DCLB Overland/Long-Term living build

Spending the week in Kauai, Hawaii. Shot a timelapse the first day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkFWxeOMubI&feature=youtu.be

got a bunch of footage to edit into a short film.
truck updates and exploration photos will come once i get back to colorado

 

Now that it is finally winter up here in the High Country of CO how is the set up working out for you? Are you still able to find places to sleep with the roads now getting snowed in?

 

went looking for some spots earlier, no issues in 1ft of snow so far.
But some health issues came up and sadly ill be selling the truck soon i have Zero faith in the VA so all my medical bills are out of pocket.

 

@EricU sorry to hear. sending prays your way. Hope the VA comes through for you.

 

super sorry to hear. sending you all the positive vibes i have

 

Hang in there man, hate to hear this.

 

It always makes me so sad to read something like this. I've never met OP, never will, barely chatted on here, but that's just the TW community. I feel like all the members on here are my brothers. My fingers are crossed for you Eric.

 

thanks for the kind words. luckily i caught it now and am taking the steps to deal with it so everything should be A-OK.
also lucky that my dad or brother in law will be buying the truck so at least its not going far ha. Some parts will come off as my dad hates projector headlights and the stereo is a bit much for him as well ha (he does love his Focal system in his tundra that i installed though)

My brother is soon to lift my old 05 v8 4x4 4r i sold him a few years ago so ill just post photos of that when i go with him offroad

 

Glad to hear that there is positive to your situation. Hang in there!

 

sorry man .. that sucks! I loved this build and your live-out-of-truck mentality.

 

well i figured out all my health related stuff. good to go now and i have kept the truck.

Some of the wood work in the bed was removed, the Bed/Storage is still installed for when i go camping, fridge is removed and the interior is back to stock.

Pulled out the fancy stereo stuff (have a Pioneer DEH-80PRS headunit, PPI 900.5 amp, and a Alpine Type R 8" in a ported box for sale... the sub has cracked on the plastic part so with some gorilla tape or something it will be "good enough" for something not seen, still works)

Pulled the

$48 JBL P660c JBL Stage 8602 360W Max (120W RMS) 6" x 8" 4 ohms Stage Series 2-Way Coaxial Car Audio Speakers

JBL P660c components, swapped in some Polk Audio 6.5s and put the Dayton RS180's in the stock tweeter spot so i have a basic 3-way setup again. going to add an alpine power pack in there with the stock touch screen.

I need to polish and wax the whole truck again since the offroad pinstriping is showing again HA!

Heading back to school to finish a degree i started a few years back, so i am excited about that. Will be back in Denver area for the next 1-2 years.

EBC Brakes, SS Lines, Wheelers super bumps going on this week.

Alignment scheduled for later in the week to pus the tires as far forward within specs as possible

Did a quick and dirty cab mount chop last week as well as a full interior cleaning with a carpet cleaner vaccum and oxy clean ha, smells fresh once again.

Still need to fix my projectors but im lazy on that one and just need to set a day to wake up early and do it.

Working on my photography again(slacked for about 2 yrs) and slowly teaching myself video editing with premier pro

 

Good to hear that you kept your truck!

 

Yeah, i hope to have it until i graduate next year hopefully then might go back to a diesel van to turn into a camper, or if i can find one, do a 4x4 conversion on a toyota chinook or sunrader rv. Ultimate camper mode ha

 

after two weeks of researching on Amazon and google for best bang for the buck LED light bar and pods. I am going to order some knock off brand bumper mount light bar brackets to hold an Eyourlife 30" bar, and flush mount Eyourlife reverse/rear flood lights into the factory bumper. Using CH4x4 switches and whatever relays i can get locally.

Going to give Wheelers some more money and get the TC Bed stiffeners ordered since i have some spreading of the bed at the top of the tailgate.

If i can find anyone who has 887s and wants 886s in Colorado, i will swap coils with ya ha, I am wanting to drop down to the 590lb spring rate since plans for a winch and bumper wont happen.

By early spring or whenever snow melts enough to work on the ground at the cabin i stay at sometimes, i plan to remove the top overload leaf on my Dakar pack.(Or if anyone around denver with a jack and stands wants to help me with that since i cant work on the truck at my apartment)
Hopefully gain a little bit of easier flex, but mainly to drop the ride height down in the rear. Since ive taken out all the major living stuff(Fridge, clothes dresser and all the wood on the passenger side of the bed the rear end sits much higher now) I am going to keep the Wheelers long AAL in the pack to help carry a load when i do load it with gear.

Another spring project is to re install my second battery in the bed of the truck, then wire up 4x 4 LED flush mount flood lights to the topper for "camp lights" mainly for when gathering firewood or setting up camp. As well as a strip of Red LEDs and White LEDS to the inside of the camper shell back window frame, so that when its open i can have a flood light style over the tail gate if cooking back there. Those will be on a SPDT switch to keep it simple.

Nothing too crazy to add on, just a few things to make it more user friendly while offroading/camping this coming spring/summer/fall ( open invite to join for anyone in colorado or who will be visiting colorado)

 

Also an update on the brake "upgrade" EBC premium rotors (coated black to prevent rust and corrosion, obviously wears off where the pads hit) EBC Green Stuff Pads, SS Brake lines. have about 1500 miles on them since install 2 weeks ago. With normal day to day driving they are very similar to stock braking, but when you need to slam on the brakes they grab much better. Also did a full brake fluid flush after the install so the fluid is fresh. Installed them just before i hit 50k miles so i have to good number to go off of to see how long they last.

 

Got stuck today against a 3 ft wall of snow, every time i moved forward or back, it put more snow up the side of the door and packed up underneath the truck on all the cross members, control arms and axle. Huge chunks of ice wedged up places causing all kinds of drag when trying to move. after 3 hours of digging and getting a yank by my dads truck multiple times we finally got it free.

I do not want to dig in snow for 3 hours every again so i am on the hunt for a winch, does anyone have a suggestion for a budget winch? Had an XRC9500 for my 1st gen but never installed it, only tore it apart and repacked it with good grease. Smittybilt XRC is a T-Maxx winch for anyone curious, its stamped on the inside of the case. Will need the solenoid to be remotely mounted.

I am looking at the Pelfreybilt Hybrid bumper to get in on the free shipping this month. (until the 15th). I wish this stuff wasnt so expensive ha. But compared to a powdercoated HWMS with D rings, the pelyfrey bumper is only $70 more so thats a no brainer to get a better approach angle.

Also, on the topic of Maxtrax, TREDS, Maxas or other similar recovery tread boards, which are the best bang for the buck? These would have come in handy today as well as my dads 2wd tacoma loses traction way to easy and just spins on the snow until it turns to ice ha.

 

With a winch and traction board you will basically never get stuck, even solo.

I use an xrc 9500 synthetic that I got on sale, and have used it several times with 0 complaints other than the glue they use instead of grease. I mounted the solenoid inside my Pelfreybilt bumper, but had to make my own mount to do it so that the plug faces towards the opening in the front. I've done lots of water crossings with it there and it still works fine. I believe it's the older ones that it was necessary to keep out of the water.

As for traction boards, I only have experience with the tred pro's of which I have four, and I got them during the Kickstarter. I'm not sure what their current price is, but I know that it's less than maxtrax, and they have life time warranty. I have used mine many many times for myself and others, mostly in the snow, but some times in sand, and I wouldn't go off road without them any more, especially in snow.

I think that any traction board does a great job, and each has its pros and cons. I personally like mine because of the dual composite design so that the lugs are out of a plastic that doesn't melt with wheel spin (proven) but the rest is still flexible.

Out of all my gear, I have used my shovel the most, snatch strap second, treds third, winch fourth, and hi lift only to change tires, but never to recover.

Hopefully that helps a little!

 

Thats great to hear about the Treds.

I found a deal on a Superwinch LP8500 for just under $290 shipped, not sure if the extra $100 would be worth it for the 10k winch.
I figure with a snatch block and that i dont plan to get stuck in sticky mud an 8500 pound line pull would be plenty, considering i just need that extra tug most times and not a long pull.

I just need to sell the Kubota RTV900 i fixed up asap.

 

Ordered some Air On Board switches today per a recommendation from my friend Dave so i can get the in cab wiring done for the future front light bar, reverse lights and camp lights on the shell.

going to go ahead and get the switches installed and connected to relays in the engine bay and just leave the prong to the lights open so the "hard part" is done and all i have to do is run the power to the lights then ground them.

I did think about doing a switch for the left and right side of the camper for the flood lights, but figured where i camp, theres no people on either side of me so i might as well have both sides lit up. For the time being ill have the camp lights switch in the cab, but that may change to a switch in the bed and on the second battery so its easier to access while camping and i can turn them on/off from inside the bed when its time to go to sleep.

Anyone who has used those LED strips, i know that the adhesive sometimes isnt the best, but what would a good way to secure it to the aluminum frame of the camper shell glass be? Im going to wire up red and white strip lighting to be used to light up the tailgate area.