Nice grill and work bench. I hate that you can't hardly find grills with the Dodge logo. The D350 parts rig i got a while back had a brand new LMC grill in it. Luckily the D250 I'm currently working on has the original grill in mint condition. Hell i was happy as can be about both lol. I went to the local pick n pull today looking for anything that caught my eye. It's getting harder and harder to find good tail lights these days and when i do its never a pair. But today i had all but given up and was on my way to the desk with one passenger side light and some door strikers, u bolts and door latches when something caught my eye. A 1995 dodge Dakota with perfect original tail lights. They looked identical to ours. I pulled one off to make sure light sockets and mounting was the same. Sure is. I didn't know if yall knew they interchanged (probably did) but it was news to me. $10 per light to. Great deal.



I'll get some daytime pictures tomorrow.

 

Changed the oil for the first time. Not sure how many miles were on it but I've had the truck for 2 months now. Let me say the little oil change bucket container things you can get at Walmart or autozone can not handle the amount of oil that comes out of one of these motors! Overflowed twice before I gave up trying to get them plug back in, all well next time I'll use a small concrete mixing tray.

Also cleaned up the engine ground under the PS pump and greased the front suspension.

 

Your not the first one that has happened to. You won't be the last eather.

 

I can just slide a 5 gal pail under the oil pan....it's over 3/4 full when it finishes draining.

 

Our mechanics at work use 5 gallon buckets on the 4BTs and QSBs, for some reason I didn't think of the container not being able to take that much oil in all at once. It could hold it all but not all of it going thru a small 1/2" hole that fast


What a mess!

 

X2 on the 5 gallon pail for oil changes.
It works for all my 4x4 Cummins trucks. I am guessing on a lowered 2wd like Vader's dually, it might sit too low for the 5 gallon pail trick.

 

Funny how life dictates how it all goes..

 

I noticed that the floor gets farther away the older you get.

 

I use a radiator drain pan. Big yellow jobber with a capped spout on it. Never had a leaker ...

just like this one

 

WAhoo I can finally do that!

 

And the time to go from the floor to vertical significantly increases....


I got my first pair of progressive prescription eyeglasses the other day. I was amazed at all the things I though I was looking at, didn't really look like I had previously envisioned.

Especially in the mirror..

 

A 5 gallon pail is way to high to fit under my truck, I have a big heavy aluminum pan about 30" square and 12" deep that fits under my truck nicely, I also keep my magnetic pickup tool handy to retrieve the drain plug that seems to always slip out of my fingers.

Why did Chrysler mount their filters upside down for so many years?
I could never figure out why.
Jim

I do not mind changing the oil, it is removing the filter that I hate, always makes a mess.
Jim

 

Or he's using his previously filled pee pee bucket to drain his oil

 

 

I recycle the oil, so I'd rather not use the thunder bucket. An ordinary 15 qt drain pan works. Has to be completely empty when starting, and the vent plug has to be open, or it will overflow before you can say, "Oh *******".