My new truck finally came in the mail on Friday and I got to spend the long weekend with it. Has been sitting around not run since 2000, 800k original on the truck. Really a pretty solid old truck although nowhere near as nice as my last one (I was really spoiled with that truck). Someone had previously tried to get it running with no success so the first step is to dig in and make that happen. Motor turns, and I've never had a Detroit that would turn but wouldn't run. Here's the first pictures of delivery and initial assessment.





First things first with a Detroit and that's freeing up the injectors. Since I always get questions on how to do this I made a video.



After I got the injectors unstuck I hooked up some batteries and hit the button.... nothing. Cleaned every connection on the series parallel and still nothing. Series Parallel clicks, but no starter rotation. Began looking at other connections, noticed all battery terminals were cleaned by whoever previously tried so this problem is not new. While cleaning connections on the starter I found a broken wire which is what sends 24v back to the series parallel on the small side of it to actuate the starter solenoid. Now we've got crank!

and crank, and crank and crank and ether and it'll crank faster with ether but no fire. Just some smoke. Obvious no fuel is obvious. Notice during cranking turbo doesn't want to spin freely. Upon closer inspection I find this:



ENTIRE exhaust housing full of mouse nest. I've got a remedy for that too.

Remove feed line to pump and attach to an elevated funnel filled with fuel. Results:





Not too shabby. Entire passenger bank is cold, fuel's pissing out somewhere. I've been down this road. No fun at all. Notice no coolant in engine at all and oil cooler drain wide open. I figure lets get coolant in it before we go any further. Fill with water, immediately discover why it was drained.



incoherent cursing. rinse and repeat for 5 minutes.

drain system, and loop cooling system at the pump bypassing both heater cores.

refill with water. Time to take care of that mouse nest. Button up turbo up-pipes start truck and rev to 2100. turbo's clear.  

Now we can move on to tackling the worst job on a Detroit. Fuel lines.



Found the culprit:



Also noticed the fuel lines on the engine side of the junction all use the cheaper thinner braided hose. At some point this must've changed because my last truck was all premium grade. This is a problem becuase the fittings don't interchange and all the line I have in stock is premium. UGH. Ran around for an entire day chasing my tail. Finally $162 and 8 fittings later:



Well worth the effort, runs MUCH better, all cylinders within 10 degrees of each other and no smoke and no slobber. Next step is to get it to run off it's own tank. See how that goes tonight. Then it's on to the oh so much fun job of getting the rest of the electrics to work other than the one clearance light that currently works.




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Buncha junk.

I can certainly sympathize with you went through every thing you just described with a det. in a co kw `finaly got it to smoke but still would`nt run turned out to be a broken blower shaft

that was my next place to go had it not started however i had a hunch with the amount of smoke and flow out of the manifolds that the blower was indeed turning.

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Buncha junk.

Great video Wayne, showing the step by step that works for you. I thought you might show my screwdriver trick, using a flat blade screwdriver slipped through the colapsed injector spring, when the injector is stuck down, twisting the blade to pop the spring to it's extended position, then tapping it down again to repeat the procedure. Sometimes it's necessary to loosen or remove one end of the control tube to have access to the injector spring.   If so, I always try to remove the quarter inch bolts on the stand opposite the governor links to minimize the disturbance to the tune up. Your version with the vice grip on the follower and prying it with a curved prybar is probably the best shade tree  fix that doesn't disturb the previous tune up .     Next video, show your helper Tracey,  helping where 2 hands ain't enough !

Definitely good points Dan! I really don't like to disturb the tune up if at all possible! Tracey is camera shy!

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Buncha junk.

Great looking truck Wayne, I knew it couldn't be long before another one came your way.
I also enjoyed the video on freeing up the injectors and rack but I'm still terrified of mine.
Keep posting up the video's.

Cabover Nut
In order that the labour of centuries past may not be in vain during the centuries to come...Denis Diderot 1752

Rock-------Have faith and don't be terrified !

Did a bunch more work to it, gutted entire interior to clean mouse nests etc. Cleaned all the panels and reassembled installed new steering wheel etc. Interior come out like new. Also had a broken wire in the sleeper harness so none of the lights worked which I fixed and all is well now.  Had an injector go down on Sunday, clobbering out the airbox hard, fuel in exhaust etc. Also another one on same bank cutting in and out but not slobbering. Ripped out all the 9a90s and tossed in 9g90s. Now shes set for 475 and more importantly no slobber or cutting in and out. I need to go through and set the valves and inj heights yet, but it runs so good i'm in no rush. I'm not going to maintain this thread much this forum doesn't seem to get too much traffic. I got a thread over on bigmacktrucks, much more active i'll just do that. 



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Buncha junk.

Hey !  NO !   Don't desert us for the Mack site !     I never go there 'cause Mack hasn't acknowledged a Detroit since the Superliner days, with only one known in West Virginia .

Have you roadtested it yet ?

nooooo I haven't. I have to swap tires on the front rear and do brakes. Someone put new shoes but they're rust jacked to the point that even though the brakes are caged they're dragging. Then I've gotta put an air compressor on it also and get the rest of the lights working. Lots to do!

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Buncha junk.