I have to admit I am a bit reluctant to bring this up. Alright, you all know that I am keeping my eyes open for a repower 8v92 and that I'm not happy with my 754 and would rather have a 740. And we have all heard the saying "If it sounds to good to be true, then it probably is.
So, this last week I found the dream combo on Craigslist. A completely rebuilt 8v92 and a 740 along with it with an asking price of $7500. I spoke to the guy in California and he gave me the scoop on the motor/tranny and the first thing I noticed was his return email was his name followed by the words: next level coaches. So, I wanted to see if he did good conversions and I find myself at , you guessed it, Sam Walker ent. I have heard enough about the guy and how his dealings with folks here on the board had ended him up in prison. So, when I received the documents of the rebuild the guy, his name was Brian, the pedco receipt had his address as California. Unfortunately this guy said he had it rebuilt in PA. That means there is a possibility they forged the bills they sent me as proof that the motor ans tranny had been gone through and then, and here's the kicker, he reneges on the price we had agreed upon 7K and says he can't let it go for under 8K. I would never list a price for something and then raise it after someone has expressed interest in it. And the he said the words I had been hoping I wouldn't hear "Me and my partner thought we would change the price after the fact". I have a name in mind when I start to wondering who his partner is.
All in all the whole thing felt slimy to say the least.
So, I am most definitely not going to buy this combo and I would appreciate it if we would all look at this as an opportunity to learn and a near miss rather than a forum on how good or bad a guy Sam is. We have all read about his past and in truth most us have things in our past we'd rather forget.
Ask good questions, be diligent and you can catch a master of magic's slight of hand.
Thanks,
Rick
Why you're not happy with your 754?
I have said that Sam is a crook from day one. We even met him after he was in prison, and he was on parole when we met him, and he was still the same.
Steer clear of him, folks. Rick has good advice. Heed it.
God bless,
John
The 754 came in two models the 1rst gear start and the 2nd gear start and mine is the 2nd gear start. Obviously taking off in 2nd gear makes an underpowered motor seem even more underpowered. I have considered getting all the stuff to change it over to a 1rst gear start but I haven't made it happen yet. I'm thinking I would probably really like the 1rst gear start because I have ridden in some 740 equipped buses and they have alot more get up and go from a dead stop.
Thanks,
rick
Okay, I just searched "Sam Walker" and didn't come up with anything relevant. I'm kinda new here, I'm also nosey and sometimes gossipy.......... who is he? what did he do? who did he do it to?
RickB-Instead of going through all the rig a ma ro to change out your transmission to first gear start-just pull your shifter down to first when you want more ooomph at start. I do alot of manual shifting on my Allison-just like I imagine many others do to. Try manually shifting it-I think you'll like the results. Good Luck, TomC
Happycamperbrat, you dont want to go there. You didnt search deep enough. I too wanted to find out about him, and found plenty. Dig a little deeper and google and you will find plenty to gossip about. It has been discussed plenty on here in the past, maybe do a search on here for him. Have fun, lol.
I just put in "Sam Walker" it seems that "sam" is in a bunch of irrelevant threads and so is "walker"...... but someone pm'd me and got me up to date showing me a thread even with different opinions. Thanks!
Tom C,
The problem is some of the 2nd gear starts are not supposed to be shifted out of 1rst while the bus is moving. Although I have shifted out of 1rst manually it dosn't feel good at all. Big hesitation etc. so I am assuming I have one of the do not manually shift out of 1rst while moving transmission's.
If not for that I would totally agree that it would be easier to just shift manually.
Rick
Quote from: happycamperbrat on October 03, 2010, 07:21:04 AM
I just put in "Sam Walker" it seems that "sam" is in a bunch of irrelevant threads and so is "walker"...... but someone pm'd me and got me up to date showing me a thread even with different opinions. Thanks!
Teresa,
Chech your PMs Jack
Wow, Just Google Sam Walker Bus and there is plenty to read on the guy.
Rick
RickB-sounds like you have the HT750DR which have these ratios- 1)- 7.97; 2)- 3.19; 3)- 2.02; 4)- 1.40; 5)- Direct. As compared to the HT754CR which are- 1)- 3.692; 2)- 2.02; 3)- 1.51; 4)- 1.25; 5)- Direct. So your 5spd DR has almost the same top 4 gears as the HT740. For the amount of money it would take to switch over-I'm not sure it would be worth it. Good Luck, TomC
Thanks Jack! I guess I should have put in "Sam Walker Bus" instead of just "Sam Walker" on the home page search?
Rick,
Would a different torque converter help? There are several to choose from for different torque multiplication factors, maybe there is one that could work for you.
Good luck in your quest, the more options you have to choose from, the more fun the quest is.
Good post to remind us all of "buyer beware" & the advantages of critical thinking.
Glad sam wasn't able to set the hook & reel you in.
Tom I have the 754 CRD and all I can say is shifting out of 1rst manually really doesn't feel good. The bus tends to lurch and hesitate and it just feels like I shouldn't be doing it.
That statement coming from a guy who also has trouble running up to the governor and holding it there. ;D It must be all those small block chevrolet instincts of my youth.
Redline was something you never felt comfortable spending any extended time at.
Tom you are a wealth of knowledge to this board and I appreciate your advice.
Thanks
Rick
Also, I went back and looked at the receipts that the guy with the 8v92 sent and the address for the mitor rebuild was PA. I am still gonna pass but I wanted to set the record straight
Rick -
You have a HT-754CRD and you want to change it for an HT-740??
Everybody around here is always complaining about not having enough gears to work with in their bus, you've got one and you want to get rid of it??
Seriously???
Oh, my. . .
When I worked in the charter industry, we had four MCIs with that transmission - two MC-8s configured exactly the same as yours, and two MC-9s with 8V71Ts.
They were my favorite MCIs in the fleet. I loved having that extra gear to play with on the minor grades around here, before getting to the serious 6% stuff.
It's been so long, tho, that I don't remember if they were 1st or 2nd gear start.
Have you actually talked to an Allison shop about your transmission?? Given them the serial number so they can find out how it's configured and with which torque converter? Until you do, everything is pure speculation. Changing the torque converter alone may be all that's necessary to improve your acceleration.
You've got one of THE MOST dependable powertrains ever installed in a bus, one that will give you years of faithful service by simply doing the recommended preventative maintenance.
Don't let the "Tim Allen Syndrome" blind you to that fact!
FWIW & HTH. . .
;)