Looking for a pancake 855 big cam

[joel_newton]

A good friend of mine needs to replace his 743 pancake Cummins.  He wants to replace it with the 855 pancake Cummins big cam.  He located one with a turbo for a reasonable price.  Unfortunately, the seller has been out of the country on business and apparently his return has been delayed.  My friend would like to see if he can find any others for sale.  With Winter over (?) he is anxious to get his bus back on the road. 

Please let  me know if you have any leads.  I'll pass the info on.  My friend will be signing up for this great forum when he gets back from his business trip.  Glad I'm retired!

Thank you all.

[Uglydog56]

They don't exist, man.  I looked for two years.  They were rare to begin with and any survivors went overseas.

Let Skip know I got my 350 small cam running!  It's a rocket ship.  You can get up the hill with a small cam if you have to.

[luvrbus]

Check www.adelman.com I see those for sale in a marine magazine from time to time there for 3250.00 fwiw I thought all the Crown/Ikarus buses had the 855 big cam but I may be wrong

good luck

[TomC]

Why don't you convert one? The biggest change is the lay down converter for the oil pan. The lay down engine uses the same oil pan as a stand up engine, just with an angled adapter and an adapter for the oil pickup. Then just drill each of the heads under the valve cover for oil return. Also-the air compressor has to be changed to a belt driven since the lay down gear drive won't work properly. I imagine there are other items to be changed, but those are the major. Most any engine can be changed to run on its' side.

Detroit had 12V-71's that ran standing straight up and down for compact generators on water oil well rigs. They had special oil pans and drains from the valve covers. Under the generator was a water cooled thrust bearing supporting all the rotating mass. Pretty neat-just ran as happy as could be. Good Luck, TomC

[joel_newton]

Thanks all for your replies - all good information.  Tom, you bring up an interesting point.  Skip happens to have an 855 in his barn.  Can't remember what happened to it.  But, if it is repairable, might be worth trying to convert it.  I think I remember someone telling me the pans were interchangeable between the 743 and 855 "small" cam.  Not sure this is true.  Wouldn't be hard to check.

[Uglydog56]

All those listings on adelman's are already sold overseas.  Myself or another guy in the crowncoachjunkies list called on every single one of them.  743's were a dedicated pancake block.  855's were the standard universal block with a different oil pan and accessory plate.  The oil pan is one piece.  Additionally you need the scavenge style pump (pancakes have a two stage oil pump).  The compressor is still gear driven, it is just a different model with a drain on the bottom hooked up to the scavenge stage of the oil pump.  On the big cams there is a plate to move the oil cooler down beside the engine instead of up on top.  My small cam still has the oil cooler up on top.  I have the parts catalog for big cam cummins.  I can get you part numbers for the stuff you need, most of it is still available.  It isn't as simple as it sounds, though.  The easiest way to do it, is to get a pancake small cam, because those can still be found although they are drying up quick.  Now you pick up your used upright big cam.  Then you order a new big cam pancake accessory plate which is available from cummins, 1800 dollars.  One bolt hole on the bellhousing has to be oblonged slightly and the small cam one can be reused.  Oil pan is the same part number.  Center section of the exhaust is the same, small or big cam or 743 for that matter.  Now you are close.  Then it's just the oil pump and special compressor, although you could go belt drive, that is true.  I don't know where you'd put it, though, real estate is at a premium under those things.

[luvrbus]

I saw a Eagle with a 855 pancake engine installed it was strange looking a engine on it's side in a Eagle but unique

[kwidd]

I see the Eagle all the time it's my brothers. We scrapped out a Crown Ikarius  for  the engine. It looks weird but it works good. I sold another crown to a guy in Twin Falls Id a few years back. He was going to repower  a 35 foot Crown. I don't Know if he ever did it.

[HB of CJ]

And swap out all the parts.  All of the 743 pancake specific parts SHOULD just bolt up to a Big Cam Cummins.  I would go with a 444 Big Cam.  Make sure the variable step timing feature works correctly.  Some fabrication may be required with finding a pulse exhaust manifold that will work.  If you run a Jake, you will need to modify the lube system slightly, plus redo the turbo oil line return.  If your tranny is marginal, then you will also need the duel power valve on the injection pump to limit torque in the lower gears.  Good luck.  HB of CJ (old coot) I'm back.   Crowns forever!