Big Blue's Transformation

[grumpin]

That's basically where I am on it, Scott. But I was curious what others thought.

If you had pins to line up, like a 110v AC plug, then I could see having them on the front edge being a pain. But I can't see plugging into a 12v power point being an issue.

And, by the way, I plan to put the on/off switch for the bed lights at the top of the leading edge of the stake pocket. So an always-hot wire will be run under the top of the bed sides to that switch, and then on through the hole in the top of the stake pocket to the power points.

I agree on the front edge, just to keep from hitting them, although as Scott mentioned at either place it is unlikely they’ll get damaged.

 

[Gary Lewis]

I agree on the front edge, just to keep from hitting them, although as Scott mentioned at either place it is unlikely they’ll get damaged.

Thanks, Dane. I think we have a quorum. Leading edge it is.

This helps me figure out what wires I want to run where. I won't start that until I get the bed cover fully installed and the security system wired, but I needed to nail this down for my planning.

[Gary Lewis]

Thanks, Dane. I think we have a quorum. Leading edge it is.

This helps me figure out what wires I want to run where. I won't start that until I get the bed cover fully installed and the security system wired, but I needed to nail this down for my planning.

Got the wiring from the bed run into the cab and the grounds terminated.

Here's a shot showing the wires coming down the side of the bed from the front stake pocket. There's a wye in the red/power wire right above the grommet where it goes through the bed support, and the grounds and that new red wire go through the convolute you see peeking out and then to the right and down through the bed support. As you can see, the grounds terminate on the bed ground point, and the convolute going over the top of the frame has the red/power wire.

That wire will run down the inside of the bed and up through the left tail light opening to power the lights and the 12v power points. I decided it would be easier to do that than run it under the bed side along with the light strips.

Speaking of the light strips, the kit came in today, and I'm very pleased with it. Looks like there's enough wire to allow installing them w/o drilling any holes and only making two connections - ground and power. The strips come with about 6' of lead on them, which terminates in a connector. Those connectors go into connectors on a 3' wye that goes to the switch.

So the switch will go on the leading edge of the stake pocket and its lead will go into the stake pocket and drop down through the tail light's cavity to below the bed. I think there's enough lead on the wye to put the connections down below the bed, so the right light's lead will be long enough to cross under the bed, go up the tail light cavity, and into the bed under the edge to the light.

[Gary Lewis]

Got the wiring from the bed run into the cab and the grounds terminated.

Here's a shot showing the wires coming down the side of the bed from the front stake pocket. There's a wye in the red/power wire right above the grommet where it goes through the bed support, and the grounds and that new red wire go through the convolute you see peeking out and then to the right and down through the bed support. As you can see, the grounds terminate on the bed ground point, and the convolute going over the top of the frame has the red/power wire.

That wire will run down the inside of the bed and up through the left tail light opening to power the lights and the 12v power points. I decided it would be easier to do that than run it under the bed side along with the light strips.

Speaking of the light strips, the kit came in today, and I'm very pleased with it. Looks like there's enough wire to allow installing them w/o drilling any holes and only making two connections - ground and power. The strips come with about 6' of lead on them, which terminates in a connector. Those connectors go into connectors on a 3' wye that goes to the switch.

So the switch will go on the leading edge of the stake pocket and its lead will go into the stake pocket and drop down through the tail light's cavity to below the bed. I think there's enough lead on the wye to put the connections down below the bed, so the right light's lead will be long enough to cross under the bed, go up the tail light cavity, and into the bed under the edge to the light.

We are taking the truck on a trip tomorrow, although we aren't quite sure where we are going. Anyway, I needed to get it ready for the trip, so here's what I did today.

The first thing to do was to secure the bed cover's rails. Not having yet received the brackets from Pace Edwards, but having already installed the inner brackets for the kick stands, I installed the toggle part to them and snugged things down. The rails turned out a lot closer to level this time, probably due to the front clamp that is on and maybe partially due to the 1/4 foam tape under the inside edge.

Next was power for the bed cover. Having run the bed wiring into the cab but not having enough time to connect to the fuse box, I dug out a 12v lighter plug and connected it to the bed cover's power lead and plugged it into a power point behind the seat. It won't normally have power except when the key is on, which closes the aux power relay, but I can force it on with the switch in Mission Control. But, it works.

Then I laid a piece of marine carpet in the toolbox and stuck in the tools I always carry. Didn't have time to cut the carpet to size nor glue it in, but that's in the plans to keep the noise down. Anyway here 'tis, and you can see the wires that go to the pin switch for the security system in the lower right corner of the pic.

Last, it was time to load the spare tire. But I didn't want it to bounce around and bang into things, especially the canister for the bed cover. So I looked for ways to tie it down, and the tie down points that had been in the stake pockets looked promising. Initially I wanted one in front and one to the rear, but that wouldn't work because the rear bolt would go into an inaccessible area near the rear gas tank, so I settled for one on either side. And, here's how it worked out:

[ArdWrknTrk]

We are taking the truck on a trip tomorrow, although we aren't quite sure where we are going. Anyway, I needed to get it ready for the trip, so here's what I did today.

The first thing to do was to secure the bed cover's rails. Not having yet received the brackets from Pace Edwards, but having already installed the inner brackets for the kick stands, I installed the toggle part to them and snugged things down. The rails turned out a lot closer to level this time, probably due to the front clamp that is on and maybe partially due to the 1/4 foam tape under the inside edge.

Next was power for the bed cover. Having run the bed wiring into the cab but not having enough time to connect to the fuse box, I dug out a 12v lighter plug and connected it to the bed cover's power lead and plugged it into a power point behind the seat. It won't normally have power except when the key is on, which closes the aux power relay, but I can force it on with the switch in Mission Control. But, it works.

Then I laid a piece of marine carpet in the toolbox and stuck in the tools I always carry. Didn't have time to cut the carpet to size nor glue it in, but that's in the plans to keep the noise down. Anyway here 'tis, and you can see the wires that go to the pin switch for the security system in the lower right corner of the pic.

Last, it was time to load the spare tire. But I didn't want it to bounce around and bang into things, especially the canister for the bed cover. So I looked for ways to tie it down, and the tie down points that had been in the stake pockets looked promising. Initially I wanted one in front and one to the rear, but that wouldn't work because the rear bolt would go into an inaccessible area near the rear gas tank, so I settled for one on either side. And, here's how it worked out:

How much does the roller cover draw?

I'm surprised a power port adapter will carry enough juice.

But I have no idea how it is geared.

[Gary Lewis]

How much does the roller cover draw?

I'm surprised a power port adapter will carry enough juice.

But I have no idea how it is geared.

I don't know how much it pulls, but it was initially fused at 15 amps. However, the plug I used has 1' of 18 gauge wire on it, so I checked on Wire Barn and they say that short wire is good for 20A, which surprised me. So I put a 7.5 amp fuse in it and it worked fine.

[Gary Lewis]

I don't know how much it pulls, but it was initially fused at 15 amps. However, the plug I used has 1' of 18 gauge wire on it, so I checked on Wire Barn and they say that short wire is good for 20A, which surprised me. So I put a 7.5 amp fuse in it and it worked fine.

We had a good outing today. Put ~175 miles on Big Blue and he performed well. At one point we were on the turnpike with a 75 MPH speed limit and he cruised right on the limit easily.

However, there were a couple of learnings. First, the charger for this Microsoft Surface Pro tablet does not work on the inverter. Lots of other chargers do work on the inverter, but this one doesn't. So I've found a charger that plugs into a 12v power port and it should work fine.

The other learning is that I may have discovered why the engine doesn't like to pull below ~1300 RPM. The AFR goes very lean as you get down close to 1000 RPM, like 16 - 18:1, and at one point I saw 20:1.

I'd not watched the AFR as the R's dropped down, but for some reason I caught it today. And then I started watching it closely and found that it drops as I pull away from a stop, which explains why I have to give it some gas and slip the clutch as I pull away.

So, what's the deal? Can it be the carb? Is it due to the design of the intake manifold/plenum, which is designed for air since it is for port-injection EFI?

As a reminder, that same carb worked perfectly with the previous engine, and it pulled like a tractor from idle. The carb was out of service for a while but was kept in a baggy during that time. And I've gone through it since when I changed the jetting, so I think it is ok.

Thoughts?

[ArdWrknTrk]

We had a good outing today. Put ~175 miles on Big Blue and he performed well. At one point we were on the turnpike with a 75 MPH speed limit and he cruised right on the limit easily.

However, there were a couple of learnings. First, the charger for this Microsoft Surface Pro tablet does not work on the inverter. Lots of other chargers do work on the inverter, but this one doesn't. So I've found a charger that plugs into a 12v power port and it should work fine.

The other learning is that I may have discovered why the engine doesn't like to pull below ~1300 RPM. The AFR goes very lean as you get down close to 1000 RPM, like 16 - 18:1, and at one point I saw 20:1.

I'd not watched the AFR as the R's dropped down, but for some reason I caught it today. And then I started watching it closely and found that it drops as I pull away from a stop, which explains why I have to give it some gas and slip the clutch as I pull away.

So, what's the deal? Can it be the carb? Is it due to the design of the intake manifold/plenum, which is designed for air since it is for port-injection EFI?

As a reminder, that same carb worked perfectly with the previous engine, and it pulled like a tractor from idle. The carb was out of service for a while but was kept in a baggy during that time. And I've gone through it since when I changed the jetting, so I think it is ok.

Thoughts?

Plenum design or volume is not going to effect AFR.

Poor signal at low RPM's will.

And I expect that your vacuum is low at that point because of the new cam.

I'm no expert at jetting Edelbrock's, but I would have the needles higher and/or a more aggressive pump shot to counter what you're seeing.

[Gary Lewis]

Plenum design or volume is not going to effect AFR.

Poor signal at low RPM's will.

And I expect that your vacuum is low at that point because of the new cam.

I'm no expert at jetting Edelbrock's, but I would have the needles higher and/or a more aggressive pump shot to counter what you're seeing.

Jim - I'm no expert at any of this. But my reading seems to say that the design of the intake can affect AFR since a large plenum causes a slower flow of the air/fuel mix, which can cause the fuel to drop out of suspension. That would give a lean mix, which is what I'm seeing. And Scotty did tell me that this is a "large" plenum.

As for the vacuum signal, both engines idled at 18" @ 650 RPM, so at first blush that would say the carb should be seeing the same vacuum signal. However, Scotty's cam is quite different than the Edelbrock cam that the old engine had, which he called "pooh". So the carb could be seeing something different than what the vacuum gauge is?

As for changing the Edelbrock, I'll give the pump a larger stroke and see if that helps. Plus I'll open the idle screws a bit to make the idle richer.

But I don't know what you mean by having "the needles higher". The inlet needles or the metering needles? Probably the inlet needles, which would enrichen things across the board. Right?

[ArdWrknTrk]

Jim - I'm no expert at any of this. But my reading seems to say that the design of the intake can affect AFR since a large plenum causes a slower flow of the air/fuel mix, which can cause the fuel to drop out of suspension. That would give a lean mix, which is what I'm seeing. And Scotty did tell me that this is a "large" plenum.

As for the vacuum signal, both engines idled at 18" @ 650 RPM, so at first blush that would say the carb should be seeing the same vacuum signal. However, Scotty's cam is quite different than the Edelbrock cam that the old engine had, which he called "pooh". So the carb could be seeing something different than what the vacuum gauge is?

As for changing the Edelbrock, I'll give the pump a larger stroke and see if that helps. Plus I'll open the idle screws a bit to make the idle richer.

But I don't know what you mean by having "the needles higher". The inlet needles or the metering needles? Probably the inlet needles, which would enrichen things across the board. Right?

I doubt fuel is dropping out on the floor of the plenum, but it is possible.

The plenum size is definitely camping by pulses the boosters are seeing as individual intakes open.

I'm also not sure how the runner volumes compare to your old intake (which was a Performer IIRC?)

Port velocity is more important for cylinder filling than you might imagine.

I'm thinking metering needles popping up higher (or sooner)

Idle isn't cruise.

With EGR you should be able to go very lean with no load on the engine, but you need fuel on tip in in order to make power to accelerate.

Is it lean at idle, or cruise?

I'm confused.