Because I had to remove the timing gear case cover to remove a stuck injection pump gear I took advantage of the opportunity to eyeball the infamous "Killer Dowel Pin". Having bought a jig from CPFF and used it on several 12 valves and early 24V I had never used the tool on Black Sheep as I was convinced that by 2001 the new "stepped" gear case was installed on all engines. Black Sheep does indeed have the stepped case. However, I began to wonder if the dowel pin had moved during the previous 662,xxx miles. So I grabbed a hammer and punch and "smack", sure enough, the pin drove back into the bore about 1/8". Which means Cummins did nothing to prevent the pin from wiggling loose, but rather kept it from falling out where it could do damage. The interesting thing is that it appears the dowel has vibrated against the step enough to wear it back. Does anyone have a measurement of step depth? I am going to measure mine before re-assembly and would like to know if the pin is actually wearing out the aluminum step.
Godspeed,
Trent
Godspeed,
Trent