Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Mallory 140 installed with a Racor 645R30 filter.

[BIG BOB]

I installed a Mallory 140 with a Racor 645R30 filter back by the fuel tank today. Removed the stock lift pump and took the filter out of the stock housing.



Fuel pressure readings prior to installation of the Mallory;



Idle 12#

Cruising 9#

WOT with full power 0 to 2. 5 #.



After installation of the Mallory;



Idle 12#

Cruising 11#

WOT with full power no less than 6#.



The reason I went with the Racor 645 is because it is only 8. 4" tall, has a water trap, and can be mounted on the frame without hanging below the frame rails. Yes I used a 30 amp relay and 10 gauge wire.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Hey, glad to see you're set up now! Are you OK on hoses or you need me to fab up another SS one to go between the stock filter and fuel line?



I didn't realize you were taking the stock filter out, but the fuel heater should still be able to do its job. Did you check into how small of particles the Racor filters to? I'm not sure how finely the stock filter goes to, I think 10 microns if I'm not mistaken. You might want to put in a stock filter and run your pressure tests again just to see how much it affects it, and keep it in there if it doesn't drop. Wouldn't hurt to have an extra measure of protection



Vaughn

 

[Archive]

Big Bob, is your fuel filter on the suction or pressure side of the Mallory?

 

[BIG BOB]

Picture of Mallory and Racor mounted

Here is a link to a picture of the mounting of the Mallory and Racor filter.



http://content.communities.msn.com/TheWhiteObsession/shoebox.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=29



Vaughn,



I think I'm OK on lines, had to run some standard 3/8" rubber hose along with retro-fitting some of the SS lines.



I call Mallory about their recommendation as far as the fuel filter, they recommended any filter less that 50 microns, the one I put on is 30 microns. I can get filters from Racor down to 2 microns. I can't remember what the stock filter is rated at. However, rather that add addition load on the lift pump by installing the stock filter again, I would be more inclined to get a Racor filter that has a lower micron level.



TopFuel,



As you can see by the picture, the filter is after the fuel tank and before the lift pump, (suction side) so the lift pump get nothing but clean fuel.

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

I'm surprised that your pressures are dropping that much. With the Carter pusher lift pump I installed 2 weeks ago, I'm getting 19 psi at idle or cruise and going down to 18 psi at extended WOT. That's with stock lines and only the banjo bolts at the lift pump drilled out (I did that during one of my previous lift pump changes - but I doubt that it would change much with stock banjo bolts). Only cost about $150 and took about 45 minutes to install. On the filter I'd try to talk to Bosch to see what they need for filtering for the VP44. Mallory's recommendation is just for their lift pump - not the VP44 (I'm assuming) - the tolerances of the lift pump will be MUCH greater than the VP44. Remember that the stock lift pump had NO filtering (other than the screens).

 

[Bigsaint]

BigBob, good for you and nice install, I have to get some pic. s of mine since I swapped out to all SS line and the Earl's filter. Your psi's sound about the same as mine, except that I seldom see anything below 8 psi's @ WOT, post filter. Glad to see that you did use the relay (couldn't hurt, right ?). The Racor filter looks sweet and I think you were smart not to go too low in filtration, or should I say too high. Anyway, with a filter that stops down to 30 microns, any less might be sacrficing the GPH/M flow to the Mallory. Speaking of that, do you know what the rated GPH/M of the Racor is with the 30 micron cartridge? Also, did you know that you can adjust the psi's of the Mallory ? I had to adjust mine slightly to see 12-13 psi's at idle, post filter. If you are only dragging it down to 6 @ WOT, you should be fine IMHO. Nice job !!!



Scott W.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Bob, your setup looks great (and great photo work too!)



Steve, if I remember right, you're running 2 pumps in series, correct? Bob removed the stock pump, so that may be the reason his pressure readings aren't as high, plus he's BOMBed pretty good (BD 3s & Hot PE).



Vaughn

 

[BIG BOB]

Scott,



The Racor 645 flows 45 GPH. I talked with Racor, their flow ratings no matter if it is a 30 micron or a 2 micron will flow 45 GPH with the 645. They make assemblies that will flow more GPH, however, the overall length would make it taller, making it hang down below the frame, which was not suitable for me. After reading the long thread about fuel flow, and Bill Kondalay stated with the testing on flow under WOT the CTD would only use 30 GPH, I figured that this filter would be ample.



I know that you can adjust the Mallory pressure. Do you know what the maximum pressure it will put out? I don't really think I need any more pressure as long as I don't go below 6#'s.



Steve,



I thought that I read at one time or another, that 14 PSI was the maximum pressure you are suppose to run for fuel pressure. This might of applied to the stock lift pump, I can't remember. I know that in some mentality more is better, but I don't know if it applies in this case. I'm sure you have read the thread on "pumps, lines & whatnot";





https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=11672&highlight=Fuel+Pressure



More pressure could mean more restriction. I have eliminated all the banjo fittings.



Plus like Vaughn said, BD III's, HOT PE, and also an EZ.

 

[John]

Cummins reduced the micron size of the fuel filter for the 24v engines in '98 to 10 micron. I would not run a "looser" filtering media than this on my rig.

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

Yes, I am running 2 pumps in series. I talked with an engineer at D-C (great having contacts) and another at Cummins and both said 20 psi is no problem. The only thing they said is that if you go over 7-10 during cranking (the reason for the 25% duty cycle of the stock pump during cranking) that you may have a hard start problem. It's not the pressures directly that I was talking about - because you are right, bigger lines at lower pressures can be higher flow. What I was talking about was the drop in pressure at WOT. With the 2 pumps in series setup (replacing both pumps if they went bad would be just over $200) you still get the low duty cycle during cranking and I'm only seeing a 1 psi drop at WOT. Whereas your setup is dropping up to 5 psi it looks like. I'll see how this setup does for reliability down the road. My main point is that it's an easy install as opposed to changing lines, etc. It uses the stock lines and fittings therefore you can reliably use the pressure data given by the factory (namely 10 psi minimum) - whereas if you change the line sizes, etc then you don't have that same data (because of the bigger pipe, lower pressure, higher flow thing). With this setup I'm seeing at least 8 psi over the minimum at all times as opposed to being right at the minimum with a brand new stock lift pump.



Don't get me wrong Bob, I'm not knocking your setup. I'm just saying there is more than one way to skin a cat. On the mods you are BOMB'd a little more than me, I'm running 275 hp RV injectors and a custom 10 level Powermax3. By my timeslips I calculate that I'm at 380-400 hp.



-Steve

 

[Todd T]

to back up what Steve is talking about, my truck is set up the same as his, except I found a Carter lift pump at Car Quest Auto part #E8257 that has a lifetime warranty on it. as Steve said when my newest factory replaced lift pump fails, I will swap it out for the Car Quest version, that has 15PSI 100GPH FF for the stock location (forgot the part number for this one). this way I will have two pumps, and both will have lifetime warranties. this is not only the cheapest way to go, but the best for the long run too, ie:lifetime Warranty.



the other thing to think about for me, was climate, I live in IL. although the winters are not the coldest in the country, I can invision icicles hanging off that racor filter, with some nice jelled-up fuel inside it.



I too plan to replace all my banjo bolts with conventional lines and fittings but keep the filter up front, on that nice warm engine



I could blow through the lift pump with little effort, and im sure as long as one of the was still running, I could get it home without a problem. where as, with just one pump, you are on the edge of your seat the whole time.

 

[BIG BOB]

Steve,



No offense taken. I appreciate your R & D efforts. The setup with the Mallory is the one that has had the most testing, and seems to be the most reliable. I know that BigSaint's Mallory failed, he is the only one that I can remember having any problem with the Mallory. BigSaint stated that it failed because of dirt, ( he did not have a filter between it and the fuel tank) this is why I mounted the Racor before it. HVAC has had the Mallory on this truck without a filter before the fuel tank and hasn't had any problems at all. I think he was the first to try the Mallory. (Of course Nowel never has any problems with his Red Rocket!)



I hadn't heard of your setup until you posted about it on June 25th, after I had purchased the Mallory. It will be interesting to see how the dual pumps hold up. My concerns are that if one pump goes out, how much extra strain will be on the pump that is still working trying to either push or pull fuel through a dead pump. Then the other thing is to diagnose which pump is bad. My pump was still working, but at times a little erratic, I had thought about leaving it in place and just adding the Mallory, but the concerns stated above prompted me to remove it. With one pump and a fuel pressure gauge there will be no question. At least this time I had notice because of the fuel pressure gauge, that there was a problem developing.



Todd T.

I had a concern about fuel gelling in cold weather. After some thought, realizing that Flying J treats their fuel down to -30 degrees and the fact that I always use fuel conditioner, I feel that this would not be a problem.



The location of the Racor and Mallory are protected very well on the inside of the frame rails, and also right next to the fuel tank. If there was a problem of gelled fuel, it would be in the fuel tank and lines also. I don't feel that this will be a problem.



This forum is great! 8000 heads are better than one any day, and there is always more than one way to correct a problem. TDR Brothers keep the ideas coming!

 

[Bigsaint]

Big Bob, thanks for the info on the filter, 45 GPH should be just fine. I wouldn't worry too much about the filter freezing up with the winter blend diesel and an additive. I had no problem with my old sediment bowl filter, which was located in the same location as your Racor filter, during the past winter, and it got pretty cold here. I ran, and am still running, Stanadyne PF.

I Believe the Mallory can put out up to 15 psi's, after that you will start to blow the inline fuse, according to Nowel. I should have my pre-filter FP gauge in a week or so, right now I'm guessing that I have mine set at 13 psi's or so, as my post reading at idle varies between 12-13 psi's.

I agree that more may not be better, especially in relationship to the lift pumps life and high psi's. I think the Mallory is much happier running at 12 rather than 15, just for the longevity of the pump. If my FP stays at 3 psi's or more at WOT with the new injectors, I am going to leave the Mallory set where it is right now. If I have to up the psi's, I think that I will plumb in a regulator with a return to the tank to help take some of the strain off of the Mallory.



Scott W.

 

[Todd T]

that's an excellent idea Scott, even with these internally regulated pumps now days, the strain of trying to pump at 15PSI all the time, when you are only flowing a little sip, most of the time, is what kills them. the pump runs hotter and we all know what heat can do to an electric motor.



the idea of free flowing return back to the tank, has got to be better than having the strain of all that pressure and nowhere to go with it, just round and round. plumb in a good regulator post pump and return it, this lets the pump run free and cooler.



basically idling its way through a long life.

 

[AHughes]

Steve, Read your post about installing a pusher pump. I've replaced the original lift pump at 70K miles and installed a new Carter pump from Cummins and now in less than a year 11 months that one is going bad. Starts and idles at 15psi then after running for 3-4 miles starts down to 8 psi and then bounces back up to 14 or 15 extremely erratic. I sent the sender back to Westach for my fuel pressure gage and they checked out the gage and the sender and returned a new gage and the new sender I had just purchased thinking the erratic pressures were a result of a failing gage? REinstalled them and I still have the same erratic readings. Only down to 5 psi though so I don't think I've ruined the VP44 yet? I had an old 5 psi Carter electric fuel pump from my '34 ford. It was new but about 15 yrs old. I checked it out and it ran and pumped fine so I installed it just in front of the tank and behind the cross member of my truck and wired it to a painless block. It runs fine so far and the only concern I had is that now I have about 17 to 19 psi fuel pressure on the lift side of the oil filter. Is that too much? I can still maintain 8 to 9 lbs at WOT though and the pressure only drops about 4-5 lbs without pushing the fuel pedal through the floor. I'm still going to order another lift pump from Cummins tomorrow. and drill out the banjo bolts at the same time or order the kit from Genos. I have also installed a manual pressure gage on a tee with the sender for the electric gage. I think, however, I'll take the suggestions of many members and isolate the sender via a brake line or some other rubber hose. Thanks for all the information and I sure enjoy being a member of this group. Love my truck, 98/1/2 Lb , Quad Cab, Canopy, Billsteins, Roadmaster susp. rear, Dtt, EDM 65hp injectors, VanAAken Plug N Power AFE, Run M like you stole um,

 

[rweis]

I run basically the same setup, 40k so far.



I run a RACOR 690 10 micron mounted up under the bed right from the tank, then the OEM carter, then on to the OEM ff (with wif, heater etc) then on to the VP.



I figuer if I filter it twice at 10 microns I probably really will get 10 microns clean at the VP. I left the OEM ff in place in case the carter lp (or the mallory in your case) trashes out for some reason, it should catch the trash.



BECAUSE I run the carter OEM lp I put a bypass regulator after the carter OEM lp to keep the flipping check valve closed as that seems to be a MAJOR failure point for the carter OEM lp. I set the bypass regulator (Mallory 4307m) at 12 psi, and get 12 psi unless I am towing my 13k 5er then it gets to 10 at the VP at times.



I'm in FL so I did not put the fuel heater in the RACOR, but if you lived in the colder climates you could do that. I also run Stanadyne blue in EVERY tank, some for the pour point but mainly for the lubricity.



I look at this as a fuel SYSTEM, no one thing is a silver bullet.



It sure is nice to check the RACOR every so often for water and sediment. Once in Orlando I got a bad (wet) load of fuel and all I had to do was drain off the water seperator about every 1/4 tank or so. Must have gotten a 1/2 gallon of water out of the tank eventually.



Clean fuel before it ever gets into the fuel system and reclean it just before it gets to the VP and sufficient pressure to keep the VP happy.



The nice thing also about frame mounting is if you ever have to change the lp it is a 15 minute job.



The trickiest thing I had to figuer out is keeping the VP fp sensor from failing. I tried the 18" snubber line of ss AN-6 (which may not be as good as plain rubber snubber for flexability) and the sensor lasted 1 year, replaced it and the second one lasted 1 year. I am trying a really long snubber (10') to see if shear volume (13. 5 cubic inches) wrapped in a coil but NOT wrapped in a semetrical loop will help buffer whatever is killing the VP fp sensor. I will know in another year.



I really think clean fuel (NO WATER, no particulates, but especially NO WATER), lubricated, lp pushing, bypassed if you run a carter OEM, clean the fuel again, and sufficient pressure to the VP is the key to this fuel system.



I think the key to the RACOR is NO WATER. Can you imagine what the internal pressures of the VP are if the fuel gets upped to 17k psi and there is superheated steam mixed in there with that?



Bob Weis