The Getaway...Crom's build and adventures

I don't remember what brand I got for panels. I bought them here two years ago. Brand really is not too important though, they all more or less do the same thing. Good luck with your install. Make your own thread if you like and we can discuss it further if you want.

 

Cool. Yea, maybe I will start a thread to get advice on the whole thing -- battery, sleeping platform, etc. I'm actually recovering from surgery now so probably in a couple weeks. I figure the thread would be useless without pics anyway
BTW, I have a first gen Taco. Anything I should be aware of as far as difference in wiring from what you did?
And if you know anyone up here in nor-cal who would want to help me, send them my way!

 

Sub'd for inspiration from a very efficient, useful build. Nice job!!

 

Got this $8 lawn and garden sprayer for easy water access. Works better than I could have imagined. My kids love it and it makes cleaning up messes faster and more convenient. My wife had the idea putting the ghost busters sticker on it, love it!

A mini quickfast that used to hold a small squirt bottle is now used to keep the sprayer wand out of the way.

It's vehicle mounted, yet portable, loosen the cam buckle and take away.
Awesome sauce!

 

Just got back from Sierra Nat'l Forest / Yosemite Nat'l Park. Four nights camping.

 

Too bad you didn't' get to stop and soak in the Merced river, but I do understand. The valley can be a bit ridiculous during summer time with the crowds. My wife and I like the Yosemite Village Store. It's a neat place to walk around and talk to people. People come from all over the globe to visit Yosemite and I enjoy learning about where they come from and what they're home is like, how their travels are going, exchange information, etc. This year we met some nice folks from the Netherlands at Glacier point.

A nice tip I offer to people is to just pull over wherever you can on the valley road, any pullout will work. Take a short hike (50 yards) to the Merced and just picnic there away from folks. This year we were under the gun to get to San Jose after camping to meet family, and we too could not pull over and just drove through the valley.

 

I like it.

 

Great pictures like always. Dang, I miss the west coast sometimes. Last time I was in Yosemite we did the loop (of course), but there were soooo many people. We did a 2 mile hike, and the crowds disappeared. That was 2 years ago, so I live a little vicariously through your pics.

 

Glad you like them. Life passes by pretty fast now, pictures are one way for me to pause and remember. When I saw half dome last week, I said to myself: Hi friend, I remember you from 8 and 9 years ago when I hiked it in my 20's. Back then, it was a permittless trail. And on a weekend the world was up there. Heh. I think I may do it again with my oldest daughter when she is capable.

The dangerous cables

 

That's does not look like fun

 

It was not. It was straight up dangerous. Letting go of the cables = death. Here is a rare close up view of what was happening.



I'm told that the permit system, made traffic jams like this a thing of the past.

 

^This. The congestion added untold orders of magnitude in danger. As I recall there were a number of folks who were on the cables who had no business being there.

 

Thanks Ding, I'm looking forward to it now since @tyfoon11 blazed the trial for me. His were bent more than mine so, I'm hoping that means less wrangling and cursing.

 

Good looking truck! Have a couple questions about the shell. Did those racks come installed on there or did you put them on? Also after adding the vent to it, how much cooler does it keep the inside of the shell? I have the same shell and want to add a rack to it and the heat here in Oklahoma keeps it quite hot in there. Thanks.

 

Thanks. The Yakima rack/track was installed by A.R.E at their factory. The vent mod was dramatic and very necessary. I measured temps at the roof line 150F in sunny days in the summer. Now it's just warm, no matter how hot it is outside.

 

Thanks, I might look into installing a vent.

 

On July 3rd, 2015, I took out the original JBA UCA's that had problems contacting the coil bucket under compression and installed an updated HD version which had an increased radius to clear the coil bucket.

It was not too difficult, just had to tap the UCA cross bolt out with hammer and punch.







I also did minor brake pad maintenance by cleaning the pins and adding a second brake pad spring.

 

It was. Thanks. Getting it aligned tomorrow. I had a 1K mile trip when the UCA was bent and it caused uneven wear on the Duratrac. I'm curious to see what the alignment will be. Will it be good or need adjustment?

 

Today I packed all of our dedicated camp kitchen items into a 3-drawer toolbox. Test fit good in the truck! This solved a major pain point for us and eliminated an 18 gallon rubber made tote from our camp kitchen. So exciting to have access to our gear without unpacking the truck! So much win!



Sample first drawer items:


Second drawer items:


Third drawer not pictured has:
Two cast iron skillets 10 and 8 inch, one non-stick pan, alum foil, saran wrap, two cutting boards, camp toaster, and dish towel, trash bags, propane.

 

Nice job with organization. You make me laugh at myself with my disorganization. I think I have kitchen stuff in 2 different boxes...maybe 3.