1984 Chevy D30 What did I get myself into?

[the skull]

Check your brake lines! I popped one loading it on the trailer for the ride home!

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

Thanks everyone! Great info! I'm gonna peak on it in the morning and get the miles.... I'll let y'all know!

Yeah, I realized the springs were already over the axles when I was snapping the pictures.

I've got lots to learn, so keep it comin! I'm really excited to dig into it!

 

[Warthog]

Looks like the glowplug resistor pack has been bypassed, making the GP system straight 12v. (a good thing)

Make sure you read the stickies and do the Doghead stater relay upgrade. No need to break your new toy.

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

I've been browsing the stickies. LOTS of good info there. Tonight Chief is approving the deal with the department officers. Once I get the green light, I could have this in my driveway by late tonight!! maybe tomorrow!

Wasn't able to stop on my way to work to check miles. I'm waiting to hear from the guys at the station about the miles.

 

[whiskey357]

sounds like a weekend project........congrats getting the rig...should be fun

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

Yeah... Should be at least a few weekends worth.

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

So, manufacture date is 7/84, and there are 57878 miles on it. Just found out from Chief. He talked to his officers, looks like he's gonna strip the emergency light bar off the top, put 16" wheels on it (keeping the good tread for another brush truck) then I can bring it home. I am going over tomorrow to do the strip and switch. I'll try and take pictures and video of the whole process. Looks like she's comin' home!

 

[the skull]

Dude, mine has a mfr date 7/84 maybe they are sisters! And it was a brush fire truck too! Mine was in West
Virginia though

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

They very well could be sisters! I'm waiting to hear back from CARNAC on the specifics about my truck. How's yours lookin now?

 

[the skull]

Looks red. It also looks like it's headed to the scrapyard tomorrow with
a small load of junk I got from work! Still in shakedown mode, trying
to see what needs fixing

 

[the skull]

Well 120+ miles later, she is sitting in the yard back home safe and sound.
She's going to work tomorrow, seems to get good mpg.
The scrapyard run was a total success!

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

Awesome! I need to find a junk yard that has parts for it. Yesterday I ended up spending four hours at the fire station switching out the 15 inch rims that were on it with 16's that were on another rig (Also a CUCV), robbing the pintle hook and number plate from the front, and a front bumper. Then we used the other CUCV and towed mine home. I think the batteries are totally shot. I haven't attempted to jump it or anything but when I turn the key I get NOTHING. No buzzing, no lights... not even a faint attempt at life. So, I'm gonna try jumping or charging it. We'll see what happens with that.

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

Okay. So, the truck is home, and I've been tinkering with it here and there. I charged one of the batteries and it got up to 13 volts. The second battery I think is garbage or has a bad cell because I can't get it over 10 volts. BUT, the real question (that was just setting up for the question), is this. When I turn the key to on, most the lights come on, (all the lights I think that are supposed to come on except for Gen 2.) When I turn it to start everything goes out and it doesn't even attempt to crank. NOTHING! Is that all because the crap battery? OR should I be looking at fuses and/or the starter too?

 

[cpf240]

Most likely. I would strongly suggest that you pull *both* batteries, run them through a full charge cycle, and then have them load-tested. I suspect that the "good" battery really isn't.

 

[Patrick Henrys Protege]

Thanks! I'll try that.

 

[usmcpatriot]

First and foremost good luck on your new/old purchase. Download all the TM's. I would never put ether down the throat of my truck, bad news. I'd put kerosene before I'd put ether. If you have running truck, do the mods, upgrade your fuel delivery system. Consider new GP's, plugs and type....

 

[Warthog]

In a stock system.

The front battery supplies power to almost all the truck (12v items)

The rear battery is connected in series to the front battery and supplies 24v (12v+12v) to the starter and glow plug system.

You didn't say which battery is only supplying 10v. The dead cell may be taxing the system too much.

The first rule of working on any electrical issues with an MV, especially a CUCV, is to make SURE that the batteries are fully charged and load tested. If you skip this step you are just pissing in the wind during your troubleshooting.

 

[trooper632]

Without going back and reading the beginning, If it does not have the manual glow plug button installed you need to make sure the glow plug controller card is in it or it wonk crank.

 

[KevinsM1009]

How Does That Go On This Site....????
Read the Tech Manuals(really great over a cup of something when you're under the hood trying to figure it all out..)....
Anyways, Really cool civy colors but, not so great out in the woods(might scare the trees,them being afraid of fire an' all that...)
The Batt. may be resurrectable. I picked my 12/85 M1009 up with a DRIED out Battery(Literally NO Liquid of any kind inside..the used car/tow shop here in Manchester I bought it from(of the 4 units they had back then)couldn't figure out why it wouldn't charge....hmmm.). These are Maintainable Battery's, Hence, the removable caps on the monstrosities.. I bought 2 Sanels( auto parts place here in town..) 950 CCA Hvy Dty Diesel Batts to get it mobile.. After putting in some new Acid, shaking it around, disposing of used acid & refilling with appropriate Distilled water & Acid mixture was able to get one of the two questionable Military Bats to take a charge. It holds steady @ 13.2 V on its own, (removed from circuits..) the other two still hold @ 13.8 on their own. They were also thin enough that, with some modification to my forward Batt. Holddowns, I was able to make a 12 V, 1900 CCA battery to run my truck wit & be the Neg. Term. of the 24 V supply for the truck, then use the Military Brown DEKA Batt(all 850 CCA's..) as the Pos. Term of the 24 V supply of my truck all Batts being connected.
Has Been working well for 52,000+ miles since ownership in Oct. 2011, BUT...
Lesson Learned...Do Not Use Starting Aids on a REGULAR basis...Could not afford new glow plugs in Oct/Nov 13, now am in process of putting in a Dealers Diesel, 6.5l 599 dot coded 6.2l replacment that came out of an '84 Sub 2 wd, Gas jobbie(according to the VIN data I got from a Junkyard in Candia, NH about the $500.00 6.5L I bought from them...Yes, the plot thickened.
Maybe more on that later somewheres' else..PH Protege, get your truck's starting system running well, remove all/any messed up mods others may have done to it so you know what you're working with...REAL hard to understand a 1028/31/09/08 TM when some one has put stuff in places that it don't belong in..Enjoy the TM's and the rest of the wrench time because YOU will be Oh, So Enjoying The Place's You'll be going, things you'll be pulling and mud you maybe Treading through..Pics are good, would love to put my own up, If I had a way to take some, time to be in front of a computer and put some up. Really enjoy everyone else's. Check out Mohawk Daves' 6BT and The other YouTube Stuff("Just a walk around(M1009)" is a nice one..
Congrats.

 

[BobM]

Have you got it started yet? We wish we still had our old truck.