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Old 01-14-2019, 05:37 PM   #1
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Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Swansboro,NC
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Year: 86
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Chassis: Ford B700
Engine: 8.2
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Talk me off of my soap box?

I am on the adventure that I didn't read about before I bought a bus? Because we didn't know this existed?
Everything that is brought up with almost everyone new?
I bought a bus that has a less than desirable power train and my build is done?
Would like to do at least 55?
My choices are rear end gearing,taller tire's and keep my motor and tranny?
And I know it depends on where you want to go.
Soap box?
I want an 8.3 with a 3060 and keep my 6.5 rear gears???
Looking at donor trucks and busses in later years for ford and gmc they all went to the 5.9?
I know it's turning out to be a good motor with a lot of opportunity but can it really power my 86 bus with a 60 body capacity towing a car and last?
Want an 8.3 but they are so good that even a junkyard unit is 10$ plus?
I can build a gasser in a heart beat or another 8.2 Detroit turbo end instead of my NA but that only takes me from 175-250.
I know sometime it isn't about horsies and more about torque.
What do y'all think my best purchase options are?
And don't tell me to buy the perfect platform from the start.
Learned that one to late?
I know YALL have opinions
I know YALL have options
Give them to me?
Looked at a dump truck with a 10-speed tranny and a two speed rear end but the motor was trashed last night.
Know the man and he is ready to just bulldoze it into the woods and let it be?
Last of his old fleet.

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Old 01-14-2019, 05:49 PM   #2
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Join Date: May 2018
Location: topeka kansas
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Chassis: old f500- new 2005 f-450
Engine: cummins 12 valve
Rated Cap: 20? five rows of 4?
I think..

the least expensive way to get the 8.3 is to buy a big bus .... even if it is rusty beat up... seems from what I have seen, buying a donor truck/bus is going to be the "best" way. You will then have starters, alternators, brackets, wiring harnesses, radiators, coolers, hoses and such. From what other people have stated here, the 8.3 will have a bigger transmission. I saw a fellow on craigslist about a month ago, selling a trashed motorhome, had cummins 8.3 and 3060 transmission,,,,,, wanted about 7,500 for the whole deal.

another way is to find a big bus and shorten it a little.


anything can be done with time and money.

william
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Old 01-14-2019, 05:59 PM   #3
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Hey JR,

Do I understand correctly?

You bought a bus, built it out and then found that the power train was not what you wanted/needed?
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Old 01-14-2019, 06:04 PM   #4
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Swap a 6v92t in there. Wasn't it you who had a 6v92 sitting around?
If doing a full on engine swap I'd look for something that's a little more powerful than standard medium duty stuff.

If you're just looking to get some extra highway speed try some 11R's and a rear axle ratio in the 4.10-4.78 range.
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Old 01-14-2019, 06:09 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EastCoastCB View Post
Swap a 6v92t in there. Wasn't it you who had a 6v92 sitting around?
If doing a full on engine swap I'd look for something that's a little more powerful than standard medium duty stuff.

If you're just looking to get some extra highway speed try some 11R's and a rear axle ratio in the 4.10-4.78 range.
That would be sweet!

Sometimes I have second thoughts about my 8.3....

I miss my DD 2 stroke!
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Old 01-14-2019, 06:30 PM   #6
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most often a running donor vehicle is going to be the most cost effective way to do a swap..



small engines can be made to make power.. and lots of it.. but how long will they last? no one really knows.. heck id have never thought a few years ago that a mainstream car with a 2.0 litre engine would be making 250 HP.. but they do now..


semi trucks typically get 450-550 HP.. we can make that out of a cummins 5.9 or DTA360 if we want.. or even a cummons 8.3.. but theres a reason semi trucks with that kind of power have 13 litre engines.. longevity.. burn fuel make power.. bigger part s= less stress on those parts for the same power.. ..


you can build yourself a 350HP 5.9 P-pump engine... install it in front of an allison 3000 series thats been built up.. or 1000 series thats been built like mine is.. and it will move that big bus around.. but how long? how long do you Need / want it to last? if you plan to run 200,000 miles on your bus after rebuilding the engine and trans. then longevity is a bigger deal than if you only plan to run 6000 miles a year and in 20 years the body is rusted out and souped up drivetrain only has 120,000 miles in it..


we can build anything we want really.. but at some point its just more praxctical to take the time to find the bus with the drivetrain you want.. even if it has 400,000 miles on it and you rebuild the engine... you are still in a drivetrai engineered for that body, and matched to it...



-Christopher
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Old 01-14-2019, 07:39 PM   #7
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The ideal option would be to buy a bus with the desired drivetrain already in it. A second option would be to buy a vehicle with a desired drivetrain and swap it all over. If you hadn't done any of the build yet, you could still go with option 1, but since I understand you've already finished the conversion ...


You could just stick with the 8.2 (they're not horrible engines, from my understanding), but for some top end you'll definitely need to swap the rear-gears, no matter which engine and transmission you use. Mine has 5.38 gears and a top speed of 55 (no overdrive, 5-speed manual). I'm planning on 4.10 or 3.90 for top speeds of 70 or 75, respectively, depending which I can find reasonably.


If I were to do an engine swap, why bother with a mid-size engine like an 8.3? Why not go on and step up to something road-tractor size like an M11? An N14? An ISX?


About this fellow with a dump truck, what engine does it have? Would he consider selling parts off it if he intends to junk it?
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Old 01-18-2019, 05:08 PM   #8
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If you have 175hp now, you should be able to do 55mph on flat ground with the right gearing.

I don't know what rear axle you have. When I looked up mine, I could get a 4.78 for 1000 bucks. I was doing the labor myself so my only added expense would have been gear oil.

If you have an at545, you might as well upgrade that as well to gain tc lockup.

I figured 2-3 grand all said and done, me doing the labor.

An engine swap will also need a trans swap, and that tranny better have OD gearing in it or you're not gaining anything speed wise. What that all costs depends on what deals you can find, but it will be a lot more then the 2-3 grand I was figuring.

You don't need and 8.3 to do 55. a 5.9 with the right gearing will get you there.

My suggestion? Change your rear axle gearing to around a 5.57. If you're not satisfied after that then up the hp, be it with a turbo or engine swap.
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Old 01-18-2019, 06:00 PM   #9
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Thanks.
I have the 8.2 Detroit NA that won't handle a turbo by design because of minimal head bolts or so I have read.
I have the 545 and know it can handle more.
My rear end is a 6.50 gear ratio and have researched re-gearing it and changing tire size to 22.5 rim radial instead of tubed 9/20's that would give me a little more.
I ain't wanting interstate speeds.
I am happy with the backroad's I grew up with nothing else.
Empty or fully loaded with a loaded trailer. I can run 49 all day long with no hiccups.
If I change rear end gears then for each range I gain highway speed but lose towing capability.
My rear end is 6.50 even with a fuel pincher motor At 175 hp and a 545 I can pull.
But I live on flat land at 49 all day long.
Hauled many a Boy Scout and canoe trailer to the river or Oceanside (auto correct) not the Carlsbad Cali area) been there done that moment?
I ain't a school bus any more and want to at least do 55 with a trailer.
I had chosen a gasser but when my wife went to pick it up with my father in law ?causeI had to go to work they told them they couldn't sell it cause of insurance issues and they gave them the best on the lot for the same price.
I don't mind diesels I deal with equipment every day but I really wanted that gasser.
They probably sold it a buddy that offered a dollar more?
Thanks for the advice.
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Old 01-18-2019, 07:52 PM   #10
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My bus has a 545 and highway gearing. I don't think it would sweat towing a car/trailer.
I think you're selling yourself short with the NC gearing.
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