"Tiny" - A Semi Project

[Dethmachinefab]

Problem is that it's basically a fishing stop where they get to look you over for anything else they deem suspect.

Every time I go through it's "are you carrying and plants, animals, etc". Nope and on your way. I'm no cop fan, but its nothing like a normal fishing op in my experience. (Florida ag checkpoint)

He's carrying firewood which is the entire reason for the ag inspection, out in plain sight.

 

[CarterKraft]

I don't know if this is even a cool thing or not but I immediately thought of your rig when I watched it.

It's adding OD (.84 I think) and raising all the intermediate gear ratios for more friendly ratios when not at max gvws

 

[snivilous]

I don't know if this is even a cool thing or not but I immediately thought of your rig when I watched it.

It's adding OD (.84 I think) and raising all the intermediate gear ratios for more friendly ratios when not at max gvws

That is so cool! Makes me want to look for another 10 speed and take it apart and figure out what gears to modify or make. If I could overdrive everything by effectively one or even two gears that would be perfect. Drop 10th at 80mph to like 1200rpm.

 

[CarterKraft]

That is so cool! Makes me want to look for another 10 speed and take it apart and figure out what gears to modify or make. If I could overdrive everything by effectively one or even two gears that would be perfect. Drop 10th at 80mph to like 1200rpm.

Did the updated shift pattern make sense? I felt like I'd be confused as hell

 

[snivilous]

Did the updated shift pattern make sense? I felt like I'd be confused as hell

Glad I'm not the only one that was completely lost at what he was saying. I felt like it'd be understandable but how he explained it was weird. The shifting in a U shape would take some getting used to that's for sure hahaha

 

[honEXduner]

Glad I'm not the only one that was completely lost at what he was saying. I felt like it'd be understandable but how he explained it was weird. The shifting in a U shape would take some getting used to that's for sure hahaha

Sounds similar to a 15spd pattern with the U shape step through & now that the "L" hole on the Hi side is usable again

 

[Dejeeper]

We had a double low, double hump 15 speed in the pete when we got it. U could use the 1st 3 gears on double low but we never did. The other 2 overlapped with low range. The 9th and 10th gear position (also 14th and 15th) were swapped. So the overdrive position was foward.

Remembering the shift position just became second nature. Also the splits were all over the place so it was a huge pita to shift without grinding.

 

[Mr. Mindless]

I ran an RTOO9513 in my 2nd gen Ram for a good while. Top gear against the dash gets the shifter out of the way, great for cupholder clearance!

 

[snivilous]

New purchase, me and my buddy bought this 2003 Freightliner Thomas to use for a bachelor party.

The people early on saying how terrible big rigs ride, you were talking about this thing it rides so ****ing bad, has a governor at 65mph, no A/C, loud as all hell. I thought Tiny was pretty nice already obviously, but holy **** after driving this (all the way across Utah and from Boise) it has given me new appreciation for Tiny. Triple air ride with AC and can do the speed limit?! I just got passed going up a ****ing hill by a Fedex truck with two trailers. I'll get him on the downhill... Oh wait I can't even get within 15mph of the ****ing speed limit

But it is a vibe, not sure how long we'll keep it. We gutted most of the seats behind a Walmart and then picked up some cheap furniture on the drive down.

It is an absolute hoot and hilarious! This is the type of rig I would definitely hate to use for towing, Tiny by comparison is a luxury apartment on wheels.

 

[arse_sidewards]

I bet with riding in the hammock while someone else drives is relaxing as ****.

 

[CarterKraft]

New purchase, me and my buddy bought this 2003 Freightliner Thomas to use for a bachelor party.

The people early on saying how terrible big rigs ride, you were talking about this thing it rides so ****ing bad, has a governor at 65mph, no A/C, loud as all hell. I thought Tiny was pretty nice already obviously, but holy **** after driving this (all the way across Utah and from Boise) it has given me new appreciation for Tiny. Triple air ride with AC and can do the speed limit?! I just got passed going up a ****ing hill by a Fedex truck with two trailers. I'll get him on the downhill... Oh wait I can't even get within 15mph of the ****ing speed limit

But it is a vibe, not sure how long we'll keep it. We gutted most of the seats behind a Walmart and then picked up some cheap furniture on the drive down.

It is an absolute hoot and hilarious! This is the type of rig I would definitely hate to use for towing, Tiny by comparison is a luxury apartment on wheels.

What an idea 🤔

 

[ridered3]

Nice bus!

How's all things "Tiny"?

 

[snivilous]

A Tiny update

Didn't get to use Tiny much the last few months. Didn't do much wheeling, then messed up one of my hands so further delayed much use of the Tiny. But I have a few pictures from the past few months. One of my friends came out for a few weeks and we hit some trails.

And then at the start of KOH I ran out there to deliver the FJ40 buggy I had picked up last year. Drove out Saturday and came back Sunday.

Tiny averaged 10.3mpg round trip with cruise set at 70+ the entire way. My dad rode with me, and only stops we had were for piss breaks or food.

I should be getting to use Tiny a lot more in the near future, need to do some fixes on my buggy and then hopefully get out for some wheeling again.

I'm thinking of deleting the front axle and then lengthen the deck 3ft or so. I did not pass the safety inspection a year ago because the windshield has a single crack, and if I remove one of the axles then I don't need a safety inspection. Additionally in California some of the signs (albeit fairly rarely) say the speed limit if you have 3x axles is 55mph, I can only assume that applies to Tiny too---and while I ignored that and would've feigned ignorance that I wasn't towing if I was pulled over, it would've been nice to just be confidently legal.

I think deleting either axle would look goofy and disproportionate, which is why I'm thinking of lengthening the deck. Plus the buggy barely fits on the deck as is, so having a couple additional feet would be nice and then balance out the aesthetics of just keeping the rear axle. I don't want to do a big stretch on the deck so it stays fairly compact, which is why I'm only thinking 3ft or so.

I might also get a bit bitter mileage with only a single rear axle, and then ideally I want to swap to dualies so I have some tire redundancy if one blows and I think my friend found some at his work I can grab. The one downside to a single axle is I have open diffs so would lose 4wd, I'm not sure if all semi axles are the same? It would be cool if I could get one with an elocker and higher gearing.

Otherwise that's about it. Probably wouldn't hurt to take Tiny to a shop to get the oil changed and everything greased up, it's such a pain dealing with the 12 gallons and crawling under it I don't think I'll do it myself again unless it's wicked expensive. All these changes to Tiny will probably happen in a couple months, finish up some projects and then tackle the axle delete.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

That's bad ass. Nice work.

 

[pennsylvaniaboy]

If you are gonna lengthen the bed, i would keep the farthest rear axle, then it should look about right.

 

[Dethmachinefab]

Unless you have a locking power divider (center diff between axles), you still can spin out through one wheel. So without a locking power divider you won't see a real change in traction by deleting an axle.

 

[snivilous]

Unless you have a locking power divider (center diff between axles), you still can spin out through one wheel. So without a locking power divider you won't see a real change in traction by deleting an axle.

I think I have that, I have a switch on the dash that looks like a 4wd switch showing a lock between both axles, you can kind of see it in the cab photo to the right of the parking brakes.

 

[Dethmachinefab]

I think I have that, I have a switch on the dash that looks like a 4wd switch showing a lock between both axles, you can kind of see it in the cab photo to the right of the parking brakes.

Ok, so you may lose some traction in certain situations but probably not much. You gain ground pressure and don't have the effect like getting stuck crossing over a slanted ditch where two tires can unload.

Maybe some sort of cutting brakes can be plumbed instead of a locker.

 

[350TacoZilla]

So not ALL axles are the same but there are ton of crossovers, depending on what axles you have you can either get a locking diff 3rd member or just the whole axle. Gearing is varied a ton by what the truck was spec'd to be. Log truck have low axles gears vs highway trucks etc. Common I have seen is between 3.07 and 3.90 for highway stuff

 

[Snowy]

Have you run it across a scale loaded up? I’d want to know the weight on the steer axle before deleting the front drive axle. My sleeper T680 is 11,500 on the steers and my daycab Prostar is 10,500. I’d assume yours has got a 12k rated steer axle in it.

 

[snivilous]

Have you run it across a scale loaded up? I’d want to know the weight on the steer axle before deleting the front drive axle. My sleeper T680 is 11,500 on the steers and my daycab Prostar is 10,500. I’d assume yours has got a 12k rated steer axle in it.

I have not, good idea

 

[Snowy]

I have not, good idea

I’d be surprised if it was a problem since you have a D12 and a low rise sleeper, but you know what they say about measuring twice and cutting once.

 

[ridered3]

Glad to read about some future "Tiny" updates!

 

[maveric]

I'm thinking of deleting the front axle and then lengthen the deck 3ft or so. I did not pass the safety inspection a year ago because the windshield has a single crack, and if I remove one of the axles then I don't need a safety inspection. Additionally in California some of the signs (albeit fairly rarely) say the speed limit if you have 3x axles is 55mph, I can only assume that applies to Tiny too---and while I ignored that and would've feigned ignorance that I wasn't towing if I was pulled over, it would've been nice to just be confidently legal.

I think deleting either axle would look goofy and disproportionate, which is why I'm thinking of lengthening the deck. Plus the buggy barely fits on the deck as is, so having a couple additional feet would be nice and then balance out the aesthetics of just keeping the rear axle. I don't want to do a big stretch on the deck so it stays fairly compact, which is why I'm only thinking 3ft or so.

I might also get a bit bitter mileage with only a single rear axle, and then ideally I want to swap to dualies so I have some tire redundancy if one blows and I think my friend found some at his work I can grab. The one downside to a single axle is I have open diffs so would lose 4wd, I'm not sure if all semi axles are the same? It would be cool if I could get one with an elocker and higher gearing.

There are advantages to a singled truck, and some disadvantages as well. As you stated above, there is less weight, less tires (well, same # tires if you go back to duals) less drag, etc, as well as not falling under the 3 axle rules. You lose the 2 axle interlock capabilities, but if you have a locking diff, it won't be an issue.

Mine was singled short, and I wish it was still a twin. I am not just using the truck to haul a single crawler though. I pull a 48' drop deck with it occasionally, and wish I had the extra weight capacity, as well as the interlock. (mine is not locked, so it gets stuck on stupid stuff) I have been looking into a frame extension and an intermediate take-off axle to put mine back to a twin, but not sure its really worth the effort.

A lot of the conversions will drop the front axle and move the rear axle forward. If it is singled short, the axle moves to the original front axle location. Singled long just leaves it in original spot. Singling it mid splits the difference. Most opt for this location because it makes it look more proportioned. It also takes some of the weight off the front with a bed on it vs singled long.
I agree that they look goofy singled long, and also think they look funny if singled short without bed modifications. Mine has tool boxes behind the axle (in the location of the original rear axle), which makes the overall length about the same as it was stock. When hooked to a regular trailer, it almost looks normal. When bob tailing, it still looks a little goofy, but not as bad as it would with a short bed. Just my .02. You can really see the difference with something loaded on the bed.

 

[Snowy]

Completely anecdotal, but the single axle trucks get stuck way easier in the snow than the tandems that I’ve been around. Those ****ers would get stuck on flat ground in a few inches of fresh snow bobtailed in the yard.

 

[snivilous]

There are advantages to a singled truck, and some disadvantages as well. As you stated above, there is less weight, less tires (well, same # tires if you go back to duals) less drag, etc, as well as not falling under the 3 axle rules. You lose the 2 axle interlock capabilities, but if you have a locking diff, it won't be an issue.

Mine was singled short, and I wish it was still a twin. I am not just using the truck to haul a single crawler though. I pull a 48' drop deck with it occasionally, and wish I had the extra weight capacity, as well as the interlock. (mine is not locked, so it gets stuck on stupid stuff) I have been looking into a frame extension and an intermediate take-off axle to put mine back to a twin, but not sure its really worth the effort.

A lot of the conversions will drop the front axle and move the rear axle forward. If it is singled short, the axle moves to the original front axle location. Singled long just leaves it in original spot. Singling it mid splits the difference. Most opt for this location because it makes it look more proportioned. It also takes some of the weight off the front with a bed on it vs singled long.
I agree that they look goofy singled long, and also think they look funny if singled short without bed modifications. Mine has tool boxes behind the axle (in the location of the original rear axle), which makes the overall length about the same as it was stock. When hooked to a regular trailer, it almost looks normal. When bob tailing, it still looks a little goofy, but not as bad as it would with a short bed. Just my .02. You can really see the difference with something loaded on the bed.

You are the man! I'm going to have to read this a few more times. I don't think trailer capability will ever be an issue, while I have thought about buying a 48ft trailer that's pretty unlikely and even if it were to happen I think it'd be impossible for me to load it to >40k.

The toolboxes are a great idea, I hadn't thought of doing anything with the space from the missing axle but that's a great idea. Hell I could drop one of the current tool boxes and make a little sleeping compartment for a friend even hahaha

 

[snivilous]

Completely anecdotal, but the single axle trucks get stuck way easier in the snow than the tandems that I’ve been around. Those ****ers would get stuck on flat ground in a few inches of fresh snow bobtailed in the yard.

I do really want a locker, I've gotten stuck twice now on dirt mounds and most trailheads I unload at are dirt. The interlock has given me some level of confidence, though usually momentum and smart line choices has kept it safe. Like your earlier comment, I almost feel like tandems are worse in traction if it flexes out as the two axles unload two tires and load up another two compared to a single axle?

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Completely anecdotal, but the single axle trucks get stuck way easier in the snow than the tandems that I’ve been around. Those ****ers would get stuck on flat ground in a few inches of fresh snow bobtailed in the yard.

Sounds just like my f550, lol

 

[maveric]

You are the man! I'm going to have to read this a few more times. I don't think trailer capability will ever be an issue, while I have thought about buying a 48ft trailer that's pretty unlikely and even if it were to happen I think it'd be impossible for me to load it to >40k.

The toolboxes are a great idea, I hadn't thought of doing anything with the space from the missing axle but that's a great idea. Hell I could drop one of the current tool boxes and make a little sleeping compartment for a friend even hahaha

My toyhauler is a 53’ semi trailer (the orange one) and with the 21’LQ and 2 rigs plus all the crap I carry, fully loaded comes in at around 46k total. Easily doable with a single screw.

 

[snivilous]

I bought a 12 pack of weld on D-rings so threw 6x on each side at 24" intervals. I had 8x D rings before but they were more centrally located and somewhat annoying to get to, plus the interior ones were recessed into the deck so could be hard to get a good angle on.

What I've found the easiest way to strap the buggy down is just grab the chassis boatsides and pull it front/rear. I like going to the axles, but then I have to climb on the deck to wrap around the front axle in a good spot. If the deck was bigger that wouldn't be as big of a deal, but I have to climb up the side and then grab around the tire----sounds like first world problems, but just one more annoying step to take.

Anyway, now with these side D rings, I just grab the chassis and go to one of these and run a X of straps on each side and she might move a little with the suspension but isn't going anywhere and then no more climbing up and down the deck during the loading or unloading process.

Some people also told me about oiling the deck, which was not treated at all. So while at it I grabbed some used oil and painted the deck with it. It's still in the process of absorbing a week in.... hopefully it does fully absorb otherwise take it to the car wash??

One of my friends picked up some dually tires too, but lengthening the deck and axle delete is still many months out.