[BeardedBlondie]

Yesterday I started taking the truck apart to have my steering gear rebuilt by Blue Top and to rebuild the vacuum pump and PS pump on my own. I have no shop and not even any trees so I'm not even a shade tree mechanic. Most of the time that's fine in West Tx other than when it's over 100*. Before I started the project I checked the weather forecast and saw no chance of rain for 10 days and no fluctuations in the weather, highs @ upper 90's, lows @ mid 70's, & wind @ 5-15mph.

Working on and off I had everything removed by this afternoon and had the 3 parts in the title laying out on cardboard and stripped apart cleaning them. At about 3:15 skies are nice and clear it's hot and I'm thirsty so I go inside to get some water and cool off for a few minutes. At 3:45 I heard thunder and looked out the window and saw dark skies. By the time I got my boots on and ran way out to the truck the skies had been just dumping rain; 3/4" in 15 minutes. Once I got outside I put up the most important stuff first (basically slamming the hood and throwing all the expensive tools in and under the truck) and then moved my parts. Parts were rained on hard for about 7-8 minutes.

As mentioned earlier I'm sending the steering gear to Blue Top for rebuilding, do I need to completely strip everything apart on it and check for rust and whatnot before I send it or am I fine as it is?

As for the vacuum pump & PS pump I'm taking them all apart anyways for all new seals and bushings. I'm not as concerned about the vacuum pump as the PS pump because of all the small springs and other fine ancillaries.

Most of this post was for me to think out loud and type this all out to calm down because I was extremely angry earlier. Thoughts, inputs, suggestions?

P.S. The 2 fittings hanging on the side of the PS pump (lots of P's & S's around here lol) are slightly bent from me trying to pull the hoses off before I realized the rubber has been melted to the fittings since 1998. Does this call for a new reservoir or can they current ones be bent back or new ones installed? I know nothing about hydraulics and pumps so maybe this endeavor was a foolish idea but nonetheless I've been wanting to rebuild the pumps and learn something new along the way while also saving money.

P.P.S. It's now sunny outside without the slightest hint that there was a torrential downpour earlier.

 

[9297oldram]

I doubt if water would have gotten inside but if it did there should have been enough oil to keep them from rusting that fast.

If the small return tubes are bent closed they won't straighten back out without cracking the tubes trying to round them back out.

 

[thor363]

For the rebuild of the vacuum pump/PS assembly, it's worth the time and money while it's off to get the dual lip seal kit from Geno's which is from Gould Gear and Electrical. The kit has the tools to do it right, and the seal is better than the single lip original which is a fail point.

Rebuilding mine this weekend. Link to video here and kit is inexpensive and superior.

https://www.genosgarage.com/product/gould-vprk-9602/engine-rebuild-kits-2

 

[GAmes]

Gould's seal kit is identical to the Cummins seal kit and the Cummins kit is priced a lot lower. Part # 4089742

https://puredieselpower.com/dodge-products/94-02-cummins-vacuum-pump-reseal-kit.html

The "tools" are a couple pieces of PVC pipe. Common sockets in your tool set work as well or better.

 

[thor363]

Cummins has a single lip seal, not dual and rides a different and often worn location on the shaft. Is that a superseded Cummins seal? Not everyone has moths eating their wallets and time to play lego assembler and guess which sizes work for this. Whats the time worth to go gather dimensions? To each his own.

 

[alanack6795]

Is a common for the vacuum pump to dump oil? Mine started puking oil on the ground. It's clean on the bottom so it's pretty clear it's got a good leak.

It's always had some residual oil on it.

 

[BeardedBlondie]

I've planned on using the Cummins 4089742 seal because it's half the price, made by Cummins, I have a low budget and haven't seen any meritable evidence through searching the forums and scouring the internet. Not worth the extra $16 in my mind. That being said if someone insists on me using it then pm me and I'll send you a shipping address.

I have come across that video elsewhere but it's still useful on this thread for the lurkers out there.
@alanack6795 IIRC the vacuum pump is a notorious "oil letter" just like the valve cover gaskets, the rear main, the oil pan, etc... (are there actually any seals that provide a dry sealing edge on these motors?)

The return tubes aren't bent fully shut but it isn't a small bend either. I'll try returning them to normal, if not then I'll either find a reservoir with good ones or talk to the hydraulic shop making my hoses and see what they say.

 

[BeardedBlondie]

On the topic of hoses is there something I can do to keep the rubber from melting onto the lines? Even if I run a PS cooler that only cools the fluid and not the hose. I just don't like the idea of the rubber hoses being melting like heat shrink tubing to the lines. I work for a gutter business so I have access to lots of aluminum and metal brakes and fabbing up a heat shield is no problem if someone thinks it might be worth it.

 

[alanack6795]

Hydraulic systems merly use their reservoir to keep themselves cool. Even the smallest cooler will go a long way.

 

[GAmes]

Cummins has a single lip seal, not dual and rides a different and often worn location on the shaft. Is that a superseded Cummins seal? Not everyone has moths eating their wallets and time to play lego assembler and guess which sizes work for this. Whats the time worth to go gather dimensions? To each his own.

I took this picture and posted it YEARS ago when the same misinformation was posted on a forum. If your pump has a single lip seal inside it is not from Dodge or Cummins.



At that time a kit was about $11, so it hasn't gone up in price very much. The wallet angle is definitely in favor of the Cummins kit. No one with a brain spends $60 for a $15 kit with $2 worth of PVC when they are aware of a better alternative.

 

[alanack6795]

Ouch. My feelings are hurt.

 

[GAmes]

Ouch. My feelings are hurt.

Only if you knew of the Cummins kit in advance.

 

[thor363]

Only if you knew of the Cummins kit in advance.

Go ahead and do what you like. Your time is obviously not valued in trips to hardware stores and measuring. The Gould kit has an extra set of seals in case you need to go back i again. You must fix your truck quite a bunch, you're a world of information. Thanks for this!

 

[GAmes]

Go ahead and do what you like. Your time is obviously not valued in trips to hardware stores and measuring. The Gould kit has an extra set of seals in case you need to go back i again. You must fix your truck quite a bunch, you're a world of information. Thanks for this!

Why would installing a kit require trips to a hardware store? The seal is rmvd/installed with a deepwell socket that any mechanic would/should have. For $60 you could have THREE extra seals, not just one, not to mention THREE sets of o-rings. Considering I drive as many miles in a month as most owners drive in a year I really don't have to fix my truck quite a bunch. But over the years I have fixed quite a few things that most owners never experience.

Edit; I just checked my records. It has been 90,000 miles since I changed the seal and it is still dry. How long will it take for you to put 90,000 on your pickup? Less than 2 years for me, and I've cut back considerably this year.

 

[Destroked 450]

GAmes it's the instructions that cost so much, pvc pipe is cheap but his kit comes with 2 sets of instructions, written and dvd.
Got to be the instructions! :hehe:
Sure glad my truck doesn't have one of those pesky vacuum pumps, hydra-boost brakes and a electric vacuum pump for the HVAC. :thumbup:
It's so much more fun working on a air compressor than to replace a simple seal in a vacuum pump. :banghead:

 

[alanack6795]

I don't know why you would need a engine driven air compressor unless you had air ride or air brakes.

With the 88-96 trucks excluded. The gear driven vacuum pump is completely overkill for trucks without vacuum brakes.

 

[Destroked 450]

Came with the engine, mounted a couple of semi air tanks to the truck, I can run air tools, clean parts, and air up tires out in the field. Pumps a lot more air than a 12 volt electric pump, doesn't take up space like a portable with a gas engine

I like the idea of adding air ride some day.

 

[BeardedBlondie]

Came with the engine, mounted a couple of semi air tanks to the truck, I can run air tools, clean parts, and air up tires out in the field. Pumps a lot more air than a 12 volt electric pump, doesn't take up space like a portable with a gas engine

I like the idea of adding air ride some day.

This is the first I’ve ever seen or heard about the air pump. More details please!

 

[Destroked 450]

Pretty common on MD trucks and buses, mine's air cooled but they also come water cooled, trick is finding the proper size PS pump to work with your truck. My engine came out of a bus and the 10 gpm PS pump that came on the engine flowed more than my F-450's hydra-boost could handle, luckily I already had a 6 gpm pump from the original conversion.
Also they will not work with the pump mounted throttle linkage Dodge uses, notice my throttle cable just behind the FSS mounting bracket.

 

[BeardedBlondie]

I must say I do like the sand colored engine.

So to confirm, that’s an air compressor in lieu of the vacuum pump or on top of a small vacuum pump? And what’s its capacity?

Someday when I get around to putting throwing a Cummins behind a Ford I’ll be sure to do this.