The Getaway...Crom's build and adventures

..clearly i have not the best oil draining techniques, from reading above, my truck no longer fits thru the garage door, and every time I've drained the oil outside the wind picks up and not only bends the full pour, but also blows the drizzle in multiple directions just as if i was trying to cover my hot buttered toast with a spoon of honey. I have not tried to use a ratchet and extension thru the too tiny hole in the skid, I just never thought of it, always used a box/open wrench and undid the plug the last couple threads with a gloved hand, that must be a big part of the problem, it certainly was a nightmare last oil change where i dropped the plug into the funnel and the funnel was not quite capacious enough...but at least I placed the Fumoto valve. and i have no worry about hitting a big rock or many big rocks and bending my alummy skid up onto the Fumoto....i mean if i was worried about bending the alummi skid, i should have bought a heavy duty BAMF steel skid cuz Jerry builds em so you can bash rocks and drag your frame all day long.....now next time, i'm gonna try to not take the 6 bolts and 3 nuts and bolts, and not use the floor jack to lower the skid, dam i'm glad it ain't steel, and i'm not going to use an open/box...so hoping the hose fits the valve goes through the hole and into a big bottle...and then go to the car wash, best idea yet

 

Use the Fumoto valve with the hose nipple, and a hose running into your oil drain container, and the wind will no longer be an issue!

 

I agree. If your 1/4" alu skid bashes so far up it hits the valve you have bigger problems. Most accounts have the oil pan itself deforming when the fumoto is hit with something.. I don't worry one bit with this setup (1/4" alu RCI skid and fumoto), and enjoy the weight savings. The rci hole is big enough that I can reach up with a gloved hand and flip valve. Wish the hole was a tiny bit smaller, actually. Not sure on the relentless /Pelfrey hole specs.

 

Rob, forgot to tell you, I love the new avatar.

I see 100% and raise 150%.



We're on page 213! haha

Seth, great idea! I asked both of the exhaust shop guys about heat from the new crossover and they both said, not to worry. However they said if I wanted to worry about it I could wrap the x-over pipe with the header wrap material. I read up on that and it's a very safe, inexpensive way to keep the heat in the pipe, so it would work extremely well for that purpose. I also read that header wraps are bad for headers. ROFL!!!

For sure! One thing that I noticed is that all manufacturers of skids have different mounting techniques. I honestly didn't do a shred of research on the alum skids. I bought them because of Pelfrey's reputation, and proximity to me about 4 miles away, and the November sale!

The Pelfrey IFS, and transfer case, can be installed independently. The mid skid only requires the IFS.

And yeah breakdown on the trail must suck the big one. And +1 for driving within the limits of the rig.

I don't have the nipple version, but I now sort of wish I did. Maybe retrofit with epoxy and small tube to the Fumoto. I'll see how things go after the first oil change. The wind issue has affected me once before. After that I put the funnel all the way up to the Fumoto. Not sure I can do that now unless it's a mini funnel that can fit thru.

I'm a gonna put a tape measure on the Pelfrey next time I crawl under there. Also gonna try and see if I can reach in from the side.

 

This is awesome.

And thanks (about avatar)!!

 

These would be a cleaner way to deal with some radiant heat if you were so inclined. The benefit would be that it would act as a radiant barrier where you need it, but still leave the exhaust exposed on other sides to allow moisture to evaporate (preventing rust). Header wraps will trap moisture and hide rust or other potential problems down the road.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/the-11600/overview/

 

I blatantly stole this idea from @DVexile

 

That's right, I knew someone had those but couldn't remember who. Surprised Ken hadn't chimed in already.

 

So busy! Wish real life would be more reasonable about schedule!

Yep, header wrap probably works just fine in this case but I used the heat shields linked to simply because it keeps the overall temps of the pipe lower compared to header wrap. Overall the pipe needs to radiate a given amount of heat. If you insulate one section so it can't radiate much heat the only solution is for it to get hotter on the unwrapped parts. With header wrap you insulate a whole section of pipe and so the overall temperature of the pipe under the wrap and near both ends of the wrap goes up. With the half circumference heat shields less of the pipe is insulated so the highest temperature along the pipe is lower than the in the case of using the wrap.

Of course the pipe is designed to get hot in the first place so it really isn't clear as a practical matter that even if temps get higher with header wrap that it really makes a difference. It is all a matter of degree. Wrapping the whole length of your exhaust system in wrap is obviously a bad idea. For a small section the temperature rise is probably modest and has no real impact on longevity and reliability.

Oh and on oil changes I'm able to flip the lever on my Fumoto through the hole in my Al skid just fine. It is a little bit of a squeeze for the fingers when opening to avoid getting oil on my hand but really not a big deal. Which reminds me - almost time to change the oil, might do that in March when back to the truck.

 

..i found the pelfray skid hole to be less than 2 inch diameter. the bottom of the Fumoto is ~1 inch to bottom of skid. i could squeeze two finger and a thumb through the hole and touch the valve drain lever. i also could squeeze my right forearm from the passenger side of skid to the drain lever. having the Fumoto with the hose nib would be ideal here. thinking of a section of thin-wall plastic pipe with a 'notch' to surround the lever case and extend through the hole into a catch can. how to hold the pipe in place hands free...?

 

Great idea. Thanks for checking fitment and measuring. Maybe attach a couple corner braces to the pipe, the short stubby ones, and then attach a magnet to those then magnetism would hold it to the drain pan and it should work great.

 

...prop my head on the passenger side front wheel..I can get my left arm into the space behind the Fumoto and see what I'm doing...experimental probing with plastic pipe ....stuff shatters with a flat speed bore bit...chopsaw easier...preliminary fitting......

 

Brilliant!

 

Great idea. Still wish had not purchased the fumoto with the short nipple. It protrudes down another maybe 3/4", and is unnecessary as I haven't used it with a hose. Your model should be the preferred one in my opinion. Would rather have the peace of mind knowing there would be that extra clearance distance to the valve, if a stick or something jammed up in there through the skid plate access hole. Does the pvc hold itself in place just by being the correct diameter?

 

I simply enlarged the drain hole in my Pelfrey skid from 2" to 3". This works great with the factory drain plug.

 

PVC friction fit into cut down PVC coupler fitting. Not much space above the skid. Might be easier to do what I want to do with waxed paper cup and a funnel

 

Dremel or hacksaw. Can't be more than two minutes work with that soft brass.

Super simple, love it.

That might work well too, simple is usually best...

 

Anza-Borrego Feb 2018

I was fortunate to escape alone into the desert for one night before meeting up with my friends at a campground the next night.

Solo camping​

My people, next night, @ campground


With my exploring buddy, we partially explored Hawi-Vallecito: A cultural landscape. Explorers, Soldiers, Emigrants, and Ranchers. This building was used by Marjorie Reed in 1938 to paint desert art.

Tracing the Butterfield Overland stage route through California, she created a series of twenty paintings, each one a representation of the various stage stations or other well known locations along the route. For authenticity, and to capture the essence of the route, Reed camped out near many of the stage stations she painted.


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Anza-Borrego Feb 2018 Family Camping / Exploring

I took my family to the desert and explored a few canyons. It was a fun two nights and a great time to get away.

My two kids getting along after finishing hiking Borrego Palm Canyon. We made it to the first palm grove and explored.



Borrego Palm Canon on a windy cool day.


A picnic in a remote canyon.

Anza-Borrego Landscape


Our primitive family campsite

Our primitive family campsite

We camped Saturday night which was calm and very mild, my wife kept commenting on how warm it was. Had coyotes talk at various hours during the night. Woke up at 5 am Sunday to wind gusts. Stayed breezy all day Sunday and into the evening. Monday was probably 10* cooler on average. We drove thru the Cuyamaca mountains on the return drive home. It was 35-38* there and lots of wind.
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That's a lot of people. Glad to see you out and about Nick.