1985 W350 Crew 4x4 Shortbed Conversion

The kit came with the red o-ring to seal the surfaces between the compressor housing and bearing housings, but it was too big. An email to Austin at TurboLabs and he mailed a couple of the right sized rings to me ASAP.



The problem after that was that my local machinst told me that he couldn't put the groove in my bearing housing for the o-ring, especially with the cost of a new bearing housing from TurboLabs was so reasonable. So, even though I had already cleaned up the bearing housing to almost like-new, I ordered a new one. So now with the rebuild kit, the new exhaust housing, new turbine shaft, new compressor wheel, and new bearing housing... the only thing left from the original he351cw turbo was the compressor housing. If I had upgraded the compressor wheel I'd have had to purchase a new machined housing for it too! This was a bit comical. Lesson learned: if you're wanting to upgrade the H1C turbo on a 1st gen and use a he351cw, just source all the upgraded components and build a brand new turbo. Lucky for me the original turbo in my case was free.

So when I got in my new parts, I started looking into Cerakote and turbo blankets. The first quote for Cerakote that I got was kind of high when compared to the cost of a turbo blanket, so I dismissed the idea. Then one day while researching, I came across some DIY Cerakote videos and looked into it a little further. Turns out the "Glacier" series Cerakote is basically made for exhaust parts, and is fully air-cure requiring no baking of the parts at all. This was appealing because I could easily spray it myself with a Harbor Freight HVLP paint gun. And I did, and it turned out great. 5 days to cure but it looks phenomenal with my DPS exhaust manifold. For the compressor housing, I ultimately decided to paint it with the Rustoleum tractor and implement paint to match the IH red of my engine. That paint takes much longer to dry and cure than other spray paints, but it's a much more durable finish as well. I'm seriously impressed with it.







So the issue at hand right now is that my power steering pump shaft doesn't made up to the output shaft on my air compressor, despite the two pumps otherwise mating up perfectly. Days spent searching for shaft couplers led me down a few rabbit holes for possible solutions, but ultimately empty-handed. So, I won an eBay auction for a couple lengths of bronze round stock, 1.25" in diameter, in hopes of somehow making my own shaft coupler. And then I ran into a good friend last weekend that reminded me that he's an engineer by trade, and his dad has an entire machine shop at his disposal. He said he could make my shaft coupler with no problems. So my plan for now is to draw out what I need and send the bronze to him to let him work his magic.

In the meantime, I'm thinking about needing to get my frame fully finished so I can drop the engine/transmission/transfer case into place. What still needs done on the frame before top-coating my Chassis Saver with Rustoleum tractor/implement paint is:

Crossover steering with high-steer. I purchased from Offroad Design new springless steering arms for crossover steering and high-steer on D60 kingpin axles, some DOM tubing for a drag link and a tie rod, and a 7/8" heim kit from RuffStuff Specialties.

Traction bars. I also have heim joints from Speedway Motors, along with weld bungs and DOM tubing to fabricate traction/ladder bars.

Air bag suspension. I am going to pull the trigger and get air springs for my suspension. For the rear I'm going with the Kelderman kit for 89-93 trucks. This kit replaces the back spring hanger on the frame and adds air springs that work in conjunction with the current springs. This will allow me to keep my basically new 4" lift Skyjacker springs and use the air-assist of the Kelderman bags. It also comes with a Class V hitch. For the front suspension, my Skyjacker 4" lift springs were originally made for the gasser 360 engine, not the hefty Cummins. I was going to need to do something anyway. I contacted Kelderman to see if their front air suspension would work with my Skyjacker setup and promptly got a reply that their front suspension was not made to work with any lift. The rear is okay to use with any lift, but the front is a no-go. Research time. I could not find a company that made a front air suspension for use with a lift kit for a first gen Dodge. Everything was custom DIY. So, I studied the Kelderman kit and decided, "that wouldn't be so hard". Finding bags to fit took a bit of time and research, but I found out that Kelderman is using Firestone reversible sleeve air spring with 1T14C bellows, part# W01-358-2131, which has a height of 12.25" at full extension and 3.20" at full compression. I just needed to find bags with specs that would match my application for my ride height. I finally settled on Firestone W01-358-5405, which has a fully extended height of 16.30" and 4.70" at full compression. Now I just need to weld together some 1/4" steel to make brackets to fit just like the Kelderman kit, and I'll have my own DIY front air-spring assist setup.



That's all for now. Hopefully the next update won't take so long!

So a couple things I forgot in my last update:

I made the swap to a Presolite Leese-Neville alternator as per Jim Lane's write-up, here: Big Rig Alternator. This required me to modify my alternator bracket just a bit.


(Extended bracket and repainted)




(Everything in place)

Also some things I forgot to show:


(Goerend billet flex plate)






(Better pics of the completed rebuilt he351cw with the oil supply line in place)




(Mock-up of my engine air compressor in place)

Air Suspension Update: (So this is gonna be my first gripe about a company/supplier)

So I ordered the Firestone W01-358-5405 air springs from SD Truck Springs back on March 19. After a couple weeks passed and I still didn't have them in, I called customer service and found out that they were backordered and considered obsolete, meaning I would never get them. I found it odd that it was still listed for sale on their website if it was obsolete and they didn't even have any stock, but there was nothing I could do about it. So I started looking for a different air spring that would meet my needs while continuing my conversation with customer support on the phone and via email, as they were trying to get me to purchase a different brand of air spring even though they advertised Firestone springs on their site. I finally settled on the Firestone 9478, which was on the website for $173.95, on sale from a "regular price" of $226.95, so I emailed customer support about that and also asked about the price difference on the other brand of spring that they were telling me about. It took support 2 days to respond to my email and when they did, their "cheaper" brand was more expensive than the Firestone listed on their site. So I went back to look at the Firestone 9478 on their website, and they had increased in price to $226.95, a $53 increase per spring, and now have it listed as "on sale" from a "regular price" of $295.95!

I asked about the price changing in the middle of my conversation with them, noting that on 4/4/22 when I asked about the spring, it was so much cheaper. They acknowledged that they did raise the price of the 9478 air spring after I emailed about it and before they got back with me, and told me that Firestone had raised their prices. So I politely told them that my order was placed on 3/19 for a spring they couldn't deliver, and on 4/4 I asked about substituting in the 9478 for the price it was listed at of $173.95. The delays in my order were not my fault and every contact was made by me to them to resolve the issue, so if they couldn't honor the price as it was on 4/4 (and 3/19 for that matter), please just refund my money because I would feel like I'm getting screwed. That email was sent on 4/6, immediately after I found out about the price increase.

I didn't hear a word from SD Truck Springs again until five days later, on 4/11. That email was from a different person who told me that she had elevated my case to her manager because she did not have the authority to approve the price change herself. I immediately replied and told her thank you, I was glad to hear that my situation was going to be reviewed. She replied two days later confirming that she did have my case in her manager's inbox but he was very busy. She told me he will get to it and give me a call.

That call never came. Instead, on 4/20/22 I unceremoniously received an email from PayPal indicating that they were processing a refund of my order from 3/19/22. So in the end the manager never even talked with me, I got the run-around from customer service in what appears to be an attempt at a classic bait-and-switch routine, and the end result was that SD Truck Springs kept my money for a solid month and delivered nothing to me.

I'm a business owner and I've worked in retail sales before. I understand how supply chain can cause problems, especially with wholesale price increases. But I also know that you can't pass along your business pitfalls to your unsuspecting customers and when you advertise a price you need to honor it. This was my experience with SD Truck Springs, and it left a very sour taste in my mouth for their company. Your mileage may vary. Probably not. But if anyone asks my advice on the matter, I'll gladly tell them to look elsewhere.

Just today I placed an order with a different company, and my order with Kelderman for the rear suspension. When I get these products in-hand, I'll show more details. I intend to document my front air suspension fabrication pretty well, so that it can be duplicated. Because when Kelderman told me they didn't have anything for a truck with a 4" lift - something that I believe is pretty common among 1st gen Dodge owners - I didn't want to forego the air ride, and I didn't want to forego my 4" lift, and I didn't want to forego eating for a month or two to get a custom built front air suspension. So DIY was the only option.

Photo-dump and update time!

So yeah, again, this summer and fall proved pretty taxing on my time availability. I was able to move along on some smaller stuff but I still need to make the brackets for my front air suspension. The plan is to do that the week of 12/26 because I've got time scheduled off on Christmas break just to do it. Hopefully things will steamroll from there. My son asks me from time to time what my timetable is for this project. I have always told him the plan is to back this truck up to the field for one of your high school football games. He's in 8th grade now, so technically I have four years. I'd love to be able to do it when he's a Freshman, though. The custom fabrication stuff is almost done, which is certainly the hold-up on a lot of this. Anyway, on to the updates!

Injection lines, cooling lines. It looks like my original injection lines are going to fit okay with the air intake horn. I'm keeping my grid heater too. Things get cold enough where I'm at that it's useful. In order to get the layers of old paint off the lines, I hit them with a bit of MAP gas before scrubbing off the burnt paint. They've now got a coat of self-etching primer, just waiting for me to mix and spray some Rustoleum gloss black Tractor and Implement paint. Same for the coolant hard lines. I did cut one of my hard lines, though, as I'm re-plumbing a lot of that stuff with -10AN braided hose. Where I set my Leese-Neville alternator, I needed a bit more clearance. I'll try to get some pics of that later, once I get the plumbing all done.











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Power-Steering/Hydraulic Pump. The hydraulic pump I plan to use as my power-steering pump is a Buffalo 140 Bar pump. It mates right up to the air compressor rear flange, but the shafts don't join up. I needed a fix for this. After looking things over, I purchased some bronze bar stock and sent it along with a bunch of measurements to a good friend of mine. What he returned to me is a bronze adapter to joint the shafts. It's easier to see what I'm talking about than have me describe it, so just check out the pictures below...


(some of the measurements I sent to my friend)


(rear output from the compressor, flange removed)


(flange installed, creating more depth between shafts)


(bronze adapter machined by a buddy, with aluminum inserts to simulate shaft ends)




(bronze adapter installed into the compressor flange, pump input shaft to the left)


(mounted up, there was still a gap due to the adapter length)




(this was painstakingly tedious, so I eventually took the adapter to the shop with me and used a belt sander instead)


(took enough material off for shaft end play, now everything bolts up flush)

For the power-steering gearbox, I decided to do a rebuild. I ordered a reseal kit, tore everything down, cleaned everything up, repainted the box and the top to look like a certain high-end company's product, just for fun, and then resealed and buttoned everything back up. I didn't think to take pictures until I got the box almost completely broken down. Admittedly, on the rebuild, putting in the ball bearings and then moving them along the worm drive shaft, there could be a little binding. This may be due to the fact that I don't have it full of power steering fluid. If I don't like it when I bolt it all up, then at least I tried, and I have a good core to get one of those high-end boxes (red or blue?)













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Next, I turned my attention to the tilt-cruise-automatic column that I took from a 1984 parts truck. This needed cleaned up. Like everything else, I wanted to take it completely apart to thoroughly clean it up, and then repaint it. I was able to remove the old, hardened cosmoline grease and when I put it all back together I used silicone grease and some spray fluid film (lanolin based). I ended up cutting the cruise control molex connector (will be re-wiring that anyway), and I replaced the exterior ignition switch, and had the cylinder re-keyed to my NOS Chrysler Pentastar key. Before reassembly, I hit the aluminum parts with self-etching primer, the steel parts with rust-reformer, and then everything with a couple coats of satin black Tractor & Implement paint. The plastic sleeve that houses the ignition cylinder, turn signal and hazard switches was black plastic, so I just gave it a good scrub with hot soapy water. Reassembly was a bit of a chore. There were two small parts that took me awhile to figure out how they went back in (the tilt lever shield, and the key buzzer contacts). I ended up snapping part of the old plastic housing on the key buzzer contacts so I ordered a new replacement piece. The individual components of the steering columns are hard to find, though, so my advice is to be gentle and don't break anything.




(the old, beat-up ignition switch got a new replacement)


(everything is dirty, and the column was filled with stink-bugs trying to hibernate)


(this little spring-wire locking ring is unobtainable, so I had to bend this back and reuse it)


(38-year-old plastic turn signal switch parts - be gentle, and it will all be okay)


(you have to pull the wires through to give yourself some slack/room to work with)


(you can see the key buzzer contacts here)




(tilt spring with extremely tacky and hard cosmoline grease... and a stink bug stuck to the end)




(another reason why I cut off the cruise wiring molex connector - there's no way to get the turn signal handle out otherwise)


(aluminum collar sanded and ready for primer)


(giving the plastic sleeve a good bath)


(if you get down this far you might as well go the rest of the way, it's only a couple roll-pins to punch out)


I have the column mostly reassembled, and I've purchased a new 6-bolt steering wheel and billet aluminum adapter. The adapter needs a few millimeters more clearance, though, so I sent off the beauty ring to my friend so he can chuck it up on the lathe and increase the inside diameter a bit for me. When I get that back I'll take some pics of the steering column all finished.

Updating my running checklist of things to do:

1. Paint and build the engine with all my new parts, polishing valve covers
2. Go through more thoroughly the front axle, install new bearings and races, clean and paint
3. Install high-steer and crossover steering on front axle with springless kingpin system (already have parts/materials)
4. Build DIY traction bars (already have parts/materials)
4.1 Fabricate upper and lower brackets for front suspension air springs and install (already have air springs)
4.2 Install Kelderman 2-stage rear air suspension kit (already acquired)
5. Set engine on the frame, mount up transmission and then affix trans cross-member in the correct spot.
5.1 Install Goerend triple-disc converter and billet input shaft into transmission before final remounting (already have parts)
6. Top coat paint the frame with oil-based enamel over the Chassis Saver
7. Set the engine, trans and transfer case; Get drive shafts in place and lower cab/firewall onto frame with energy suspension poly cab mounts (already acquired)
8. Fabricate adapter for shafts of air compressor/power steering pump
9. Fabricate bracket for air compressor/power steering pump to avoid timing case cracking
10. Finish turbo rebuild by fabricating spring-wastegate and installing oil drain tube
11. Rebuild and clean up tilt/cruise steering column, affix new steering wheel and adapter (already have parts)
12. Re-plumb coolant lines - rear of engine, through compressor, to front of engine; to and from heater core; to and from transmission heat exchanger (-10AN parts acquired)
13. Draw and then fabricate power steering reservoir with dual -6AN inputs, baffle, and -12AN output, TIG weld it too
14. Acquire and install hydroboost brake booster & master cylinder from ~2000 Chevy 2500, adapt all input/output to -6AN fittings
15. Plumb power steering with -6AN ptfe pressure lines and -12AN return line
16. Drill holes in oil pan sides for oil return from compressor (captain's side) and possible future upgrade to compound turbos (drinker's side); weld in -10AN stainless bungs
16.1 Reinstall oil pan with "Ultimate" silicone gasket from Real Gaskets Tennessee (already acquired)
17. Plumb secondary oil supply line for compressor, and plumb oil drain line for compressor
18. Acquire air system parts and fittings for plumbing air lines - Wabco Governor/Unloader/Regulator; Bendix AD-9 Air dryer; Air reservoir; Air lines and fittings
19. Mount all air system parts and plumb lines with -10AN ptfe for compressed air at higher temps
20. Research parts needed for auto-fill and auto-leveling air suspension system (leveling valves, plumbing and controls)

I'm sure I'll think of more and need to keep the detailed list running.

In order to finish up the steering column, I needed to find a new steering wheel. The one I had off the '89 was getting pretty tacky/gummy, and I don't want a fresh built truck that still needs a steering wheel cover. I also like the look and feel of the leather/wood wheel in my Buick Enclave, so I searched for something like that. I ended up settling on a 13.5" wood and leather flat-bottom steering wheel with 3 polished spokes made by W-Power. It's a 6-bolt wheel, which meant I needed a 6-bolt adapter for the tilt column. That was harder to find than I anticipated, and after one return of an adapter that wouldn't fit correctly, I landed upon an adapter/beauty ring combo that I'd have to dig through my emails to remember where it came from, but I think it will work okay. The beauty ring just needed a bit of a modification. I don't own a lathe nor have I been trained to use one, so I mailed it off to my buddy with some pictures and measurements. I think it took him about three minutes to turn down the inside like I needed. Check out the pics:



















After getting the steering column situated in November, life and the holidays with kids kind of ground everything to a halt. Not to mention that I couldn't exactly get my frame into the shop to do work on it during Christmas break, because the trailer needed fixing. So, my buddy and I decided to powder coat some wheels for the trailer.

November - January wasn't all for nothing though. I took some time to teach myself how to make some 3D models by using Autodesk Fusion 360 (free software for personal use), which helped when laying out the pieces to cut when starting to fabricate my lower brackets for my front air bags. I also started looking into how things were going to need plumbed with the hydraulic pump, and realized I'm going to need a remote power steering reservoir. Prices on one like I would need can get up over $200! So instead, I bought some aluminum weld-on AN fittings, an aluminum 2" cap, and took to Fusion 360 to make my own reservoir. I flattened the faces, saved to .dxg and sent the files off to Send Cut Send, and in a short time I got back my power steering reservoir puzzle kit, which I promptly put together. Now I need to learn how to TIG aluminum. I'll have help with that.

As of today I also have the lower brackets tacked together and am checking fitment on the truck and getting measurements for the upper bracket design. I still need to finish them up (finish welding, grinding off sharp edges, paint) but it's a start. Pics again!








(I had another friend with a laser engraver mark my black cap with a power steering fluid icon)






(these are both sides, just sitting on top of each other as they cool from being tacked together - showing the different u-bolt hole pattern on each)







So far it's looking like it's going to work out great!

Looking ahead, I've gotten ahold of Raul with 1st Gen Resistance to refurbish a couple 86-91.5 front grill surrounds. I have 2, and a friend has 1, so I cleaned them up and packed them to send to Houston. I've seen pictures of this guy's work, and I talked with him on the phone a few times. If you're in need of some hard to find parts, or repair of something like these, hit him up!

For reference, you can pack at least 3 grill surrounds in a custom-made box by using 3 large moving/packing boxes from Walmart. You can probably fit more in there too with some minor modifications. Here's what I did (I know, I know, people can figure out how to hack up a box pretty easy. But sometimes we want to be able to know it's going to work and fit before we get into it, am I right?):



Start with 3 boxes like this. Cut two of them down this one seam shown, to be able to unfold them and make them lay flat in one long piece. The third box go ahead and cut down each seam to make 4 separate flats with flaps.




If you lay out the first two boxes flat, your grill surround should fit perfectly between the creases for the box flaps. The flaps themselves are 8", and you'll end up putting the other flat cardboard on top, to make a new box that's roughly 80 to 81 inches long, and 8 to 9 inches in "height". The two smallest ends will still be open - but we'll fix that next.




Take your narrower two flats from the third box and lay them like this. They should be 16" vertical length when laid out like this. On the creases for the flaps, mark dots at 4" and 12" on each side, then use a box cutter to cut from the dots to the outside edge vertically along the crease. Then, optionally, lightly score the cardboard horizontally to cross through both pairs of dots. This will allow you to fold the flaps in and the newly created flaps down, as shown in the next photo.




This shows how to fold in the flaps. Go ahead and using heavy-duty shipping tape to keep them in place and create your end caps for your custom box.




This image shows the end cap in place with the grill surround tucked inside. Repeat for the other end.




Make sure to mark your grill surrounds in some fashion. I used a letter punch kit to mark my initials just to the left of the OEM Chrysler Pentastar logo, on the flat inside part that is only viewable if you raise the hood.




Secure the grills in some bubble wrap and tape up the flat box's outside flaps. After this step you can lay on the top flat box and tape down its flaps, which creates a box that is approximately 81" x 19" x 9". This securely fits up to 3 grill surrounds that are wrapped in large bubble wrap. I used a spare styrofoam block I had laying around as a spacer but wadded up paper would work just as well. You could create deeper end caps with the larger of the flats from the 3rd box that you cut up, and raise the top box so that the side flaps don't fully overlap, to make a deeper box that can hold more grills. Theoretically you could fit up to 6 grills in a 16 to 18 inch deep setup by using this method.




I used some extra strapping tape along the box flap seams to ensure everything stays secure. It's ready for a shipping label and off to Houston.


When I get these grills back, I'll definitely be posting pics of the repair work. One of them had been pretty badly damaged, which you can see in the following old photo. However, Raul has assured that these kinds of grills can be fully repaired and made to look like brand new if not better.




I'm still working on the upper brackets for my front air ride system, using CAD of course (cardboard aided drafting). Here's a preview of where I'm at with that. Let's hope the cardboard prototype holds out that my measurements were correct!

Still waiting on time to finish the upper brackets for the front airbags. Once those are done, I can go ahead and remove the front axle and go through it and paint it, adding in the crossover-steering and high-steer parts. To prepare for that, I went ahead and used some gloss black tractor & implement paint on the ORD blocks, and also went ahead and finished cleaning up and painting all my injector lines and return lines. With those painted, I thought it was a good time to go ahead and install my injectors, lines and returns.


(Set of Six - Ducky injectors - 5x16's)


(Very clean, rebuilt on original BOSCH bodies)


(Every line has its spot. I found it easier to install these from the back toward the front from this view)


(New line clamps - 3-line and 2-line - from Scheid Diesel. I still need to do something with my intake horn to clean it up.)


(Fitted, then removed briefly for the injector install)


(Injectors installed, torqued correctly, with lines installed as well)