ford with cat motor what to look for?

[skylarkguy]

Well folks, I passed on the dump truck but found another rig 1978 Ford 8000...49000 on the factory rebuilt 3208, Eaton Fuller 10 speed trans. 18 foot lumber flat bed (with rollers) Brakes are good, tires are good, drives straight and tight. But....I can't seem to shift it worth a darn. The guy I bought if from said it needs a clutch. Others are telling me that I just need to learn how to drive it. I was told that outside of using the clutch for starting out, it is shifted without the clutch pedal. I hope to find someone locally who would run me through some instruction, but there seem to be some knowledgeable, truck drivers here...what say you?

 

[kevinwak]

Well folks, I passed on the dump truck but found another rig 1978 Ford 8000...49000 on the factory rebuilt 3208, Eaton Fuller 10 speed trans. 18 foot lumber flat bed (with rollers) Brakes are good, tires are good, drives straight and tight. But....I can't seem to shift it worth a darn. The guy I bought if from said it needs a clutch. Others are telling me that I just need to learn how to drive it. I was told that outside of using the clutch for starting out, it is shifted without the clutch pedal. I hope to find someone locally who would run me through some instruction, but there seem to be some knowledgeable, truck drivers here...what say you?

You would have to double clutch it. That might be hard for me to explain, but I will try.

When up shifting: this is done with a double push of the clutch. One to remove from the current gear. Then release the clutch when the shifter is in neutral. Press it in again to push the shifter into the higher gear. With experience it becomes a smooth action and you foot pretty much just bounces off the floor and then back in again.

Downshifting: This is where it takes lots of practice. Same technique as upshifting, but when you release the clutch when the shifter is in neutral you then give a quick blurp of the throttle. Basically press in clutch, move shifter to neutral, release clutch, press throttle to floor and immediately release, press clutch in fully and then shift into the lower gear. It will take a while to feel with each different engine and tranny combination as to how much throttle you need to give. One other thing to add, when down shifting without the clutch you still need the blurp of the throttle as the shifter passes through neutral.

Is the truck single axle or tandem?

 

[JJZ 109]

As stated, every truck is different. But I shifted many without using the clutch. Sometimes you can watch the tach to know when to shift without clutch pedal until you get the feel of the truck. Other trucks, I would use the clutch to pull it into neutral and then shift into the next gear without pressing the clutch pedal.
It really is a trial & error thing and you have to experiment to find what you're comfortable with for each different truck. There's no single right way or wrong way. You'll be grinding a few until you get the hang of the truck.

 

[Wolfy]

Todd said it well. We had 2 L8000s, 2 Macks, and a Pete in the family business. They all shifted different (engines/trany being different) but basically you need to know 3 numbers. The low rpm to downshift, the high rpm to upshift, and the ceiling rpm for that particular engine that you never what to reach. I only used the clutch to take off from a stand still, using the PTO, or going into Reverse.

 

[skylarkguy]

It is a single axle. Thanks for the description. This does confirm what others have told me. I've got to get some practice in, get the hang of it, then change the fluid to remove the metal shavings....

 

[Stimw]

It might have a warped pressure plate. That would keep the clutch from releasing completely and cause a lot of grinding.

 

[skylarkguy]

The holidays slowed us down but I found a crysteel 12 ton hoist to put under this flat bed. I'll then build sides for it. The crysteel hinge in on the way...I have to admit it kinda makes me grin when I look at it.