Reasons to NOT get a M916?

[Atomic]

Hammer I'm in a simular situation here, in that I'lll have to sell something to purchase my first MV, so I understand what your asking. My question is if you already have the truck isn't the fun in having it the upgrades that come along the way? Truly making the truck what "you" want it to be and the satisfaction of having done it yourself?

I'm more than likely about to purchase an 818 with a blown engine. Why, so I can build it up to how I want it (long term project), and no I won't have to sell something to get this particular truck.

In the end, it's up to you and as you said your wife likes it. I say keep what ya got.

My

 

[StreetbikeDepot]

For me it came down to what I needed, I couldnt be any more happy with my 915. Having a 6x6, a pusher axles or a winch is not important to me, plus the gearing in the 916's and 920's are too low for regular highway use, so regearing them would be added expense on top of their inflated auction prices.

The 915 with a the CAT tranny is the sweet spot for me....respectable highway speeds, plenty of gear ranges, and average fuel mileage. Not to mention they are currently selling for less than 818's at the auction which is crazy .

 

[Hammer]

Hammer I'm in a simular situation here, in that I'lll have to sell something to purchase my first MV, so I understand what your asking. My question is if you already have the truck isn't the fun in having it the upgrades that come along the way? Truly making the truck what "you" want it to be and the satisfaction of having done it yourself?

I'm more than likely about to purchase an 818 with a blown engine. Why, so I can build it up to how I want it (long term project), and no I won't have to sell something to get this particular truck.

In the end, it's up to you and as you said your wife likes it. I say keep what ya got.

My

I hear you on this one.
Problem is, why do ALL that work to a truck, just to get where the other one STARTS at!
Now imagine what I can do to the 916?
It would almost seem easier to put the 818 cab on a 916 then to rework the 818 to even close to that level of truck.

 

[Hammer]

You will get a few more MPH but you will still have to run wide open to get it.

The 400 Come-a-part can be turned up to 2300 RPM and that will get you a little more speed...again running wide azz open.

Gearbound is gearbound.....the only way around it is to put in higher geared axles.....prob not cheap and finding a live steering axle might be an issue.

There was a M915 at the 2009 MVPA convention that had nice air ride seats and AC in it.

They were pulling two armored vehicles with it.....a very nice rig.

You have an obvious dislike for the cummins engines. To each their own.
Heck, I LIKE the Detroit 60 that the newer ones come with, but fat chance on getting one of those.
Ok, I am NOT going to swap axles, so my only choice is taller tires.
If I stick with a military trailer, that isn't really an issue.
If I want to pull a civy trailer, then I need a 915....
I am not THAT worried about trying to pull a civy van trailer. It would be nice, but not really my goal for this truck.

My plans are for hauling heavy MVs. Pretty much plain and simple. The military trailers suit that need perfectly, and I think would work just fine even on the 916 with big singles (PLEASE correct me if I am wrong on that one!)
I will probably sell my current 35' flat bed. And either get a lowboy, or at least a step deck type trailer.

And as for ride quality, heck, I have driven enough cement trucks around, and the solid walking beam on those things will make you loose your fillings when you have to take them around construction sites and somewhat off road (hey, I lived in BFE at that time, we went almost everywhere with those things.)

I do plan on real air ride seats though. And I have a few other ideas for softening the ride out in the cab.

 

[Atomic]

I understand and I wish you luck either way! I am one of those keep it until it catches fire type of people. What ever you decide, let us know.

One day soon I'll shall join the ranks of the MV insanity.

 

[wreckerman893]

Actually I love the Cummins...Come-a-part is a term of endearment for those engines among truck drivers. Kind of like "Rattlepiller" for the CATs and "Driptroits".

I can walk through a truck stop parking lot and tell you what engine is in most trucks just by the idle sound.

Years ago I drove a long nosed Western Star with a 400 in it...it would run 106 MPH grossing 80k pounds all day long.....I was running west coast then (late 70's, early 80's) and we would run WFO all away across West Texas and New Mexico.

Next to the Cummins I like the 60 series Detriot which is just a CAT painted green (CAT sued Detriot over the 60 series). It pulls like a CAT and gets decent fuel milage....I had one in a Freightliner I drove.....I could set the cruise at 78 MPH and only down shifted if I hit a real mountain....it is a low RPM, high torgue engine....it would drop down to 1300 RPM and hold it as it pulled a hill.

Some of the newer M915's have a 60 Series in them.

 

[Heavysteven]

I say go for it.

My concerns, would be cost to operate. It would suck to have the truck of yours dreams just sit because you can't afford to operate it.

 

[reb87]

A couple things,
1 The super single military tires have a 55mph speed rating on them. I dont know how bad it might be to push the speed up on them. My m919 with 16x20 tires will go 65mph.
2 The m915a1 is way way way more truck than the M915. I have both and have used both to haul large amounts of corn and soybeans. I put tall tires(46 or 47" tall) off my m919 on my m915a1 and it will do 70mph around 2200 rpm. I usually dont run over 65 on mine as I hate pushing the rpm. The allison is considerably easier to drive(especially in town, just put it in drive and forget the trans) and faster than the cat trans. I love staging stoplights with other trucks on the way to the ethanol plant. I havent had any other truck that was loaded like I was even come close to keeping up with me. I usually jump out 60 ft ahead of them by the time they are up to speed. While they are shifting, I am going... I love when somebody with a new truck asks me in awe"what engine is in that thing" they dont realize its the tranny that gives me the advantage.

 

[Andy1234]

Three letters. C D L (commercial drivers license).

I live in MO, and to "legally" drive my M920, I need a CDL, simply based upon weight and air brakes.

Farm, or not. Collector, or not. C D L. Legally speaking, no exceptions.

Realistically? No comment ... Have I ever been pulled over? No comment (I did wave to the mayor of StL and the Chief of Police while going by City Hall in an M818, once...but, I digress....)

Collector's insurance is still possible, but it'll cost more then an M818.

So, basically, the only reason NOT to get one is MONEY. It's bigger and faster; ergo, it will cost you more money.

Like the old saying, "speed costs money, how fast do you want to go?".

Note, for the record: I drive the p!ss out of my M818 and M920, and am gonna buy an M915A1 and do the same.

My suggestion: Buy what you want. If you don't like it, sell it and get something different. There'll be more.

Andy

 

[StreetbikeDepot]

A couple things,
1 The super single military tires have a 55mph speed rating on them. I dont know how bad it might be to push the speed up on them. My m919 with 16x20 tires will go 65mph.
2 The m915a1 is way way way more truck than the M915. I have both and have used both to haul large amounts of corn and soybeans. I put tall tires(46 or 47" tall) off my m919 on my m915a1 and it will do 70mph around 2200 rpm. I usually dont run over 65 on mine as I hate pushing the rpm. The allison is considerably easier to drive(especially in town, just put it in drive and forget the trans) and faster than the cat trans. I love staging stoplights with other trucks on the way to the ethanol plant. I havent had any other truck that was loaded like I was even come close to keeping up with me. I usually jump out 60 ft ahead of them by the time they are up to speed. While they are shifting, I am going... I love when somebody with a new truck asks me in awe"what engine is in that thing" they dont realize its the tranny that gives me the advantage.

I'd like to see pics of your 915 with the 919 tires on it.

 

[M920]

You have an obvious dislike for the cummins engines. To each their own.
Heck, I LIKE the Detroit 60 that the newer ones come with, but fat chance on getting one of those.
Ok, I am NOT going to swap axles, so my only choice is taller tires.
If I stick with a military trailer, that isn't really an issue.
If I want to pull a civy trailer, then I need a 915....
I am not THAT worried about trying to pull a civy van trailer. It would be nice, but not really my goal for this truck.

My plans are for hauling heavy MVs. Pretty much plain and simple. The military trailers suit that need perfectly, and I think would work just fine even on the 916 with big singles (PLEASE correct me if I am wrong on that one!)
I will probably sell my current 35' flat bed. And either get a lowboy, or at least a step deck type trailer.

And as for ride quality, heck, I have driven enough cement trucks around, and the solid walking beam on those things will make you loose your fillings when you have to take them around construction sites and somewhat off road (hey, I lived in BFE at that time, we went almost everywhere with those things.)

I do plan on real air ride seats though. And I have a few other ideas for softening the ride out in the cab.

Hammer,
as the crazy person that drives his M920A1 all over the country with al kinds of different trailers, I might give you some answers.
As far as the ride goes the switch to super singles made a big difference. The rest was fixed with two Bostron air ride seats.
I did install A/C and insulated the crap out of the cab (sound and heat) and that was a great investment.
The speed issue was a big factor for me and after trying some 16.00R20's (could never get them to run real smooth) I bought some 445/65R22.5 Michelin's. They are 46" tall and that is equal to the diameter of the 11.00-24's that the truck came with.
Anyway, I did not buy new axles, I just got a set of 4.88:1 ratio ring and pinions for the truck and that brought the WOT speed up to 78MPH! The reason I choose the 4.88's is because thats the numericaly lowest gears you can swap in without a diff carrier change. The original ratio was 6.17:1.
The fifth-wheel top plate from a commercial Holland fifth-wheel will pin to the existing base on this truck. all you need is two sets of bushings cause the 3.5" kingpin plate takes bigger pins then the 2" one. The beauty of it is that you can change between the two pretty quickly.

The 7155 CAT tranny can easily handle the power if you decide to turn the 400 Cummins up some. These are a triple countershaft transmission that is not lacking strengh. The trouble with them is in the shift collars and the vale bodies.

So IMHO you get a lot of "goodies" right out of the box with the M916 or M920 (like straight air brakes with failsafe brake pods, detroit lockers in both rear axles, power divider between the rears, jake brake, air clutch fan, more gears, front axle with mechanics style u-joints that don't leak, air dryer, really nice tight power steering, windshield wipers that actually work, windshield washer fluid setup and im sure I still missed some things.

So you will still have to spend $ and change some things but you are a lot closer to what I think you are looking for in a truck. If I can help you in any way or if you need some info pics just PM me. Hope this helps a little.

Soni

P.s. I absolutely love driving my M920A1! I just put 2780 miles on it last week driving to WPAFB in Ohio, to pick up me "new" M1098 tanker trailer......

 

[Medic5050]

That thing is just awesome.

 

[Burgerboy13]

God I would almost do anything to have that truck.

 

[M1075]

That tanker trailer looks tiny behind your truck!

 

[reb87]

Not a great pic but here it is. I left the short tires on the front as I didnt get enough good tires with the m919.

 

[Ferroequinologist]

I'm kind of in the same boat, I have a job lined up to haul WVO for a processor here. I have a m818, registered and insured commercial. I'm looking to purchase a m970 tanker soon. My plans are to haul a month or two with the m818, then purchase a m916. I really want the 916 for the rear winch, and the ability to easily put a wetline kit on it for a lowboy trailer. But I want the speed too, so it's a toss up. Do I want to go with the speed now and hassle of putting a winch or wetline on it later, or a 916 now and the hassle of swaping the axle ratios? Hmmm...

 

[M1075]

I'm kind of in the same boat, I have a job lined up to haul WVO for a processor here. I have a m818, registered and insured commercial. I'm looking to purchase a m970 tanker soon. My plans are to haul a month or two with the m818, then purchase a m916. I really want the 916 for the rear winch, and the ability to easily put a wetline kit on it for a lowboy trailer. But I want the speed too, so it's a toss up. Do I want to go with the speed now and hassle of putting a winch or wetline on it later, or a 916 now and the hassle of swaping the axle ratios? Hmmm...

If you want speed, go with a commercial tractor. That M818 definitely isn't going to cut it with M970 tanker. You will be in for some sloooow trips.

 

[Ferroequinologist]

Well, I ment slightly more speed. I really want a military tractor. Cheap too. It is a 214mile haul with the WVO. I agree, the m818 will be SLOW...

 

[98hd]

I've been drooling over the 916's and 920's. After reading this though I think I want a 915, seems alot more practical. There was a thread with pics of on on a set of 395's on hemmt wheels I think that looked real good.

Anyone wanna trade a 915 for an 818

 

[Hammer]

Well, needless to say, there isn't a lot of info on SS about the 916 or 920.
But I got off my lazy butt and looked on tpub and found more then I could read (and I DID read a lot!)

It would seem the length and turning radius of the 920 is not really that much worse then the 916.
Add to that the fact that the 920's sell for less (at least the ones I was just low bidding on did.)
I like the magazine article about Soni's and the statement of using the lift axle more for holding the spare tires! LOVE that idea!

Soni, if the 16r20s would have ran smooth, would that have been your better choice?

Seems that for how I would use it, I could live with the taller tires and higher 5th wheel.
I never thought of swapping the top plate before, but I already have a complete other 5th that should work, and still work with the ramps.

And using the 920 to add a sleeper to register the truck as an RV would solve a lot of other $ issues for normal use. Something more to think about I guess.

Man, with the price of those trucks that just sold, I came very close to pulling the trigger on making the high bid!
But with the added distance to travel to get one (be it either driving back or having it hauled.) I couldn't swing that part right now.
Shame too, those were some NICE trucks that just sold!

Now, if some nice ones come up in ND or SD, I think that might swing me into getting one ASAP!

Btw, I LIKE the 915a1. But the lack of all the extra goodies is a real downer for me.
If I only wanted a straight hauling truck, that would be the way to go.