Diesel VS. Gas Which would you suggest

[Kevin Mienke]

Kevin, you are truely gifted with words and expressing a true meaning. I pale in comparision as I'm just a southern country boy who didn't look so much at accomplishment in that area when growing up as I did the hard work and good work ethic that I was raised on. If I could go back and do it over, I would look much more seriously at changing some of that. I know the message I desire to convey; but sometimes it seems extremely hard to present the right words in the right tone. Sitting here typing makes the intended message even harder. You have that gift; I for one envy that.

Thanks Charles,

I’ll humbly take your compliment and do my best to pay it forward.

We each have our own unique gifts and talents. If we choose to use them, and to share them, everyone benefits.

I have learned a lot about Power Wagons by listening to people like yourself, Gordon, Paul, Ron, TGP, Clint, Norm, Bob Jones, and countless others who offer their gift, their knowledge, and their experience on a daily basis. I believe that Frank Irons has more Power Wagon knowledge in his little finger than all of my manuals put together. I draw from these people and use their experience to store up knowledge for myself.

Their gift benefits me. I’m glad that my gift can benefit some people too.

It might surprise you to know that Mrs. Mienke proofs all of my written work for the magazine. She looks for issues of tone and meaning and suggests important changes. After that, Gordon takes a look and makes even more changes. I am sometimes amazed at how well my articles read when the two of them are done editing.

The bottom line is, communication is hard, especially written communication, because you don’t have the benefit of body language. You are taking facial expressions out of the mix. There is no certain way to judge someone’s tone with the written word. Mrs. Mienke keeps a pretty close eye on my tone…always has.

[Charles Talbert]

Thanks Charles,

I’ll humbly take your compliment and do my best to pay it forward.

We each have our own unique gifts and talents. If we choose to use them, and to share them, everyone benefits.

I have learned a lot about Power Wagons by listening to people like yourself, Gordon, Paul, Ron, TGP, Clint, Norm, Bob Jones, and countless others who offer their gift, their knowledge, and their experience on a daily basis. I believe that Frank Irons has more Power Wagon knowledge in his little finger than all of my manuals put together. I draw from these people and use their experience to store up knowledge for myself.

Their gift benefits me. I’m glad that my gift can benefit some people too.

It might surprise you to know that Mrs. Mienke proofs all of my written work for the magazine. She looks for issues of tone and meaning and suggests important changes. After that, Gordon takes a look and makes even more changes. I am sometimes amazed at how well my articles read when the two of them are done editing.

The bottom line is, communication is hard, especially written communication, because you don’t have the benefit of body language. You are taking facial expressions out of the mix. There is no certain way to judge someone’s tone with the written word. Mrs. Mienke keeps a pretty close eye on my tone…always has.

I know what you mean about the Mrs. Sometimes my wife walks into the shop wanting to know why I'm screaming. She doesn't realize that we are trying to talk over a hammer banging on something or a grinder dressing welds, an engine running on the test stand, etc. The edge is knocked off my hearing as well from all the years of hearing big engines screaming and tracks clanking and sqeaking while pulling a heavy load hard. What now sounds normal to my hearing sounds loud to others who have good hearing.

[Kevin Mienke]

The edge is knocked off my hearing as well from all the years of hearing big engines screaming and tracks clanking and sqeaking while pulling a heavy load hard.

Momma says the edge got knocked off of my hearing a long time ago. But that’s another whole story. I have a tendency to get off topic anyway, so I’ll refrain from telling it.

So as not to get too far off topic, I will add a relevant comment here.

Topics like this can become volatile for a bunch of guys like us who grew up with a passion for engines. It can sometimes lead to heated discussions. It’s good to know that going in.

We all have our favorite engines based on our own particular frame of reference. It might be that we love the sound of a certain engine, or it might be that we like the power and torque it produces. It might be that we have a good memory that involved a specific engine. These are all good reasons to favor a certain engine over another.

The term “relative truth” refers to the idea that there are no absolute truths; that truth is always relative to some particular frame of reference.

Relative truths are what we get when we put a bunch of guys together who share the same passion, but have different experiences. In such a case it’s nice to present your own experience and hope that others won’t try to debunk it, but rather respect your frame of reference, and present their own.

Speaking of experiences with engines, my dad’s old friend and neighbor, Herschel Henry, put a Roadrunner 426 in a’34 Plymouth coupe. When he gunned that powerful engine, it made such a beautiful sound that I could imagine angels descending upon our street.

A memory like that will surely influence how a man thinks about engines. I think my passion started there and grew with each new experience.

Diesels are fairly new to me. The sound of them doesn’t stir me like the hemi, but the power sure does.

[MasterYota]

Most of us as Internet pundits, will realize that anybody, can post anything, and make claims that it might be factual. But any of us who've spent time in the real world, on the track, or beside the ruts, will know that nothing has ever been proven to be eternally superior, from engines to drivetrain, to drivers, anything can beaten on any given day. The mere suggestion that any of our diatribes here will be the final straw that proves one way or another what is better or worse, is laughable at best.

Passion for our hobby is usually made more flavorable with a pinch of salt, a dash of humility, and a healthy dose of humour. I enjoy a good bench racing session as much as the next contributor, it keeps the mind sharp, and at the very least, I get to generate a few witty retorts...

[scubaasteve]

regarding duration of operation of a diesel plant.

I've owned non-turbo '83 mercedes sedan for years conducting short trips wlo issue. then again it was designed for that sort of use I assume.

I have a 2 stroke 253 detroit in m37. from a gamma goat. I picked it up 4 months ago. It did n't occurr to me that short runs will create increased maintenance. Any suggestions please?

Drive at least 20 miles a trip? let it run before shutting down at home?

[Charles Talbert]

Short trips are not the best medicine for any engine, gas or diesel. Detroit 2-cycles are certainly among the toughest creatures out there as far as taking a licking and keeping on ticking. Have run a lot of them in heavy equipment years prior. They are not the best choice in a truck of any type, small or large, just because of 2-cycle characteristics, weight, physical size in relation to power output, etc.

[MoparNorm]

There is a new diesel tech breakthrough in diesel fuel, that has great promise for NOW as well as the future. No green gimmicks or abstract guesses, these guys have test fleets on the road now and are ramping up production, now.
See the link!

http://www.motortrend.com/features/c...h_diesel_fuel/

[Desoto61]

There is a new diesel tech breakthrough in diesel fuel, that has great promise for NOW as well as the future. No green gimmicks or abstract guesses, these guys have test fleets on the road now and are ramping up production, now.
See the link!

http://www.motortrend.com/features/c...h_diesel_fuel/

Just read that myself, looks very promising! Hopefully we'll see it move to the east coast quickly with all the new natural gas deposits here.

[Charles Talbert]

Right on!! Hope this pans out and helps us all. This type of break through would mean a great deal in so many different ways.

Now my mind blinks back to reality in that if the gov just won't screw it up, and the media won't distort it to death until real world facts can get out there in a meaningful way.

I look forward to discussing this with Lamar, (my Cummins rep). He likely has some insight we have not heard about as yet.

[Ggg6]

I Picked up a M-37 to use as a plow truck on my driveway. Originally I was going to put a diesel engine in it, but with the price of diesel these days, and the fact that it needs to be plugged in for an hour before use has me wondering if a slant six in the truck would be as good or even a better idea.

What do you all think?

I have skimmed over a lot of the previous posts and I am avoiding having anything to do with the arguments, especially when it comes to brand loyalty arguments.
I am by trade a heavy diesel mechanic and I love diesel engines so I admit I can be biased. Everything I own has a diesel engine in it so I will try not to be too biased. (said under my breath; "my W300 has a Detroit 453") But the diesel engine swaps are not cheap for several reasons, not the least of which parts are not as common as gas engine parts, and the OEM parts are pricey compared to gaser parts. But if all you want to do is use the truck for plowing and maybe an occasional run to the store than any engine will do for that limited application.
To me the whole plugging the engine in is just part of owning any engine in cold climate, I used to plug in my gas engines too. If you want something different, well, the sky is the limit, how about a hit and miss engine. lol

[Gordon Maney]

I have skimmed over a lot of the previous posts and I am avoiding having anything to do with the arguments, especially when it comes to brand loyalty arguments.

I am by trade a heavy diesel mechanic and I love diesel engines so I admit I can be biased. Everything I own has a diesel engine in it so I will try not to be too biased. (said under my breath; "my W300 has a Detroit 453") But the diesel engine swaps are not cheap for several reasons, not the least of which parts are not as common as gas engine parts, and the OEM parts are pricey compared to gaser parts. But if all you want to do is use the truck for plowing and maybe an occasional run to the store than any engine will do for that limited application.

To me the whole plugging the engine in is just part of owning any engine in cold climate, I used to plug in my gas engines too. If you want something different, well, the sky is the limit, how about a hit and miss engine. lol

What was the original application for the 4-53 Detroit? I have a W300. A reader once put a 3208 Cat in a W300.

[Gordon Maney]

I like the slant six, I wish more people would use it.

[Ggg6]

According to my engine s/n info Detroit Diesel/GM Diesel sold it to GMC truck division in 1962. So I assume it was used in a medium truck chassis. The engine configuration code is consistent with this application
I have seen the 3208 installed in quite a few light duty trucks. They are pretty cheap since not many medium duty guys want them. They are reliable, but fairly low hp and rather heavy for the power they make.

[Jason Mills]

I like the slant six, I wish more people would use it.

Agreed, and after starting this thread, and leaning towards a diesel, I have settled on putting a slant 6 in the M-37. It will be the first \6 I have used, and I look forward to getting to know it's character traits. Also interested to be able to compare first hand the differences between in performance characteristics between the 230, and it's younger sibling the 225.

[Ggg6]

Personally I would favor the 225. It was offered in a HiPo version as well as an aluminum version. Being an undersquare design it had better low RPM torque characteristics than the 230.