Exhaust is exhausting.

Young @ County Line

Finally got my exhaust put on Young. 5" Diamond Eye with Aero Turbine muffler, cat delete, and 3" down pipe. Which was a total monster to put in. the rest was easy, but that down pipe... GRRR!

I went with some Titanium exhaust wrap on the lower half of the down pipe to protect the trans cooler lines that are RIGHT THERE. Such a small space... I'll be doing the upper half this week as well, I just didn't buy enough. Fifteen feet doesn't go very far. Also, I'm going to order their turbo wrap as well, for the dump side of the Garrett. 

Still doing some bolt checks, and such. As rough as my dirt road is right now, I figure I'll be tightening things for a couple of weeks, until it all settles.

Boosting at 1100 RPM now. Turbo even spools in reverse (thats a trip) and, low and behold, the never-used pop-off valve opens now. 13 years and never made that much boost until now. Had some weird vibrations at first, but its starting to all settle into place, and I think some of it was the un-used pop-off finally getting opened.

Ended up not taking a whole lot of pics, I had unrealistic ideas of how long it should take... any ways, my afternoon job turned into a three day job. When I do Beastin it will go a lot faster though.

New tint

Also, I got Young's windows tinted on Monday before the Exhaust Project. Stealthstroker is what DieselPrincess called it.

 

 

OE vs Diamond Eye. I had to cut that bastard twice to get it out.

 

 

 

Not mounted yet, just chiliin while I made adjustments.

I'll get some after photos soon and post them as well.

Beastin is going this week to get all his hurts fixed up. Bedside stress cracks, and mysterious smashed in face. I'll get before and after photos of all that too. My good friend the Wizard will be doing the work. I'm really excited.

AND I'm TRYING to get my mits on a '97 that got smoked pretty bad in in the rear. We will see how that goes. I'll do anything to save that 7.3l engine from the crusher.

Holy air intakes, Batman!

Its here. I didn't expect it until next week. BUT ITS HERE.

The install took some creativeness, as the truck ate one of my supplied grommets. Stupid OE installed Black Hole sucks up EVERYTHING. Still never have found the missing headlight clips from 2 yrs ago.

Any way. OLD filter assy:

Removed:

I bought the filter wrap for "extreemly dry, dusty conditions". If that doesn't apply to West Texas... uhm yeah. It was worth it. Already had lots of crud on it after I fired the engine up. (Wind is blowing bad today.)

The final product:

Okay, I don't know what my long-term thoughts will be, and I don't know what it will do to my MPG, but HOLY COW just running it 5 miles down the interstate to get some fuel impressed the hell out of me. I still have some bog from too much back pressure (yay, OEM downpipe and exhaust), but the overall performance change was... very noticable.

My mother had to help (Its a mighty bitch getting that rubber hose from the end of the airbox pipe onto the turbo intake), and she asked me if it would change Young's voice. I said "Nah, not noticeably at least."

Uhm. I was wrong.

Turned him over, checked for leaks, and then revved to 2800 RPM. A huge cloud of nasty, stinking smoke bellowed out of the tailpipe, and the truck's voice dropped way into the bass end. No smoke since. Took him out on the highway, and the great thing about where I live is I'm right down the road from the interstate. That same interstate is now 75 mph. :-D I eared Young back, and there is MAJOR low-end boost improvement. That is to say, I don't believe there is any INCREASE in boost, but it definatly spools up faster. Also, lots more high-end HP responsiveness, 2500 RPM, 75 MPH, and you can put your foot in it, and it JUMPS.

Oh, and it SCREAMS. Loud. Very loud.

The S&B box said "Air in. Power out." I was like "oh, haha." but... they mean it. I've driven K&N and AFE and honestly? I'm glad I bought the S&B. I'm way impressed with it. Aside from the major cool factor.

I can't wait to get my exhaust. But, I have to behave until I get some extra spending cash.

~Diesel or Die~

Treating the Sickness

Diesel Fever

• Its highly contagious, deadly to budgets and Prius's.

• Symptoms include face-splitting smiles, acute hearing adjustment allowing for identification of all makes and models of diesel engine by sound alone, posturing to other drivers, sensitive ego, leaving clouds of sulfurous smoke in one's wake, crude stereotyping by vehicle, snobbish better-than-you attitude toward all non-diesel burning motors, and generally voids warranties, where applicable. It also can cause impulse, big-ticket purchases, evasive behavior, and exaggerated story telling. Over-protective behavior toward the subject's truck is usually the first sign, followed shortly by giving inanimate objects names and personalities.
• Currently there is no known cure, though the disease does not appear to be terminal. It is manageable through sound-therapy, as well as providing the subject with access to lots of open road, heavy equipment to haul and a large truck-related shopping spree. It is advised, however, to limit the shopping to one project at a time, as some subjects have suffered fatal reactions to diesel related stimuli overload.

I have it. I try to keep it under control. Admitting you have a problem is the first step, right?

I bought an S&B Intake for my '97 7.3l Powerstroke, Young, today. It won't be here for about two weeks, but... well I'm already drooling over exhaust systems. I'm having a hard time choosing between the 5" and the 4" DiamondEye systems. I can't seem to find the 5" without a cat, which is somewhat frustrating. I am however, leaning toward the 4" and replace the DiamondEye muffler with an AeroTurbine Resonated muffler. Price range, I can get the 4" kit for $267, plus spend $179 on the muffler... comes out to about the same price for a 5" system, sans AeroTurbine.

Any ways, just wrestling with myself on it. Don't have the slack money to spend right now any ways, seeing as I just coughed up $300 for the S&B kit. I can't wait for that to get here.

Meantime, I cleaned the engine compartments up on the trucks today. Used Simple Green. Great stuff that, except I need to get after Young again. He's freaking filthy. Beastin wasn't too bad to start with, and cleaned up rather nice. Haven't touched Peppy. I'll have to get some more Simple Green before I do that, though I don't think he's too filthy to start with.


In other news, Leonidas won the 3D Saturday with an 18.171. $119 check, and man, oh, man was it a nice, clean run. If we can keep making them like that, and just add the speed... He's going to be untouchable.

Centaurs?

If you need to brush up on your mythology, the Wikipedia page on centaurs covers the basics.

The basic idea though, is of human & horse as one. Now, I'm a die-hard SF&F fan, and come from the point of view that all myths, legends and fictional stories come from some sort of truth. That does not mean that I think the Roswell Alien is real - I've been to Roswell, New Mexico, and it does little to inspire belief, though I will argue that something happened in Roswell to spark the stories. My point of view explained, without ranting, I'll return to my subject. Centaurs.

I will hazard to say that the half-human half-horse myth was started by the simplest of things: a horse and rider.

Today I would like to propose the Centaur as a metaphor, which I know has been used before, but I'll use it again, because it simply works.


Duo corpora unum mentis. Two bodies of one mind.

Don't knock the cone over! (It didn't fall.)

For anyone who has never ridden a horse, or has and never experienced it, I feel truly sorry for you. Quite simply, it is what I live for. It is not, however, something you can experience with a few attempts, it is an intangible, unteachable thing that takes a devotion that cannot waiver.

Sometimes I lose touch with that. In 2009 I retired my best friend, and mount since 1998. I ride him occasionally, but never again can I experience that feeling of true oneness that comes when your combined actions require no thought, no cues. It is a truly magical thing to know someone so well as to not require any communication at all, to simply work together, two bodies with one mind. The sad thing is, as much as he wants to work, to compete, he is aging, and there is no turning back the clock.

May '09

At times I have despaired of never having a partner like that again, at times I have had brief flashes of it with other horses, but never a level of communication that required no thought. I've bounced from horse to horse since Aug '08, and found no peace.

Then, about a month ago, I pulled my five-year old, home-bred Appendix Quarter Horse stallion off break. I don't know what happened, but it was like that wall that was between our minds has melted away. We've had all kinds of issues over the last year and a half, though I always enjoy riding him. It wasn't until this past Saturday that I realized what was happening the last month.

We are learning to speak each others language. He is a very intelligent horse, and learns from his mistakes (I'm realizing). He also gets very frustrated when I micro-manage him, which I've had a very hard time understanding. Now that I see it, I'm starting to open my ears and listen. Leonidas wants to work as a team, not as a rider and horse.

So, centaurs a myth? Perhaps. But I'll stick with the metaphor, unless I'm working on some SF&F of course.

And when I let go of my inhibitions and ride...

Duo corpora unum mentis.

Diesel Blood & 2D Money

I changed my own oil today, for the first time. (Yes, first time ever, can you believe that?)

Why? Well, I've always said "Why do it myself? For about the same amount of money, you can pay someone else to deal with the mess."

 Recently (over the last two years that is) I have jumped my knowledge up from 'I drive a Powerstroke' to 'I have 2 1997 Ford Powerstroke 7.3l Direct Injection Turbo Diesels. I can tell you all the specs for it, replace the water pump, fuel pump, starter, fan clutch, pulleys, fuel filter, Mass Airflow Pressure sensor, Injection Drive Module (my truck takes a 110 model), CAM sensor, prime a dry engine, replace a cracked down-pipe. And if I don't know how, I'll figure it out.' 

That is a long of information. At the same time, by learning all of this, I suddenly realized that the people we blindly take our vehicles too, trusting them to perform the maintenance we don't know how to do, or don't care to fool with, aren't always doing what you think they are.

Thought for years that my truck was consuming 2 quarts of oil ever 3000 or so miles... truth? Its only been getting 14 quarts to start with at an oil change, instead of the required 16. It doesn't burn it off at all.

So much for my mystery leak.



Oh, and forget getting them to put my own Motorcraft filter on, instead of their over-priced Fram junk. Give 'em my own filter, get home and find my ride is still rolling with a cheep-o filter. So, after all this time, I've decided that if I can do all that other stuff, I can do my own oil, even if it is an immense pain.

Guess what? Its not.

Its insanely easy, and really kind of fun. Not to mention, Young is running OEM grade filter, and the correct amount of oil. Monday, when I go to town, I'll drop off my used oil (which, with 10k on it still has the same viscosity as the brand new stuff, if considerably more soot in it. Delo rocks.) at O'Reilly's and I'll be ready, prepared and happy to change Beastin's when he gets home from the shop. (Having his front-end taken care of, needs ball joints, grease boots, shocks, and some regular TLC. Poor Powerstroke wasn't taken care of properly before me.)

I warmed the truck up for about 15 minuets, just to get the oil warm, because normal operating temps... yeah, I am NOT opening that little bolt with 203 F or hotter oil in there.

I let it drain while I figured out which screw driver and hammer combination would best suit my needs (nixed the hammer with no handle as impractical... for obvious reasons.), and then wiggled under there to poke a hole in the old oil filter and let it drain as well.

Diesel Blood!

The biggest challenge was knocking the screwdriver through the side of the oil filter so I could untwist it. Its not too terribly hard, but I was hanging from my left elbow from the leaf-spring, holding the screw driver in my left hand, and trying to hit it with the hammer in my right, while laying on my right shoulder. Its... awkward to say the least, and totally messes with my depth perception. First hole was too low, and I got the screwdriver stuck against the drive shaft when I started twisting the filter off. Got out of that, and punched another hole, higher up. Not high enough though, I got that try stuck too, but I had loosened the filter enough I could get it off by hand at that point.

Wiped the dust and oil away, dipped the gasket, put oil in the new filter, put it on, put the oil pan plug back in, sprayed the bottom of the oil pan off with some brake cleaner and wiped it down (it was disgusting), filled everything back up, and cranked Young up. Levels were good, no leaks, and I'm a happy camper!

I haven't been able to find a drain pan that is bigger than 12qts, and a regular 5 Gal bucket is too tall, so I went with an old horse water bucket. When I was finished I poured it up in a water jug with a lid so I can haul it to recycle without spilling.

Also, I cleaned out and repainted my dad's old tool chest this week, and it came in handy today as a worktop.

Before... (mind you, its older than me. 25+ yrs for sure.)

After! With Young, which, obviously, is where I got the colors.

Change of subject. My 5 yr old Quarter Horse stallion that I bred, raised and trained my self has recently been going to events again. (A long string of... craziness... has kept him out of competition, and in a really bad mood about it for a year now.) I know, kids and horses make liars of you every time, but I'm really proud of him, and I hope he continues to improve on his performance like he has, and I hope he stays patient with me. I tend to over-check (I blame riding too many OT and/or green horses), and that frustrates him.

Last weekend he placed 3rd in the 2D at a local 4D race. I'm very proud of him, as that's his highest bracket placing in his very short career, and it matched my personal best time that I set on a horse that is retired now, at that same arena, four years ago. I can't wait for our next competition, a playday, and his third since I brought him back to the ring.

He really wouldn't even be competing right now, except by happenstance. I bought a project horse in Feburary, and started the year on him. He's an 8 yr old abuse case, who has more speed and power than he knows what to do with, and way too much goofy to go around. (Thanks abusive moron that ruined a great horse.) Any ways, back to my stallion, I loaded him on a whim, just because he's pathetic and cries when I leave with the trailer. Long story, but the event we were going to got moved to a different arena that I've never been too. My project horse was a total basket case, and just got worse as the day went on, so by the time my first ride was up, I had switched to my stallion, just planning to trot or slow lope, and try to make the best of our gate issues.

What gate issues? The Kid had his game face on. So I ran him the next weekend. He was hitting first and second on everything. So I hauled him to that barrel race last weekend, and, as I already said, he was amazing. I'm starting to figure him out, which, you would think I would know him better than I do, but I think he is only just figuring out HIS game, so I'm learning it with him.

Barrels 2 weeks ago at a Playday

After all, he is the first horse I've bred, raised and trained that I've kept to go all the way with.

Whatsit?

Lastly, I want to leave you with something a good friend of mine said about being self employed:

"I like being able to fire myself for the day sometimes."

~Diesel or Die~

Don't Panic

Cue dramatic drum roll please.

I have less than 48 hours before I sit down at the SAT. I have a personal goal to achieve on this test. I am purposefully pushing myself for a higher score than I need.

I'm not studying right now. Why?
Its boring.

Whine, whine, whine. So I'm blogging. Which I take up from time to time, with full intentions of doing it full time, and always manage not to keep up with it.

I got a 'new' (used, its off an '89 F-150) RH mirror for my '90 IDI 7.3l and installed it yesterday, replacing the original one, which was stripped out and wobbled all over the place, and spent most of the time pointed at the ground. Useless. I also got a 'new' antenna to replace the.... current one. Which, I won't speak unkindly of, except to say its not the correct one. Unfortunately the base has been changed out and the OE antenna does not fit. I did not think about that possibility, and the antenna doesn't fit. However, I got the mast for $5, and since it requires the removal of the cowl to replace the base, I think it is worth it to just order a new one, rather than try to dismantle a truck in a wrecking yard. Or in this case someone's back yard.

The sum of the above situation is that I am hunting for excuses to NOT study. I want to fix my dad's rolling-drawer tool chest so I can use it. I want to ride my horses, Leonidas and Tavi. I need to go work my three wards here for training... ect. Long and short, I just don't want to study, because I HAVE TOO.

Ergo, I am going to go study. I have to go to make a house call tomorrow, and I need to study, and get my horses ready for Saturday, and yet... I'm procrastinating. Meh.

So I'll leave off with the attempt at blogging, and go do some work. Of some kind. Even though I really just want a nap. (If I had taken a nap already, I might have gotten something done, instead of falling asleep mid-textbook.)

I'll be not panicking right up to 7 am on Saturday when I'm scurrying out of my house for Texas Tech campus, and worrying that my mother is going to murder my favorite truck and 33' long gooseneck horse trailer when she hauls it to the arena for me. (SAT ends at 12, I have to be on my horse, across town at a playday that starts at 12. Yeah.)

Ciao.