She Ain't Pretty

[Dukeman]

Well she wasn't the prettiest lady on the lot, but I am so impressed with the mechanical condition of the M931 we just picked up yesterday in Santa Fe. The GL guy, Gary, couldn't have been nicer. Was waiting for us when we arrived, prepared to jump start for us. Walked us through a few things, told us the newer generation of support vehicles were going to start going on the blocks soon. I don't know what they are called, but they sure look cool. We brought two fresh deep cell batteries that I had sitting in my garage and pulled out two of the Hawk batteries and replaced them. She started right up! Gary said this vehicle has been sitting for about a year. We proceeded to check all the fluid levels. Oil was perfect, tranny fluid perfect, power steering fluid perfect, coolant perfect. Wow, it looked like they had just changed all the fluids in this thing. Pulled the air filter cover and the filter was brand new, like it was installed yesterday. And believe me, here in the desert the sand and dust shows within a couple hours of use. The engine looked so clean, not one leak or drip anywhere from front to back. Tires were brand new all the way around, literally 90%+. Found one air leak around the front drivers glad hand, but a wrench tightened it up nicely. All the lights worked, brake lights, turn signals, black out lights, all functioning. Dash lights, low and high. Air pressure came up to 120 lbs. primary and secondary and we were off for a 60 mile drive to Albuquerque.

Honestly, the tractor rig is not a great ride. I'm sure it would be much better with about 5,000 lbs in the back, but without the weight it really does bounce around a lot. Again, mechanically though everything worked perfectly. Transmission shifted smoothly through every gear, Power steering was smooth and easy. Tracked nicely on the road. Heater fan worked, windshield wipers worked. Brakes were tight and strong. I just can't say enough about function. Couple things to work on were the fuel gauge on the left side tank pegged beyond full, We will probably go ahead and change the engine oil. The transfer case lever was sticky and took some work to get it in low and back to high. Worked it a little with some WD40 and the plunger loosened up, So really with some cleaning and a fresh coat of paint this tractor will be awesome.

One thing I did notice. The delivery date on the dash said 10-10-83. The tag on the engine said 10/84. So did the engine get replaced at some point? There are two MVO tags on the drivers seat from 2002 and 2010, were those seat belt installations or could one of those indicate a new engine? I'm just being hopeful here, let me know what you think.

 

[Atomic]

Nice write up. Congrats on the smooth recovery. Enjoy.

 

[BKubu]

Nice score! Looks like you got a really good one there!

 

[Gunner0311]

Red Can

I see a red in color fuel can.

Are you pouring gasoline into that tank???


I removed the 5th wheel from my tractor(M52A2) and replaced the open space
with a modified M35 Cargo Box. Yeah, it still rides a bit stiff(holy cow is it stiff)


You will enjoy the truck, have fun!

 

[supermechanic]

" Wow, it looked like they had just changed all the fluids in this thing."
Don't be fooled, when vehicles lay aside for some time, the dirt will settle to the bottom of whatever unit you are checking, leaving clean oil on the stick.
At the least, pull each drain plug to see if there may be some sediment at the bottom.
Best to drop & change all fluids and start from new.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Thats the first 900 series I have seen with the spare davit on wrong. Does yours swing from side to side, or is it a static mount?

 

[fsearls92]

Hey congratulations on your new truck! It looks like it is in good shape!

 

[Dukeman]

I did NOT put gasoline in! I know the can is red, I was actually waiting for someone to comment on that.

Gunner, that is really nice! There are a couple 5 tons down at our local lake that have customized beds with the 5th wheel hitch still attached. We are definitely going to do something on the back for cargo and passengers, not sure what yet, but this winter we will get creative.

Supermechanic, yeah, I thought of that too. We checked fluids again after our 60 mile drive. Drained and replaced engine oil and filter, transfer case gear oil and front diff gear oil. Tranny still looked good and both rear diffs looked good.

Gimpy, honestly I just assumed it swivels. I haven't really played with it. I know it is a two piece stem with a bold in the middle. Looks to me like the bolt loosens and the arm swivels over.

I have now recovered two or the Hawker batteries. One had a bad cell and one is on the charger now. I read a long military article on the Hawker batteries and was ready to just scrap them, but this article said the military discovered that the batteries will go in to hibernation. I have an electronic charger that will recondition batteries. Took 3 days on the first one. 2.5 days on the second, but they seem to come back to life, we will see.

Thanks for the reply guys. What do you think about the engine being an 84? It has been replaced at some point right?

 

[markmontana]

No matter what I've tried, including real expensive reconditioners- I can never get the batteries to come back- once they've lost their charge. But the recycle/scrap yard sure pays good money for the old ones! Much better than the core credit at Walmart...

 

[Dukeman]

Yeah Dave I kind of figured that. Although I had a friend who is in the cell tower construction business. He had a couple monstrous AGM batteries that had gone dead. I reconditioned them and they lasted in my RV for several years. If they don't come back I will take them to the scrap yard.

 

[Csm Davis]

Yeah gimp the arm will rotate on the dual wheeled trucks but not the single wheeled a1 or a2

 

[Dukeman]

After the drive back from Santa Fe the left front axle seal started leaking. So before we put any real miles on her we figured we better stop the bleeding. Started out Friday night by making a solid axle stand. Got the basic parts ordered from Erik's. Inner Axle seal, hub seal, non-zippered boot. Since we were going to pull things apart that far we figured why not go with the non-zippered set up.

 

[Dukeman]

As we disassembled the hub and started inspecting everything, once again I have to say how amazed I am at the maintenance of this vehicle. The grease was new, the bearings and races were immaculate, the brake drum looked like it had just been turned and the pads were spanking new.

 

[Dukeman]

The little transmission jack worked perfectly for getting the brake drum off and moved around. That thing is heavy.

 

[Dukeman]

So we have a little clean up to do and the parts should be here in a couple days, but just have to get things back together. So far not a bad job. Just big. I do have one question. We pulled the inner axle seal but left the retainer in tact. Is there any reason to pull the retainer out?

Also any tips in getting everything back together? I read that we should use sealant on the axle seal when seating it. Anything else?

The hub seal looks new, should we replace it anyway? I have always replaced seals, but just asking your opinion.

So while we are waiting on parts I decided to find some rattle cans and see if I could spruce the old girl up a little. The Rustoleum Camouflage Khaki is a pretty darn perfect match.

 

[Madclown]

Looks like it's coming along nicely. Are you going to be taking it to the Butte?

 

[Dukeman]

Yes, down to the butte on the 28th.

 

[Old Lincoln County Iron]

I knew I should of went ahead and bid more on that truck! Looks like its a good one! And I have only one
Sand color truck, the perfect excuse to get another one.

 

[Dukeman]

Ha, ha. I probably would not have gone much higher either! I have four gallons of paint ready but honestly, I'm taking a liking to the Frankenstein look. Some green, some tan, some rust. Other then taking care of some of the rust I'm not sure how nice we want to make it look.

Did you get a look at my question about the axle seal retainer? I would like to get an answer on that if you get a chance.

 

[Madclown]

You got a nice truck there, I got the chance to see it twice. Once when my friend picked up his m923 and when I picked up my m931a1. Have you requested your st-97 yet?