Another Setback

[anupaum]

This may be the death knell . . .

I got in the truck to take my boys to school this morning, but the belt slipped off when I fired it up. After putting it back on, the belt simply shredded and I'm now dead in the water again.

My sweetheart is going to be VERY unhappy!

 

[Sevensecondsuv]

So get a new belt....

I'm sure you realize this in hindsite, but you really should have gone with a turbo, not a supercharger...

 

[anupaum]

So get a new belt....

I'm sure you realize this in hindsite, but you really should have gone with a turbo, not a supercharger...

Blowing through belts becomes an expensive proposition. I've got the truck back in my garage now. I'm going to try swapping out the heater fan and lowering the supercharger again. My saintly father-in-law is coming back from Florida this week, and he's got a really good eye for aligning things. I'm hoping that putting the supercharger back onto the pedastal mount where it belongs should take care of my alignment issues.

If this doesn't work, I will abandon my project.

Yes, I should have gone with a turbo. Alternatively, I should have simply left the truck alone. That would have been the simplest and least expensive option.

 

[rurouni20xx]

you live you learn, and if all else fails you can simply ditch the super and retune for n/a. maybe turbo later, but right now for costs sake basic may be better assuming you cant fix what you have now. hate to hear this but good luck in the meantime.

 

[anupaum]

It's really maddening to have come SO CLOSE to making this work well, only to wind up with a vexing LITTLE problem. My longsuffering sweetheart had to come home at lunch so that I could have our RELIABLE Toyota Camry in order to get our eldest son to work this afternoon. She's more than slightly annoyed right now . . .

 

[AKBroncoII]

Is it possible that your mount is cracked or coming loose? Can you wiggle the mount?

 

[Sevensecondsuv]

Of course the camry is reliable, but then again you haven't tried to supercharge that either. The ranger would be just as reliable if you hadn't started messing with it.

You already violated the 1st law of forced induction: don't mess with your daily driver!

I got an idea to settle your wife down: tell her that you'll get rid of the truck but only if she lets you supercharge the camry!!!

 

[Davis]

I get the feeling that won't work...

I think the first law of forced induction is this: Be single.

 

[ILLEGALCONCEPTS]

I get the feeling that won't work...

I think the first law of forced induction is this: Be single.

AGREE 100%, I've been putting the turbo on my truck for years now. STILL sitting in the box..............

Robert, don't give up. I think your problem is something that you have already stated. You'll be good to go once you can get the blower back on its mount. It was running fine like that for a little while right?

James

 

[skyy_4life]

i would not "Ditch" the project. i would try a new belt and aligning it. check the pedistule and that stuff. then take it all off and put turbo on..... heh j/k check everything over and should be fine. if not go n/a.

 

[Bill G]

AGREE 100%, I've been putting the turbo on my truck for years now. STILL sitting in the box..............

Robert, don't give up. I think your problem is something that you have already stated. You'll be good to go once you can get the blower back on its mount. It was running fine like that for a little while right?

James

While I do agree that it is better to be single and even better if you live with your parents still. I have still been able to buy parts and start the swap, it only matters how bad you want to do it. I have picked up aluminum cans, worked side jobs, overtime and saved change to get stuff. I have waited for good deals and wheel and deal for parts. I still have to make a house payment, feed my kids and wife and put money away for a rainy day.

Robert, I also would encourage you to keep the truck and continue on with the project. You are sooo close to finishing and most of these set backs are minor at best. I do understand the extra expense especially if you don't have the money to spare, but hang in there. I have said it before you are a trail blazer in the supercharger aspect of forced induction.

 

[anupaum]

The most vexing thing about this centers on the fact that I had this supercharger running for a LONG TIME without belt-related issues, but I've burned through three of them in the last two months. Something is definately WRONG with my pulley alignment.

In order to get the new fan all set up, a friend of mine came over this afternoon to help me figure out the wiring. The fan has a 12 volt power wire, a "switched" power wire and a ground. We hooked up the 12 volt line and the ground and nothing happened, other than the wires got hot. We hooked the "switched" wire to the power and nothing happened. Then we hooked the "switched" wire to ground and the fan motor roared to life! Woo hoo! It works! And WOW, does that Cadillac fan ever move air!!!

A few seconds later, however, the squirrel cage disintegrated. It flew apart, smacking into my left arm with such force I'm going to have a NASTY bruise there, in addition to the deep cut the plastic fan parts made on my forearm.
This likely happened because when I was in the junk yard the other day, I accidentally dropped the fan on the ground and cracked the fan ever so slightly. I guess it's good that it came apart BEFORE I put the fan IN, right?

Tomorrow afternoon, I'll start taking the system apart again. I'll have to go to the wrecking yard and find another squirrel cage to attach to the motor. Since the GM squirrel cages are smaller than the Ford ones, I'd really like to trim the mounting box that the fan bolts onto. If I could take an INCH off that box, there would be NO WAY the supercharger intake could contact that fan motor.

Once the fan is out of the way, I can re-install the supercharger on its pedestal mount and make SURE I've got that pulley aligned properly. Hopefully that will do it . . .

As for boost and being single, you guys are probably right. My sweetheart is pretty patient as women go, but she DOES have her limits!

 

[anupaum]

Oh, and by the way . . . The pedestal is SO firmly attached, it doesn't move at all. The entire engine has to move in order for the blower to move, and when it does, it all moves together.

 

[Davis]

While I do agree that it is better to be single and even better if you live with your parents still. I have still been able to buy parts and start the swap, it only matters how bad you want to do it. I have picked up aluminum cans, worked side jobs, overtime and saved change to get stuff. I have waited for good deals and wheel and deal for parts. I still have to make a house payment, feed my kids and wife and put money away for a rainy day.

While it would be easier, the couple hundred bucks I spend a month on rent spare me my sanity. I really like my parents, but it's better when there's a bit of distance.

I have a lot of friends who want boost, they just don't want it enough to get it. It can be a real pain in the neck sometimes. It's all about prioritizing. If I had more worthy demands on my time and money, I'd cut back a lot.

 

[anupaum]

While it would be easier, the couple hundred bucks I spend a month on rent spare me my sanity. I really like my parents, but it's better when there's a bit of distance.

I have a lot of friends who want boost, they just don't want it enough to get it. It can be a real pain in the neck sometimes. It's all about prioritizing. If I had more worthy demands on my time and money, I'd cut back a lot.

Indeed! And for those of us who live by faith, it's a little hard to justify spending lots of money on a machine--especially when it's really not necessary--while there is so much suffering going on. I've been lucky enough to prosper financially (at least more so than was the case when I lived at home long ago!), and this type of project is more than just an exercise in flaunting wealth.

I've learned a LOT about fuel injection, a topic I'd never dreamed would even interest me. I've developed some confidence with electronics. I've learned how to tune a fuel-injected engine. Also, the whole business of constant problem solving has likely sharpened my "engineering" skills.

So, it's not just about going fast. I could have spent LESS money buying a V6 truck for the kind of performance I'm getting out of mine, but the experience has been a valuable one.