"Run the Rack". 8V71 Tuneup

[bobofthenorth]

When I bought my first Bus Conversion subscription I also ordered 2 years of back issues.  Never regretted that decision & I look forward to every new issue.

[Beatenbo]

I would go to any lenth io stay away from a DD Dealer. To quote 8 hrs to adjust valves injector height and tighten a few rack screws. My old shade tree DD man who has worked on 2 strokers 45 years tuned my 6V92 in 2hrs and charged me 100 bucks. You would think a certified mechanic could tune one in 4 hours. And as for parts, what parts? 90% of the time they use the same valve cover gaskets.It's sad to hear some of the rip offs to the private owner.

[Chaz]

Oh man.......... I'm not liking the sound of these posts. The good thing is that the bus "seems" to be running ok, but then, I wouldn't really know. I'm still a rookie. So I guess I have a little time to check things out. But I would like to get it done- if I need to- before the Arcadia rally as i would love to go if things work out. (money, teaching, father, etc)  It sounds fantastic!!! And it would be great to pick up some more ideas before I get too far along and regret it.
  Thanx Guys!
     Chaz

[Moof]

Hey Chaz,

You can get past issues from MAK as well.  I picked out issues that had articles that suited my needs.  Talk about Christmas come early.  We got about 20 back issues.  I almost forgot to go to work the next morning.

[RJ]

Chaz -

Industry mags:  The main one for bus conversions is MAK's.  George Myers also prints quarterly a newsletter-like "Coach Converter's Bulletin" which is helpful, too. 

National Bus Trader, Bus Ride, Metro, etc. are all geared for the actual revenue-service industry, not a lot of help to converters, altho NBT has some conversion related stuff now and then.  OTOH, the Bus Garage Index that I gave you the link to, published by Bus Ride, is well worth the twenty-five bucks, shipping included.

Regarding running the rack.  Again, my point is to call several charter bus companies and try to get a referral to a shop or mechanic.

FWIW & HTH. . .

[BJ]

Running the rack can and is a pain. don't let anyone tell you different. The detroit dealer here is Tulsa Ok gets $800.00 to do it and they are the only folks around here that will even "run the rack"

[larryh]

Chaz

Basically  We inspect the whole system fuel crossover lines for leaks and take all off and check out the full travel of all linkages and adjust the timing on injectors and the valve settings this is very important for the life of your engine.

It does take me about 2 - 3 hours average to run the rack a tad longer with jake heads on the engine.

Get a mechanic that knows the engines and the sounds and the problem areas. Experience is the key here it's not a training ground .

LarryH
43 yrs experience

[oldmansax]

LarryH is right. it's not a place to train mechanics. I used to do my own 30 years ago and it would take me 4 to 6 hours. I had another old timer who consistently took 5 to 7 ( he DID spent a lot of time lighting his pipe & telling me what I had done wrong)  but I could tell the difference in an engine that he did verses ones that other mechanics did. By all means, GET REFERENCES!!! And then ask the references WHY they like the mechanic. "He always did a good job cheap" is not good enough.

On the other hand, a passable job is better than running an engine that really needs a tuneup. It's not rocket science. It just takes some time and attention to detail.

[Happycampersrus]

 When I do a tune up on a 2 stroke that dosen't seem to have any problems I perform an inspection of ALL the fuel lines, change fuel filters, check and/or adjust the exhaust valves, check and/or adjust injector timing, check and/or adjust the rack timing to make sure the injectors working the same amount. if it has jakes check and adjust them. Also the govenor has to be checked and adjusted and the idle has to be set and the buffer adjusted CORRECTLY. All of this needs to set while the engine is hot and this is a time consuming process. 4 hours or so is about right.

2 cover gaskets or 1 long one if a 6-71
1 governor gasket
2 fuel filters
If it don't need anything else $100 in parts.

Now if it is a poorly running Detroit you will probably have to replace the injectors IF the compression test comes out good. Plus everything I described above. All this needs to be done by an EXPERIENCED 2 stroke guy. Don't trust it to your buddies uncle or sister's husband's cousin that thinks he can do this, UNLESS he works on em for a living.

[Chaz]

Thanx guys! I'll check out the back issues of MAK and the Bus Garage. I suppose I can find the topics of old issues on the site.

Thanx for all the info and suggestions on getting my "rack run". (man, that sounds kinda bad! lol  ) There seems to be quite a bit of difference in prices, but I guess it has allot to do with allot of things. I will search around. The only guy i did talk to was "Guess-timating" around 800.oo. I guess better to guess high than low.......... I HOPE!!!  But that is a reputable diesel service place. I will do the hunting around as some of you have suggested.

  I appreciate all the help, concern and suggestions!
   Chaz