Fixing our 50 Year Old Semi Truck - BIGTIME

Jeremiah fulfilled his childhood dream of buying a big rig, but now he’s having a classic case of post-truck clarity. Was buying this $10,000 truck a huge mistake?

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[jgotdreams]

I think Jeremiah left Donut just so he could be naked on camera lol

[robertglucksman]

I work for Rush truck centers. We have a store in venture. I can sell you whatever parts you need for this unit and ship direct to you. If you have questions just ask we still have some techs who used to work on these units when they were new.

[Soaringnight]

CDL driver here. With the truck being a single axle, air brake equipped, and 14k lbs. I would say the minimum license needed would be a CDL B with Air Brake endorsement. Definitely talk to the DMV or Highway Patrol and they should be able to guide you into what is needed so the legality isn't in question anymore lol. Plus wouldn't be a bad series of seeing Jeremiah and Jobe training for CDL class and getting their licenses.

[TessaTickle]

Absolute ballsy to look at an old truck and communicate the enthusiasm to a crowd that was really not expecting this kind of wildcard piece. Also amazing to see that there's truckers and truck mechanics on here contributing their experience to the show!

[hiimcolors]

someone who pours milk before cereal needs therapy

[computerlove]

I love how this movement of car guys off of these big corporate platforms is kind of bringing back the grassroots, backyard building with buddies YouTube days that we used to love not that long ago ❤

[LukiRudaka]

Okay, so those engines are Detroit Diesel engines, and there is something you need to know
1. Carbon builds up in the ports. This happens to all 3 series: 53, 71, and 92. I asked a Navy Mechanic, who works on 4-53s found on the tugs on Aircraft Carriers, how hard it is to clean out, and he described it as a "nightmare". To ensure this doesn't happen, you need to run these things pretty high in RPMs.
2. These things HATE low RPMs. You cannot lug these like 4 strokers can be. They will blow up if you do that.
3. These have mechanical fuel systems, and there have been times where the fuel rail gets stuck at wide open throttle, creating a diesel runaway. If this happens, you need to put something over the intake to stop it's airflow. No oxygen, no ignition. Most people will use a piece of plywood. There has only been one time where they didn't have a mechanical fuel system, and that was on the Crusty Fat Cab, a racing truck with a common-rail converted 8V92T.

[BRNRACE]

Hey boys, I just wanted to correct something real quick, the brake chamber has a spring brake, you can “cage” those and release the brakes. It has 2 chambers, one is to compress the spring when you press in the parking knob. The second one is the service brakes. It doesn’t brake with the spring brake, that’s just for parking, it brakes with the air tank pressure being applied by the service line of the brake chamber. The next part is called the “slack adjuster” that is like a ratchet wrench the connects the rod of the brake chamber to the s cam, some slack adjusters are manual and needed to be adjusted every day after a whole day of driving, my very first rig a 1987 peterbilt had them and I hated them, you could be having full braking power in the morning and after a day of local driving you DID NOT. The next part is the S cam, is just a cam but instead of lobes it has an S shaped looking end, it spreads the brakes shoes outwards towards the drum. To check if your brakes are good, you have to check drum thickness, shoe thickness and make sure the rod of the chamber doesn’t extend outwards more than 2-1/4 inch. Hope that was helpful.
About the legality of driving it as a regular truck, you can register it as a “recreational vehicle” and it should be fine with a class C.

[oreojsn]

CDL A driver 10+ years and I'm very impressed with how much you've learned about semi truck operations. The suspension, brakes, seat adjustment and even the transmission when switching hi-low gears are all air actuated. It's the life blood of the truck, without pressurized air you have a bigass paperweight.

The truck may be under the 26k gross limit, but the air brakes alone, as others have said, will require at least a CDL B with air brakes endorsement.

Also when it comes to tires, make sure you put virgin (brand new) tires on the steer axle. Drive tires you can get away with some cheap re-caps, but it's illegal to put re-caps on the steer axle for safety reasons. Steer tire blowouts are no joke and will guarantee a crash if you're caught by surprise and unprepared.

Looking forward to seeing how you tackle the CDL exams!! 👌🏾

[hayzeproductions]

10:00 There is a cable on the drain valve for a reason.. You just pull the cable and it will drain the tanks out.
Much easier than tapping with golf club. Just pull the cable diagonally from the release valve and it will be fine, the fitting inside is multi directional and will retract back in closed position.

14:45 That pop noise and rapid ticking noise you keep hearing would be your air governor kick out once the tanks are full. After using brakes etc drains the tanks. So air governor will kick in to charging really quick to fill tanks up then POP.

15:55 floating gears is natural to me at this point, been using 13 speeds and 18 speeds and would prefer those over a 10 speed or 9 speed.
Give you a better idea on how to float and not be soo destructive to your gearbox... Each gear on a 13 speed has a 400rpm difference between them.
When you split the gears with the high range gears (side switch you flip with your thumb) it is only 200rpm difference

You do not have to be that hard on your gearbox, I'm usually very gentle with them and never grind the gears. because (VERY EXPENSIVE FIX)
With a little bit of math you can also skip gears to get up to speed quicker, (your case being as small and only 6 wheels instead of 10)
You can easily start in 3rd, skip to 5 high (800 rpm difference)

[des]

The cursing and more freedom in general is actually a breath of fresh air, I like these videos, maybe even more than Donut itself...

[zombiedrifter]

Hey Brother, I own a Trucking business in TX. Save some money and change your wheels out to 22.5 instead of 24.5. For what you are hauling its over kill. The rims can be found used easily and should be about 150 each and the tires will be less expensive as well.

[themikeyfrisco]

As someone with over a decade of diesel shop experience, I *EMPLORE YOU* switch to 22.5 wheels and tires! Commonly referred to as “low pro 22.5”. They’re gonna be cheaper and easier to come by. Wheels can get pricey but A) you don’t NEED aluminum wheels, and B) you can recoup some of the money by selling your current aluminum wheels.
You can find used tires for around $200. New Chinese tires (Ironman, DoubleCoin, etc) for like $350. Yokohama and Hankook seem to be most common “decent” tire in the industry.

[jonathanvan]

1. I live in CA and was a diesel mechanic on commercial trucks before switching over to commercial driving in the past year. I'm speaking from my experience as someone who recently acquired their CDL about 3 years ago in CA and as someone who has spent time working on these trucks for a living. I recommend you guys get a full DOT inspection on your truck because there are many nuances with commercial vehicles and specifications your truck has to meet or it can put you in legal trouble if you are stopped by the DOT.

2. At the minimum you need a class B CDL with an air brake endorsement along with no manual transmission restriction. The reason for the CDL is because the GVWR of your truck is at 49, 000lb and even if it has been modified, the factory manufacturing stamp is what the truck is still rated for in the eyes of the law. When I took my CDL test at the DMV I also had to specify and take my test in a manual transmission truck, if not your CDL will have a restriction where you can only drive automatic transmission trucks.

3. Your standard class C license allows you to drive a truck that has a GVWR of under 26, 000 lbs regardless if it has air brakes or not. An example of this would be a box truck you can rent from companies like Penske, most of those trucks factory door stamp stickers will state the GVWR is 25, 999 so it does not require a CDL.

[elipohl]

Semi driver here, this is the most excited Ive been in a while. Been praying donut would do something like this, so I speak for all us road dogs when I say yall are the best

[Unmitigated_Disaster]

A tip you may not appreciate now but will in the future. Always carry an extra longest and shortest hydraulic line in sizes you need. You will be covered in any situation if you bust one. Commercial Fisherman here and we keep spares of everything on board because its kinda hard to get parts 50+ miles offshore.

[kdub_]

The time Jeremiah puts into research so that he can break down every fundamental component of every part of every vehicle and then speak about it fluently is amazing. The guy never misses a beat. Without a doubt, the smartest person who was a part of donut media

[artkincell]

🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨 SAFETY WARNING 🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨
ALWAYS USE A CAB PROP WHEN THE CAB IS TILTED. Even if it's just a 2x4 stuck between the frame and the cab. I drove those things for 30 years and my first truck was a 77 Kenworth K100, so I was warned and I'm passing it on. Plus, I've seen 💩.

Those cables on the air tanks are made for a hand to grab and pull to let the air out. It's always a good idea to drain the tanks DAILY because in colder climates the water in the air lines will freeze and the brakes won't release.

Jerry will get used to driving without using the clutch pedal. I don't think I used one for the last 28 years of my driving career.

I hope the diesel mechanic will school you on the "leakiness" of Detroits. It's a common trucker joke that the driver pulls in to the fueling stop and says, "top off the fuel, and fill up the oil." It's the nature of those old two strokes. Get a large cardboard to place under the truck as the dry seals soften up or Jobe's yard will be a Superfund site.

[Thrillbilly]

CDL driver here from SoCal I believe the air brakes are going to get you legally because you have to take a test for those at the DMV. It’s one of the many extra tests we have to take when renewing our license. You may only need to get a class B because it’s just the tractor so it’s more like a box truck. The not for hire personnel tow vehicle does change things though so you might just have to pay a large registration fee due to weight. Fingers crossed for you guys. Definitely get a hold of someone at the DMV, there are commercial only ones in Carson and Fontana that only deal with rigs. Probably your best place to start. Trust me you want nothing to do with DOT Bears (those are the ones in the pickups with camper shells on the back) and scales avoid it at all cost. I’m looking forward to where this project goes though because it’s an awesome idea.

[chuckiefinster]

Love big truck content on a car/bike channel! You're half right on the rear brakes, the front half of the chamber on the rear axle stays filled with air to release park brake, the second hose on the back of it pressurizes the chamber to push the rod out when using the foot brake. To engage park brakes, the front section is evacuated and a giant spring holds the rod out, forcing the shoes into the drum. The chambers on the front axle have a single hose that only pressurizes to actuate the foot brake. It's confusing and I'm still learning every day. But great content guys! Love the vintage nascar shirts