Made it to Manchester.......

Sorry for the delay in posting! I'm now in paramedic school which has been eating up a large amount of my time over the last few months.

However, I did find time to get E-1 to Manchester in October for the Manchester Fire Prevention Parade (yes, the same parade I was trying to go to in 2007 when the engine blew!). Yes, we made it there, and through the parade. She was a little hard to start that morning, and she was skipping a lot, but I thought it was just some water in the gas giving me trouble. We got some dry gas on the way to the parade line-up, but that didn't seem to solve the problem at all. We got through the parade with a few backfires (which scared the crap out of me a everyone else) and parked in the parking lot at the end of the parade. But that's where it stayed, because we could not get the truck to stay running for the ride home. Ended up having the truck towed home to Raymond, and while trying to diagnose the issue and get the truck running to move it for storage, I fried the starter. So now I have to pull that out, then tow the truck with my ATV or Jeep to the storage spot on the other side of the house.

I've not got my issue narrowed down to a timing one. It was skipping, running rough, and hard to start. The truck would not even fire on ether. The gas was good (over half a tank of new gas that morning). So right now I'm going to be shopping for a new condenser, points set, and plug wires to get that set. If that's not the issue, then it's to the carburetor, but it was professionally rebuilt five years ago so I don't see how that could be the issue.

So we'll see....for the winter, it's parked, and hopefully in spring we will be up and running yet again.

Now to the pictures from Manchester.


Milford Truck


MFD Engine 6


Old MFD Ahrens-Fox 1924


MFD E-10, a 1949 Mack, which Hose 4 used to run with at Weston Street


E-10 again. Such a pretty truck


and now for a parting image from parade season 2009


Two Old Friends Meet Again MFD Engine 10 and MFD Hose 4



I will mention, that after seeing E-10 all dressed up in the Manchester style, I have decided that when I do my restore on the truck, it will be restored to it's original Manchester looks from several of the older pictures I have. I would like it to look much like E-10 and E-6 look in the pictures above! Sometime in the future!

Late Updates from July

Hi Folks-

Here are a few pictures from the Raymond, NH Fireman's Parade and the Amoskeag Reserve Engine Company muster in Bow, NH, both in July!




































The first picture is the only good one from the Fireman's Parade...the rest are form the AREC Muster in Bow.....one of the few times Engine 1 has had water pumped through her pipes!

FYI-The second picture in this set is a rear-shot of Manchester Engine 10, the actual, physical truck that Engine 1 served as a hose tender for back in the Weston Street Station days. Pretty cool that two old friends got to meet.

Our next, and final as of now, parade this year will be the MFD Fire Prevention Parade on Sunday, October 4th. I'm trying to arrange to have Engine 1 ride behind the old Engine 10 that was pictured above, as long as it's in the parade.....it wasn't running at the muster but I hope it will be by then.

Hope to see some of you in Manchester, and don't be afraid to say hello!

Josh

Additional Stuff We're Doing with Engine 1 This Summer:

Here's a few more places we're going this summer:


--2009 Amoskeag Reserve Engine Company Muster, Bow, NH 10am-2pm.

--Sandown, NH Parade, August 8th, 12pm

2009 Raymond 4th of July Parade

Here are some pictures and video from the parade!

Video shot from just behind the cab, ala Naked Gun Title Sequence style:

Pictures of E-1 and some of the other trucks/vehicles in the parade! (Clicky to Photobucket!)

Next Parade:

July 10th, Raymond Town Fair @ 7pm, Town Common!

Today's Activites

Today was the nicest day we've had in a VERY long time. So that means we got some stuff done for once! The truck actually looks better than it has in a looooong time. Here's what we did today:

• Wash and wax job this morning.
• Vacuumed cab
• Fixed electronic siren
• Fueled up
• Repainted ALL the running boards and both bumpers with aluminum paint. Nice and shiny now, like new!
• Took the grille off and repainted it, so it's now silver, not rusty.
• Repainted the driver's side "INTERNATIONAL" and "BC160" badges.

So we should be all ready to go for tomorrow! Hope to see some of you at the parade, too!

Revving up for Saturday!

We've been having the WORST June weather-wise that I can remember!! All it's done is rain, rain, rain every day off I've had for the last two weeks, making it all but impossible to work on the truck! I still have a few items I need to take care of before Friday night:

-Install the new bolts on the front cowling!
-Still need to change BOTH fuel filters!
-Still needs a tank of gas!
-Still needs a full wash, wax, and vacuum!
-Still needs to have the front-mount pump and the generator reinstalled!
-Electronic Federal Siren needs to be remounted in the cab!
-Driver's side red flasher needs to be tightened a little bit, it turns while you drive!

I've still got a lot of crap to do and so little time. Thankfully it's supposed to be nice on Thursday and Friday this week so I should be able to bang out most of this stuff in a few hours. We're going for the wash and wax on Friday, and then we'll put the portable stuff back on.

On a good note, I've had the time to redo the history binder that goes to the parades with the truck for people who are interested to know about Engine 1. So at least that's done. I still have to charge up the video camera and figure out how I'm going to mount that thing on the back deck for the parade.... shouldn't be to hard if I can do it correctly.

On Saturday morning, we should be at Dunkin' Donuts in Freetown road around 8am, then at the parade for 8:30 or so for flag mounting, a quick once over with some towels and cleaner, and judging (not that I expect Engine 1 in it's current state to win anything. Keith Rollins from Deerfield and his 1940's[?] Ford Firetruck usually takes the awards!)

Hope to see everyone at the Raymond 4th of July Parade!

Parade Season is Officially a Go!

So Engine One passed it's NH state inspection with flying colors! The 2009 Parade Season is now officially a go! Phew...I was worried that something would come up during the inspection that would fail it and put the truck out of service for yet another year :(!

Now for what you can expect from this blog since the engine replacement is done:

Pictures and Video from each parade or event we attend!
Video from the top of the truck (video camera will be mounted behind the cab and will record the whole parade route)
Pictures of people, places, and other trucks
Preparations for the full restoration that I will be doing in the future
Parts collection
Tool collection
Restoration plans

It’s going to be a fun year with Engine One up and running! Hopefully we’ll be able to get a few drives around the state thrown in as well….we’ll see though!

Where You Can See Engine 1 This Summer

Here is our planned event list for this year (of course depending on weather, time, and such):

July 4th, 2009: Raymond, NH 4th of July Parade, 9AM, Raymond Town Common

July 10th, 2009: Raymond, NH Town Fair Fireman's Parade, 7PM, Raymond Town Common

August 15th, 2009: Deerfield, NH Old Home Day Parade, Deerfield Center

August 29th, 2009: Candia, NH Old Home Day Parade, Moore Park

September: Manchester, NH Fire Prevention Parade
Litchfield, NH Fire Prevention Parade

December: Hampstead, NH Christmas Parade

Crossing items off my list!

Things to Still Do Before Parade!

Oil pan will be dropped this weekend for cleaning, and an oil change will be done (hopefully all the crap in the block has fallen down into the pan!) --DONE

AC generator is still down, but will be remounted for parade (requires a new carburetor.)

Flasher units for front, rear, and side lights need to be replaced as they don't flash right. They are both turn signal flasher units, so the should be easy and cheap to replace. --DONE

Throttle linkage needs slight adjustment. --Checked and found to be ok DONE

A few bolts are needed to secure bottom of grill cowling as it vibrates like crazy!

New fuel filters (2) need to be installed. (One pre-pump and one pre-carburetor.)

Another wash and wax, along with an interior vacuuming.

Pacific Pump needs to be remounted on the bumper.

On another note, I took apart the remainder of the old engine that's been sitting on my dad's trailer since April. I harvested spare parts out of it (heads, valve train/lifters, timing gears, pulleys, etc.) and took out the crank and camshafts. I'm going to be scrapping the block in a few days as there is no hope for repair, and at least I'll get a little money out of it, unless someone wants it for some reason. If anyone does, let me know it's all yours!

Pictures!

Some night shots all lit up! (Clickable Thumbnails to Photobucket!)

Parade Preparations

Almost a month has passed since the last update, and honestly, not much has changed. The truck is now registered and insured, but not inspected as of yet. I haven't had the time or energy to take the truck in for inspection since I've been wicked busy at work again (summertime, so the overtime opportunities have increased!) Some things have happened though:

Completed Items!

• New License Plates! We're now registered as an antique with the plate "62IHC"!
• Truck is now located in Raymond, NH where I live, but will still be called the East Candia Volunteer Fire Department.
• We've entered our first parade: The Raymond 4th of July Parade. Come down and see us during the parade! We will then be in the Raymond Town Fair Parade the following Friday!
• Fuel gauge was repaired (faulty ground.) Fuel tank was also resealed.
• Pump was run from the tank....still flows water, but not well. I think it needs to be greased.
• All hose was removed, the hose bed was cleaned out, and the hose was repacked (all 1500' or so!)
• Booster reels were rewound.
• Pacific Pump (bumper mount portable) was finally repaired and now runs. Tested and it pulls a good draft, flows water very nicely!

Things to Still Do Before Parade!

• Oil pan will be dropped this weekend for cleaning, and an oil change will be done (hopefully all the crap in the block has fallen down into the pan!)
• AC generator is still down, but will be remounted for parade (requires a new carburetor.)
• Flasher units for front, rear, and side lights need to be replaced as they don't flash right. They are both turn signal flasher units, so the should be easy and cheap to replace.
• Throttle linkage needs slight adjustment.
• A few bolts are needed to secure bottom of grill cowling as it vibrates like crazy!
• New fuel filters (2) need to be installed. (One pre-pump and one pre-carburetor.)
• Another wash and wax, along with an interior vacuuming.
• Pacific Pump needs to be remounted on the bumper.
  

There is quite a laundry list of things, but it will get done over the next few weeks no problem. I've also been climbing around the truck to see how it's constructed for my future restoration I want to do in a few years. I'm planning (or at least when I get my house and garage that I want) to strip the truck to the frame and completely restore it myself (yes, just me, no professional help!) I think if I take a welding class, get a welding unit, and study my project I should be able to do it no problem. What I would like to do is take the truck body off of it, replace all the diamond plate and bad metal, remove the cab and replace the cab floor, sandblast the frame and paint it black, rework the pump and all the plumbing, then put it back together and get a new paint/lettering job. It will be a long project when I'm working on it, and I figured it will take me at least three to five years to complete. But with a full restoration like that, the truck will last a very long time with some TLC. Someday.

Getting things rolling even faster.........

Well a lot has happened since the last post about Engine 1. No, it didn't die in the driveway, and no, the new engine hasn't blown up. In fact, things have only gotten better!

With the truck all back together, hood and all, we've been doing idle tests on the engine in the driveway. After being concerned that the truck was overheating, I installed a combo temperature, oil pressure, and voltmeter gauge into the cab. We found that at idle speed, the truck heats to about 210, and when at 1000 RPM she drops to about 170. So we at least know the water pump is working. I'm not too crazy about 210 at idle....I think she's getting way to hot, but my father seems to think it's ok. I'm debating if I should change the water pump pulley to the smaller ones I have laying around. It would cause the pump to turn faster at an idle speed (right now the pump pulley is the same as the crank....the newer one is about 2/3 the size of the current) and hopefully lower her idle water temp. Seeing as that the truck is going to be doing a significant amount of idling at parades, it might not hurt to do it.

After our drive up the street we decided it would be best to check the timing with a timing light. We discovered that my hand timing when we put the dizzy in was about dead on....off by a degree or so. After a quick adjustment to be at zero degrees TDC, we were playing with the carburetor and noticed that we couldn't get it to adjust right. After a little diagnosis with starting fluid around the gaskets, we found that they were leaking pretty bad. We took the carb off, and found that I had also put a gasket on backwards, covering the intake holes about half way. DOH! After a bit of permatex gasket sealant, and putting the gaskets back on the right way, we were able to adjust the mixture screws properly and set the idle. A new throttle return spring was added as the old one had "lost it's spring" and was not returning the engine to idle after a stab of the accelerator. She now idles at a purring 500 RPM without a hiccup.

Last Thursday was spent changing the front tires. The original tires cracked pretty bad while sitting out in the sun for the last year or so, and were no longer road worthy (although they were saved as "emergency spares"). After a search, I found a pair of new Power King 750-20 bias ply tires for $148 each with tubes and flaps. I ordered them Tuesday, picked them up Wednesday, and the were mounted Thursday. After borrowing the 3/4" drive socket set from the Candia VFD, I was able to jack up the front with a 20 Ton bottle jack and take the lug nuts off with the 18" ratchet and 4' PVC cheater bar :). Worked like a charm, but my back was screaming after lifting 120 lbs tire/rim assemblies into my Jeep. Brought them to Stratham Tire in Brentwood, NH, where they did both tires in about 30 minutes! Back to the house, put the new tire/rims on (PITA when you have no help around), and we were done! Now we're cruising on new rubber!

Today we went out for another drive around the block. Wow, what a difference timing and a full-flowing, adjusted carb can make. After pulling out of the driveway, the truck was in second gear 1/4 of the way up the hill, and in third about 3/4 of the way up, without so much as a cough! Much much better than last time, when we cruised in first all the way, lacking power, and couldn't get above 20 MPH in third on the flats! After hitting the top of the hill, I was able to pop her into fourth, and we cruised down the street at 40 in a 35 :). Around the block, and back, no problems to report!

Tomorrow (or today, rather, now that I looked at my clock) it's off the the town clerk for registration, and then to the inspection place down the street for a sticker. After that, to the gas station, and hopefully off to the car wash for a bath (because she's gross- you would be too after a year and a half under a tarp!).

Almost there!

Getting things rolling..........

Things are going well with Engine 1. Now that the engine is in and the front is all back together we've been working on little issues here and there.

We were having problems with the stock oil pressure and temperature gauges not reading, so we took the dash apart and found that the cluster voltage regulator was bad. Replacement from NAPA, with no guarantee of compatibility, was $40 plus shipping. So we skipped on that for now. I was able to take the old one apart and clean up the contacts...the gauges are working, but I don't trust their accuracy. I went to Advance Auto Parts and picked up a set of gauges (three in one unit) which read temperature, oil pressure, and voltage. All good things to know while the truck is running! After getting them installed, we found that the cooling system works fine....she heats up to about 190 while idling, and when revved she drops to 160-170 and stays there. Perfectly fine for me. Oil pressure runs a tad high at cold idle (about 40 PSI), but drops to 20 PSI when hot idling. Really good numbers for an old IH SV engine!! That confirms that the main and cam bearings are all good. Voltage hovers around 13 volts, which is good.

The truck got a new fuse panel as well by using a Seacraft panel purchased from Ace Hardware for $16. We think the old panel was shorting out because we would loose lights, turn signals, and panel lights intermittently. Every time we would try and diagnose the issue the we would find that when we wiggled the fuse panel things would come back up. Rather than dealing with a possible electrical fire from the panel, and having to constantly chase the issue down, we just opted to replace the thing.

Tires have been another issue we had to solve. The current front tires cracked while sitting out in the sun for a year and a half, and the rears seemed to survive ok (there is minor cracking, but not as bad as the front). Being an old truck, it has Budd lock ring rims and 750-20 bias ply tube type tires. What a PITA to find. After a week long search, I found a pair of Power King 10 plys at a local tire shop for $148 each with tubes and flaps. Pretty good price, if you ask me, considering that I found some different ones that were $216 each, without the tubes/flaps, plus I would have to pay for shipping from California ($$$!!!). I'm excited, and tomorrow will be spent getting the tires changed at Stratham Tire in Brentwood, NH.

The truck actually did make it out onto the road Monday night (albeit illegally) for a quick road test. The truck did pretty well, making it down the driveway and a quick brake test was performed.....the brakes held very nicely on my hill of a driveway. Out the driveway and to the right we went, up the Langford Road hill. We stayed in first gear (we could have gone into second gear, but didn't want to push it) and she pulled all the way up the hill, staying in a normal temperature range and good oil pressure. It was a slow ride, but it was nice to know she can pull herself up without issue. Once at the top, second gear was a breeze, and when we got into third we had a little bit of coughing and backfiring. Noted the issue, went to the turnaround spot, and went back home with no problems at all. A good first trip for an engine that hasn't run in a while, and for the truck that hasn't moved in over a year.

After the tires get changed, we're going to double check the timing with a light and make sure that the initial timing is correct, that the vacuum advance is working, and that the mechanical advance is also good. Once the timing is set, if we are still having issues we're going to rebuild the carburetor (I have a kit ready to go). It's won't hurt for it to get cleaned up completely!

Pictures will be coming!

Video of the First Engine Start in 15 Years.

So here is the video from Monday when the truck started up for the first time. The truck it's self hasn't run in over a year. The engine, on the other hand, was removed from an old International Scout about 15 years ago and sat on an engine crane in someone's garage since. I picked up the engine in early 2008 to replace the bad motor.

(Ok, so this isn't the first time it's fired. We did fire it with starting fluid on Sunday just to be sure we would even fire. This is the first time she really started and ran for any length of time.)

That's my girlfriend Katherin holding the camera and making comments about things. She was the motivator for me to finally get the truck back on the road. Thanks, hunny! (But I think it's because she 1.) wants to ride in it and play with the lights/sirens and 2.) she wants to drive it.)

We were having some problems keeping her running (stale gas), and a few problems with the battery jumper while trying to get her running. The smoke you see cleared up soon after we stopped recording, and I'm thinking it was just oil in the cylinders and the exhaust buring off.

After a carb adjustment later in the day, she was running like a champ and actually moved under her own power down the driveway, into a 3-point turn (always fun without power steering), and back up to a different spot so we could clean up the spare parts and tools.

Pop some popcorn and enjoy the show!

I've also decided that when we go to parades we're going to set the camera up on a tripod on top of the truck behind the cab. I think that would be a pretty cool video!

DONE!

It's Done. East Candia Engine 1 is offically back in service after more than a year of downtime. For the first time today, the Engine rolled out from the spot she was sitting in and took a trip onto the open road. Granted it was a short trip down the driveway, three point turn to point back the way we came, and back up the driveway, but it was a start.

Parade season is comming fast, and I fully expect to complete the entire parade circuit this year with minimal issues.

Even though the project on the engine work is complete, Engine 1 needs a lot more TLC. We need new floorboards. We need new tires (eventually). We need a bit of electrcal work in the cab done.

Keep checking back, because I'll continue to post things about my little projects, and post pictures of all the parades we make it to this year!

95% Complete

The last four days have been filled with all sorts of engine work fun. After deciding that putting the new engine in would be easier with the heads off as the engine to transmission mounting bolts would be easier to access. I also figured that since I had a set of head gaskets laying around it wouldn't hurt to do the job. So I removed the heads and cleaned out the gunk from cylinders #2 and #8, the ones that got a little wet while the engine was sitting outside. The cylinder walls looked good though!

Thursday, 4/16/2009

My friend Jimmy came over with his wrecker to remove the engine with me. We hooked onto the old block with the tow cable and out the junker came. Then we removed the clutch plates and the flywheel for the new engine. After getting the new engine on the tow cable, we put the flywheel and clutch on, but not without a little bit of a scare with the fit. Apparently the new engine was mated to an automatic transmission (or the manual tranny was different) because there was a 4" spacer on the back of the crankshaft. Fortunately it was held in with just a roll pin and we were able to tap it off with a hammer and some elbow grease. Tragedy averted, the engine was hoisted into the frame and mated with the tranny after a little wiggling. We did have a slight issues as one of the alignment pins stayed in the bell house ear when the old engine came out, so we had to cut the new pin with a hacksaw as we didn't notice until after the tow truck was unhooked. It was easier to just cut it than it was to remove the engine. After that was done, it mated without incident.

Saturday 4/18/2009

We cleaned both the engine block and cylinder head surfaces with a soft die grinder to removed the old rust (thanks to the folks on oldihc.org for the tip) and also did the same to the intake manifold surfaces before putting the manifold back on. The heads went on without a problem, and the intake manifold was a breeze to put on. The exhaust manifolds were a little more difficult, but after some choice words and a few cuts on the hand, they were snug to the engine.

We bolted on the fuel pump next, and then timed the engine to cylinder number eight, without the use of a timing light. All we did was align the timing mark with zero degrees on the compression stroke, picked a post on the distributor cap, and started counting from there. My IHC V-304 rebuild manual that I bought was an excellent resource for this project!

The oil was changed, and a new oil filter was screwed on.

Sunday 4/19/2009

Today was spent putting on the thermostat housing (with a new 160 degree thermostat) which we picked up from Sanel Auto Parts. They didn't have a new gasket available for the housing, so Katherin (my girlfriend) cut a new gasket out of cork using the old one as a guide. The alternator bracket was hooked on and alternator was added. After some head scratching about the alternator and coil wiring, I referred to a diagram I drew that I used to build a new voltage regulator for the truck. (Back in 2007 I had to have the alternator rebuilt, and we discovered the old voltage regulator was bad. The guys at Auto Electric in Brentwood, NH, who also rebuilt the alternator, were able to help me build a replacement from few different pieces.) After everything was hooked up properly, we put the pulleys on the water pump and the crankshaft. The twin V-belts were run, and the carburetor was put onto the manifold. A good battery charge was done as well!

We sprayed a little bit of starting fluid into the carb and closed the choke. After a bit of a crank, the engine sputtered! I sprayed a little more ether, but left the choke open.....and she backfired right out of the carb! There was quite a flame, but I didn't lose my eyebrows. After that lesson, we did it once more. After the engine caught, I forgot that I had the fuel lines connected, and fuel started coming up into the lower filter....I noticed it but figured it wouldn't make it to the second filter before the carb.....boy was I wrong! About 10 seconds after it hit the first filter before the fuel pump, the second filter was full! I told Katherin to shut the engine down as I wasn't ready to have her run on her own...it was simply a test to make sure the truck would even fire!

Tomorrow will be spent putting the radiator in, adding engine coolant, and getting the throttle and choke cables hooked back up. We also have to splice some of the wires back together as I had to cut a few so the engine could get (they ran just above the radiator). After that's done we can spend he rest of the afternoon adjusting the carb for the truck and letting her spend some time running. Maybe she will even sneak a ride onto the road for a test.......

More to follow tomorrow!

FINALLY!!

Well the day has finally come.....Thurday, April 16th, 2009. The day the new engine will be put into the truck and fired up for the first time!

It only took me 1 1/2 years to get it done.....but now that the weather is good, and I'm not injured, it should be all set.

I went out Monday and checked the new engine...it was a little stuck, but nothing some oil in the cylinders and a little elbow grease couldn't fix....so it's at least rotating now. Changed out the intake manifold to the old engine's to get rid of all the emissions bullshit. Now I just have to get the two exhaust manifolds off (which requires cutting a bolt or two as the heads are rounded), get the wrecker on the old engine, take it out (removing the clutch, flywheel, and mounting bracket), plop the parts onto the new engine, and mate her to the tranny. Hopefully it goes without a problem. Hopefully.

What a Fall and Winter!

Hello Readers!

Sorry it's been a while since I've been posting, but there have been a few issues to keep me away lately. In October I was rushed to the hospital for acute appendicitis, and I was placed on work restriction for nine weeks following surgery.....so not only did I not make any money, I was unable to put any time into the truck....add that to a very soggy fall and a horrible winter so far, and I think things are self explanatory.

I don't know if any of you heard but NH (and New England in general) was hit with the worst ice storm in the history of the area on December 11th and 12th. There were lots of trees down, and unending power outages. (I had no power for five days, and I feel lucky since some went without for 12-15 days!) Fortunately, the truck was spared any damage from falling trees......not a single branch brushed her.....and I'm glad she's not parked at my new house because where she would have gone was full of a rather large tree limb when I woke up...not something I would want to find smashed into the body of the truck!

Well, hopefully this will be the year, finally. Now that the engine is 90% disassembled all we have to do is tear it out and toss in the new one.....hopefully as soon as the ground is dry from spring it'll get done and be back on the road once again!

Stay tuned folks, 2009 is gonna be a great year!