Brad's Shorty Bus

[cadillackid]

that sounds about write.. I did a punkin swap on my Superior from 6 something to a 4.78 and got a fully reman punkin for about $1300 or so from weller.. I did the swap myself so I saved the labor but your pricing sounds about inline..


remember with your computer you need to change the pulses per mile for it to show up on the dashboard speedometer.. the axle ratio and trans ratios are just for the fuel curve aggressiveness.. I think you have an AT545? that unit places 16 pulses per driveshaft rev.. by correctly calculating the number of tire revs per mile.. then muiltiply by your new axle ratio then multiply by 16 should give you your total pulses per mile you need to put into the ECM.



this new gear ratio while much faster will also make MUCH more heat into your AT545 as well.. it will get hot unless you put in a big cooler.. the converter ratio from engine speed to output shaft speed will be generally higher as you are working the trans harder esp at speedsin the 55-65 range or doing any hill climbs..



-Christopher

[BamaBus]

Originally Posted by Brad_SwiftFur

(Before anyone asks, it's an '01 IH with a 5-speed Spicer manual transmission).

characters

[tradertim54@gmail]

I've used Summit paint (flat finish primer sealer) ...It is awesome. Went with Speedokote (Amazon ) Gloss White urethane and it is really good as well. Excellent coverage with the sealer, and sandable.

[Brad_SwiftFur]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

that sounds about write.. I did a punkin swap on my Superior from 6 something to a 4.78 and got a fully reman punkin for about $1300 or so from weller.. I did the swap myself so I saved the labor but your pricing sounds about inline..

remember with your computer you need to change the pulses per mile for it to show up on the dashboard speedometer.. the axle ratio and trans ratios are just for the fuel curve aggressiveness.. I think you have an AT545? that unit places 16 pulses per driveshaft rev.. by correctly calculating the number of tire revs per mile.. then muiltiply by your new axle ratio then multiply by 16 should give you your total pulses per mile you need to put into the ECM.

this new gear ratio while much faster will also make MUCH more heat into your AT545 as well.. it will get hot unless you put in a big cooler.. the converter ratio from engine speed to output shaft speed will be generally higher as you are working the trans harder esp at speedsin the 55-65 range or doing any hill climbs..


-Christopher

As Bama quoted me, mine's a 5-speed manual. So, no transmission worries at this time.


I did change the gear ratio in the computer (and left the tire revs per mile unchanged), but mistakenly didn't realize the pulses per mile didn't recalculate automatically. I'll change this later, but it's helpful to know why the parameters are separate in the computer.


Pulses per mile - old, roughly 44,000; new, roughly 32,000 (I'll program the correctly calculated values when I do it, this is just going off memory for now).


My dash *STILL* works intermittently, I've already re-flowed the solder joints on the circuit board once before. I see RockAuto has new boards for under $300 (no gauges, just the circuit board). I may just go the BlueFire route and set up an old phone with the Bluetooth for gauges.

[BamaBus]

Originally Posted by Brad_SwiftFur

I installed the included software on a spare laptop (which had been factory reset, so no sensitive data was on it to be hacked). But I ultimately ended up downloading the Navistar ServiceMaxx software, which installed easily enough.

What operating system do you have on the laptop and were you able to also load the Cat program from the supplied software?

[cadillackid]

I had forgotten its a stick shift.. that thing has to drive really nice now!!

[syntaxterror]

Brad how do you like the spicer 5 speed compared to other manual transmissions that you use? I might be able to pick one up but have heard bad things about them.

[Brad_SwiftFur]

Originally Posted by BamaBus

What operating system do you have on the laptop and were you able to also load the Cat program from the supplied software?

Laptop has a refreshed Win 10 OS. Belonged to a roommate who recently got a new one and they did a factory reset before I ended up with it. Battery was toast, a new one from Amazon gives me some time to use it without needing to be plugged in.
I have not had reason to install the Cat software, so I have not yet tried.

Originally Posted by syntaxterror

Brad how do you like the spicer 5 speed compared to other manual transmissions that you use? I might be able to pick one up but have heard bad things about them.

The Spicer does just fine for my needs. I cannot say anything bad about it. I can feel a little movement of the shifter as I throttle/coast (just as I have with other transmissions over the years, and I'm confident this is due to typical wear over time). Keep in mind I am accustomed to 10 and 13 speed transmissions in Class 8 trucks, though I have driven straight trucks with 6 and 7 speeds.
Most medium duty transmissions are non-synchronized transmissions, so don't expect to shift it seamlessly as you might a Honda or Toyota. You may have to double clutch or rev match.

[syntaxterror]

Brad knowing that you drove big trucks is why i ask you your opinion. I drove otr back in the early 90s and had some old 9 speeds and a super 10 that was nice . I have 3.91 rear end gears in a short bus with a 545. I can get a spicer 5speed for 400. I was under the impression that the spicer was a synchronized transmission. I am more concerned with gears being spaced to far apart like 3rd to 4th or 4th to 5th.

[Brad_SwiftFur]

Originally Posted by syntaxterror

Brad knowing that you drove big trucks is why i ask you your opinion. I drove otr back in the early 90s and had some old 9 speeds and a super 10 that was nice . I have 3.91 rear end gears in a short bus with a 545. I can get a spicer 5speed for 400. I was under the impression that the spicer was a synchronized transmission. I am more concerned with gears being spaced to far apart like 3rd to 4th or 4th to 5th.

Depends which model of Spicer you are looking at, what the gear ratios will be. I don't remember which model mine is, but I find I can still take off in 2nd gear (unless facing uphill) and the gear ratio separation works fine for me. 4th and 5th are close enough that it's not a big drop in RPM and the rest seem to be good ratio spacing too.


If I were going to swap transmissions, I'd take the advice from Bill at Power Hungry and get a 6 or 7 speed Eaton, one with the high gear being overdrive. I understand this to be a straightforward swap (unless I'm missing something), and with the HP boost soon to be forthcoming, should have excellent highway cruising capability. Even if I don't drive faster, the RPM reduction with overdrive at highway speed will help fuel economy and engine longevity.

[EastCoastCB]

If swapping definitely go with a 6 or 7 speed eaton. I've driven rigs with spicer 5's and they're ok but the Eaton would be an upgrade for sure.