Vehicle "Build" Thread...

So one small "issue" was that on the old rear bar the HiLift was attached with a dedicated bracket on the OUTSIDE of the wheel which mean't that I could strap my long handled shovel onto the jack safely for travel (as seen with a different shovel to the one I have now).....



With the new (and in reality better) way the jack attaches there is no place for the shovel there in the back wheel (if I were more skilled there are mounting points on the opposite side of the wheel carrier to where the jack sits for attaching a big HF antenna and some brackets could be fabricated, but that is beyond my skill level and would be too costly to pay for) so with the roof rack being a permanent addition to this truck I did some reading and grabbed some LED lightbar mounts (to attach an LED light bar to the front of the rack) and some rubber holders for the shovel and bolted it all up today.....



....slightly harder than it should be as that shovel does not have a straight handle nor is it round but is an oblong shape. But IT IS a great shovel with which to dig out a truck (yep done it) and to me is almost perfect for the task so I wanted to retain it. I was actually surprised how well it all fitted up. I replaced the hardware that came with the ribber holders and cut some sleeves for where the bolts go through the brackets as they are made for much larger diameter bolts. I will add two large cable ties for extra security (both to make it harder to steal around town and in case of a failure at highway speed). Once I was offroad I wouldn't bother.

 

Got the truck back from my local ARB place on Friday. Had the new one piece steel side rails and steps fitted up....

 

Took the truck bush earlier in the year before the COVID shytestorm started...
January...


Then March...





.....got back from this week away and the BS was thick on the ground.

I have spent some downtime (only weekends as I have been busier than hell at work) doing some of the odd jobs I wanted to get out of the way. Added some spacers to the front of the new seat mountings to tilt it back a little and support some more under my thighs....big improvement in comfort !!!!

A couple of weekends ago I went to kick in and get the rear deck built but forgot the engineering place I use is closed Saturdays so I got home and started in on a job I had been putting off. I bought a set of vinyl flooring from a mob that supplied the taxi industry, they are moulded to the specific vehicle but require "some fitting and trimming" ....that was about as much of an understatement as "what harm could a few spoons of Bat Soup cause".... !

Everything above the carpet had to come out...seats, consoles, some interior panels, seat belts foot rests......bleh....



Gave the carpet a big clean and deodorise (it was not at all bad but you don't want to seal anything in once the vinyl is laid) and then started. All told it was 5hrs on a Saturday and 7 on the Sunday...



Back came up better than the front as I let it heat up in the sun a before laying it....



....as the car has sat in the sun a bit now the front is taking better form.

With that done I wanted to get my UHF antenna in to replace the one that was fitted when I got this truck....sounds simple but I don't wish to further discuss it it's done now and that and the flooring were the only jobs I needed to do myself before I order the customs centre console. It will also mount UHF (better than the one that came with the truck) though it needs a trip back to the factory for a little preventative maintenance (they are located here in Sydney).



Did manage to get to the engineering place and he is now welding up my deck frame and I expect it back during the week (them I have to measure and cut the top before it goes to the upholsterer for covering.

So this weekend I was thinking "what next" and decided to have a go at wiring up the solar inputs to the battery controller. I have that 200w folding solar blanket that can be attached directly to the battery but putting it through the controller allows it to manage the charge between both batteries to i) make sure I always have a charged cranking battery and ii) top off the auxiliary and extend the time it can run my fridge/other power needs without starting the vehicle.

Cable/Anderson Plugs I (cannibalised the alligator clamp connection for it's protective cover etc) ...



Done...


And working....


I also have a small solar panel up on the garage roof that is a "maintenance charger", it also attached to the main battery with small alligator clamps, while I had the soldering iron and such out I added some extra cable and an Anderson Plug to that si it too can hook into the controller directly and manage both batteries in those longer periods when the truck sits idle.

In between those jobs I also gave the offroad trailer some TLC....

Replaced the six stud hubs..


...with five stud hubs with new bearings and seals...


....so that they are the same pattern and the LandCrusier.

I also replaced the rims and tyres using the same rims I will eventually fit all round on the truck (eliminating the needs for a specific trailer spare and giving me two more spares if an "event" happens out in the arse of nowhere and I am out of tyres (can always come back for the trailer)...



And while I was under the trailer I decided to wire wheel off some surface rust and replace the U Bolts.... in doing so I "caused the need" to rewire the lights...so replaced everything with LED and made up a whole new wiring harness front to back that is better fitted, connected and sealed than the original. Painted any spot I had hit with the wire wheel and added longer and wider mudflaps. At some point I may yet do a spring over conversion but later....

 

One I missed of the back floor going in (and to test if Photobucket is unf#cked).....

 

Yep...full image not a "Thumb" now showing !

 

Finished up the rear deck frame yesterday (I didn't weld it up, just cleaned it and got the legs trimmed to size). My job today is to make the top for it and get it dropped off to the upholsterer to be covered.

 

Reduced the big sheet of ply into the square shape (it's nice they made it mostly square !!) of the cargo bay...



Mapped out every inlet cut I needed to make (and made most of them as a test on a piece of scrap and once I had them how i wanted pencilled them onto the main deck piece)..



Seven separate inlets done....



....and then for a test fit....I did have visions of me launching this across the street if I had screwed it up too badly. My main hope was that it would fit in the back as a single piece but alas as was the case with the last truck it was just too long to get in.....soooooo.....



And then....as much to my shock and that of the gathered crowd (guy across the street drank several beers on his steps watching the spectacle unfold)....it was as close to a perfect fit as I could have asked for....



Originally I had made all the profiles of the edges here but thought that may be a bit of a bitch for the upholsterer to do so I broke out the French Curve and did it this way....



And it has a taper at the back...

 

You do nice work Andy !

 

You're a bit of a perfectionist as wel . And theres nothing wrong with that. I like your idea of the solar battery charging, and swapping the trailer tires to match the truck. Good ideas. Thanks for sharing this with us.

 

Cheers both thanks. I have always liked having my vehicles kept at a certain standard. Mechanical reliability and practically are my most essential criteria. I was suppose to be in the US for a month later this year (just bumming my way around) but that bitch “Rona” has put the kybosh on that this year so I am thinking of driving up to to Northern Territory for a few weeks. A friend (more like my uglier younger brother) moved there last year having decided to take a sabbatical from “life”. He is living on a small block out in the bush and doing contract building work on remote cattle stations and tourist traps as he feels motivated. He is 10mins from great Buffalo and Pig (they grow them large there) hunting and 45mins from world class Barramundi fishing. He isn’t going to have to work hard to convince me to head up !!

 

You get this way,Look some of us up !

 

Upholsterer did a good job but too bloody long.....I have the patience of a 8yo on Christmas Eve !!!!!!! So while pacing around for that I got a music bug.....



Those there are some compatibility issues...


With the deck pending I got the base frame painted up and in location....


And finally on Friday the top pieces were ready....


And in.....


And the majority of the gear that lives back there in....


Received some Frontrunner high op boxes during the week, two fit either side underneath so will look to repacking all my gear into those with some better order over the next months.

Hopefully the second fuel tank is next.

 

Just home from a week in the bush.....gratuitous glamour pic.....



.....happy to report all modifications and gear worked as anticipated.

 

Just a quick note to say thank you for the photos.

My tastes run a bit more toward the VW synchros


since you can't find these in the US, let alone in Alaska, I'm doing a 2" lift on my Eurovan camper and calling it good.

Again, my thanks. Following along is great fun. Now,l if you could just throw in a couple of Bush camp photos....

 

Cheers and thanks !!!!! This last trip was to an old hut we stay in when hunting so not too much camping. I am in the process of planning a three week trip (camping all the way) to the NT here but at present the border is closed to me due to ‘Rona so I can t jump in too far. Hoping to head away in Sept. We shall see !

 

Need to update this. Have made a few more changes since the deck went in.

 

Well I have been doing more bits and pieces....
These are some MOLLE seat back and headrest panels that have much of the smaller often used gear and immediate first aid kit attached....





....a mate in Alabama helped get those shipped over to me while the COVID craziness was at it's worst last year. They are well made and a geat addition, I am still toying with the layout of gear but so far so good. I may however need to lighten the headrest first aid kit as it did almost detack going down a really bad (rough) section of track a few weeks ago.

 

Some storage in the back


.....these are canvas bags that hold the ubiquitous "milk crate", bought one to see if I liked it and soon bought three more. They sit nicely two deep either side of the fridge. Under the deck I can get two front Frontrunner "Wolfpacks" fitted with the optional raised lids on either side and have still have room for other items (gas botte, compressor, recovery gear etc) that don't pack easily in those.

 

Replaced the factory "snorkel" (in reality an unsealed raised air intake)....









With a new fully sealed TJM jobby,,,