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Junkyard rescue of an '87 Dodge Power Ram 50

10w-30 is what most run, I'll probably run 10w-40 for a little bit extra viscosity.

I was thinking VR-1, but if diesel oil has the zinc I'll run the Rotella or Penzoil varieties.
 


Found a small issue with the cylinder head...

2020-02-20_06-25-05 by Ben Stryker, on Flickr

There's a coolant passage that runs right in between the valve seats, so all the time and effort I put into the head was wasted.

But I found a damn good deal, and I'm pretty stoked about it.

IMG_20200227_135709057 by Ben Stryker, on Flickr

It's an improved casting... It's much thicker in between the valve seats for better heat dissipation, plus the intake and exhaust ports are improved over the stock casting.

IMG_20200227_135821715 by Ben Stryker, on Flickr

And I got a couple extra bits with the head:

All new intake/exhaust studs
A set of dowel pins for in between the head and the block
A set of dowel pins for in between the timing cover and the block
And finally, a new oil pump gasket that ended up being free. :cool:

I needed new studs, because I destroyed some of the old ones pulling them out of the old head.

I needed the new dowel pins because half of them were already missing when I pulled the engine apart.

I needed the new gasket, because I had to pull the oil pump back off and the old gasket didn't survive.

I've been busy dealing with a metric f*ck-ton of **** lately, and haven't had time to do anything to the truck... But I'm going to try and make some progress this weekend. Hopefully.
 
Finally had a chance to start working on the truck today, and before I even pick up a wrench my buddy stops by and asks for some help with the truck here just bought...

He picked up a '95 GMC Yukon for $100, it's got some electrical issues keeping it from starting but it's in really good shape for $100. It's got a 350, auto, 4WD, and it's a light blue metallic. There's a little bit of rust in the body, but the frame is pretty damn minty.

I'm only a little bit jealous... I swear. Lol
 


Didn't quite get the engine back together, but I did make progress. The rear main seal is installed, the new dowel pins for the head and timing cover are installed, oil pump is re-packed with actual Vaseline and ready to be installed, and I cleaned out the bed of the truck in preparation...

I'm getting ready to hook up the pressure washer and attack the front half of the truck while the engine is still out, get rid of as much of that built up grime as I can before dropping the engine back in. I'm also going to spray off all of the accessory brackets and pulleys, and whatever else might still be dirty.

I also started working on the gauges, after finally deciding where I'm going to put them. Now I'm working on figuring out how I'm going to route the lines for the oil pressure and the coolant temp, getting the wiring situated, flipping the gauges in the bracket so I can mount it to the dash...

Oh, and I ordered a jug of Lucas High Zinc SAE 30 engine break-in oil, and a bottle of LiquiMoly CeraTec friction modifier. I still need to buy the coolant, oil filters, and some more black spray paint, but the end is in sight.
 
WarStryker13 said:
...and I cleaned out the bed of the truck in preparation...
Click to expand...

The best part of building a truck; Built in storage space.

I'm getting ready to hook up the pressure washer and attack the front half of the truck while the engine is still out, get rid of as much of that built up grime as I can before dropping the engine back in. I'm also going to spray off all of the accessory brackets and pulleys, and whatever else might still be dirty.
Click to expand...

SuperClean from WalMart seems to work the best. I put it in a little pump type garden sprayer. Saves the hand fatigue from a spray bottle. Don't waste your time with that weak sauce Purple Power.
 
Built in storage, that I tend to pile anything and everything into while I'm working on the truck... But now it's just the hood and grille sitting in the bed.

I tried Purple Power at first, but yes, SuperClean100%, and I even have a little pump sprayer from Aldi's that I got for $5.

I'm not going to use too much degreaser on the engine bay and front axle/suspension, because I want to leave a thin layer of oil/grease so it doesn't start rusting immediately...
 
Iv never had a problem with industrial degreaser from menards. **** will take paint off a over the range vent.
 


I got most of the big chunks knocked off of the engine bay and front drive train, and most of the grime off the front accessories and brackets. There's still a little bit here and there, but that'll be easy to clean up.

I'm pulling the #4 rod cap off again, I decided that it's a little tighter than I'd like and I'm going to polish the rod journal a bit more. It would probably be fine the way it is, but better safe than sorry.

I also picked up a couple oil filters, the only things left to buy is fresh coolant, fresh gas, and another jug of oil. Oh, and rent the engine hoist.
 
Two and four were still tight after polishing the journals, so I swapped the bearings to number one connecting rod and those two bearings do not rotate freely on any journal.

I'm claiming wrong size bearings, and I've already ordered a new set of rod bearings... It's apparent that plastigauge wasn't the most accurate way to measure, but if the new bearings rotate freely around the journals after torquing the rod caps I'm just going to run them. I'm tired of finding problems.

I'm still working through this new plague, because essential, but part of me hopes that I get exposed so I can have some time off and actually finish this pile of crap. Without dying, of course.
 


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