Installe my FluidDamper today....NICE!!

[Gonzo 1066]

Gonzo, would you have described your motor as "smooth" before the swap?

Yes I would describe the engine as smooth before. However I always assumed that the resonance in the shifter at 15-1800 rpm under hard load was just a characteristic of the I-6 engine. The fact that that vibration is now gone speaks volumes to me.

 

[Slow Six]

I installed one and finally got a chance to drive the truck today. I am impressed. At idle everything is SMOOOOOTH. I have a South Bend clutch that rattles a lot less. Also I could always feel a lot of vibration in the clutch when shifting at higher RPMs and that is also gone. Also less vibration on the shifter when cruising down the highway. For me it was money well spent. I'll give it a good test tomorrow with a fairly long haul and loaded heavy.

 

[MChrist]

That would have to be better on bearings, then! Great, now I must have one!

 

[Gonzo 1066]

I would have to assume that there are truck owners that will not feel-hear the difference. But I think that most of the Cummins owners that frequent this site will be tuned into the engine enough to find that this is a good investment. .

 

[Prairie Dog]

I'm not sure the auto trans trucks will feel as much of a difference either but they will notice the quiet lack of drone.

 

[Moose]

I installed one on my 01 a few months ago and like many have said, I immediately noticed a difference in how the engine ran and drove. Well worth the investment IMO.

One thing I would like to note is that the 6. 7's come stock with this type of dampener, and I am sure we all know that factory never spends money without a damn good reason. Just food for thought to those still on the fence.

 

[Slow Six]

Just got back from a towing trip and I am even more impressed with mine. My wife even noticed a difference and for that to happen there had to be change.

 

[Beach Bomb]

I installed one on my old truck several years ago and all my friends told me it would not do anything. They were dead wrong. The biggest difference for me was shifting was so much smoother. I was able to shift faster even with a bigger after market clutch. I will be putting one on my new truck soon.

 

[Nyoest]

You guys sure do make it hard to save any money! Guess I know what my next mod is... ... .....

 

[Mark31]

Finally got around to installing the FluidDamper on my 04. Went better than I thought it would. Fan belt kicked my arse for a bit. The truck IS smoother at low and mid pulling RPMs This is just seat of the pants, but my wife also noticed the difference. Has to be lots better for the engine and drivetrain. Oo.



Being a diesel mechanic by trade I was more than a bit sceptical about the claims on aftermarket dampers. I now stand corrected. . Going on a cross state pull to Pasco tomorrow. This will be a great test. Lots of climbing over some good passes. Will post a towing report next week. .

Hey Gonzo, I got my Fluidamper in today and hope to get it on this week. Would you give me a step by step on the install? Why was the fan belt so hard? Any "pain" you can save me would be greatly appreciated!! Mark

 

[Prairie Dog]

When you get the fan belt out you'll be shocked - it must be nearly 12 feet long!

 

[Mark31]

When you get the fan belt out you'll be shocked - it must be nearly 12 feet long!

Yours musta stretched!! My new one is only about 10' 7" !!! LOL

 

[Prairie Dog]

Sorry Mark, I tend to exaggerate the length of things. My wife is used to it

 

[MChrist]

I was waiting for that!!!!

 

[MChrist]

Wait. . so it's really only 4 feet long, then??:-laf

 

[Gonzo 1066]

I decided to replace the accessory drive belt at the same time I did the FluidDamper. BECAUSE the new damper has to be removed to replace the fan belt... Two birds theory. . My 04. 0 has the fan shroud on the engine so there is not enough clearance to remove the damper bolts. I used a saw to remove a small chunk of the shroud on the bottom. . Made the install MUCH easier. . The stock damper is held on to the crank hub with 4 bolts. Simply remove the bolts and the stock damper nearly falls off in your hands. You need to thread the belt behind the damper when you install the new one on the hub. When I got done threading the belt, I epoxied the cut shroud back together. . It really looked a lot more complex than it is. Good luck with your project. Tell us what you think, we expect a FULL report by Wednesday.

 

[Dieselnerd]

Gonzo, I think you may have done a lot of work for nothing. Unless your fan shroud is made of different material than mine, you just have to remove the two lower nuts and you can collapse the shroud towards the radiator.



I did that and held it there with a couple of pieces of copper tubing cut to the proper length slipped over the studs that the shroud is fastened to.



I did it again a couple of weeks ago to replace my belt tensioner.

 

[Gonzo 1066]

Gonzo, I think you may have done a lot of work for nothing. Unless your fan shroud is made of different material than mine, you just have to remove the two lower nuts and you can collapse the shroud towards the radiator.



I did that and held it there with a couple of pieces of copper tubing cut to the proper length slipped over the studs that the shroud is fastened to.



I did it again a couple of weeks ago to replace my belt tensioner.

NOW you tell me!!!! Must have been overthinking the problem again. . :-laf

 

[Mark31]

OK, Sgt Gonzo! Here's my full install report. There must be some differences in the fan shrouds. . My 04 (110k) has a couple of door panel type fasteners. Pop them out, raise the bottom part of the shroud up a quarter inch, then it is out. Replaced the belt and two idler pullies, put on the damper with new bolts and torqued to 92 ft lbs. The next day, I read in the TDR mag that I should have used loctite. Should I pull one at a time and loctite 'em or just forget it? Now as for how it runs: I've kinda been hunting for the right words to describe what is different is the reason I hadn't reported in earlier, Sarge. I hadn't ever thought my truck was a real smooth runner, so maybe I didn't really know what to expect. My old damper's scribe lines (in spec) were so hard to see that it took some time to find 'em. First start up and 5 mile trip I was trying to figure out if there was any difference. Only a couple of 15 minute trips today, but there something I can't quite seem to put my finger on. I guess if one was trying to graph the power pulses, it would look like maybe the "spike" of the pulse had been rounded off a little. At 50-55 mph, there seems to be a kind of "free" feeling, like maybe 500+ lbs was taken off the truck. I've got to make a 40 mile round trip tomorrow with my tractor, loader with a grapple, and heavy rear blade on a 23 ft gooseneck (just under 24k gross). I'm anxious to see if I can tell any difference. Salute to all our old veterans today, especially my 92 year old uncle, a veteran of WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. Mark

 

[Prairie Dog]

I think you'll find it a bit more quiet if your ever operating in the drone zone of out engines.
I also would like to solute our vets. My dad (also 92 y/o) was at Pearl Harbor during the attack and I recently lost him. This anniversary of the event was very poignant.