blueberry.taco build and adventures

Top quality I've checked out your build progress on IG also, but appreciate it more on a full size monitor.

 

VERY Impressive work and amazing pictures. Keep up the good work.

 

videos of various things on IG but here's a pic of the floor planks mocked on.

 

took a break over memorial day weekend and we went for a 4 day 3 nighter pack rafting trip with a friend in a kayak
our alpackaraft allows us to store all our gear inside the inflatable side tubes which keeps CG low and the boat open for the dog and fishing activities.

Landing zone of Campsite #1, we named “Hooters Camp” because the crazy owls that hooted so much.


Large flock of Canadian geese in semiperfect V formation. Very large.


Tig liked looking at all the huge fish we could see in the clear water. Unfortunately none of them wanted to bite ANY of the lures presented to them





camp 2 we got ourselves our own private little island





Most of the time Tig was trampolining back and forth across the two sides of the boat but every now and then he would relax for a little bit and enjoy the views as we drifted by




Evening snooze for the guard dog after the kayak traffic slowed down



last day on the water

 

spent a looooot of time behind a computer getting the cabinet system finalized.
Who knew it would be so complicated to make sure all the seals, latches, hinges are happy and all the parts are manufacturable via online fab shop capabilities. (really pegging out the size limits constantly)

but everything is kicked off to SendCutSend, and then a few things to Xometry on parts I could not shrink or split into multiple pieces to fit in SendCutSend's size capabilities.
now we wait, but luckily there's plenty of bed floor fab to work on while waiting.

 

making progress on the bed floor
I forget how long it takes to weld everything together when the assembly is just so damn big.
I TIG everything so it takes extra long compared to the spool gun people.

 

heat formed some 1/8" ABS sheets for some high clearance front inner fender liners


temporarily set the camper on the finished bed floor


welded up and bolted on the aux fuel tank skid plate


got a fender mocked on



and photoshopped in the CAD cabinets for what parts i haven't finished welding in yet.
Should look pretty sharp when done!

 

oh and hung out with the pudgier younger sibling.


words cannot describe how big that airdam is, and how much bigger overall the whole truck feels from both inside and outside

 

took a break over the fourth weekend and did a nice easy backpacking trip on the beach of Lake Michigan.
Weather was beautiful all weekend and we all got the relaxation needed before the final push to complete this bed project

 

you could say ive made some real progress

 

Subbed AF for this build.

I see the swing door for it, but does the spare tire arm pivot down?

Dog looks like it's having the time of it's life too!

 

Wow what a incredible build and journey
First class craftsman no doubt

 

Yup,



thanks for the compliments you guys,

been busy doing shakedowns every weekend since the mechanical bits were finished up. so quick update.

sheeted the inside of the aluminum fenders with ABS sheet to help protect the aluminum + keep the rock pinging down



first shakedown was to mainly test the fuel system. Happy to say we successfully ran over 500 miles on a single fill up, no issues, no CELs, and fillup was a breeze.
with the single fill neck, just the main tank fills at the first click of the pump, then slow down the fill rate to fill up the aux tank, which then auto shuts off the pump when that gets full too.


wasn't done with the vinyl wrapping yet so it looks a touch goofy but testing takes priority

Dog was super happy to be camping and not just building all the time




Following weekend we took it to a local ORV park with the camper on to do some more articulation and bumpiness testing, and used the sand drag strip to do some light suspension tuning.
(been slacking on pictures, but we post to Instagram more often)

 

added dual cold air intakes! ...for the ARB twin compressor

I'm using the Slee bracket in the engine bay and always pop the hood when I'm airing up, but been killing the pressure switch due to corrosion every year.
ARB has been great at sending replacements, but the 3 year warranty just ran out so I'm trying to keep the switches alive longer.
My theory is the hot/warm air from the engine bay contains a bunch of moisture and when it cools, it condenses and rusts out the pressure switch.
hopefully by pulling cooler air from above the wheel well will keep intake temps down.

 

I really like your “cold air intake” idea for the air compressor. Pretty slick! Make sure to leave updates and let us know if it works later down the road.

I’m still contemplating where to mount mine, but if I end up under the hood I would consider using your idea.

 

clicked the build thread and....

holy 4th gen batman