Simple yet Satisfying DCLB

Thanks. I really like those, but I can't justify the $150 for something that small right now. I'm still paying for the wedding, honeymoon, rings, and modifying the house to be less bachelor-ish. Maybe someday later on if I don't like the cheap fix....

 

Steve at @SoutheastOverland has an Ultimate Trail Products thimble that I use, much cheaper than Factor 55.

 

Thank you! I just went to www.southeastoverland.com
They have a lot of great stuff. They also offer synthetic line splicing which I didn't even know was a thing. I'll definitely be shopping there from time to time.

 

I highly recommend it, Steve is an awesome dude.

 

So, with the crazy schedule we've had, there has been no off-road exploring or camping since last September. I normally avoid camping during the "dog days" of summer, but I've been having the itch. We are going to URE national forest next weekend! I started work on a battery powered air conditioner today for the hot night(s).
Progress so far:


I plan to fill the cooler with ice and install this fan in the lid. With the fan pushing air into it, I'm betting it pushes out some pretty cold air.

 

I was hoping to go to URE next Saturday morning, if I can take the time off work

 

I decided not to camp because of stupid heat. Instead, I built a shelf for the behind rear seat storage. I used a scrap piece of 20ga 3 5/8" metal framing track I had laying around. I made one for both the driver and passenger sides.


I had removed the rear plastic a while ago but since put it back due to road noise. For anyone wondering, the Husky bag is a 14" tool bag from Home Depot. It fits perfectly. Here is what I keep in mine.

 

Also, in an effort to just make the dumb sock go away, I taped up the sun bleached winch line. I just used electrical tape.

 

I didn't make it out last time I planned to. The wife and I have a URE trip planned next weekend though, so I figured I'd finish the "air conditioner". I made it out of an old cooler and a battery fan that I've been using for a couple years. I finished it and tested it out today, and it's not bad. Of course, I'll report back after using it for a night.

 

Had a great trip to Uwharrie with the wife last weekend! We camped, kayaked, and beat on the truck. I haven't had time to get the pictures from the camera yet (I didn't take very many), but I figured I would report on the ghetto air conditioner.

It actually worked!

....at least for half the night till the ice turned into warm water. It didn't freeze us out of the tent, but inside was 5-10° cooler than outside for a few hours. Placing it at our heads felt great too.

Two things I plan to change:

1. Fill it with more ice next time.
2. Plug the vent holes with more than just duct tape during the day. We had a lot of ice melt before the sun even went down.

I normally try to avoid camping during the hottest months, but I'm glad to have found a way to take the edge off of our hot nights.

 

pretty cool build you got going on!

 

Thanks! Your is looking good too.

 

I finally made the rear passenger seat removable. I had done the driver's side a while ago, so this was super easy. Here's a small write up for those that want to do this:
First, you will need to pick up 4 of these (or 2 if you just want to do one seat): http://m.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-1-4-in-x-3-in-Zinc-Plated-Cotterless-Hitch-Pin-815588/204225914

Then remove the rear seat(s) and remove the hinges. Look closely at a hinge's pivot pin, and you will notice that one end of the pin is a little bigger than the other (hard to explain but look at the next couple pictures). Find a way support the hinge with small pin end up, so you can grind it off.

Then grind the head off. There is no need to grind it flush, as that would cause you to grind into the hinge itself.

Next set a punch over the freshly ground head and drive the pin out. Notice that I supported the hinge but left room between the vice for the pin to drop.

This is how the removed pin looks. Now you can see why it is important to do this from the smaller pine head (the pin is tapered).

Next remove the 2 plastic bushings and enlarge the holes where the pin was removed (the side that had bushings will not need the holes enlarged). You will need to use a 1/4" drill bit and ream the hole out a little till the new pin moves freely through it.

Slide the new pins in and reinstall the seat. You will notice that I removed the metal rings in favor of a small zip tie. This was due to a faint rattling when I first did mine.

Your done! Now enjoy never needing to unbolt the seat again.

 

thanks

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...uick-install-kit.171805/page-75#post-10621519

Saved for when I'm ready to convert my rear sliding window to power. I'm still researching this but @Acka took the time to put this together. Thanks!

This will probably be postponed till mid winter when I'm tucked away inside the heated garage.

 

One more power rear window link:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...quick-install-kit.171805/page-71#post-8006626
Some good ideas here.

 

Let me know if you have questions when you go to do this. I have more pictures of my setup and am happy to answer questions.

 

Awesome, will do. Thanks!

 

Here's some pictures from our trip to Uwharrie the weekend of August 27th. I finally put the pictures on the computer. I made a temporary rack out of 2x4's to see if the kayaks will work out of the way of the tent, and that setup worked pretty good.

 

Enjoyed the pics! Nice impromptu rack, lol. Very cool you got to treat the Mom in-law.