No, I can't tell until the drill breaks through. The hole on the newer cases is blind, so the bit breaks through a little and then hits more metal.

edited for accuracy

 

Dave, not to put too fine a point on it, but I haven't seen this repair done. When you find that you hit more metal, do you proceed with the repair as usual?

 

Yes, you just put a set screw in to keep the oil on the inside. The screw ends up sticking out a little, which is a problem on some trucks because the fan hub interferes. In that case I pull the long screw and install a shorter one.

 

Well now i'm not sure how to interperit the info given. Wannadiesel when you say " the newer cases are not blind", exactly what do you mean by that, unless i'm not understanding what you mean, i thought that if you drilled through the case and then find you are still hitting more metal that meant the KDP had worked loose, and this in turn meant you had to remove the case so you can drive the pin back in, or have i missed something here....

 

Sorry, I meant to say the hole on the newer case IS blind. That's what happens when you change the way you want to say something in mid-sentence.

The post will be edited to correct the mistake, sorry for the confusion.

 

Thanks for clearing that up............

Regards to all for new year from across the pond

 

Tell that to my neighbor whose '99 pin came out and cracked the case. At least it was under warranty.

If you hit the pin when doing the jig repair you continue with the entire repair but just use a shorter bolt to keep the oil in till you have the time and parts to remove the cover. The normal length of bolt will stick out too far and the fan hub won't fit back on.
Out of the 50+ jig repairs I've done I've only hit a pin that was too far out twice.

 

I haven't done that many and found 1 pin sticking out. An old 90 with 200k on the clock had a pin in the hole. Tried to lever it back, but no go. Ended up grinding the threads off the bolt just past the case. Bolt cleared the pin and no oil leaks.

-John

 

The jig from Harold does not have this problem, it comes in at an angle so you can use a pin punch and a hammer to knock the KDP back into its hidey hole. A nice side benefit is that the alternator doesn't have to come off.

 

Mike D,

I did my KDP and it had worked out a bit. It's a 24 valve as you know. I did my Dad's 96 truck this weekend, it was out a bunch. His is the 12 Valve.

 

Dave, I've never used Harold's jigs, just the CPFF ones, since you don't have to remove the alternator does that mean you have to remove the fan cowl?

 

The drill goes like this: Pop off the coolant overflow bottle, remove the clips from the top of the shroud, bust the fan loose, go bandage your knuckles. Remove the belt. Hold the shroud back with a bungee and remove the fan and fan hub. Remove the two timing cover bolts closest to the KDP and bolt the jig on. Put the air regulator on the dipstick tube. Drill, tap on the KDP with a hammer and punch to make sure it's in tight, tap the hole, clean with brake kleen. Smear the set screw with blue goo and install. Put the truck back together and you're done.

If I don't get too caught up in BS'ing with the owner I can do it in half an hour not including getting out the tools and putting them away. If you do a lot of these you ought to get a jig from Harold.

 

I wrote Cummin's about the KDP problem and the reply was sickening. Something like; "If a Cummin's/Dodge engine should fail within the one year warrantee period, repairs will be covered by your Dodge dealer." Cummin's said that this was a very minor problem and few if any cases had been noted. Ha ha.