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SD turbocharger conversion

20K views 70 replies 28 participants last post by  Tom S 
#1 ·
I converted my truck over to a SD style turbocharger set up in order to try out the new Turbonetics BB turbo charger. I am going to take a stab at detailing how I did that and the parts I used for the conversion. I purchased the following parts:


Garrett AiResearch non-EBPV Pedestal 702670-0002 from http://trucksourcediesel.com



The bellowed up pipe kit part number 1837872C93. The kit includes new up pipes (shown here ceramic coated), bolts and nuts, a different collector, and steel gaskets. The kit is available at http://shop.blackwidowdiesel.com or International


SuperDuty Drivers side exhaust manifold F81Z-9431-AA which is a Ford Only Item



There is a difference in length at the outlet VS the OBS manifold. I am aware of others that did not swap out this manifold using standard up pipes but I was I wanted to be sure on the alignment with the bellowed up pipes.



I also purchased a new SD passenger side manifold at International to send to be coated. I think the OBS manifold would have worked fine. International 1831025C1 or Ford F81Z-9430-AA



I installed the manifolds using Gaskets from Ford exhaust manifold gaskets F4TZ-9448-A or International 1814219C1 and new Ford exhaust manifold to Head Bolts F4TZ-9S425-A or International 1820513C1
 
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#2 ·
Re: SD tubocharger conversion

One of the most difficult jobs of the project was firewall clearance. I think that my truck has the motor situated about as close to the firewall as they come and that added work for this project. I loosened the motor and tranny mounts and slid them forward about a quarter of an inch which helped some. It may have also helped some to pull the cab back. The SD pedestal is taller which creates a clearance issue.



I used a sledge hammer and a small bottle jack to bend this area of the firewall for clearance for the turbo.


Once the insulation is put back up everything looks factory again.

I used hardware store good grade flanged head bolts to mount the pedestal and for turbocharger mounting 2 bolts from International 1817993-C1. The turbocharger to collector marmon clamp was from International 1824400C1 or Ford F81Z-8287-EA ?? I used new orings as well Small (2) F4TZ-6N653-A or 1815560C1 and Large (2) F4TZ-6N653-B or 1815561C1


I also found it necessary to dimple or slightly flatten an area on both up pipes and the downpipe to get the clearance that I wanted.




The SD turbo has a different exhaust outlet which required downpipe modification. Also shown in this picture is how I deleted the wastegate with the permission of TN and BWD. The stud on the waste gate was created an additional firewall clearance issue. The easiest solution was to remove part of the arm on the gate and used a nut and bolt through the ebpv housing to hold it shut. I deemed this acceptable with the small injectors that I run.


The compressor outlet is also different and quite a bit larger.


The compressor inlet is larger as well and the turbo comes with a new intake hose. This works if you have the updated black hose kit on the truck. I have a custom CCV delete piece that I had to move up slightly for a good fit with the TN intake hose. I also had to trim off the hose about a half inch on the compressor end for a good fit. It is a very very tight fit initally and I used a drum sander on the die grinder to put a chamfer on it.
 
#3 ·
Re: SD tubocharger conversion

I was able adapt my Banks downpipe to work with the new charger. There was enough room in the slip joint to extend the length out around an inch. I cut off the flange at the weld line with a chop saw. I had a couple of flanges off of stock SD downpipes and cut one of those off at the right point to where it would just slip over the 3" banks pipe.





I tacked it into place and had Alan Black tig weld it up. Rocky at Rockin-S-Performance was nice enough to let us use his shop for the welding. The downpipe clamp is Ford part number XC3Z-5A213-AA which is a normal SD piece.

On the intake side I wanted to retain my Banks twin ram intake on the cold side. The alternative would be use a SD intake spider with SD intake manifolds, boots, clamps, etc. I bought a 3" stainless V-band flange, a 3" stainless elbow, and a stainless weld bung at www.atpturbo.com to fabricate the needed hot side piece. I used these parts to duplicate the Banks part but with the proper 3" end on the compressor side.





Alan Black also Tig welded these parts for me once they were tacked up. Rocky Horn rolled a bead on the boot end at his shop for me.

The other modification needed to make this work was to cut and rotate the Banks intercooler pipe to bring the end higher forward to match up to the compressor outlet piece. I cut the pipe at a 30deg angle in the straight verticle section and rotated it forward about 1/4 to 3/8 of an inch. The pipe was again tacked and tig welded.



The turbocharger outlet is not quite a standard 3" v band flange however luckily enough by using my old downpipe clamp it worked out nicely and properly compresses the o-ring. The other item needed is a new Compressor outlet/discharge O-ring Ford F81Z-9E436-AA or International 1831227C1.
 
#4 ·
Re: SD tubocharger conversion

The final part of the conversion I want to do is to get all of the pipes powder coated as they are currently a mixture of the original Banks powder coating and some matching spray paint. I also want to get the exhaust housing coated to match the other parts. The turbo spools up nicely and seems to have good manners with no stall or surge at my altitude. I also got favorable feedback from Jody when he lived tuned my truck and watched the backpressure to boost pressure ratios. The truck is a little quicker and a little faster in the 1/4 mile as well.

I would really like for the other guys that have converted to SD turbos to post in this thread as well with links to photos as guide for others to follow sort of like the SD fuel system thread. Come on Nick, Joey and Robert

Tom
 
#8 ·
Re: SD tubocharger conversion

Nice write up Tom! Looks very nice. Is it safe to assume the nuts that are welded to your pipes are for if you start blowing boots off. Gonna bolt some straps on there?
 
#10 ·
Re: SD tubocharger conversion

Nice write up Tom! Looks very nice. Is it safe to assume the nuts that are welded to your pipes are for if you start blowing boots off. Gonna bolt some straps on there?
I did the nuts just in case I need to tie the pipes together at some point but I have never blown off one of those Banks boots.

Tom
 
#14 ·
that was a great write up on the conversion. But i got a question.
How come all your engines are soo clean? damn I could eat off toms engine, lol. Where as my engine as enough dirt and oil on or around it to make greenpeace crap themselves? How do ya'll do it?
 
#17 ·
Hot water hose plumbed out in the garage and a product called Oil Eater from Costco is what I use.

Tom
 
#19 ·
Awesome article Tom.

Wondering why you did not go with the SD intake runners? What is the Max boost you have run so far? Have you noticed a significant SOP increase in power, drivability, lower egt, etc., improvement(s) over your old turbo.

Thanks for taking the time to share and wow what a clean engine.....

jrc
 
#21 ·
I decided I wanted to retain the Banks twin ram set up so I did not go with a SD intake spider and the sheet metal intakes. It also looke to make for the least hassle way of adapting the Banks intercooler pipes. It worked out well as I only had to make a single cut and weld in the drivers side pipe. It is a little hard to address the perfomance exactly as I got live tuning from Jody at almost the same time that made some serious change in my truck. I can tell you that this turbo spools up excellent and every bit as good as the smaller stocker with a small housing on it. Peak boost is about the same as with the stocker and a small housing but I am no longer worried about it puking.

Tom
 
#22 ·
Tom, so this turbo upgrade is more for making the turbo bullet proof and not necessarliy building more power? Or is this a bigger turbo that is moving way more air?

Sure is a nice clean install!
 
#23 ·
The answer to that question depends on how much fuel you have. The stocker gets more and more out of it's element the farther you go past stage one injectors. A good BB turbo can take a lot more then that both in the durability department and the power one.

Tom
 
#26 ·
well you got the pic post it up your luckey I could do that.

I like how it runs it's a night and day difference for the stock obs with a 1.0 . the garrett BB it spools faster from the start and pulls all the way through the top. It was worth the work:ford:
 
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