Adventure trailer build thread.

gmanpaint · January 18, 2019

Not sure this is worthy of a post, but then again, half this thread wouldn't exist if I thought that! lol

Was digging thru stuff looking for something, and found a set of mini quick clamps and large quick clamps.

The large clamps can hold a fire extinguisher, and might use those for that. The mini clamps I used to swap the regular quick clamps on the tongue sq cog. Works much better, holds the cables tight, and just look better.

Regular vs Mini clamps

Installed ( nope, haven't fixed the paint on the top yet!)

I ran a switched 14 ga acc wire to the rear corner for the LED's in the awning, when I wired this thing. I purposely left some slack inside to use for something else. Well I had this dual 12v waterproof outlet in a box, and decided to use it for charging 5v stuffs (only 14 awg ran about 10 ft). Spliced into that wire, mounted the outlet on the interior door jamb, grounded it, cleaned up the wiring, and Bam, 12v acc power back there.

I also had this 5v dual USB adapter for a 12v outlet (Yes, I has boxes of crap with Gawd knows what in them), but this one has a 3 foot lead, to mount the USB away from the plug in. I stuck a 1" earth magnet to the back of it with 3m dbl sided tape, and can stick it where the sun does or doesn't shine. Can place it outside the door, and close it on the wire, as it is thin for 5v.

Earth magnet on the back, and the 5v plugged in.

Stuck randomly on the interior wall

Stuck on the exterior side box

Figured it would come in handy when chilling in a camp chair, and used for a cell charge.

An easy to read battery monitor, added to the face of the control panel.

10 awg SAE to SAE -12v acc plug with cover, to plug into misc devices using matching plug in harness.

gmanpaint · January 20, 2019

Intercepted! Game over! Chiefs win!!

Wait, Off sides defense, Chiefs lose. Nice time to forget where the scrimmage line is butt head.

Oops, sorry bout that. Anyways.......

Got the solar wiring finished up today. The SS 1/2" cable clamps worked perfectly. Used 14 of them and has the cables nice & tight, and I'm happy with it this time around. (Off the pain meds now, lol)

Routed them down from the rear, along the top of the roof to the front, then down the corner. Made the slack needed for the t-box swingout, and used the nice SS cable glands to finish them off. Wired to the solar charge controller. Houston, we have Solar power.

Ignore all the towels and cardboard, it's there to "Help" keep construction debris off the paint.

Used some heat shrink on the cables, in the glands for a tighter waterproof seal. Wish I would have found these SS glands before. I would have used them on everything. Ahh well, it's all a learning experience for me.

Remember kids, A wife is like Google. When you ask her a simple question, she gives multiple answers. Some make sense, and some makes you question your existence in the universe.

CDW6212R · January 21, 2019

gmanpaint said:
...
Used some heat shrink on the cables, in the glands for a tighter waterproof seal. Wish I would have found these SS glands before. I would have used them on everything. Ahh well, it's all a learning experience for me.
...

Remember kids, A wife is like Google. When you ask her a simple question, she gives multiple answers. Some make sense, and some makes you question your existence in the universe.

Plus just like Google, you have to ignore a lot of the dribble.

What are those "SS glands" you describe there? That sounds like a useful item for lots of projects.

gmanpaint · January 21, 2019

Stainless Steel cable glands. These work better than just using plain rubber grommets.

Glands are for passing a wire/cable thru a wall, and being watertight. They have a rubber O-ring or washer, for the exterior surface, and the threaded tube body gets clamped to the wall via a nut on the interior side. They also support the wire/cable, and have a firm grip. There is a total of 5 parts to one gland.

There is a special insert that the wire passes thru. This insert tightens down around the wire/cable, as the exterior nut is tightened. The more you turn it, the more it closes on the wire. These type can handle a range of wire size, These SS I just used are a 6mm-12mm. These come in a large variety of sizes and as you see here, in plastic and in Stainless. For the rooftop LED light wires, I used a smaller 3mm-6mm.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JRA88C0/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I also have a couple of Molded plastic Hood covers for these glands. I opted not to use them, as they are bulky, and I don't like the method of attachment. These you pass the wire/cable thru when you install the glands, and place over the holes drilled. Still have to use grommets in the wall/roof with these. Then fasten them on with a bead of silicone. These would work for the right application, just didn't work out for mine.

https://www.amazon.com/Weatherproof...155HD2S0GP2&psc=1&refRID=PFJDN69QC155HD2S0GP2

CDW6212R · January 21, 2019

Thanks for those details. The plastic versions are like normal home electrical box wire connections, but better for sealing. I'll find uses for the SS versions on my cars for sure. I'll likely buy the variety sized plastic kit too, I love that kind of handy stuff.

gmanpaint · January 21, 2019

These glands will work well on a firewall.

allmyEXes · January 21, 2019

Nice! You may have said it already that you have a fully self contained apparatus to supply your home in event of an emergency.

gmanpaint · January 21, 2019

allmyEXes said:
Nice! You may have said it already that you have a fully self contained apparatus to supply your home in event of an emergency.

True, it's like having an RV outback....sort of. Ok, half an RV....maybe 1/3 an RV. lol

Outside of it's intended use, I think of it more like a Bug Out rig, than an RV tho. Either way, it would work in a pinch for basic needs.

gmanpaint · February 12, 2019

5 gal fuel can is mounted to the T-box, and rests on the expanded metal. Two 1.5" angle brackets are used for support inside the T-box. If the box needs swung out for spare tire access, I just have to remove the can, and the mount swings with the box. Working on making a better locking strap. The one that comes with the mount is a joke.

Next up: Finding a home on the T-box for this, and everything that goes with it.

gmanpaint · February 15, 2019

Time for the next chapter. We shall simply call it...... OBA.

Alright, this Tongue box is large, but with everything but the kitchen sink thrown into it, it is getting rather small. Stay tuned, you will see shortly.

After months of slowly acquiring parts for this mod, it was time to get it going. This mod sounds simple, but in reality, it wasn't. At least for me. Just like when we modify one thing on our rigs, it leads into a bunch of others. I'm going to break these down into individual posts. Why? Just to bore you guys!

Seriously, I need to keep these steps separate, just to try to make sense of it.

Step 1 or, What a fluster cluck:

Finding a way to mount the parts, in such a way that I can easily work on them, and remove them. Removal is needed to be able to get to other items in the box. It has become a jig saw puzzle inside the T-box.

The location planned for these items was to the left side of the dual batteries. Unfortunately, that side is also where a few things have been installed onto the back wall. I need to be able to get access there from the inside, so this space is not available. The only place left large enough to hold these, is right in front of the batteries, in the storage area I made.

I have to be able to get to the batteries for a few reasons, so I needed to mount the pump and tank to a removable mount. I made a mock up mount to see how it would go. Decided to be able to simply unplug the wire harness, and one airline leading out the box, would work. Everything else stays on the mount & the box wall.

The mock up mount to give me an idea on proximity, and line routing. Lines are held by SS cable clamps. SS drain line extension. SS leader to tank. 3/8" Goodyear 300 psi rubber leader for supply line. Pop off safety valve on top. Used a brass Tee for mock up, until I got another brass angle.

So as it wasn't just sitting inside loose, I added an angle bracket, that will bolt onto the inner frame work tube. This mock up served me well enough to dial it in. I searched the builders supply stores for black 3/4" x8" Wide exterior vinyl boards, with no luck. I settled on black laminated shelving. Found one that I didn't have to cut to length, so it stayed wrapped on all sides, except where I had to make a couple slits to fit the 5 gal tank angle brackets. These actually help keep it in place.

Final mount with everything installed and the other brass angle installed. Made it a little shorter than the mock up, and moved them closer together. Feed line to tank doesn't touch anything, as the clamps hold it away from rubbing.

ARB uses a nice suspending anti-vibration mount with rubber spacers, but I added to it by using 3/8" rubber attached to the bottom of the mount. They have kung foo grip!!

So the final test fit was done, and I am happy with this step, and called it done.

Took up half the height in the storage area.

Well, **** on a stick, now what?

On the next episode....... We find out why the OP is purposely tormenting you with these drawn out yawn posts. Stay tuned!

CDW6212R · February 15, 2019

Air ride?

gmanpaint · February 15, 2019

CDW6212R said:
Air ride?

Nope. Already have the suspension finished. OBA is mainly for tire fills after airing down on the trails, but can be used for all the other various uses with an air supply. Will produce 150 psi, but at a modest 5 cfm.

CDW6212R · February 15, 2019

gmanpaint said:
Nope. Already have the suspension finished. OBA is mainly for tire fills after airing down on the trails, but can be used for all the other various uses with an air supply. Will produce 150 psi, but at a modest 5 cfm.

That's a powerful compressor, 5cfm is a lot. The Puma thing I have is 3cfm I think it was, at 90psi, constant duty.

Anything better than the small things people use(very slow), is great.

gmanpaint · February 15, 2019

Yeah, it's a little beast. Can do 200 psi, but I installed 150 psi tank. It also takes a 40 amp maxi fuse, 8 awg leads. and 100% constant duty cycle.

I need to replace the pressure switch still. It's for lockers, and shuts off earlier. Arb has an on at 130, off at 150 for it. Be a bit before I get it.

Edit: Looked up the specs again in the manual. It's only 2.5 CFM under full load, at it's highest amp draw. With the air tank, I should at least be able to do short bursts with an impact, but for airing up stuff, it should keep up. Use will tell the real story tho. If I don't like it, it can go back in the rig, and a bigger unit like the ViAir 480.

CDW6212R · February 15, 2019

You will need it a lot I'm sure, out in wilderness that's a big deal to have.

I rarely need air for a tire, I planned ahead for maybe needing air tools away from home, but not off road. I have two small tanks to put in, a 1.5 gallon it came with, and a 3 I believe it was. That's what I found that could fit behind the running boards.

gmanpaint · February 16, 2019

OBA Step 2 or, Long round snake thingy's everywhere:

We left off with the tank & pump fitted in the T-box. Today we attack the wiring and the air line stuffs.

The wire harness supplied with the pump has everything to wire up 2 air lockers, including 3 switches, with relay, inline maxi fuse, pump power, and pressure switch power. This thing is massive. It can be ran to run 12v or 24v. Since I am not needing it for the lockers, and extra switches, this thing had to be sorted. The switches take 5 leads each, and each wire is loose. I taped off each end of everything not being used, and bundled them up, to decrease the spaghetti mess.

Start of reducing the mess.

I had one last switch reserved for this in the control panel. The switches are all wired with switch light power, and grounds. All I needed was one wire from the pump to this switch. Ok, the ARB pump switch has 5 frigging wires, with 2 reds, 2 blacks, and a blue. I studied the huge wiring diagram they give, and pretty much figured it out. (you yawning yet?) There are 3 hot leads. 2 are for switch activation, 1 is for pump activation. The ARB switch can dim along with a vehicles interior lights. Blah, tape that one off. The other is to actually activate the dumb switch, so the rest can work. Umm.. OK, blech, tape that one off too. 2 black grounds, with one for the relay, and one for the 24v hookup that goes to a 5 amp fuse. I put them together as the manual says so, and ran them both to the fuse panel ground block. (yeah, I did what them Aussies told me)

Battery harness and 40 amp relay.

Switch and pump harness.

After cleaning it all up, it was wrapped and used some wire loom. Relay was mounted, battery leads hooked up, and switch powered. Had to stop here for now.

The supply line hole was drilled out for the brass bulkhead. It needed a 3/4" hole in the rear wall, as that's where I decided to have the hose connector at. I assembled the fitting with a Tee, 2.5" SS oil filled pressure gauge, and female air connector. Then installed the assembly with a 3/4" rubber washer, with a 3/4" Stainless washer over it on the exterior, and the supplied toothed washer and nut provided with it on the inside. 1" wrench & socket was needed. I used a male connector on the backside, so I can unhook the supply line for pump removal.

Went to bed last night with something bugging me about what I had done with the pump lines. Today I switched the pressure switch location to the tank. I then asked another member here for verification, as I about drove myself batty wondering if I had done it right or not. Lol, yeah, I think too much sometimes.

All better now.

So I said on the last post, I would fill you in,as to why I bore you to death with all these long posts. This pretty much sums it up, as I can't tell a story by pictures only. Sorry about that.

gmanpaint · February 16, 2019

OBA step 3, or How about a courtesy flush please:

Installed an elbow to the port under the tank, and a SS braided drain line. Routed it to the front wall of the T-box. Drilled a hole, used a SS 1/2" washer on the backside, a 1/2" rubber washer on the front, then another SS washer over it. Screwed on a SS valve, then a SS elbow with barbed end, then a short 3/8" rubber drain hose. if I need to remove the pump, the valve just screws off, and the line is removed from the wall. Easy peasy.

gmanpaint · February 16, 2019

OBA step 4, or Hey man, where do I put all this stuff?

With half the storage area now gone with the pump & tank, I still needed to store some items in there. So a little brain storming (butt scratching), and I came up with this....

Using the wall surround I already made, I cut out for the air line and electrical pass through on the side walls, and added aluminum angle to all three sides.

Open

Folded in for install purpose

Test fit

Made a shelf with the same materials,and supported the front side with angle underneath, and it locks in to the box frame and side walls. Hole is cut to allow the tanks pressure relief valve to come through. This gained another inch of depth for the shelf.

Shelf installed and a couple angle brackets added to hold it in tight. It's sturdy by golly!

And all installed and some stuffs on the shelf, with netting back on. 25 ft of soft Air line, will be stored to the left of the batteries in the open area.

That's it, all done! Tested the system, and it worked flawlessly the first try.

Left it fully pressurized, for a leak down test. Hoping in the morning, the pressure is the same.

Took me 3 full days to do all this. This mod literally blows, but in a good way.

Edit:
Pressure was down to nothing this morning. Leaks somewhere. My guess is at the quick disco. Need to find a way to test for a leak. Like a smoke machine or a match?

Brian1 · February 16, 2019

Mine will leak down to nothing after a day or two as well, never really been an issue for me so I haven't addressed it yet. Try soapy water around the connections if you want to track it down

gmanpaint · February 16, 2019

That's a good idea. Messy, but good.

Thanks Brian.

Adventure trailer build thread.

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