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Last Call Guest on these Group Buy Deal Items from Baja Designs
"Tiny" - A Semi Project
- Thread starter snivilous
- Start date
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
That's awesome!
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Got any Tiny updates?
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #154
No photos of anything. In July did 1000 mile camping trip up into Wyoming, on the way back picked up a truck in Salt lake City and trailered it down. That's the only action it's had in awhile, been a busy summer so not a lot of wrenching on my own stuff. No issues with it though, it's become the dogs castle to hang out on/under.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Sounds good all around there!
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #156
Tiny is back in the stable! 1,807,608 mile update!
I dropped Tiny off at a friend's place a few weeks ago since he was willing to do some maintenance and upgrades. I would tell my friends I'd pay them to fix the air leaks, and they'd say they don't want me to pay them but they'll help me. Yea no, the point is I don't want to **** with the air lines
I usually like to do all the work myself, but there's a time and place where **** that, and air leaks were one of those things for me.
A lot more work than just air leaks was done, albeit you can't see much. He changed the diff fluids, trans fluid, and front hub oil.
Transmission drain:
Front axle drain:
Rear axle drain:
He said everything looked good, though the rear diff was was half gallon low and a bit questionable but no chunks or anything alarming. He called it "excessive normal wear".
He also replaced the speakers in the cab. Got rid of the rust stains on the sides and removed my huge "not for hire" stickers for some tiny ones
He also did a quick polish job on the wheels (I yelled at him to do the tanks, but his opinion was they would look horrible since your eyes would get drawn to them more then and they wouldn't look anything special, I think he's full of **** but since he refused to do it makes no difference). He replaced all six shocks, plus the four cab shocks. The cab leveling valve was all rusted and broke in the process so that got replaced. There was some air manifold under the truck as I recall that leaked bad so he replaced it. He also crawled all around it inspecting stuff, and said nothing looked bad and looked like it had been regularly greased and considering it has almost two million miles was in pretty good shape which I was stoked to hear!
It was about $1000 in parts and $1000 in labor.
And I actually noticed a difference right off the bat, because before my top speed was limited to 77mph before the front end wanted to vibrate apart, and on the drive home I set cruise control at 80mph and she was happy as a clam! Shocks definitely made a difference! And parking it, no screaming air leaks (can't hear anything leaking for that matter) and a day later and the air bags still have pressure so that's an upgrade from before
and music sounds a bit better inside too. Some very noticeable improvements, and all the fluids have been replaced now.
I'm going to make a couple convenience upgrades in the near future for strapping the buggy down. Right now I can't really run a strap to the front, so I run the front axle straps back to the mid deck mounts and then the rear axle forward to the mid deck mounts, which works but I feel like could be a bit better. I'm not sure of a good front mount for the front axle that you can easily access, so I'm thinking of adding D-rings either on the side of the deck and running straps around the tires, or add D-rings at the front/outside of the deck so the front axle straps will wrap around the tire and pull forward and then I can use the straps on the dovetail for the rear axle. Either way, if I can avoid having to climb onto the deck to strap it down that would be nice. And I'd also like to build some ramp mounts.
But in the mean time, the Tiny is back and the buggy is in wheeling form again so it's time to put miles on the two!
I dropped Tiny off at a friend's place a few weeks ago since he was willing to do some maintenance and upgrades. I would tell my friends I'd pay them to fix the air leaks, and they'd say they don't want me to pay them but they'll help me. Yea no, the point is I don't want to **** with the air lines
I usually like to do all the work myself, but there's a time and place where **** that, and air leaks were one of those things for me.A lot more work than just air leaks was done, albeit you can't see much. He changed the diff fluids, trans fluid, and front hub oil.
Transmission drain:
Front axle drain:
Rear axle drain:
He said everything looked good, though the rear diff was was half gallon low and a bit questionable but no chunks or anything alarming. He called it "excessive normal wear".
He also replaced the speakers in the cab. Got rid of the rust stains on the sides and removed my huge "not for hire" stickers for some tiny ones
He also did a quick polish job on the wheels (I yelled at him to do the tanks, but his opinion was they would look horrible since your eyes would get drawn to them more then and they wouldn't look anything special, I think he's full of **** but since he refused to do it makes no difference). He replaced all six shocks, plus the four cab shocks. The cab leveling valve was all rusted and broke in the process so that got replaced. There was some air manifold under the truck as I recall that leaked bad so he replaced it. He also crawled all around it inspecting stuff, and said nothing looked bad and looked like it had been regularly greased and considering it has almost two million miles was in pretty good shape which I was stoked to hear!It was about $1000 in parts and $1000 in labor.
And I actually noticed a difference right off the bat, because before my top speed was limited to 77mph before the front end wanted to vibrate apart, and on the drive home I set cruise control at 80mph and she was happy as a clam! Shocks definitely made a difference! And parking it, no screaming air leaks (can't hear anything leaking for that matter) and a day later and the air bags still have pressure so that's an upgrade from before
and music sounds a bit better inside too. Some very noticeable improvements, and all the fluids have been replaced now.I'm going to make a couple convenience upgrades in the near future for strapping the buggy down. Right now I can't really run a strap to the front, so I run the front axle straps back to the mid deck mounts and then the rear axle forward to the mid deck mounts, which works but I feel like could be a bit better. I'm not sure of a good front mount for the front axle that you can easily access, so I'm thinking of adding D-rings either on the side of the deck and running straps around the tires, or add D-rings at the front/outside of the deck so the front axle straps will wrap around the tire and pull forward and then I can use the straps on the dovetail for the rear axle. Either way, if I can avoid having to climb onto the deck to strap it down that would be nice. And I'd also like to build some ramp mounts.
But in the mean time, the Tiny is back and the buggy is in wheeling form again so it's time to put miles on the two!
Awesome! That's not a terrible bill, considering.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Glad to see some “Tiny” updates. 
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #159
Tiny update 1,809,277 miles!
Tiny got a couple upgrades before going to KOH. Once I had the buggy prepped I pulled Tiny into the shop, the only thing I really wanted to add was an electric brake controller in the event I needed to tow my friends 24ft enclosed.
There's air to electric converters, but from reading it sounded like the easiest option was to get a traditional brake controller and wire it in. Simple enough, but I ended up having to add a brake switch specifically for the controller since the stock brake switch is hooked up to ground instead of +12V, and I couldn't tie into the brake lights since they double as blinkers so don't have a dedicated brake positive wire.
I was also concerned about getting stuck, Tiny only has an axle disconnect like a conventional 4WD and no differential lockers. I was worried there wouldn't be a good way to pull it out, but it turns out there's hitch receivers coming straight off the frame rails in the front! I bought some D-ring hitch receivers, though the Tiny receivers are apparently slightly smaller than 2" so I had to throw them on the mill and shave them down a bit but Tiny now has easy to access recovery points!
I also went to get Tiny's annual inspection, which it failed due to a cracked windshield, no license plate light, and a broken roof marker. Even though it's registered as a RV it needs an annual inspection for $40. Those items are on the list of things to fix, but I also fixed and did some trivial upgrades to other things. The flat bar holding the rear planks on the deck had one of the welds break since it was essentially tacked down but has turned into a traction aid for the buggy so I went ahead and burned that in fully. The fuse box under the dash has some fasteners I always forget about to access it so strategically deleted some bolts, reattached some stuff that was missing bolts, the wife cleaned up the inside, and made some provisions for a heater buddy, etc.
I ended up grabbing my friends buggy to tow down to KOH.
Cruise set at 78mph like usual and she was happy! I was nervous about the California border check point but we cruised through it, and then I just matched speed with whatever semi passed us, which ended up as a group of us doing 70mph! We didn't even stop once from Utah to KOH and only used 45 gallons, about 20% of the tank!
No issues getting to our camp site. Had to drop the trailer and then pull forward to unload my buggy. Tiny ended up serving more or less as the base camp throughout the week since the weather was so nice. We set up a grille and used it as a big table, and also set up the shower tent!
Tiny is so absolutely cool. In the gear pass through and passenger side toolbox we stuffed all the parts and tools. We had helmets, propane, a hot water heater, axle shafts, driveshafts, an entire spare tcase, toolboxes, power tools, etc. etc. all without taking up interior space or putting anything on the bed! The amount of storage is so nice.
EDIT: Well at this point irate decided to delete everything I said, and I'm too lazy to repost it so I'll do a quick resummary.
The inside setup looks like a bit of a cluster but was really comfy. The wife replaced the OEM windshield curtain that had plastic clips always breaking for a fold up one and it worked great and kept it really dark in the cab, and helped keep the dust out even with the windows open. I kept my backpack and clean clothes in the drivers seat, my jump suit and big jackets under the bed/behind the shifter area, and then used the passenger area for quick access stuff and changing.
Two additional features I learned about after a year of ownership is what I thought was a weird footrest is actually a foot pedal to quickly rotate the steering column out of the way! And the rear window vents dont just pop out to the back but also forwards, so they can either suck air out or act as air scoops which is really cool! I always thought just popping backwards was kind of useless, but as scoops they flow a lot of air in.
On the return trip my friends buggy went in another friends enclosed, and I grabbed another friends FJ40 to work on in the next few months. Round trip was like 800 miles, and Tiny burned 95gal and got an average of 8.4mpg! Towing a trailer, two vehicles, parts and tools, and an entire apartment at 75mph and getting 8+ mpg is awesome! I couldn't be happier with Tiny's performance, and this trip was the pinnacle of its usefulness.
Tiny got a couple upgrades before going to KOH. Once I had the buggy prepped I pulled Tiny into the shop, the only thing I really wanted to add was an electric brake controller in the event I needed to tow my friends 24ft enclosed.
There's air to electric converters, but from reading it sounded like the easiest option was to get a traditional brake controller and wire it in. Simple enough, but I ended up having to add a brake switch specifically for the controller since the stock brake switch is hooked up to ground instead of +12V, and I couldn't tie into the brake lights since they double as blinkers so don't have a dedicated brake positive wire.
I was also concerned about getting stuck, Tiny only has an axle disconnect like a conventional 4WD and no differential lockers. I was worried there wouldn't be a good way to pull it out, but it turns out there's hitch receivers coming straight off the frame rails in the front! I bought some D-ring hitch receivers, though the Tiny receivers are apparently slightly smaller than 2" so I had to throw them on the mill and shave them down a bit but Tiny now has easy to access recovery points!
I also went to get Tiny's annual inspection, which it failed due to a cracked windshield, no license plate light, and a broken roof marker. Even though it's registered as a RV it needs an annual inspection for $40. Those items are on the list of things to fix, but I also fixed and did some trivial upgrades to other things. The flat bar holding the rear planks on the deck had one of the welds break since it was essentially tacked down but has turned into a traction aid for the buggy so I went ahead and burned that in fully. The fuse box under the dash has some fasteners I always forget about to access it so strategically deleted some bolts, reattached some stuff that was missing bolts, the wife cleaned up the inside, and made some provisions for a heater buddy, etc.
I ended up grabbing my friends buggy to tow down to KOH.
Cruise set at 78mph like usual and she was happy! I was nervous about the California border check point but we cruised through it, and then I just matched speed with whatever semi passed us, which ended up as a group of us doing 70mph! We didn't even stop once from Utah to KOH and only used 45 gallons, about 20% of the tank!
No issues getting to our camp site. Had to drop the trailer and then pull forward to unload my buggy. Tiny ended up serving more or less as the base camp throughout the week since the weather was so nice. We set up a grille and used it as a big table, and also set up the shower tent!
Tiny is so absolutely cool. In the gear pass through and passenger side toolbox we stuffed all the parts and tools. We had helmets, propane, a hot water heater, axle shafts, driveshafts, an entire spare tcase, toolboxes, power tools, etc. etc. all without taking up interior space or putting anything on the bed! The amount of storage is so nice.
EDIT: Well at this point irate decided to delete everything I said, and I'm too lazy to repost it so I'll do a quick resummary.
The inside setup looks like a bit of a cluster but was really comfy. The wife replaced the OEM windshield curtain that had plastic clips always breaking for a fold up one and it worked great and kept it really dark in the cab, and helped keep the dust out even with the windows open. I kept my backpack and clean clothes in the drivers seat, my jump suit and big jackets under the bed/behind the shifter area, and then used the passenger area for quick access stuff and changing.
Two additional features I learned about after a year of ownership is what I thought was a weird footrest is actually a foot pedal to quickly rotate the steering column out of the way! And the rear window vents dont just pop out to the back but also forwards, so they can either suck air out or act as air scoops which is really cool! I always thought just popping backwards was kind of useless, but as scoops they flow a lot of air in.
On the return trip my friends buggy went in another friends enclosed, and I grabbed another friends FJ40 to work on in the next few months. Round trip was like 800 miles, and Tiny burned 95gal and got an average of 8.4mpg! Towing a trailer, two vehicles, parts and tools, and an entire apartment at 75mph and getting 8+ mpg is awesome! I couldn't be happier with Tiny's performance, and this trip was the pinnacle of its usefulness.
Maybe you mentioned it in another part of the thread but what trans and rear gear do you have? What rpm are you turning at 78 mph? I have 2 friends that say their Semi's like 70 and no more. I am assuming they bought one with rear gears that are deeper and put it out of its RPM happy zone.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Looks like an awesome trip for Tiny!
Funny shower tent story. We had one of those back in our Roof Top Tent days (back before the RTT's were so "overlandery cool"). Someone asked a buddy what the blue tent thing was in our camp. Buddy responded that I'm weird and sleep upside down like a bat in that thing. Other guy just accepted that as an entirely logical answer and kept talking about whatever topic came up next.
Funny shower tent story. We had one of those back in our Roof Top Tent days (back before the RTT's were so "overlandery cool"). Someone asked a buddy what the blue tent thing was in our camp. Buddy responded that I'm weird and sleep upside down like a bat in that thing. Other guy just accepted that as an entirely logical answer and kept talking about whatever topic came up next.
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #162
It's a manual 10 speed Eaton. It's at 1700-1800rpm in 10th at 78mph. 1-5 is good for about 1mph each, 6-9 is good for 10mph each, and 10th is good from about 45mph on up. The tachometer has a green band from 1000-1500rpm, and shows redline at 2200rpm, so while 1800rpm is a bit outside the (presumably) optimal rpm, it's still pretty short of max rpm so I'm happy with it.
And it'll go plenty faster than that, but there's a weird very slow harmonic coming from the trans over 78mph. Like on the order of 3-5 seconds, and is an odd vibration/shudder. It doesn't feel or sound bad, just annoying, which is why I go to 78mph instead of pushing it faster.
It would be nice if 10th was a bit lower rpm, and 1-5 were more useful and spread out. But 10th having such a wide range I realized going through CA was pretty convenient since I can slow all the way to 45mph and stay in boost, if 10th covered say 55+ mph there would've been times I'd have to downshift on the interstate which would be annoying. 10th going from so slow to so fast is definitely convenient from a traffic perspective.
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #163
There was a guy when we first showed up with a similar tent he used as a ****ter. Wouldn't want to get the two mixed up! The shower tent on the bed is a huge upgrade over previous setups. The cab acts as a wind block so the water heater burner doesn't go out as easy, and then you have tons of room and won't get muddy obviously. I got a new water pump from Harbor Freight that flows a lot more too, and just clips on to the truck batteries. All of that, and then throw a towel over the top to really steam out the inside and it was a full on hot shower sauna experience! Though we got lucky it was never really windy and the weather was great.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Very cool and all those little changes in the setup really make for a better camping trip for sure.
There was a guy when we first showed up with a similar tent he used as a ****ter. Wouldn't want to get the two mixed up! The shower tent on the bed is a huge upgrade over previous setups. The cab acts as a wind block so the water heater burner doesn't go out as easy, and then you have tons of room and won't get muddy obviously. I got a new water pump from Harbor Freight that flows a lot more too, and just clips on to the truck batteries. All of that, and then throw a towel over the top to really steam out the inside and it was a full on hot shower sauna experience! Though we got lucky it was never really windy and the weather was great.
We never used it as a shower or setup since our offroad parks all have shower houses . Just used it to change clothes instead of having to do that on the tent bedding etc.
chaplinfj60
Well-known member
do explain the CA check point whats that mean
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #167
12V transfer pump: 12V DC Transfer Pump 290 GPH
In the past we used the pump from the cab over camper. This thing slaps though, battery clip on, has a switch, then ran a short hose into the water tanks we had and another hose to an adapter into our instant hot water heater.
If you haven't driven from Las Vegas towards Barstow in the last couple years, the entire interstate on the way towards California is diverted through this check point thing. So traffic slows down, you drive through these gates which no one even mans, and then move on. All the commercial semis get diverted further right through their own lanes, so I've always been worried since it's like a weigh station on steroids. I haven't had issues (knock on wood) with Tiny, but if I was it was gonna be here! Plus taking a big rig and trailer through the cluster **** little building with a ton of cars is great fun.
chaplinfj60
Well-known member
omg that sucks wow
Fun story, not to derail your thread but I was basically interrogated by the checkpoint outside of Bishop, CA. I think it is technically Benton, CA.
Anyways, on my way to KOH, they ask if I had fruits or veggies. I did but they were so packed and hidden I said no, then they asked if I had firewood. It was pretty easy to see if I drive by as I exited so I said yes to avoid them getting all pissy. Anyways, WHERE DID YOU OBTAIN THIS FIREWOOD?! Ugh, Idaho, where I live and am coming from....
WHO DID YOU BUY IT FROM?!? A local place that sells wood....
WHAT TYPE OF WOOD IS IT? HOW MUCH WOOD DO YOU HAVE? I got out showed them, they asked more questions.....Where was I going? What was I doing? blah blah blah.
In the end I told them I am going to a barren wasteland desert, not the Sierra National forest, this **** will burn hot and be gone, they let me keep it this time but said dont do it again and made me promise to "burn it to the point it never existed."
I swear you would have thought I was driving a semi full of AR15's into the state....not an F550 with camp ****, a rig, and tiny bit of firewood. You would think they have bigger problems to take care of, but I guess not.
Anyways, on my way to KOH, they ask if I had fruits or veggies. I did but they were so packed and hidden I said no, then they asked if I had firewood. It was pretty easy to see if I drive by as I exited so I said yes to avoid them getting all pissy. Anyways, WHERE DID YOU OBTAIN THIS FIREWOOD?! Ugh, Idaho, where I live and am coming from....
WHO DID YOU BUY IT FROM?!? A local place that sells wood....
WHAT TYPE OF WOOD IS IT? HOW MUCH WOOD DO YOU HAVE? I got out showed them, they asked more questions.....Where was I going? What was I doing? blah blah blah.
In the end I told them I am going to a barren wasteland desert, not the Sierra National forest, this **** will burn hot and be gone, they let me keep it this time but said dont do it again and made me promise to "burn it to the point it never existed."
I swear you would have thought I was driving a semi full of AR15's into the state....not an F550 with camp ****, a rig, and tiny bit of firewood. You would think they have bigger problems to take care of, but I guess not.
Yea we ran the repete through the commercial lane because it doesnt really fit in the other side. After telling the inspector 6 times it was an rv she finally got it and then proceeded to ask us 3 times for a bill of landing for the jeep in the enclosed. Its like talking to an indian on a tech line. They cant think for themselves when something unique is in front of them.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
You don't fit into the Checklist that I have in front of me with "every possible scenario" so you must be doing something illegal...
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Seems pretty accurate!
Cowboy63b
Rusty garbage hoarder.
After reading through this, I have a full on wood wanting a box truck to haul my junk in.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Derek West (Ultra4 and WE Rock) used to have an old box truck he took everywhere for events, but I don't have any pictures of it.
Retained the rear lift gate that he used for loading/unloading. Buggy pulled up onto tall diagonal ramps with tools/parts storage built all around the middle of the buggy. Then had living quarters built into the remaining portion of the box so he didn't have to take a trailer unless it was needed.
Stan Haynes with Branik Motorsports also had a similar setup too. Stan's is now for sale in various FaceSpace groups if anyone wanted more info on it.
Last edited:
simmons3067
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I have a 10 speed with 3.73 rears and 70mph is 1750rpm. I don’t like cruising over 70 but there is still some rpm left if you need to get out of the way.
BigBurt
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I’m not saying I agree but this type of treatment is why people are not sympathetic to federal employees being laid off.
i try to stay around 75% of my available rpm’s, boost/fuel seems right and also helps if you have a front tire blow you can step into it and counteract better.
Mr. Mindless
Well-known member
you know that's a California thing, not feds? eh...
BigBurt
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Yes I guess buerocracy is what I mean. That area also had border patrol doing road blocks last time I was there
Dethmachinefab
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Meh, an ag inspection isn't something to get too worked up about. Keeping invasive species in check.
arse_sidewards
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Problem is that it's basically a fishing stop where they get to look you over for anything else they deem suspect.
