Just Got home a M944A1 and need some advice

[Fastfunco]

Sure am glad I ran across this site!
Looks like a great site with knowledgeable people!
Thanks for allowing me to join!!

I did my homework and found a really nice Batwing
6k original miles and everything is intact and works
Drove 260 miles to get it home- it's not that bad!!!
Wish the seat reclined a bit- but other Than that -.shes a cream puff!!

Couple issues I need to address - but nothing major-
Need a muffler- stainless ?????
Need a headlight- blew out while washing

Here is a concern ---

Transfer case is miserable to - engage
Have to play with it - almost force it to engage- then it gets stuck???
Will not come out unless you rock the truck while you are torquing that little handle harder than designed !!!

Anybody have this issue before??

Please correct me if I'm wrong

All the way down is 2 wheel drive
Middle is neutral
Up is low

PTO ENGAGES IN NEUTRAL CORRECT!!????

It is not right and I sure want to get it right
Any help would be much appreciated

 

[nf6x]

Congratulations on your new truck! PLEASE SHARE PICTURES!!

The transfer cases on the M939-series are very hard to shift if the vehicle isn't moving. It gets easier with some practice, as you learn to avoid needing to shift it on level ground while not moving.

Yes, down is high range, middle is neutral, and up is low range. The front wheels normally engage in low range. A dashboard control lets you engage the front wheels in high range. It is possible to disable the automatic engagement in low range if desired by monkeying with an air valve under the truck.

Which PTO does the batwing have? There's a transmission PTO that's used for front winches, and a transfer case PTO that's used for the wrecker crane. My M936A1 wrecker has both PTOs, naturally. I've only played with the transmission PTO for the front winch once. It's operated with the transmission in neutral, but as I recall, the transmission and transfer both need to be in gear to engage it just to make the gears hold still. For the transfer case PTO, the transfer needs to be in neutral but the transmission needs to be in gear.

My guess is that the batwing would probably use a transfer PTO to power stuff in the maintenance body, much like the wrecker. Is the PTO engaged by a lever at the left rear corner of the cab, behind the driver's seat? That's where the transfer PTO lever is on my wrecker. My wrecker also has the VS fuel injection pump which has a constant-speed governor that gets engaged when the PTO is engaged.

P.S.:

 

[Ord22]

 

[chevyCUCV]

http://www.steelsoldiers.com/5-ton-up-tms/79228-tms-939-series-trucks.html

Tm's are your friend

 

[Fastfunco]

The Batwing is set up just like your wrecker!
PTO is off the transfer case and instructions are -
Trans in neutral - transfer case in neutral -- push lever behind drivers seat in corner of cab-- pull out governer on dash - shift trans to drive-- pull out throttle up to 2000 rpms--

Problem is-.transfer case lever is a bear- and not engaging - I can get neutral - but high or low is never easy and not right!
Have to rock vehicle - on a Toyota this is a no BRAINER
On this 36000 lb vehicle it is almost impossible-

I need a functioning shop and this is really a deal breaker- more work than the shop is worth!!

I must be doing something wrong or the switch on the end of the transfer case lever is some type of release and malfunctioning ??

What is the button on the end of transfer case lever supposed to be doing and how can I test

 

[nf6x]

The button on the end of the transfer case lever should actuate an air cylinder on the transfer to unlock the shifter. You need to hold it while shifting the transfer case lever, and the power needs to be turned on, and you need to have air pressure.

When I get into a spot where the transfer doesn't want to shift and I can't get the truck to move, I just keep moving the lever up and down until it pops into one gear or the other. If it's not the gear I want, I can at least move the truck. It seemed like a big problem when I first got my M923, but now it doesn't seem like a big deal. I guess I just got a better feel for it?

Some folks have posted about having either especially hard to shift or especially easy to shift transfer cases. Maybe one of them will chime in here with suggestions? Maybe there's an adjustment you can make, but I haven't had to go down that route yet so I don't have specific advice.

 

[1z-bar]

I have A m944a1 and mine is a pain to shift to get the generator to engage! When you get it engaged you need to put it in 5th and pull the throtle out on the dash {to keep rpm up} to get the generator to kick in. good luck!

 

[12Bravo]

Per TM 9-4940-560-14&P set the vernier governor control to 1225 rpm. You will need to fine tune the engine rpm to get 60Hz out of the alternator. Make sure engine rpms are correct and you are getting proper voltage at 60HZ so that you don't burn up anything (especially electric motors). Every Batmobile I operated while in the Army was different, some transfer cases shifted easy and others were a bear to shift.

 

[bimota]

FastFunco - hey, I'm in the same boat with my 944A1 and probably looking at a similar use up here at Hollister Hills SVRA (vehicle recreation area. My PTO is a pain to engage - I've decided to run a MEP-002 on a trailer next to my unit to keep fuel costs down - how often do you really need 25kw? My post is "Civilian conversion of M944A1 - check it out - let's compare notes. I have the trailer version of the shop manual and can email that - send me an email. I'm planning on submitting a request for the M944A1 TM to be declassified - because they are being decommission, they are dated and only usable now for remote shop work - which is still unproven. Not sure we can make this economical even at prices in the $10k range - the military assumes free labor and this beast takes some labor....