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Building a 6.0L LS Engine
Women in Motorsports: Mattie Graves
Crankshaft Offering Update
94mm Turbocharged 427 LS-Powered Pontiac Trans Am
88mm Turbocharged 383 cid Gen II LT1 Engine
Building a 6.0L LS Engine
Women in Motorsports: Mattie Graves
Crankshaft Offering Update
94mm Turbocharged 427 LS-Powered Pontiac Trans Am
88mm Turbocharged 383 cid Gen II LT1 Engine
How can you not love summer? Sure, it gets hot, but it definitely beats the cold, and there’s so much going on to occupy your time. Here at Engine Builder, our team has stayed extremely busy attending racing events, shows, visiting manufacturers and engine shops, as well as our usual content work.
When the timing cover or block has no dowel pins, or the dowel holes do not fit snug on the pins. Take an old damper and hone the center so that it is now a slip fit onto the crank snout. Use it to hold the cover in place while tightening the bolts.
Women in motorsports… need we say more? These nine women do some awesome things in this industry.
Commentary , Shop Solutions , Tech Center , Tech Center
Hedman Hedders
Atech Motorsports
Falicon Crankshafts
Hedman Hedders
Atech Motorsports
Whether you’re a professional engine builder, machinist or manufacturer, or an automotive enthusiast who likes engines, racing and fast vehicles, Engine Builder offers content aimed at you. Our print magazine offers in-depth tech features on everything you need to know about engine building and its different markets, while our newsletter options keep you up-to-date on the latest news and products, tech info and personalities in the industry. But, you only get all of that if you subscribe. Subscribe now to receive Engine Builder magazine in print and/or digital each month, and our Engine Builder newsletter, Engine of the Week newsletter or Diesel of the Week newsletter directly in your inbox each week. You’ll be covered in horsepower in no time!
Whether you’re a professional engine builder, machinist or manufacturer, or an automotive enthusiast who likes engines, racing and fast vehicles, Engine Builder offers content aimed at you. Our print magazine offers in-depth tech features on everything you need to know about engine building and its different markets, while our newsletter options keep you up-to-date on the latest news and products, tech info and personalities in the industry. But, you only get all of that if you subscribe. Subscribe now to receive Engine Builder magazine in print and/or digital each month, and our Engine Builder newsletter, Engine of the Week newsletter or Diesel of the Week newsletter directly in your inbox each week. You’ll be covered in horsepower in no time!
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WelderUp owner and TV personality Steve Darnell went to great lengths to build this vintage 1947 Federal welding truck, which has a 5.9L Cummins under the hood and a 4BT Cummins powering a Lincoln SA200 welder in the bed. This truck defines power in the front and utility in the back. Check it out!
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Something we see a lot of in the diesel community are custom-built trucks. These one-off creations are typically dedicated to a specific person or application, and often represent important life events. These symbolic builds personify the truck and give it more character than your average run-of-the-mill machine.
Enter Steve Darnell and his truck named “Iron Rod.” The 1947 Federal looks like it came through a time machine, especially next to all of the other modern diesel machines we saw at the Ultimate Callout Challenge this year. Iron Rod is special, not only for aesthetics, but also for the fact that it boasts not one, but two powerful Cummins engines. One powers the truck, and the other powers a Lincoln SA200 welder mounted to the bed of the vehicle.
Darnell is the owner of WelderUp, a complete, custom fabrication shop specializing in one-of-a-kind vehicles located in Las Vegas. He also stars in the popular TV reality series Vegas Rat Rods on the Discovery channel, which details the WelderUp crew’s escapades and awesome builds.
Growing up in the steel industry and being an iron worker for 12 years prior to focusing on welding, Darnell learned all there is to know about metalwork, and it became an important part of his life. When the opportunity came, he knew he wanted to build something that represented the grit and ingenuity of the industry.
“I’m a big fan of the Greatest Generation and I wanted to do something that was WWII era, like a vet who returned from the war and started a welding business,” Darnell says. “Back then, they kind of took whatever they could find and turned it into a welding truck. I remember when I was a kid, I used to see these older welders come in with trucks like this and they had some of the craziest things built on.”
The 1947 Federal cab Darnell used for the build was an easy decision. Although these trucks are fairly rare, they’re built to last forever as work trucks for the farm, ranch or logging business. Underneath the truck, the frame is comprised of I-beam steel to further illicit the industry Darnell wanted to salute and provides a solid base.
Iron Rod is more than a work of art though, it’s a performance machine and a utility all-in-one. Up front is a 5.9L Cummins out of a ’92 Dodge that provides around 600-hp thanks to a few minor upgrades, including a 12-valve head, an Industrial Injection P-Pump, and compound turbos.
The engine creates a hefty amount of torque, according to Darnell, as well as in the neighborhood of 600 horsepower. Paired with the large FOA shocks and long-travel suspension, Iron Rod is a beast if you felt like taking it out climbing.
“We took it to King of the Hammers, and I drove it probably 25 miles out through the desert,” he says. “The front end is kicked down so far and there’s so much weight on the back that it will just climb straight up a hill.”
While the 5.9L Cummins sits up front to power the truck, mounted in the bed of the truck is a 4BT Cummins engine out of a forklift that is married to the welder.
“We put an adaptor plate from Diesel Conversion Specialists on it and then Merlin Johnson made a flywheel that’ll bolt to it so that we can start it up,” Darnell says. “We also put an Industrial Injection P-pump on it, a cover and compounded the turbos on it.
“The welder probably makes around 130 horsepower, which is funny because it would normally make around 15-22 horsepower. I set it at the right rpm, so I can dial my gauges and actually weld with it, and it’ll burn 7018 MR 1/8-in. all day long. It’s a great welder.”
Another interesting aspect of the build is that the water system actually runs off the front radiator to the rear welder, making it so the welder is always warm. When Darnell pulls up to a job site, everything is ready to go!
Diesel of the Week is sponsored by AMSOIL. If you have an engine you’d like to highlight in this series, please email Engine Builder Editor Greg Jones at [email protected]
Diesel of the Week: Derek Rose’s Triple-Turbo 6.7L Cummins Engine
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Diesel of the Week: Single-Turbo 5.9L Cummins Engine
Diesel of the Week: Justin Zeigler’s UCC Record-Setting 6.7L Cummins Engine
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