my new(not running HELP!) 84 power ram 50

[tanzytinkerz]

so here is my intro, my need help and advice first post:) I have no clue what I am doing while on here so any tips would be awesome. I JUST WANNA DRIVE MY TRUCK!!!


OKay so here it is... I bought this truck six.. wait, eight months ago and have done nothing but put money into it. I drove it once, for an hour, and it broke down on me. I bought this 1984 dodge power ram 50 4x4 2.6l 5 speed. coolest truck i have ever seen(besides my 96 cummins:)) but the guy said it needed a timing chain.. my dad looked at me and frowned.. I smiled and said "i'm the one paying for it" BOY DO I WISH I WOULD HAVE SWALLOWED MY WORDS RIGHT THEN! I tore everything apart and here is what happened, the timing chain, was indeed, shattered. nonetheless, my farthest back rocker arm was broken off. It was a line bored head so I said great, have to buy a new head. bought a new head and it turned out that the head that I had on it at the time was warped twice and resurfaced twice. bad mistake becase it was done pourly. then found out that the catalatic converter that came straight off the head had exploded and melted shut. so I put new pace setter 4 to 1 headers in it with a custom built exhaust. got a new head, rv cam, weber carb, new alt, starter, dist cap and wires and plugs. got everythinmg right? got it timed and tuned.. drove it 12 miles and when i got to my girlfriends house, hit a speed bump and my oil light came on? i looked under the hood and there was a hole the size of a dime in my timing case cover. i yelled the fbomb plenty times, kicked the trucka few times and... well.. got the truck home and found out that the bolt holding the gear that rests on the silent shaft inside the timing chain had backed out and got caught in the gear and had threw my chain all around my case:) did all types of wonders. so i got a new timing chain set and am hesitant on putting it in. I need help! what did i do wrong?


and any tips in how I lift this thing in the front? i can't find any lifts for this exact truck anywhere!



here are the only pics i have of the truck... in front of the driveway.... :'(


26052606260726082609




I have so many plans for this baby.

[Acuta73]

Welcome!

TBH, have the short block done...you got a new head on it and other new toys, make it worth the while. If not, consider a balance shaft delete kit. Those bolts don't just "back out" if properly torqued. Might have thread damage or something more sinister (bad shaft retainer?).

Beyond the red wheels and the fact it already has a split rear, looks a LOT like my 86 did when I bought it.

[tanzytinkerz]

what do you mean have the short block done? like switching out the bottom end? which method would be easier but still run good? and this is by far my favorite truck to this day. granite i'm 18, but i love it.

[camoit]

They are easy to work on. It sounds like there was no loc-tite used when putting the bolt in.
Clean her up with carb cleaner in the thread. Check the bolt threads. Use Loc-tite.. You don't want it to come loose again. But a delete kit for the shaft is a good thing. But you will only want to do it if you rebuild it and have the thing balanced. Unless vibration is not an issue for you. It's like flying in a Cessna. Your feet feel good after you stop.
Trust me you will never want to sell this truck. I have had mine since I was 16. The best thing to do is go and find a running one of the same first gen and get a parts truck. Only if you have the room. That will give you 2 of everything. So then you can take your time on the rebuilding of that new truck. Then after 40 years of dragging them around from place to place you will rebuild it again to something bad ass. Just don't have any kids and you will have plenty of cash to do what you want to.
I can see that you are near powerRam348.
OH look in the manual section for the factory first gen manual, enjoy :)

[tanzytinkerz]

i think it was one of those mistakes where you hand tight something and tell yourself you will come back to it later and never did, i'm just going to lock tight, air torque, and seal the b***h and hope she works. if not i will have a parts truck <<<<< EDIT >>>>>. lol

thanks for the help though, i will definately keep the short block idea in mind for my future. this truck sin't going anywhere!

[camoit]

It will be fine. Just keep in mind only a donator can sell things on the board.

See this section for some basic rules.
http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin/showthread.php/624-People-banned-for-one-reason-or-another

[tanzytinkerz]

I will keep that svary thought in mind. Now the tricky stuff... how do i put a picture to my name?

[camoit]

I will keep that svary thought in mind. Now the tricky stuff... how do i put a picture to my name?

Top of the page > my profile

[tanzytinkerz]

Top of the page > my profile

how do I set a picture as my profile picture now that i have an album?

[camoit]

You can have an avatar. I don't remember the size limit but it will tell you. Profile pictures are for donators (http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin/showthread.php/76-Donations-Made-and-what-you-get-by-becoming-a-donator).
There is also answers and how to guides in the site news section, and the FAQ.

[camoit]

You will want to look in the "links" section. There is a free picture resize program in there that works well and is easy to use.

[tanzytinkerz]

Welcome!

TBH, have the short block done...you got a new head on it and other new toys, make it worth the while. If not, consider a balance shaft delete kit. Those bolts don't just "back out" if properly torqued. Might have thread damage or something more sinister (bad shaft retainer?).

Beyond the red wheels and the fact it already has a split rear, looks a LOT like my 86 did when I bought it.



found the problem:( my silent shaft is bent.. I took off the little plate on the driver side of the motor undedrneath my intake manifold, and opened it up and saw that my silent(balance shaft) shaft was bent and had rubbed on the block. so should I buy an emliminator kit** or should I just buy a new shaft? i don't wanna buy a new block because i am broke. do you know what could have caused it to bend?

[camoit]

Get the kit... Toss it in there. It was bent from the first problem. Just keep in the back of your mind to find another parts truck for cheep. $500 at the most. Then you can make it run good and swap out the engine later on when your ready. Parts are a good thing.
Look in the craiglist thread. there is a search all of craiglist link that works.

[tanzytinkerz]

thats what I'm doing. now with the eliminator kit, will i have to get a new fuel pump or anything? or just drop it in?

[camoit]

It's just some gears, guide, chain and a barring. Pretty sure you leave the shaft in there. Otherwise you will have no oil pressure. But I never did one myself. I'm sure someone on here will chime in on what is involved. Can't be to hard.

[tanzytinkerz]

that's what i was afraid of. it's the balance shaft crank itself that is bent. and the kit only comes with the gear, chain, and bearring.

[Acuta73]

Spend the $$ and do it right....send the cylinder block to a machinist/engine builder and have it rebuilt. After grenading a timing chain twice, it just makes sense.

Have done:

Cylinders bored/honed (as needed).
Crank journals and silent shaft journals line-bored.
Block boiled/pressure tested.
Crank magna-flux'd and balanced.
New rods.
New bearings.
New pistons (go higher compression, be about the same price anyway).
All tolerances double checked (head deck, etc).
New balance shafts.

Basically, a short block rebuild.

When you get it back:

New oil pump
New chain guides
New chains
New water pump

You certainly are under no obligation to do so, but if you plan to keep the truck for long, you should.


Edit: If you're running a Weber carb, consider (strongly) going to an electric fuel pump. The stand-by pump is a Carter P4070. There's at least one good install thread here in the Forums somewhere.

[camoit]

That is what the "elimination" kit is. It gets rid of the problematic balance shaft. They had a tendency to seize in the bore. Then they blow up the engine because the oil pump quit. So put in the kit and drive it like you stole it. It will be fine. I had mine removed when I had mine rebuilt.

[tanzytinkerz]

Spend the $$ and do it right....send the cylinder block to a machinist/engine builder and have it rebuilt. After grenading a timing chain twice, it just makes sense.

Have done:

Cylinders bored/honed (as needed).
Crank journals and silent shaft journals line-bored.
Block boiled/pressure tested.
Crank magna-flux'd and balanced.
New rods.
New bearings.
New pistons (go higher compression, be about the same price anyway).
All tolerances double checked (head deck, etc).
New balance shafts.

Basically, a short block rebuild.

When you get it back:

New oil pump
New chain guides
New chains
New water pump

You certainly are under no obligation to do so, but if you plan to keep the truck for long, you should.


Edit: If you're running a Weber carb, consider (strongly) going to an electric fuel pump. The stand-by pump is a Carter P4070. There's at least one good install thread here in the Forums somewhere.


how much would all this cost and how long would it be til i get my baby back?

[camoit]

Depends on the shop for time. $800 - $2100 depends on parts and what you want done. To save some money you would give them the engine as tore down as you can. They charge to take things apart. You would literally loosen every bolt you can find and just give it to them that way. Finger tight on all the parts. Then it only takes them 30 minutes to pull it apart. and put it in the washer. ;) To see more on the machine shop see my build thread. I have a hole section in there just on what they will do, and what to look for. You should call around first. Then go look at the shop. It's like picking a doctor to be your primary care physician. Be careful, ask questions, read contracts. One thing Acutra73 forgot was if you had the engine balanced you can remove the balance shaft. If the shop is worth a crap they will let you take pictures of your engine being worked on if you stop in. They should have nothing to hide.


See post 8 for the start of machine shop stuff.
http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin/showthread.php/38-Class-6-Off-Road-Race-Truck-D-50-build-out.-Chevy.-4.3L-V6