Put the balancer on today.When I took off the old one, the rubber was half gone.it comes in balanced has a center hole and 4, 13mm socket head screws.just put it on and was finished.I orderd the 4 screws that were needed to mount it.
The back brace that I took off was a safety thing
the balancer could not come all the way apart.The brace kept it captured.The man at cummins said they do come apart.
lenny
WHO WANTS GO CAMPING

I had to replace the damper on my 5.9L Cummins, I was also told this is a fairly common problem particularly when the RV sits for a long period of time. I am not sure of the other configurations but on mine, the serpentine belt is driven off the damper and the pulley that is on the damper is isolated by the rubber ring. Sitting for long periods of time, with the belt tension on the pulley, will cause the rubber to compress in 1 of 3 spots and before long the damper will wiggle. The 1 of 3 spots are determined by 1 of 3 compression strokes per revolution. (6 cylinder)

Mine wasn't chewing up belts but it sure did have a wobble, more then 1/8 of an inch. Cummins also said that crankshaft failure can happen if the damper rubber is badly decomposed and the engine run long enough in that condition.

lucky I found it, the damper was not lining up the belt anymore,which caused it to throw off the belt and put to much PRESSURE on the water pump bearings during the process , and caused it to go bad. Total parts were $262 for oil change (with all filters including fuel FILTERS) .$227.00 for new water pump.$400.00 for dampener. Since last February the coat for 4 new tires on rear, 2 oil changes.Oil and water sensors for the generator.new sliding window that is plexiglas,plus one alternator That was a rip off at $300.00 plus some small stuff. Also the first oil change was a rip off $400.00 all most as much as Nicks universal joint.Isn't fun plus the price of fuel looks like it is starting to go UP for summer.Now WE want to use it again.

I have not shared this with you guys yet, when Helen and I left Nashville after our New Years Eve celebration aboard the General Jackson, we made it about 100 yards down the road when our damper took a dump. It slung the belt and stopped when it came into contact with the rear cross-member. We turned around, went back to Two Rivers RV Park and pontificated on our next move. it was New Years Day and naturally, everything was closed. I stripped her down, and after many attempts, I was able to use the rear leveling jacks to press the assembly back together. I mounted it and had Helen fire her up only to find out that even though I had timed the assembly, it shook badly around 1k RPM's. After some telephone time, Cummins Cross-Point's man-on-call did not have internet access to check availability at the Nashville Store and he lived an hour out of town. In other words, don't bother me. I logged into Webcumpas on Cummins.com and saw that Cummins Midsouth in Memphis had two. We lined up to meet there at 5:30 PM, got the new damper & drove the 3 1/2 hrs back to Nashville. The next morning, 18 degrees and snowing, I put everything back together with a new belt and we headed home, again. Upon arrival, I backed the Barth into our house and made firewood out of our cherry bedroom cabinets. A story for another time. Damage to the house, $100 for a new gutter; The Barth, $11,000 and counting. Happy New Year !

You know bill stuff happens.Not everybody thinks about the damper.it seems that this about the time to hear about this happening more often.we are planning to make a stop at your place on the way to Milford BY way of Texas
lenny

We've talked about the harmonic balancer on a Cummins in the past. It is my firm belief that the lower pulley should be attached to the inside of the harmonic balancer. Instead, on the 8.3L, it is attached to the outside of the balancer. It is more of an issue if the pulley groove is offset from the balancer.

Here is a blurb from a few years ago on this subject. The harmonic balancer on most RV's do not get used enough to stay balanced. It really has more to do with the age of the rubber and the tensions only being left in one of three spots when the engine is not running.

I would recommend to everyone who has not changed their harmonic balancer to at least have it checked. Because of age, most of you will be changing them out sooner, rather than later. This recommendation is mostly directed towards the Cummins owners, but it couldn't hurt to check if you own something else.



If you do change your balancer, look into a Fluid Damper Style harmonic balancer.

Did you take any pictures of the damage to the M.H.
I all ways did just to make some body would think before they did the same thing.
I backed into the top corner of my house with a trailer, I had the wife looking at the sides not at the top' before I stopped the house jumped into my way and put a v shaped hole in it at the bend of the trailer took off the ,part of the roof and the mirrors over the bed. Back then I was very poor like now and did all of the work myself. took out the hole summer and camping season
lenny
PS X wife kept all of the pics. I do not know why they do that? but they allll do....

What are we looking-for *visually* when inspecting the Harmonic Balancer???

Have had problems with serpentine belts and the tensioner and also had the front cover gasket removed and replaced due to a significant oil leak ...sure wish I would have replaced the balancer at that time.

It *seems* and *appears* that the engine is running great at this time [other than the fact that everything is burried in snow and I probably won't be going anywhere any time soon].

The cold and the snow just keep coming here in MN, but that is normal. Would hate to be dealing-with the problems out-east or in CA right now...

On ours when We threw the belts and noticed that the belt was not perpendicular to the front of the motor.I could see the serpentine belt from the right side of the motor if it does not look perfectly strait with the motor,water pump, alternator,damper and the tensioner it is not running true.
the crossmember in front of the crankshaft has enough room to slide the belt on.when you put the belt on it should be VERY easy to put on.If it is hard to put over the water pump ridge something is out of line.with the belt off wiggle the water pump if it wiggles it is most likely bad.
My damper was loose enough to pry it back in place with a screw driver between the damper and the crossmember.you can call me if you don't understand I am not a very good explainer I don,t know $100/words very well.I am auditory not visual
(that crossmember will not let the damper come all the way off)
lenny
1-239-659-1672

billyt53 should of called .i think i posted my number for u ! was on vacation would of been glad to help any thats in my area! if im not at work !

quote:

Originally posted by Medic37:
What are we looking-for *visually* when inspecting the Harmonic Balancer???

Look for excessive wobble, cracking of the rubber between the 2 pieces and look to see if the timing marks are still aligned. If it is of a viscous style, look for leaks.

It is always preferable to purchase a viscous style damper to a rubber one. Most current big diesel engines use a viscous style damper.

If your front main seal is leaking and oil gets in there, it will speed up the deterioration of the rubber between the harmonic balancer.

My previous oil leak allerted-me to what you had stated previously and has raised the level of concern.

Will be one of the first things I check-out and have the mechanic inspect once I'm back-in-service for 2010!

Thanks!