PM097

[1978ford250]

PM097 (ITV-PMT)

(PM097 - Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton [San Onofre] - November 20, 2020)


(PM097 - Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton [62 Area] - 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, 5th Marine Regiment - November 20, 2020)


(PM097 - Govplanet location - Yermo, CA, January 31, 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - February 15, 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - February 19, 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - Painting - March 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - Stencils - August 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - Stencils - August 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - Stencils - August 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - Stencils - August 2020)


(PM097 - Los Angeles, CA - Stencils - August 2020)


What a project PM097 has been! It's a long story that is much more interesting with pictures so I will post those instead. I have lots of pictures to post but I'll put just a few up for now.

This PM is currently terrorizing the streets of LA and I've driven it down the 5 freeway to Camp Pendleton. It's much less enjoyable at Southern California freeway speeds. The advertised 85mph speed capability would probably be reasonably attained on a smooth straight surface like a runway or something. Going a sustained 85mph on a SoCal freeway in the PM would be miserable for one and suicidal for two. One good pothole and you'd turn into a torpedo. I'm sure this is surprising to no one 🤣

I also have TR63 (M1164 Ammunition Trailer). I towed it from Yermo to Los Angeles behind the truck... the most miserable towing experience of my life. It's pretty bouncy without 33 120mm mortars in it! It will be a good farm/offroad trailer though.

I picked up the Mastercraft seats at auction. They needed to be modified to fit but they are very comfortable. I'll be installing harnesses shortly (even though 4 point harnesses aren't street legal) I think this vehicle will probably get a pass. One of the old front seats will be converted into a rear seat unless someone wants to cough up one of theirs...with the seat bracket.

Hope everyone is having fun with their projects

If any of you are on Instagram I have a page made for this growler. The Instagram handle is @usmc_growler

[1978ford250]

One thing I did to help cut back on heat under the hood was wrap the header with titanium header wrap. I used a whole 25 ft roll on it which was necessary because of the flex joint section. It significantly reduced the heat in that area. Highly recommend. It's not hard to do

[W427]

Hmm. I have not noticed issues with heat in that area or under-hood, and don't know what I may be overlooking. What were your symptoms or issues?

[1978ford250]

W427 My fans used to kick on...a lot! It got really hot in there and the heater hoses are about half an inch away from the exhaust. Wrapping that short section is a logical way of reducing heat transfer in that area. Wrapping the header is obviously not a necessity and there are cons to doing it...the main one being moisture. It usually isn't a problem unless you get it wet and the pipe doesn't get hot enough to dry it out. That probably won't be a concern for most people.
Anything that can be done to reduce excess heat will reduce wear and tear on components, including the water pump which is close by. Of course, reducing the amount of time your electric fans run will extend their working life span as well. Less heat means fluids don't break down as fast. More heat robs power.
In my opinion, there are more pros than cons when it comes to wrapping the header. It's easy to do and relatively cheap. I dread the day I have to start replacing components such as the water pump so anything I can do to make the engine happier, I'm interested.

I had my growler side by side with Pacman's PM 127. Mine is running much cooler than his and my fans don't come on as much. This could be due to multiple factors. We are going to wrap his header on Monday and see if it has any effect. We should be able to see how much the header wrap does because this will be the only thing we do to the vehicle that day. Maybe it's a gimmick...at least it looks cool? haha

[W427]

Cool. 🙄 Keep us informed. My fans don't run very often, except with extended stop-and-go driving around town at 40+ mph. Nothing scientific yet, but in 90°F weather, a warmed-up 5 mile trip to the store may have it come-on once at a stoplight for less than a minute. Fan is off unless I stop, and so airflow stops. Gauge drifts 175±, just for data comparison. This seems reasonable, so I haven't been concerned... so far. 😨

[1978ford250]

My License Plate Mount

Here are some photos of how I mounted my license plate. It's not pretty but it works. I simply cut the aluminum to the sizes I wanted and used pop rivets to put it all together. I used security bolts to attach it to the frame and currently have hose clamps that attach it to the stub on the growler. I left a little room on top of my bracket so I could mount the light, which is why the entire bracket isn't hidden behind the plate.
I haven't been bothered about not having a tag light yet but CA Highway Patrol probably has bigger fish to fry. I'm working with a supplier who wants to produce license plate brackets for the ITV with the tag light built-in that includes the wiring with a splitter that will plug into the running light wire harness. I'm sure everyone probably has their own ideas on how they want to mount the plate. I mounted my plate where the rear canopy bars would be. If you had your rear canopy installed, this location wouldn't work. There are very limited options for mounting the plate when you put the rear canopy on or start attaching hitch-mounted accessories, such as the gypsy rack, to the back.

Yeah, I'm no pro

[1978ford250]

License Plate Bracket with Wire Harness Update

Here is an update on my license plate bracket and light design. I made a splitter with the Deutsch connectors and tied it into the driver's side rear running light. The splitter makes it so I can disconnect the plate and wire harness if needed. Using the Deutsch connectors keeps everything waterproof. I'm not a big fan of how large the tag light is. They do make a different model that is lower profile. I might switch to that in the future. Anyhow, I am street legal for now. One less reason to get pulled over

[MedicKam]

Great photos!! I made a similar type mount. Same wiring config as you did. Somehow I manage to get it registered here in the communist state of California.

[Rasmusrentals]

Great photos!! I made a similar type mount. Same wiring config as you did. Somehow I manage to get it registered here in the communist state of California.

Kam, I don't know how you did it, but I am going to have to hate for it.... HAHA