I guess this person never read into much of my forum before.. but would like to argue the use of after-garbage and shaving heads and all the other failed crap that is well documented across time on here.
If your truly looking for a debate, and not simply professional advice on this ... my forum is NOT the place for that... here is why...
An inframe is an investment into the future for a trucking business. It is a big investment that takes more than a couple 3 years to recover from for most people. It is "buying another truck" kind of expensive!> and If the engine fails in less than 6 - 8 years of run/use down the road, then it is simply wasted efforts and moneys. - THEREFORE IT BECOMES A COMPLETE GAMBLE to use non-oe parts which have a proven track record around here, especially so on one of the brands/methods you mentioned in your first post, on these red engines to have serious problems either right away, or in short order after such work is done.
A BIG ISSUE is that, as a mechanic, they fail to see that they are on the wrong side of the coin on this one. - The repair shop/mechanic is NOT the one who has to suffer the consequences of such a bad investment as the failures happen again, either right away, or down the road in a relative shortened time frame.
When someone is caught up into, and are pushing this known bad investment of after-garbage internals for the ISX's onto others ... for this, I do not tolerate it on my forum.
Here is a relevant re-quote from:
https://rawze.com/forums/showthread.php?...3#pid85603 (12-19-2025 )Rawze Wrote: (related information, not directed towards anyone)...
AN INFRAME is an investment...
When it comes to expensive repairs to your equipment such as a complete rebuild, it should be seen as AN INVESTMENT, into the future. It is very similar to investing in stocks or other things that you do not know the outcome for.
.. And just like investing in stocks on the market,... if you do not invest in the right ones,;.. then it hurts.. IT HURTS BADLY!.
I don't know about anyone else.. but I would only want to invest in something that absolutely will yield a profit instead of something shady or is of lesser certainty.
The same thing goes with an inframe for your truck. - INVEST WISELY.. VERY VERY WISELY, because anything less, and it hurts like all h#ell financially in the end.
With an inframe, your investing in the future longevity of the equipment. - Your investing and making a gamble on 'how long' until the next inframe comes due in the future. I don't know about anyone else,.. but I want to invest in something that I know the answer to.. and do not have to second guess.
THIS IS WHY I always push so hard for people to buy only OEM components on these red engines. Its not because I care about the manufacturer, or want to make their sales go up,.. it is because WE KNOW WITHOUT QUESTION what the expected lifespan is for those components when everything is done correctly. - WE ALREADY KNOW that the engine has a potential to go that next million miles reliably, and without headaches. - This is like investing in IBM instead of Juicero.
The future of the equipment can be well-calculated when a known quality of investment in parts have been made. - The profit margin and longevity can be estimated fairly accurately,. And this allows someone to make wise decisions.
ANYTHING LESS than demanding 100% perfection and quality of the job and its components = LESS TIME until something major fails again, meaning LESS LONG TERM PROFIT, or NO PROFIT AT ALL!.
Most truck O/O’s (owner operators) do well to be able to make back in about 3-4 years at a minimum, or to break even on the $$,$$$ (5 figures) of moneys spent for a rebuild in re-claimed profits. The engine HAS TO LAST THIS LONG OR MORE, otherwise, you only sink further into that endless financial hole of ‘Can’t seem to get ahead’ oblivion. This is not any place to be at all as a truck owner, yet I see it over and over with many trucks.
It is a repeating story that is all too familiar around here, especially with inframes, and it ALWAYS HURTS BADLY!.
This is why I push for people to use only genuine OEM parts. At least that investment IS WELL KNOWN. It is the norm for an engine/truck to last a long time (unless someone tortured or abused it) before its first inframe, and be quite profitable. There is no reason for it not to do the same (or better) the second time around when everything was done right, and all replacement parts were of the same OEM quality.
The next thing on the table is that during an inframe/ major rebuild, this also lends itself to IMPROVING THINGS in a genuine way beyond what the OEM requires if possible. things like mentioned in this post...
info: https://rawze.com/forums/showthread.php?...6#pid70606
On a red engine, things like raising liners to improve strength and using better assembly techniques that are above and beyond the required minimum to help ensure the best longevity possible. This instead of simply ‘doing according to the book’ type of no give-a-damn lazy, speed-gun happy methods like most repair shops do. – this is NOT being wise, and very, VERY few repair shops will even bother, nonetheless get mad at you for even questioning how they do things.
It never fails that the more volume that a big repair shop does, it seems that the more bad habits they acquire and the less in touch with reality and care for longevity they have. Higher popularity and higher volume of what they do seems to ALWAYS drop the quality of outcome. This is the first red flag.
FIND that one repair shop who is willing to listen. Find that place that you can point out the extra steps as mentioned on this forum, and have then read and understand ‘that extra mile’ and are wiling to do so… and you will find someone who truly cares, and not just someone who is only concerned with getting your truck ’in and out’ and argues with you otherwise, or is willing to use or push garbage components or methods onto you otherwise.
