Sawmill power unit upgrade

[Oldpath05]

My son bought a 453 Detroit diesel power unit this past week 2.5k, he's been using a rebuilt 59 GMC 261 six cylinder to power his shingle mill for ten years and has now gotten tied. Something he said I thought was kinda unusual, weight is 1,400 lbs. heavy his loader can barely pick it up, takes 5 gal oil for a oil change and he said it's 2 stroke, thought diesels were 4 stroke, I can never remember what the strokes are call.

 

[zoedog2012]

Detroit diesels were called screaming jimmies because they are/were? 2 strokers

 

[Rustyiron]

You'll recognize the sound of that 2 stroke once he fire's it up. Many skidders had them along with lot's of older machinery & trucks. FWIW the 4 is the # of cylinders and the 53 is the displacement of each cyl. (c.i). I'm no expert on them but I think they all were "blown". Look for a strange casting involved with intake air that has "GM" embossed into it.Detroit Diesel Grain Truck - YouTube
The best way to turn diesel fuel into noise!

 

[Rustyiron]

Here's anotherhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=es5iyQVUX4o
Wouldn't want to spend all day in one, but music to my ears.

 

[David_Kb7uns]

The old Letorneau Electro Stackers down at the mill had V8 Detroits that were turbo and super charged and they ran at high idle all day to generate the 480 3 phase to run everything........nothing like the roar of a Detroit Diesel rolling by. Should of seen them when they blew the supercharger off the top of the engine, all replaced now by a more economical Cummins

Some of the older EMD diesel engines for locomotives had a sprag clutch driven blower that also had a turbo wheel in the exhaust, so the scavenging was engine driven until the exhaust picked up and then was exhaust driven at higher throttle settings.

David

 

[vsteel]

I was told the way you need to drive those Detroit 2-stroke trucks is first take your hand and put it in the door jam and then slam the door on your hand. Because then you are good and pissed off and that is how you need to drive them. Rev the crap out of them and drive angry.

 

[motownbrowne]

Two stroke diesels are cool. Not like a two stroke gas motor, where you need you add oil to the fuel because the charge lubricates the bottom end on the way to the conclusion chamber, but they do use a blower to move the exhaust out of the cylinder through ports in the side instead of having open valves during an exhaust stroke.

 

[rustydollar]

I was told the way you need to drive those Detroit 2-stroke trucks is first take your hand and put it in the door jam and then slam the door on your hand. Because then you are good and pissed off and that is how you need to drive them. Rev the crap out of them and drive angry.

Brings back a memory, when i took the road test for my class 1 had an older Scottish woman for my examiner. The truck had a 6/71 screaming jimmy being on the polite side fluffed a few shifts.

She said to me during the test, you have to drive it like your bloomin mad at it.

Years later I bought an old Michigan loader that had a 4 cylinder jimmy, they're good dependable engines.

 

[bigdeano]

Two stroke diesels are cool. Not like a two stroke gas motor, where you need you add oil to the fuel because the charge lubricates the bottom end on the way to the conclusion chamber, but they do use a blower to move the exhaust out of the cylinder through ports in the side instead of having open valves during an exhaust stroke.

The blower pushes air thru intake ports in the cylinder. The exhaust goes out exhaust valves like a 4 cycle engine has.

They're good heavy duty engines. I've run equipment that used them.

 

[motownbrowne]

The blower pushes air thru intake ports in the cylinder. The exhaust goes out exhaust valves like a 4 cycle engine has.

They're good heavy duty engines. I've run equipment that used them.

****, I got it backwards. Thanks for setting me straight!!

 

[gary49]

If it ain't leaking,it's out of oil. Great old engine, really noisy, but it will get the job done.

 

[TMGT]

They also gave the hot rod community the iconic blowers everyone loves i.e. 6-71 and 8-71.

They are also famous for running away.

My best memory is of a big 4wd MM at a tractor pull running I believe a 3-53.

 

[Oldpath05]

My son got the 453 Detroit in the mill this past weekend, got it in position, lined up with the flat belts, in process of changing the V-belt pulley to flat, had to get bigger exhaust pipe, had 2" OD on the gas motor he didn't think that was big enough for diesel, it has 3" on the motor.

Looking like it might be a couple weeks before he gets it running, still has to brace up the floor, wonder what will be louder the motor or the shingle mill, here's a video of what he's doing, caution not for the faint of heart, as you can see, need quick accurate hands...... Maine Made Cedar Shingles - rebuilt carriage by ckshingle - YouTube

 

[MossRoad]

NOPE NOPE NOPE!!!! hahahaha

I've seen videos of shingle mills before. Gives me the creeps. :laughing:

 

[Farmerford]

Great video. Sixty years ago on the farm I helped run a feed mill for grinding corn that was powered by a 4-53 and we had a couple of tractors with Jimmy diesels in them.

What is the second operation? When he inserts the cut shingle into the slot is there something in there that cuts the edges?

 

[Oldpath05]

After the shingle is cut, he sticks them in the slot where a big wheel is spinning at a slower speed, that has several planer knives, I think there are four, 1/4" thick, about 3" wide, 6" long, that's what squares up the shingle. When he gets into good wood, shingles are really coming of that fast and furious, around 5-6 square a day.

Two years ago he found out just how sharp that saw is, in a split second, lost part of his trigger finger, he wasn't sure what happen but think he got complacent, it's definitely a pay attention job.

 

[Ivan49]

I was just going to ask if he still has all his fingers.

 

[rustydollar]

After the shingle is cut, he sticks them in the slot where a big wheel is spinning at a slower speed, that has several planer knives, I think there are four, 1/4" thick, about 3" wide, 6" long, that's what squares up the shingle. When he gets into good wood, shingles are really coming of that fast and furious, around 5-6 square a day.

Two years ago he found out just how sharp that saw is, in a split second, lost part of his trigger finger, he wasn't sure what happen but think he got complacent, it's definitely a pay attention job.

Shingle sawyer in Hope B.C. has the same mill, he used to power the mill from a Detroit diesel. About five years ago brought in 3 phase power, now all you hear is the saw slicing through the cedar blanks.

He also cut several fingers off a few years back, found them in the sawdust wrapped them in a rag and took them to the hospital where they reattached them.

Nearly everyday people are picking kindling from the scrap pile, told him he should make small bundles from it to sell on auction for the hobbyists. I'd bet the farm that folks living in condo's and apartments would scoop it up faster than it could be listed.

Look at what they do with toothpicks.

 

[Oldpath05]

My son got his motor in last Sat., guys here were right, LOUD, I guess it's loud. I was working in the garage 300' away when all of a sudden I hear this whining, buzzing motor sound, looked out the front door thought the neighbor had a runaway lawnmower, then open up the back door and there it was, only thing louder would've been a Harley.

The Detroit diesel power plant is on 30' of 3-1/2" pipe, went down there to see what can be done to make it quieter. I was standing next to the motor and the exhaust was still drowning out the motor. He got a muffler put on today and shorten up the pipe, said it's a lot quieter, next he's putting on a spark arrestor. I'll check it out some more this weekend. Also said he's going to make a video of it in a few weeks when things ironed out.

 

[cabover4us]

My best friend Mike had a mobile home toter, was an older GMC short nose and his neighbor up the road ran 238s in their dump trucks. Before Mike started toting he or they would rebuild his motor, out of frame. Took a week or two collecting new parts and pieces. This was reported to me directly from Mike, motors all done sitting there on blocks, no manifolds, hose in five gallon pail of fuel. Cranked it over, cranking, cranking, ??? And all it once fired..... RIGHT TO TOP END!!
They are holding their ears with palms jammed tight. Owner of the shop thought motor was going to explode, but someone pulled fuel line out and motor was able to be shut down without any destruction. That motor after that was unbelievable, depending on the size of home he pulled got 9 to 15 miles a gallon, obviously, the 15 was running empty back to Pennsylvania and the other loaded for Maine. What a fun truck to drive, many a day was horse from yelling our conversation instead of speaking normal. Today of course, if I had the means, this old style truck with a Detroit would be my project to fix up and drive around. Cabover tractors are the real favorites of mine, as I learned to drive on a 318 Astro.
Had to wear snowmobile boots in the winter just to keep feet from freezing.
BJ Lumber from Cambridge had an old Astro with a V-12, 71 series. Steve, his son would come through the downtown section of Hoosick Falls and fire off the Jake's at 2am, and the windows would be rattling in the window casings. Many years later I drove a Transtar 2 hauling bark mulch from Lake George, that also was a fun truck to drive.