The Some Day Build... And Trip Log

Eventually I may add a light bar, but I am more likely to add the scene pods especially once I can add RGB. I want the option for something other than white for night vision purposes along with keeping bugs away. with the option for White when it is wanted

Anything is technically possible, a matter of skill and the tools and equipment at your disposal.. maybe @Doozy4212 and @upTOPoverland will offer a fairing only option in the future. if asked nicely ...

 

Looks awesome! Great write up!

 

nicely???? What is that?

NO it’s happening, dual pods or die coming soon!

 

Nice! Great idea. How is this holding up for you long term?

 

not a single issue with it so far... one of the best things I have done to the truck.

 

Small package of small stuff arrived today... I am expecting the wire and a few other little items to get the main panel finished up.

 

Why go Overlanding?

Go Underlanding!
​

A short little Trip to Burnet Texas to the Longhorn Cavern for a short tour.




First stop was to admire the construction of the Old Administration building built by the CCC in 1930's











Old Hand forged hardware







Then Off to the cave...

 

Good Morning Chris
I need to go checkout the cave, never done that one.

 

it was a fun little trip. it was interesting to see the geology of the cave change on the tour. They mentioned there was actaully 3 different levels to it.

 

Good Morning Chris

 

Morning... hows the knee doing

 

Better it’s not hurting all the time now. Can actually get some sleep

 

Hey... Just wanted to say thanks for putting all the info about the 2-wheel low mod in your thread a couple pages back. It still took me like 4 hours total for all the stuff I tackled today (stupid air-bag took close to 30min), but I appreciate the pictures and walk-through you put in your thread. It was a big help. Did the 2-WL, 400W any-time, additional in-cab 120V and DC outlets and a few other things today. Just wanted to say your thread was appreciated.

-

 

Under The Highway

Inner Space Caverns
​

Today, we returned to a local spot we have not been to in a long time. Inner Space Caverns In Georgetown Texas. The Cavern was discovered during construction of I-35, an is privately owned.




The man Made entrance to the cavern. and the start of the tour.



random pictures...
























You can see the hole in the roof of the cavern where the drill crew broke through. and you can read The personal account of James W. Sansom the Texas Highway Department Geologist who was one of the first into the newly discovered cavern



"The Flowing Stone of Time" Core sample testing indicates it is about 27,000 years old.

















For those interested in some of the research done.. Inner Space Cave: Discovery and geological and paleontological investigations

 

Never been to Carlsbad caverns yet, but it is on the visit list. One of the caves that is also on the list is about 4 hours from Big Bend National Park. So, we are planning a trip to the cave, and then a trip to Big Bend.

 

Last time I used the water pump, I noticed it was leaking. The leak was not terrible, and it was contained in the Apache case, which lead to the discovery the case still holds water. The rubber feet from the pump sealed the small holes up nicely.

After tearing down and inspecting everything, the rubber parts for tears or nicks, and the plastic for cracks or other defects. I cleaned everything up an reassembled it. When I went to test the pump again, the leak was not as bad, but still there. So once more I tore the pump down, dried all the parts off. I then applied a thin bead of clear silicone to the mating surfaces of part #10 and #5 in the below diagram. along with a thin bead around the edge of the diaphragm.

I let everything dry for a couple of hours, and retested. This time the leak was gone.



How long this fix will last, I have no idea. it was to the point where I was going to have to either buy parts to fix it, or replace the pump. This pump had lived most of its life in my Jeep, and has probably been frozen at least once. So I did not want to risk buying a new diaphragm or check valve only to find the housing had a fine crack that I missed.

 

Those caves are awesome!

 

Just some fun pictures from the weekend.







Gonna need some Skid plates...



Sliders gonna slide...

 

Earlier as I was sitting in my office at the house I happened to look over at the shelf where some Kapton film was sitting, and it generated a big "what if..." I had just been looking at some Amber light bars, when it struck me that the Kapton film is not only amber, but capable of withstanding high heat as well. ~750°F

Of course this now requires me to try out and see if it works. So I grabbed a newly acquired spare light, and clean the lense with some 91% isopropyl alcohol.



I started by applying a single layer of the Kapton film. something that is a bit tricky to do neatly and bubble free since the film is so thin.




I ended up applying a second layer of the film, as it seemed to have a slightly better amber color then the single layer. As you can see in the picture, there are several spots that have bubbles. while the appearance is not neat to look at, it did not seem noticeable in the light beam



short video showing a few tricks in applying the Kapton film that I found AFTER doing this little experiment, perhaps I will try redoing the film using the water method as shown in the video.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kapton

$20 Gizmo Dorks Kapton Tape (Polyimide) for 3D Printers and Printing, 12 x 12"es, 10 Sheets per Pack

https://www.amazon.com/Gizmo-Dorks-Polyimide-Printers-Printing/dp/B01MQKA00X?ref_=ast_bbp_dp

 

One step closer to be able to finally use this mod...

The parts to build the battery cables arrived today, So made up the short #4 jumper to tie the ground busses together, along with the Cable from the circuit breaker to the RTMR.





got it installed in the truck along with making the new battery cables to get the PDC powered up.



started running out of daylight before getting the new battery terminals installed along with the PDC cables