Gas Bucket Truck Performance

NashvilleTN

NashvilleTN

New member
Location
USA
I was wondering if there was a way to improve performance on these trucks? It’s an old Asplundh truck with a Chevy 454. I don’t really care about top speed more so acceleration. I don’t want it to be fast I would just like it to be better. Certain hills in my area it’s 2nd gear 15mph. Certain on ramps to the highway have an incline when you get on and I’ll be in 4th gear 35mph not going anywhere until you get over the hill, sometimes that’s a mile or 2.. Just thought I’d throw it out there. The truck is a 2000 so not really sure if it’s worth the money to invest in it
 
I made a chip truck out of a school bus so that I could have a mancab type thin up front. It had NO top end. The fastest it would go was about 58 downhill on the freeway empty. I talked with a buddy of mine who is a mechanic who told me that the rear end gear ratio was low to create power not speed. I did a calculation about what weight loads given the seating of the bus and realized it was a LOT.

You might be going as fast as you can given transmission and differential ratios. That 454 is about as powerful as you're going to need. Mine had a Chev 350


One of a kind chip truck

Are you ready for a chuckle? Take a look at the chip truck that I built. When I built the truck I needed to haul my ATV on board. The panel on the right side drops down like a drawbridge and then ramps fold down off the panel. The ATV is driven up inside. Everything from the flatbed up on the...
www.treebuzz.com
 
Tom Dunlap said:
I made a chip truck out of a school bus so that I could have a mancab type thin up front. It had NO top end. The fastest it would go was about 58 downhill on the freeway empty. I talked with a buddy of mine who is a mechanic who told me that the rear end gear ratio was low to create power not speed. I did a calculation about what weight loads given the seating of the bus and realized it was a LOT.

You might be going as fast as you can given transmission and differential ratios. That 454 is about as powerful as you're going to need. Mine had a Chev 350


One of a kind chip truck

Are you ready for a chuckle? Take a look at the chip truck that I built. When I built the truck I needed to haul my ATV on board. The panel on the right side drops down like a drawbridge and then ramps fold down off the panel. The ATV is driven up inside. Everything from the flatbed up on the...
www.treebuzz.com
Click to expand...

So if we change the gears to make it accelerate faster would that make the top speed lower? It only goes 55 right now and maybe 60 down hill
 
Tom Dunlap said:
Ask a mechanic.

Changing differential gears is complex and expensive.
Click to expand...

Got it. That’s makes total sense. My issue is finding someone who wants to work on this thing. Regular mechanics don’t want to work on it because it’s big. Big truck mechanics don’t want to work on it because it’s gas. I probably should just take it to a gmc dealer. I’m sure they’ll be extremely knowledgeable and reasonably priced
 
Im
NashvilleTN said:
I was wondering if there was a way to improve performance on these trucks? It’s an old Asplundh truck with a Chevy 454. I don’t really care about top speed more so acceleration. I don’t want it to be fast I would just like it to be better. Certain hills in my area it’s 2nd gear 15mph. Certain on ramps to the highway have an incline when you get on and I’ll be in 4th gear 35mph not going anywhere until you get over the hill, sometimes that’s a mile or 2.. Just thought I’d throw it out there. The truck is a 2000 so not really sure if it’s worth the money to invest in it
Click to expand...
I’ve heard that the exhaust system on those old 454s is too restrictive.
Maybe you can look in to having the exhaust modified to get more from that engine?
 
Wrangler said:
A two speed rear might be the ticket
Click to expand...

Careful with that option. Back in the day when they were common I knew several companies that disconnected them because drivers couildn't figure out how to up/down shift the splitter and they'd break them. An expensive repair.

To properly run the splitter the driver has to be adept and speed shifting a transmission. Ht rev control is just like shifting without using a clutch. In theory a two speed rear end double your gears. In the real world it was used to add one higher or lower gear to the [usually] 4 speed transmission
 
Tom Dunlap said:
Careful with that option. Back in the day when they were common I knew several companies that disconnected them because drivers couildn't figure out how to up/down shift the splitter and they'd break them. An expensive repair.

To properly run the splitter the driver has to be adept and speed shifting a transmission. Ht rev control is just like shifting without using a clutch. In theory a two speed rear end double your gears. In the real world it was used to add one higher or lower gear to the [usually] 4 speed transmission
Click to expand...
Yes,l agree, having a two speed rear only makes sense if you’re the only one driving it,or if you have another experienced driver. You definitely don’t want someone trying to “figure it out “ in your rig ! But it’s a cool luxury if you know how to use it!
 
Wrangler said:
Yes,l agree, having a two speed rear only makes sense if you’re the only one driving it,or if you have another experienced driver. You definitely don’t want someone trying to “figure it out “ in your rig ! But it’s a cool luxury if you know how to use it!
Click to expand...

this is interesting I’ve never heard anything but bad stuff about a 2 speed rear end. I actually had a truck that had one and never even attempted to use it or did any research
 
The upshift is easy, and that would help you a lot out of the hole and at the bottom of a hill. The down shift is a little trickier.
 
NashvilleTN said:
Got it. That’s makes total sense. My issue is finding someone who wants to work on this thing. Regular mechanics don’t want to work on it because it’s big. Big truck mechanics don’t want to work on it because it’s gas. I probably should just take it to a gmc dealer. I’m sure they’ll be extremely knowledgeable and reasonably priced
Click to expand...
There are no more gmc medium duty dealers after gmc abandoned the medium truck market.
 
NashvilleTN said:
this is interesting I’ve never heard anything but bad stuff about a 2 speed rear end. I actually had a truck that had one and never even attempted to use it or did any research
Click to expand...

The engine needs to just start lugging before downshifting.

As a farm kid I learned how to use them in spreader trucks with those GM 350s & 366s.

If the 15 year old version of me could learn it you can too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 
two speed rear ends were used as compensation for under-powered engines at that time.

That 454 shouldn't need any help that a two speed might bring.

I wonder when two speeds weren't used anymore???
 
NashvilleTN said:
i know I was being sarcastic I have trouble getting even basic parts for this truck which seems crazy to me as I don’t feel like it’s that old
Click to expand...
Its hard to hear sarcasm sometimes. Sorry I didnt catch it. I have a 2000 gmc c7500 with a bucket on it. Its a pia to find stuff for it sometimes. Btw if you have JE3 brake code, the power steering pump is nla. We have a buddy with a 2000 c7500 that bought the last OEM pump. His chip truck is about as slow as you describe. We put a fresh 454 in and that helped a bit. He has the same problem you have finding someone to work on it. I have done a lot of the stuff to it basically just out of necessity.
 
Fivepoints said:
Its hard to hear sarcasm sometimes. Sorry I didnt catch it. I have a 2000 gmc c7500 with a bucket on it. Its a pia to find stuff for it sometimes. Btw if you have JE3 brake code, the power steering pump is nla. We have a buddy with a 2000 c7500 that bought the last OEM pump. His chip truck is about as slow as you describe. We put a fresh 454 in and that helped a bit. He has the same problem you have finding someone to work on it. I have done a lot of the stuff to it basically just out of necessity.
Click to expand...

I’m wondering if it’s worth it to buy like a 40k, about the same age, but much nicer truck, or keep throwing money into this one and wait till I can justify 70-90k on a really nice one. That’s not what this thread is about though...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

New threads New posts

Kask Stihl NORTHEASTERN Arborists Wesspur TreeStuff.com Teufelberger Westminster X-Rigging Teufelberger
Back
Top Bottom