The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Who uses their truck as a truck?

I'm sure Thor isn't even working up a sweat with that light load.

My mistake. Factory shop manual says the 216 should have 14 PSI oil pressure at 2,000 RPM.

No Thor just Rattled along, I was the one breaking a sweat...

Finally got around to changing the batteries in the trailcam and found Ol' Roy hauling firewood logs to take to my mom.

Roy seems to handle that steep hill well.

Hahaha! The cam was hung on the tree crooked.

Otto - You get an "A" for catching Ol' Roy at work. Not so much for your trail cam hanging - LOL!

Back to the farm for some Halloween pumpkins!

Washer machine stopped working and I had to pick up a new lid switch. I've changed this before years ago, so not that hard to do. I went to The Mending Shed in Orem, UT. The owners were loving the old truck and took some pictures in front of the store.

You would think that the owners of The Mending Shed would mend their sign. It's sort of like those mobile auto detailing guys driving around in beat up, filthy wreck vans.

I thought the same thing when I pulled up. 🤣

Ol' Roy is now so quiet that I'm driving it a lot more than usual. The Bismarck and Little Red are getting neglected.

Of course now that it's quiet I keep hearing all kinds of other noises that have probably been there forever but that I just couldn't hear in the past. So now I'm obsessing over them. I probably just need to drive around with ear plugs.

Anyway, I had to go to a Ace Hardware about 6 or 7 miles away because they're the only place left nearby that will still fill propane tanks instead of requiring you to exchange them.

The Blue Rhino, et al tank exchange is a big rip off anywhere you go. Around here the average price for an exchange is about $22, but you only get 15 lb of propane.

At Ace hardware you'll get a full 20 lb for the same $22. That's $1.10 a pound as opposed to a $1.46 per pound. That's over $7 per tank savings.

The good think about the tank exchange places at Kroger or whatever, is that you can take your DOT expired, rusty tanks to them and exchange them for a brand new tank , 3/4 full of propane. If you have to buy a new empty tank, they're almost $50 now! I even found a rusty tank in the woods by my house and exchanged it for a brand new one.

Then off to the bank and some other errands. Gotta get my stuff done before the big hurricane hits tomorrow!

Who knew that having valves open all the way like they're supposed to would have such a positive effect on the performance of this vehicle?

Hahaha!

The truck has noticeably better acceleration. It was no slouch before but it's measurable now. And I did not even push the truck to get to those speeds. Whereas prior to the valve adjustment and repair of the rocker arms and shaft, it would make it to 55 and 60 comfortably and it was a stretch to make it to 65.

So obviously my first sentence was tongue in cheek but I'm amazed by this old truck. I also noticed that the RPM increased without me messing with the carburetor.

I assume because it's running so much more efficiently. I do believe it was running rich in the past due to soot in the tailpipe and on the garage floor.

I actually expect to see a measurable improvement in fuel economy. It was getting about 11 to 13 prior to all of this work.

I turned the idle back down to 600 it had climbed to 800 on its own.

And let not your hearts be troubled. I'm not driving around regularly at 70 miles an hour on the interstate. I just took it out after turning the idle down to see how it was running.

Definitely driving it to work tomorrow, though.

Otto, is the slightly to the discharge side of "0" normal for your truck? I know that ammeters can be off a bit but I am always concerned if they show a discharge while operating.

I'm driving the truck this morning. I'll look more closely when I leave from where I'm at. It might just be the angle at which the photograph is taken.

Can that actually be called a photograph? What are digital images taken on a phone called?


I'll hook them multimeter up when I get home and see what the output is with the engine running.

You got it, Otto. They are correctly referred to as "images" because "photograph" is a specific term referring to an image captured and reproduced through the "photographic process" involving an optical lens and a light-sensitive chemical process. "Images" are a more generic form of graphical representation encompassing a variety of forms and formats.

While the camera doesn't lie, Photoshop sure does! Once an image is transferred from the film to an electronic format, it ceases to be a "photograph" and has become merely a manipulated image who's veracity is suspect.

John
Old School Newspaper Editor/Journalism Instructor

And to allay WIcruiser's concerns, I just drove to my next stop and the needle stayed more less in the center of the ammeter gauge. It jiggles around a little bit. But I turned on the heater and it didn't go to discharge. I'll try the headlights and the heater next and see what happens.

You said it john. As useful and amazing as this modern technology is, I definitely prefer old technology. I still have 35 mm film cameras that I use semi regularly. But it sure is nice being able to take 100 pictures with a phone and then keep only the one you want

I used to have a photographic memory...but I ran out of film.

7.34 on the volt meter

When the battery reaches its full charge, the current flowing into it drops to essentially zero. The ammeter therefore reads zero amps even though the generator is still producing electricity offsetting any draws on the battery, lights, coil, etc.

In short, a zero reading tells you the battery is fully charged and that the generator is successfully meeting the truck’s electrical demand.

When you first engage the starter, the battery supplies a noticeable surge of current to the engine. During this brief period you should see the ammeter swing negative, then upon starting, it should swing to the positive side indicating that the generator is beginning to replenish the charge the starter just drew.

A more reliable way of testing your charging system when it’s running, is to use a multimeter on volts. It should show about 6.5-7.5 volts on a six volt system (13-14.5 volts on 12 volt system) if it’s charging properly.