Stick a fork in it, the 2023 NorCal Wheeling, Camping, and Fuckery Thread is done.

Did I see you and the trailer coming down 50 Sunday afternoon...just above pollock? I was too slow to grab a picture, we were headed up ice house to drown some worms.

 

You probably did if it was around 2:00 pm I was on my way to Solid Ground Brewing for a late lunch.

 

Need new tires.
255-80-17 or 34x10.5x17?

 

Joshua Tree (Berdoo Canyon Rd) > Salton Sea/Bombay Beach…simple trip and stayed at Indian Cove campground but since it was during the week, barely anyone was there. Glad there was NO wind at night…made for an awesome sleep.

 

For those that don’t want to shell out the extra $ for the lavabox, Tacticool has ammo can fire pits for a better deal! Decided on a .380 can for a smaller footprint but holy shit does it blast flames. Picture was on the lowest setting. Size comparison to a jackery 1000.

 

What's the fuel consumption like with that?

 

Their 380 and 50 cal cans use the same burner so I can only assume it’ll have the same burn rate. This came from their website -

“We recommend using a standard 20lb tank for the best results, this will give you the longest burn time and reduce the risk of the bottle freezing up. So to answer the question; I’ve used one of these fire pits with a 20lb tank while camping in the desert where the temperatures dropped into the high 40s at night. We had it running at a medium-high flame for 4-5 hours two straight nights, and a couple hours in the mornings and still have plenty of fuel left in the tank.

So, basically, while it depends on a lot of things, these things burn about a pound an hour.”

 

'Fuel consumption, way too fast!
Let's get on home before we, run out of gas.'

-C. Berry

 

Fuckery coming at you in terms of mods.

Rigd tire carrier with fold down table and Jerry can holder (not installed in pic). Decided to go this route instead of a full rear bumper because 1) there’s slim pickings for 4th Gen 4Runners 2) really don’t want to wait 20 weeks lead time. Boiled down to RIGd or Dirt Complex but reading several reviews on customer service lacking and a backlog of orders even from early 2023 gave me bad vibes (pelfrey, vagabond, etc). Rigd - amazing customer service, fast shipping, quality product!

had an auxbeam switch panel from my 3rd Gen T4R days that’s been sitting in my toolbox for the past 3 years. One drawback to the cheaper panels is that you either have to tap into an ACC fuse or wire to a constant 12v (at the expense of the backlight always being on). Since I wanted to be able to use the switch panel with the ignition off for camp lights, etc - I needed to add a switch to power the panel itself. Ended up having a spare switch sitting in the toolbox (albeit it says it’s for a lightbar) that worked perfect for the application. Now I just need to click the switch first and then the auxbeam panel will be powered!

coming tomorrow/this weekend is a diesel heater (will provide write up on this) and auxiliary lighting.

up next - upgrading rear springs to accommodate extra weight.

Lastly…I found a gnarly coolant leak on a bypass tube. Guess the dealership didn’t completely clean off the goop/FIPG so there’s seepage/leak dripping. at least it isn’t an internal leak so just removing some parts, cleaning up the gunk, putting some new FIPG and o-rings and we are back in action!

 

Nice set up

 

thank you! Really trying not to fall into the same trap as my previous vehicle (overbuilt) considering I’m not into the crawling life. Really want to be methodical on building this one out to be a bug out/camp king.

but then again…my Instagram cool points will go down without full bumpers

 

Diesel heater is here! Size comparison to Jackery 1000 (which will be what I will use to power the heater). Going to run and get some diesel to do the initial cycle. Probably going to use this to heat my garage when in between winter camp trips.

 

I have a diesel heater in my camper.
I kinda wish I'd gotten a self contained one like that that I could have outside.
The one I have is kinda loud.

 

Feel like all of the pumps have some kind of noise unless you drop $$$

 

I did a thing today!!! Super excited through Accutune

 

I've seen a few guys build insulated enclosures for them to cut down on the sound for that reason.
Check out double.o.turtle on IG. similar camper build to yours minus the pop top

 

The fuckery ensues.

fixed the coolant leak where there was little to no FIPG in the coolant bypass tube.

installed auxiliary camp lighting. Ended up spending less than $100 for the entire setup versus only half of it from victory 4x4 which would have been 120 per side. Bought an aluminum yard stick from harbor freight and made my own brackets.

ended up needing to get longer Allen bolts and had to run to Ace and saw this sweet 3rd Gen.

 

Install Tuesday!! Where’s the beef? Merry Christmas

 

Spent a few days in October on the Big Island, and then went over to Oahu and Maui to take advantage of some free nights and airfare the better half had won.



























































Also took a Thanksgiving trip to Florida to visit her family, and rented a bike in the Everglades and spent a day in the Keys (including visiting the other southernmost point in the US). Good times.







Upcoming 2024 Fuckery: I've got over 50,000 miles on my OME suspension, and it's taken me a lot of places that I probably shouldn't have gone on it (Rubicon, specifically). It's time for a major upgrade.

 

Kinda crazy. They are removing a smaller telescope from Maunakea, Cal Tech's submillimeter observatory. The land will be restored and the telescope moved to Chile. Kind of a bummer. Pics of the area are cool!