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Steve from SoCal

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About Steve from SoCal

  • Birthday 05/17/1960

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Woodland Hill, Ca. and Hutchinson Ks.
  • Interests
    Anything that burns fuel, creating gizmos, flyin, floatin, drivin

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  1. I am in Kansas and the state you are domiciled in matters. That said, I have Shelter Insurance on my truck Peterbit 387 registered as an RV in Kansas with no restrictions, I tow a 48' Kentucky drop frame van in addition to my Teton. My policy has been rather consistant fot the last 5 years with modest rate hikes, about 1200 a year full coverage 1000.00 deductable.
  2. Octane numbers relate to knock or pre-ignition, that has no bearing on power. Knock or pre-ignition has several factors, compression is one, chamber shape and mixture are others. Modern engines with knock sensors can adjust for different grades of fuel. With lower octane fuel developing lower power in these engines due to ignition timming/mixture changes to allow for the lower grade fuel. The flame rate or how fast the fuel burns is really the detail behind octane numbers At high altitude the air is less dense therefore naturally asperated engines don't produce the same pressue they would at sea level. Lower compression allows for faster combustion hence lower octane fuel. In aviation the development of piston aero engines can be traced to octane. The Big American Radial engines, RR and, Allison V12's of WWII were designed to use 115/145 octane fuel. These engines are suppercharged, they still run on 100LL agas but at much lower power than they are rated at. The Germans did not have high octane fuel and their engines were either larger displacement or lower powered than the allied forces because of this.
  3. Counter rotating engines have been used in aero and marine installations for going on 90 years. There is no magic to CW/CCW rotation of an engine. The thrust vector of a propeller is interesting, the Lockheed P-38 used a novel version of this look it up!
  4. Speaking of CNG tanks, There was a CNG fueled truck that caught fire in L.A. last week, a CNG tank exploded while the fire department was on scene. Nine firefighters were injured, one in really bad shape. Video showed the explosion, like an air burst mortar. I know these trucks are statisticly safe but this was a horrible outcome. As for Olds diesels, I worked on them at a dealership when they came out. Used to rebuild 3-5 pumps a day!
  5. Just saw this thread, I came into California at the end of Jan 2024 on I40 with my 2005 Peterbilt towing a 48' traiiler and had no issues. Have been in the L.A. area for a month again no issues. My truck is registered as an RV and has no signage of any kind. If you were to come in thru I 10 or I 80 there are ports of entry, as an RV just drive past them. As mentioned, the clean idle restriction is for commercial vehicles. If you have a personal vehicle it is not an issue at this time. That could change in the future but, for now it is not thing.
  6. I think the Paccar engine was developed in Europe with DAF? European manufactures have used cartridge type filters for a long time. They are less costly and save material by not using a new shell with every change. The manufactures are more focused on packaging today in general so, the idea that cartridge filters are used fit that goal as well.
  7. The size of the engine has some impact on how it's oil system works. 'Most' modern post 1960 auto engines use full flow oil filtration as well as many medium/high speed diesel engines. As a kid I worked at Ed Pink racing engines and did engine tear down and machine work. The only engines I recall that were bypass were older designs, flat head/early stove bolts etc. I don't have that much knowledge on smaller diesel engines, I do know Cat, MTU, Man have full flow oil systems. All have vertical filter placement. As some may recall I had a Mercedes independent shop and all the MB engines I recall have vertical or near vertical placement. My cars: Mercedes straight six, V-6, V-8 and,V12 all have top loading vertical filters. Only my older inline engine uses a spin on filter, the rest use a fleece cartridge that drains when stopped. I recall some engines with side mount filters with remote or vertical adapters for filter plcement. Piston aero engines DO have bypass oil systems and many actually have an oil dilution function to add fuel to the oil system for cold starts My forklifts with flat heads have bypass oil systems, these are all older designs. Like older VW's, the bypass systems used screens with a filter being an option. On many larger diesel engines <20 liters there is an accumulator or pre-lube pump, i have an acusump type pre-oiler for smaller engines myself. Changing oil on an engine that was running a day ago is not an issue. Even engines that have not been changed but have sat for some time should be pre-oiled.
  8. Steve from SoCal

    Questions

    The two engines to maintain with a truck/car/5th wheel means no gen in the fiver? That also excludes a truck mounted apu. The real issue with a MH vs 5th wheel is where the driveline is in relation to living space. That said, a truck with a small sleeper and a bed to haul a Smart car will be at the very least 28' more like 30' not as big as a class A but easily as big as a class C. A truck without a car bed could be 22~24' even with a larger sleeper. These trucks are close in footprint to a crew cab long bed but wider and taller. The service of a truck will not be as easy as a pick up nor will it be like a car dealership experience. The franchise dealers are far fewer and have much more work per store. You could wait a week for service. A short truck with a mid roof sleeper could be a daily driver but, it will be more taxing than a pick up and short trips are not ideal for the truck. There is a lot of info on these topics here in the forum, take some time and research each in depth.
  9. I agree that oil filters need not be filled, the idea that only a percentage of oil goes thru the filter in a modern engine, not so much. Now fuel filters for diesel engines I do fill from the outside, try to keep the air intrusion to a minimum.
  10. Teardrops are for lil trucks, how about a back course off a DME arc
  11. Wet Stacking IS an issue, warm up aside idling a diesel engine or low loads is not good in the long run. It is more of an issue with gen sets than prime movers. New engines with electronic fuel control have fewer issues. In marine service engines that are rated at high power and run slow are usually run at high power every few hours for half an hour or so. A vehicle is not at a constant speed for hours on end the way marine or gen sets are run.
  12. I can't say how the 'cheap heat' works but, I am clearly in the no propane camp. The 240 volt mini split should work on a 50 amp RV service just using the two conductors no neutral. The 14-50 plug is 240 with the center tap neutral, just wire the mini to the two incomming legs.
  13. The issue of the trailer being over gross aside, the nose low attitude loads the front trailer axle and tires may be the point of instability? Trailer sway is more likely with light contact on the rear trailer axle. The tire load capacity may be well over the rated limit? A Cat scale can't break out close tandem axle weight, I would start with leveling out the chassis. As Case 20 mentioned above loading tail first may help greatly as well.
  14. I don't have a Volvo but, I did install a pyro and boost gauge in my truck. "Most" engines have a plug on the elbow at the head for a boost gauge. The exhaust housing on the turbo should have a plug as well? The thermocouple should be on the cold side of the turbo to prevent damage if the probe fails. If either of the locations have to be pierced a tap should be all that is needed to install the sensor. Drilling the exhaust housing after the turbine is not an issue. Drilling the intake elbow should be done with the elbow open and a rag beyond the area to keep swarf from entering the engine. Don't know the Volvo dash but, the gauges should be in an area within the normal scan of instruments. I found getting the sensor wires/tubing into the cab the most daunting part of the job. The most direct path may not be the best or even pracitical way in to the cab.
  15. This is the hitch in progress,
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