also another link which...

Bjorn, I drilled and tapped the caps, and then installed short #8 screws. Instead of grease on the exposed parts of the ball, I used Never Seize. I also used Never Sieze where the tie rod tapered pins fit into the sockets. Stuart, I've been very happy with progress on the shop. For the...

I've been unable to drive the M656 for the past couple of weeks. All the equipment and supplies for my shop construction have been taking up my driveway and turnaround space. Today I finally got it out on the road with the non-tight tie rod ends. Wow - it's so nice to drive. I still have to...

I was hoping to finish the tires and get a quick ride Wednesday. Unfortunately/fortunately my yard and driveway were full of heavy equipment for putting up my new shop. The last thing I wanted to do was distract anybody from their work. I've attached a few pictures of the significant progess...

Bjorn, Not to worry about the yard. The soft spots are all being fixed. We're using the soil that's dug out for the shop and driveway to fill holes in the yard. I've attached a couple of pix of the construction from my web cams. The yard is mostly level but the cameras are tilted. I guess...

I'm almost finished. Wednesday I replaced all the castle nuts for the tie rod ends. I also replaced the two tires that I had previously removed for clearance. I went for a quick drive in the yard to remove any stress (mine and the steering system's). There wasn't anything tricky involved, it...

Humble1 & timntrucks, I have no intention of trying to swim the truck. Most of the easily accessible water in my area is salt water. There's a lot of 41 year old wiring that will get wet. Much like "flank" speed on ships, the amphibious feature is great if someone is shooting at you. My...

humble1, You're probably talking about my M656, which I bought from Stalwart. It's terrific. I'm hoping to get the steering put back together this coming Wednesday. Search for "m656" in the forum and you will find a plethora of pictures.

I sent bid requests to six companies. Four haven't bothered to respond. One responded with a no-bid ($1000 minimum). HC Pacific out of Walnut CA has the nuts for $20 each. I haven't decided how many to order yet.

I finished cooking the last joint this afternoon. This is the evil number 2, which is connected to the pitman arm. I still can't remove the joint from the pitman arm. The joint was super stiff before cooking, but nice and loose now. I'll start putting the steering back together next...

I reinstalled the rear drag link between the power steering cylinder and the idler arm. That's the only part of the steering system installed. That is, the front and rear reach rods were not installed. So, there were only three moving joints. Number 1 connects the frame to the power steering...

The last two tie rods ends are cooking right now. They should be done around 1930 tonight. plan for Saturday: pack (now cool) tie rods in truck drive to Blaine reinstall tie rods and reach rods torque castle nuts reinstall two remaining tires torque lug nuts on all four steering wheels...

Tim, I thought about grease fittings, but decided to follow cranetruck's procedure. cranetruck is the canonical resource for the rehabilitation of this steering system as far as I'm concerned. He did this process two or three years ago, and his truck steering is still fine. Of course, the...

Stuart, Unfortunately, the M656 won't be ready on Saturday morning. I had thought about taking the Mog, but it's not highway-ready right now, either. What I really want is to get the M656 put back together. It was fun to drive, even with the somewhat stiff steering. I'm looking forward to...