CarterKraft
Thread ****ter Upper
I only suggest using the load capacity chart for the tire, not just lowering the pressure arbitrarily.
All the good tires have charts.
-
Last Call Guest on these Group Buy Deal Items from Baja Designs
"Tiny" - A Semi Project
- Thread starter snivilous
- Start date
I only suggest using the load capacity chart for the tire, not just lowering the pressure arbitrarily.
All the good tires have charts.
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #62
It both looks so wrong and so right at the same time
Right
everyone has been like that's ******ed as hell looking, but the functionality is so nice with the stairs going up to the door. If it had a trailer it wouldn't be so bad hahahaThat's a good rule of thumb adding the numbers! I like that.
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #63
And back home! Tiny ran like an absolute champ. In total we did 858 miles and burned 92.4gal for 9.3mpg average. It blows my mind an engine this huge and a vehicle this big can get such good mileage.
Saturday we hung out with the relatives and went to a dirt oval south of Laughlin/Bullhead and watched the racing there which was super cool.
We ended up just staying in the parking lot that night with a bunch of other racers and spectators in RVs. We also found another convenience to the reverse mounted cabover; the cabover doesn't have a bathroom or shower so we have an instant hot water heater and shower tent, which it turns out the shower tent fits perfectly on the deck between the truck cab and the camper. The tent door lines up with the camper door so you have a pass through essentially, and are standing on wood planks so it's really nice actually. And if you throw a towel over the top of the tent to keep the steam in it gets wickedly hot too, so ended up being by far the best shower experience while camping I've had.
Sunday we drove down near the river to a beach and hung out there for awhile.
We weren't sure if we wanted to stick around the river or go to Havasu, and ended up deciding to loop through Flagstaff and back around. Last night we camped at Lone Rock on Lake Powell.
I've gotten a lot better at shifting in the past two days. I also came up with a modified rule of thumb to the previous one mentioned, which seems to be if you're going double digit speeds then the first digit is whatever gear (position) you should be in for high range. So 12mph would be 1st gear in high range, ie 6th. 47mph would be 4th ie 9th, etc. Im also getting the hang of popping it out of gear without using the clutch, which seems easy but getting the right amount of throttle to unload it has been tricky. Being able to shift it without the clutch I can see why people say it's easier, even blipping the clutch to go into neutral feels so slow, and being able to skip that step really speeds it up to avoid missing gears, especially in low range.
The engine brake absolutely ****s too. And the normal brakes now that I'm used to them I really like, going slow they can be sensitive but once you're moving they feel awesome. I'm really happy with the truck, it's so insanely overkill it actually makes it more relaxing to drive. There's more power and braking than I would ever possibly need.
We didn't feel like pulling the camper off today so parked it for the night. I found out the airbag dump valve only works with the ignition on, and if there's air in the tanks then when the ignition turns off the dump valve closes and the bags air back up. That explains why they wouldn't seem to dump since they default to being pressurized if they're not actively dumping air. On that note, the boards hit the tires by an inch or so with the bags empty so I'm planning to lift the boards ~1" so when they're fully mounted they won't snap if the bags deflate while the truck is parked or I can lower the deck if I want without the worry.
This coming week I'll pull the camper off and Tiny will go back into the shop and I'll wrap up the dovetail---still not entirely sure how I want that to look.
Also shout out to the ole Chalmers, that bad boy fired right up today without issue. That may be a first the entire time I've owned it. I think everything with a motor runs currently which is a shocker
Saturday we hung out with the relatives and went to a dirt oval south of Laughlin/Bullhead and watched the racing there which was super cool.
We ended up just staying in the parking lot that night with a bunch of other racers and spectators in RVs. We also found another convenience to the reverse mounted cabover; the cabover doesn't have a bathroom or shower so we have an instant hot water heater and shower tent, which it turns out the shower tent fits perfectly on the deck between the truck cab and the camper. The tent door lines up with the camper door so you have a pass through essentially, and are standing on wood planks so it's really nice actually. And if you throw a towel over the top of the tent to keep the steam in it gets wickedly hot too, so ended up being by far the best shower experience while camping I've had.
Sunday we drove down near the river to a beach and hung out there for awhile.
We weren't sure if we wanted to stick around the river or go to Havasu, and ended up deciding to loop through Flagstaff and back around. Last night we camped at Lone Rock on Lake Powell.
I've gotten a lot better at shifting in the past two days. I also came up with a modified rule of thumb to the previous one mentioned, which seems to be if you're going double digit speeds then the first digit is whatever gear (position) you should be in for high range. So 12mph would be 1st gear in high range, ie 6th. 47mph would be 4th ie 9th, etc. Im also getting the hang of popping it out of gear without using the clutch, which seems easy but getting the right amount of throttle to unload it has been tricky. Being able to shift it without the clutch I can see why people say it's easier, even blipping the clutch to go into neutral feels so slow, and being able to skip that step really speeds it up to avoid missing gears, especially in low range.
The engine brake absolutely ****s too. And the normal brakes now that I'm used to them I really like, going slow they can be sensitive but once you're moving they feel awesome. I'm really happy with the truck, it's so insanely overkill it actually makes it more relaxing to drive. There's more power and braking than I would ever possibly need.
We didn't feel like pulling the camper off today so parked it for the night. I found out the airbag dump valve only works with the ignition on, and if there's air in the tanks then when the ignition turns off the dump valve closes and the bags air back up. That explains why they wouldn't seem to dump since they default to being pressurized if they're not actively dumping air. On that note, the boards hit the tires by an inch or so with the bags empty so I'm planning to lift the boards ~1" so when they're fully mounted they won't snap if the bags deflate while the truck is parked or I can lower the deck if I want without the worry.
This coming week I'll pull the camper off and Tiny will go back into the shop and I'll wrap up the dovetail---still not entirely sure how I want that to look.
Also shout out to the ole Chalmers, that bad boy fired right up today without issue. That may be a first the entire time I've owned it. I think everything with a motor runs currently which is a shocker
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Looks like a mighty good time!
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #65
I'm not advocating that a cab over should be put on a HDT, but it was certainly way better than I was expecting. Pros and Cons between a pickup and the semi are about even and just dependent on what someone is trying to do.
But now we'll be back to the regularly scheduled program of mounting a buggy on it
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Totally understandable all around.I'm not advocating that a cab over should be put on a HDT, but it was certainly way better than I was expecting. Pros and Cons between a pickup and the semi are about even and just dependent on what someone is trying to do.
But now we'll be back to the regularly scheduled program of mounting a buggy on it
Snowy
Well-known member
I'm not advocating that a cab over should be put on a HDT, but it was certainly way better than I was expecting. Pros and Cons between a pickup and the semi are about even and just dependent on what someone is trying to do.
But now we'll be back to the regularly scheduled program of mounting a buggy on it
You going to set it up to pull a bumper pull trailer with the camper in or just do an either or program?
pennsylvaniaboy
make fullsizes great again
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2020
- Messages
- 1,451
This, on the farm trucks low range hardly gets used empty....and loaded like 40k extra...not your jeep.
Another thing with down shifting is matching engine and gear speed....You rev up to get it into the lower gear...super weird to get used to coming from car manual trans
pennsylvaniaboy
make fullsizes great again
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2020
- Messages
- 1,451
oh yeh, every truck is different. Just dont feel obilgated to start at 1 just cause.
Snowy
Well-known member
I'd take a look into the cushion/air ride hitches and see what you options are with them. I may be thinking more from an RV perspective, but I know that HDT's are super hard on trailer tongues since they ride so stiff. IIRC the 5th wheel RV guys pretty much have to use an air cushion hitch to keep them in one piece long term. A real gooseneck or sturdy tag trailer that's studier than an RV trailer may not care though.
Penetrode Offroad
Red Skull
- Joined
- May 20, 2020
- Messages
- 955
Sniv, that pickup sounds fun as hell. Post up a thread in "other builds" section. 
maveric
Squirrel Spotter
Good to see another HDT out there. Love mine.. Probably one of the best vehicle decisions I have bought for what we use it for. I don't have the numbers off hand, but I think we have put about 80k on it in 10 years. Averages 8.5 mpg (averaged total fuel to total miles since purchased) and is super comfortable to drive. In 10 years I have replaced the trans (super 10 to a 13), 2 turbos, 2 AC compressors, and a set of tires.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
That’s awesome to see an update on this setup.Good to see another HDT out there. Love mine.. Probably one of the best vehicle decisions I have bought for what we use it for. I don't have the numbers off hand, but I think we have put about 80k on it in 10 years. Averages 8.5 mpg (averaged total fuel to total miles since purchased) and is super comfortable to drive. In 10 years I have replaced the trans (super 10 to a 13), 2 turbos, 2 AC compressors, and a set of tires.
And it'll run, pull, haul and stop anything you want.
I 100% agree with this. I built a bagged stinger for the bumper pull hitch on our truck. I have seen toungs, couplers and ball extensions all crack becuase of the rough ride.
simmons3067
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 22, 2021
- Messages
- 170
who needs a golf kart when you have a riding mower.Good to see another HDT out there. Love mine.. Probably one of the best vehicle decisions I have bought for what we use it for. I don't have the numbers off hand, but I think we have put about 80k on it in 10 years. Averages 8.5 mpg (averaged total fuel to total miles since purchased) and is super comfortable to drive. In 10 years I have replaced the trans (super 10 to a 13), 2 turbos, 2 AC compressors, and a set of tires.
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #80
Didn't make a lot of progress this week. Went to a birthday thing so that blew Friday and most of today.
Earlier in the week we pulled the camper off and I cleaned up the shop and then played musical chairs with all the trucks. Now the Hilux is out of the shop and there's some actual space to work on things!
I identified three more hoses with air leaks (one I apparently failed to fix or became compromised on our trip). But first on the list was to do the dovetail! I decided to match the slope of the frame which was a 26deg angle. I had enough 2x3 section left (welding the two pieces I had end to end) that I could use it as the rear most cross member. I decided to lay the 2x3 with the 2" leg being "vertical" to give it a lower profile, and then designed a transition piece so the bed tapers from 6" down to 2". The bottom section (parallel with the frame) is 18" long, this pushes it a couple inches past the frame but still gives ample room to access the frame from the back so I can install a tow hitch later without worry of working around the bed. With it all measured and drawn up I cut it out on the plasma table, and had a lucky surprise of a full sheet of cold rolled in my metal pile! I don't know why I had been using hot rolled lately when I had the cold rolled already!
Thursday I cut it out and prepped the steel, and when I got back home today I tacked and welded it together. It looks pretty sweet I think! The angle is a bit extreme, but I like it following the frame.
I plan to add some support beams that will rest on the frame itself so it's not entirely relying on the cantilevered joint. I'm also thinking of adding a fish plate to the top side, and my plan was to overlay some angle iron on the inside welds but as I'm typing this I might just take some flat plate and lay it in the inside at 45deg... I don't know, need to decide how to brace the inside weld.
After that I will need to add mounts for the planks, that will just be a piece of angle iron welded to the inside face of the rear cross member and a piece of flat bar welded to the front 2x6 piece at the correct angle.
I'm still not sure how I want to hold the planks down. Right now I'm leaning towards a bolt on each end with a huge washer. That seems like the easiest solution, especially if I weld the nuts on the bottom. I've toyed with the idea of plates and stuff on the top to hold the wood down, but none of those ideas seem particularly elegant.
The deck overall is 146". I heavily debated making it longer so I could park any of our vehicles on it, but the Tundra is so long (including front bumper) that wasn't gonna work. I want the bed to be as short as possible to some extent, that gives more options to mount stuff to the bed (like a gooseneck) and keep maneuvering and size as manageable as possible. I was thinking I could make some deck extensions that index into the dovetail, that'd be kind of neat. But I can always just tow a trailer too worst case.
Maybe tomorrow I'll be able to do a test fit with the buggy, that'd be cool!
Earlier in the week we pulled the camper off and I cleaned up the shop and then played musical chairs with all the trucks. Now the Hilux is out of the shop and there's some actual space to work on things!
I identified three more hoses with air leaks (one I apparently failed to fix or became compromised on our trip). But first on the list was to do the dovetail! I decided to match the slope of the frame which was a 26deg angle. I had enough 2x3 section left (welding the two pieces I had end to end) that I could use it as the rear most cross member. I decided to lay the 2x3 with the 2" leg being "vertical" to give it a lower profile, and then designed a transition piece so the bed tapers from 6" down to 2". The bottom section (parallel with the frame) is 18" long, this pushes it a couple inches past the frame but still gives ample room to access the frame from the back so I can install a tow hitch later without worry of working around the bed. With it all measured and drawn up I cut it out on the plasma table, and had a lucky surprise of a full sheet of cold rolled in my metal pile! I don't know why I had been using hot rolled lately when I had the cold rolled already!
Thursday I cut it out and prepped the steel, and when I got back home today I tacked and welded it together. It looks pretty sweet I think! The angle is a bit extreme, but I like it following the frame.
I plan to add some support beams that will rest on the frame itself so it's not entirely relying on the cantilevered joint. I'm also thinking of adding a fish plate to the top side, and my plan was to overlay some angle iron on the inside welds but as I'm typing this I might just take some flat plate and lay it in the inside at 45deg... I don't know, need to decide how to brace the inside weld.
After that I will need to add mounts for the planks, that will just be a piece of angle iron welded to the inside face of the rear cross member and a piece of flat bar welded to the front 2x6 piece at the correct angle.
I'm still not sure how I want to hold the planks down. Right now I'm leaning towards a bolt on each end with a huge washer. That seems like the easiest solution, especially if I weld the nuts on the bottom. I've toyed with the idea of plates and stuff on the top to hold the wood down, but none of those ideas seem particularly elegant.
The deck overall is 146". I heavily debated making it longer so I could park any of our vehicles on it, but the Tundra is so long (including front bumper) that wasn't gonna work. I want the bed to be as short as possible to some extent, that gives more options to mount stuff to the bed (like a gooseneck) and keep maneuvering and size as manageable as possible. I was thinking I could make some deck extensions that index into the dovetail, that'd be kind of neat. But I can always just tow a trailer too worst case.
Maybe tomorrow I'll be able to do a test fit with the buggy, that'd be cool!
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Can’t wait to see the buggy back there!
Lowrollin70gmc
Flatland Wheeler
Looking good.
Idea for a bed extension: weld some 2" receiver hitches to the outside of the truck frame. You can then build a 2 or 3 foot deep platform parallel to the ground to slide in and support a longer rig.
Idea for a bed extension: weld some 2" receiver hitches to the outside of the truck frame. You can then build a 2 or 3 foot deep platform parallel to the ground to slide in and support a longer rig.
simmons3067
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 22, 2021
- Messages
- 170
I have had this same idea. I plan on making removable jacks at the corners for installing and removing
Looking sweet!
maveric
Squirrel Spotter
I did something similar with mine. The deck was already on the truck when I bought it, so the design wasn’t up to me. I use it mostly to haul my 53 with the rigs inside, or the gn, but sometimes I just need to take a single crawler and sleeping in the truck for a night or two is fine.
I welded 2 pieces of receiver tubing to the bottom of the bed (same height as hitch) and have a 2’ platform that I insert and pin into place. Made a support brace that does the same at the top of the bed (I don’t have a dove on mine), and bolt a set of ramps between the two to make a removable dove. This allows me to haul a single vehicle on the deck, but removable to haul a trailer.
You can kinda see the rear of the bed without the dove.
And with the dove installed
I welded 2 pieces of receiver tubing to the bottom of the bed (same height as hitch) and have a 2’ platform that I insert and pin into place. Made a support brace that does the same at the top of the bed (I don’t have a dove on mine), and bolt a set of ramps between the two to make a removable dove. This allows me to haul a single vehicle on the deck, but removable to haul a trailer.
You can kinda see the rear of the bed without the dove.
And with the dove installed
snivilous
Well-known member
- Thread starter
- #87
Well that didn't remotely happen hahahaha. Working on the buggy sounded more fun so I got distracted.
But today the buggy did make it on!
Just took it for a spin and it is absolutely awesome! The dovetail is insanely steep, I was worried the rear tires would be on the dovetail and want to slide off, but luckily the rear tires end up perched right over the rear cross member of the flat section so it works out. Once I pull the exhaust stack I can pull forward another foot too so it's perfect.
Don't have any photos, didn't do much either it seems like. Welded some angle iron and gussets on, added some more frame bolt in spots, threw a quick layer of paint on the whole thing, etc. I also struggled remembering which ****ing gear was where initially since I've been driving my FJ40 around. Once I got my brain rewired it was great!
Tomorrow I'm going to Sand Hollow for a proper test of everything. Not sure what the next modifications will be, though I have some running light/blinkers showing up to install along the side of the deck and also have that HF winch laying around to throw up front.
ridered3
Low Talent Wheelin
Looks more better every time!!
PAToyota
Well-Known User
Switching between nine and ten speeds always requires concentration for me.
That and the K2500 and Yukon have reverse on the opposite side from the big trucks.
