The Some Day Build... And Trip Log

Sticking this here as a future reference for myself, and for anyone else looking to do some basic manual control of the cheap

$81 MICTUNING C2 Curved RGBW LED Rock Lights - 4 Pods Underglow Multicolor Neon Light with Wiring Switch Kit, Bluetooth Controller with APP Control

Mictuning RGBW C2 rock lights.

results of digging through the bluetooth traffic with a packet sniffer. I am looking at some custom hardware and software to allow me to control some roof rack lights.

UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff2 is the location of the RGB Value in HEX for the color of the light
UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff1 is the location of what I believe to be a state change value when thesse values are entered teh light changes to color of the RGB value in UUID ~fff2

there is no dimming values or strobe values, later on I will play around with the dimming function so that the brightness of the lights can be dimmed through the software I am working on.

Amber

Bluetooth Attribute Protocol
[Service UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff0]
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff2]
Value: ff7f00000000000000000000000000000000
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff1]
Value: 03000100bc02ff000100

Red

Bluetooth Attribute Protocol
[Service UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff0]
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff2]
Value: ff0000000000000000000000000000000000
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff1]
Value: 03010100bc02ff000100

White

Bluetooth Attribute Protocol
[Service UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff0]
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff2]
Value: ffffff000000000000000000000000000000
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff1]
Value: 03020100bc02ff000100

Green

Bluetooth Attribute Protocol
[Service UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff0]
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff2]
Value: 00ff00000000000000000000000000000000
[UUID: 0003cbbb00001000800000805f9bfff1]
Value: 03030100bc02ff000100

 

the info below has been scattered in a couple of threads, and I am bringing in into the thread to make it easier to keep updated...


Well It works...



Custom app to control a 4 channel Bluetooth relay board. the idea is to be able to control future Scene lights

front only
drivers side only
passenger side only
rear only
all lights on

software runs on the tablet dedicated for the truck


I of course love the look of scenePODS MESO designed, for teh upTOP Bravo rack.. but since they take the Baja Design Rock lights, and they come in single colors only. it simply does not meet all of my needs.

So, not being one to give up to easy, I went and did some looking around for some RGB rock lights. I found a cheap Set with decent reviews on Amazon and decided to take a chance. I picked up the new mictuning C2 RGBW set from amazon an started to design a mount to secure the lights to the sides of the roof rack.



here is the first prototype of the housing for the lights.

 

It took a bit of time, but I finally able to pick up a drivers side bed box. It is going into the roundtuit bin for now.

 

Couple new additions to the roof rack.



I ditched the homemade brackets and went with the traction board mounts from uptopoverland. And add a set of grab handles. To the feont as well.

 

This has to be one of the dumbest things Toyota did with the mid-model "refresh". "Hey, you know that thing that a lot of people find really useful, but a few people don't even know exists? Yeah, well we can save $0.50 per truck by leaving it out from now on..."

 

How can I get the mounts and app!? I will pay you lol

 

they are still very much a work in progress. especially the app.

 

no worries any plans to sell?

 

Possibly.. they are getting a bit of interest.

Problem is only have the one printer so printing a set will be slow. However it does give an excuse to buy more printers.

If I don't sell the printed part, I may look into selling the file so it can printed by those who want to.

 

That would be awesome!

 

Well... the pump finally died. Still working kinda. Just doesn't hold /build pressure . So it cycles alot. And it was having trouble with the shower unit attached. Time for a new one.




Wish I could have found a demand pump with the 3/8 fnp threads, the one I did find was rated.at 100psi which was to high for my needs. So the bypass pump will do for now.

The threaded fittings will remove one troublesome source of constant seepage I had on the old pump.


The hoses needed trimmed to fit the new pump, bit everything bolted right back up .

 

Chasing Bigfoot And Waterfalls
A Most Unexpected Journey​

We recently took a long weekend and headed out t the Ouachita National Forest for a last trip before trading the truck in.



The arrival time was after dark, so knowing the area was a good thing, and the new Roof Top Tent was quick and easy to setup in the dark.



Being awaken to the sunrise over the mountain and the sunlight streaming through the trees is never a bad a way to wake up.







being a semi-last minute trip it was time to head into town to grab some food for the weekend, and to check out the Heavener Runestones







The hike down into the valley was short, and the path was well maintained, but it was steep and full of stairs.



























[rune stone text]





There was one more stop that was required before heading to camp. The local Pipe spring is a short drive from the trailhead and the campsite, this allows us to to get teh water once we arrive, and save some weight on the drive.




After camp was setup, we set out to collect some down firewood for the weekend



A short drive and we soon had plenty of firewood for the next couple of days



The Fire pit was in terrible shape, full of ash, and garbage..


Few minutes of cleanup, removing the burnt metal and foil, along with glass jars.. the firepit is looking much better.





We stayed here for in this location for 3 days, and on the 2nd night right about sunset, we got neighbors. Something I was not really pleased about... however, it proved to be interesting. Once they had there camp set up, and a fire going, and they had time to settle in, we walked over to greet them.

Turns out they, where "big foot hunters" and was out looking for the elusive creature. they asked about anything strange or weird we encounter over our trip and previous trips to that area. Bigfoot must not like us, since we never had "abnormal" events happen to us, unless you count the black bear.

There was a night full of conversation, and tales of youthful misadventures.





One place we really wanted to check out on this trip was the Little Missouri Falls, located over in the Caney Creek WMA



The Drive in was spectacular and you could see the change from a softwood forest to hardwood, along with the geological changes. and we soon crossed over a waterfall that streamed down the mountain, and crossed under the road.

(place Holder for more pictures)

Little Missouri Falls is a cascade falls





It was impossible to capture the beauty of the Little Missouri Falls on my little camera phone

On the way to the falls we found this little campsite next to the water.





camp set up for the next couple days

 

Goodbye old friend...



Back to stock. Traded in the 2019 to get away from a lender that had become unbearable to work with.

I was able to get a reasonable deal on a 2021 SR5 4x4. It is still enroute with delivery scheduled for middle of next week.

So the adventure continues anew...

 

May I ask how a lender becomes unbearable to deal with? You make a payment every month and as long as you continue to do that they leave you alone. I suppose if that's not what they were doing j can certainly understand.

 

They locked me out of all there automated payment systems. Then made it very difficult to talk to anyone about my account and a few weeks ago they decided to call the note due in full.

Had some issues early on and a rep put some notes in the file that where not accurate and i Believe it created a.situation where they just decided to exercise there right to call the note due in full.

They did give me the time to seek a refinance or trade in. This was not unexpected. Even if I was surprised to see it happen.

At no time did they put the truck up for repossession during this parting of ways. Even when asked multiple times. All they would say is find a refinance or trade it in on a different vehicle.

 

That is incredibly fucked up. I'm assuming this was not Toyota Financial then? Have you worked with this lender in the past? It wouldn't be a bad idea to post a warning for others once everything is settled if it's a commonly available lender so people don't have to go through the same thing.

 

Well hello, New friend...









Now to start moving mods over.

 

Goodbye on tube steps...



And the sliders are back..



And the roof rack has been transfered over as well.

 

On the last camping trip, I got tired of fighting the pickup on the water system, The old short term solution of just sticking a hose in the water can (something that went on for far longer than I will admit to) along with the problems that came from the hose curling up and sucking air after a few minutes... It was time for a permanent solution.



I picked up a replacement cap for the water cans to modify

$23 Tacticai Water Can Cap and Lid for U.S Issued 5-Gallon (20-Liter) Military Jerry Cans, BPA Free - Tan (1 of 2 Colors)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0892R11MF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8

This way I could retain the original caps for all my water cans.

I would also need,
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-5-8-in-Barb-x-3-4-in-MHT-Brass-Adapter-Fitting-800039/300096114
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-3-4-in-FHT-x-1-2-in-FIP-Brass-Adapter-Fitting-801669/300095984
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-1-2-in-x-2-in-MIP-Brass-Nipple-Fitting-803139/300177194
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbil...ss-Reducing-Coupling-Fitting-802169/300096759

I would then add a 1/2 male threaded to 3/4 PVC adaptor and a section of 3/4 PVC for the new suction tube.




The PVC pipe was cut to length, and the end cut off at an angle to prevent blocking the bottom of the pvc pipe and preventing water flow.



I also drilled some cross holes to help ensure at least some waterflow in case the bottom ever becomes blocked.



The retaining strap and locking nub was cut off and filed smooth, since this will be used on multiple water cans, this will make it bit easier to use.

 

I designed the enclosure for the relay board. was a bit of a practice exercise in parametric design as well. I can see this style of case being used multiple times in the future.







then ran a test print out of PLA. and designed a set of mounting ears to secure it to the load bars





It fits under the front load bar on the roof rack.



After a quick test fit, it was time to print out a much more durable part using Carbon Fiber Nylon, this should handle the heat and vibration much better than the PLA used in the draft print. Print resolution was also increased. after about 14 hours of printing...








The parts to build the wiring harness showed up, and if things go well, I should have it all put together during my off hitch.