Have you thought about putting a pallet and placing bags of sand in the back? I have done that in the past and went to lowes and bought 8 bags, they placed them on the pallet which made it easier for them to load, added more bags to get the weight I needed.

I did actually but I considered a couple things.

1) It's going to be more weight to lug around.
2) It takes up interior space.
3) After winter, I'll have to not just unload it but then find something to do with the sand.
4) It's going to be better in the long run for tire wear if I get the suspension sorted out since I don't drive with it loaded down nearly enough to justify keeping it as is.
5) The truck is going to be spending a lot of time up on a lift in the Spring, may as well add one more thing to take care of while it's up there.

It just felt like putting more ballast in the back was going to be a lot more work than it was worth since once I put the truck in 4HL, it started handling better with the front drive axle better able to keep the rear in check.

Just went out and timed my wait to start light with and without my TSU connected. Temperature is about 10 here right now.

Both instances took about 8.5 seconds for it to go off with waiting 5 minutes in between each.

I checked the operator's manual to see if it gave a rough time for the glow plugs to fire but couldn't find anything. How long does it take for you guys on a cold engine? Just want to make sure my S3 box isn't cutting them off prematurely...

I know the sand has to go somewhere when you are done with it. Before adjusting, I would load it up with everything you think you will ever have, such as that rear winch, swing out jerry can holder, extra fuel, some extra people sitting there, full ammo cans, you get the idea everything possible.

On the wait to start time, I am around 4-5 seconds in the summer and around 5-7 seconds in winter. But I am not anywhere near as cold as you are in my garage. Maybe upper 30's is the lowest my garage gets this time of year.

Trying to sell my 88 M1038 with 6.5L engine with winch. Nice clean truck, mechanically sound. https://www.ebay.com/itm/263416488146

i read something on the internet (so its true) about many of the 6.5 re-engined trucks having block warmers installed.  next time i squeeze the truck back out of the garage ill check and see.  i havent tried to start since the two weeks of arctic bullshit got here.  last time i was in it was probably christmas and it was still low 20s.  its garage kept but not a heated garage so im not that much better off.

if anyone is interested, a guy on the g503 humvee for sale forum has some demilled sincgars radios and many different mounts and amps.  i didnt want to spend that kinda money on a static display but someone might have a better use of it.

Ryan, did your truck have the ridiculous rear camber due to shims?  mine still does, three shims thickness under the upper A arm.  i plan to address that this spring.  500 some pounds of concrete didnt put a noticeable sag in that so i dont see a reason i would ever need it sprung that much.  the artillery unit that used to own it probably could have needed that.

I've been interested in figuring out the timing on mine too, so I have taken the opportunity to answer your question and track mine also.

Mine took 6 to 8 seconds today (multiple tries), with a IR temp sensor reading of 60 degrees F on the crossover/sensor area.

We have been unseasonable warm here.  Usually below freezing during the day and sub zero at night.  I'm enjoying it and you all can keep the cold your way as long as you want.  I'm getting work done I never thought I would be able to this time of year on the HMMWV.  I don't have a garage and the HMMWV sits in an open shed.

I don't think that's true. Both of my local buddies' trucks have 6.5 GEPs and so far as I know they do not have them.

It sure does and I'm sure the arty unit needed it. The only time I've had the tires straight vertical was when I had the rear completely loaded with logs.

I'll get it taken care of after the drivetrain swap. If I'm going to have a higher top end on the road, I definitely want the suspension sorted out. Going to have to get the front springs replaced due to sag and I want to get those new HD ball joints I've got installed as well.

You know, the cold has actually helped me too! Since I'm not buying a bunch of stuff for my truck, I actually have more money in my pockets. Even with Christmas!

Well, except for the Harris VHF/UHF antenna I bought. Oh, and a second offset antenna mount. And the new geared hub cover. And floor bar for the radio tray so I can fit it with the turbo doghouse.



Who am I kidding, I've still got body mounts, insulation, and turbo doghouse floor pieces to buy and a trans wiring harness to build. I'm just putting off money I'll need to spend.

About to strip the 5 Ton for paint.  Anyone have a link in stripping CARC . We are going red and black for the fire service. I am going look back through the thread now.  Thanks

Aircraft stripper will work just fine on CARC. Didn't know that myself until pretty recently. Will bubble it right up off the metal.

Since the 5 ton is steel, you should be able to prep, prime and paint as normal, no special alodine or anything.

Awesome thanks.   We may try to power wash with a special tip and see how well it strips it

We're looking at the potential of some heavy winter weather this weekend.

It's just one of many models and things are still up in the air but if this verifies, I think I'll be putting my snow chains to use! I'm below the ".2" in the 20.2 over Cincy.





If I'm that lucky I'll be sure to provide an AAR on them, though it may have to wait a week or more until the power comes back on from all that ice.

With it being this cold, have you done anymore weatherproofing?

Not really. I tried to get all of that done before the weather got cold.

I will say, the Velcro I added around the bed area and to the cargo cover have really sealed up everything back there. The only part that needs any work on it is the rear corners since, now that I have the one offset antenna mount with plans to install a second, they butt right up against the bed where the Velcro is so there's no way to get the cover down in there. That wasn't a problem with the original antenna mounts because they sit lower. So, I had my buddy that owns my local gun shop elongate the mounts' side plates' mounting holes with his mill so that I could space the actual mount further back from the tub and make enough room to get the top into the gap and Velcro it shut.

Did I mention the extra weatherstrip I put on the cab top, on the side of the Velcro towards the front of the truck? If not, when I bought the weatherstripping for my doors from db Engineering, I bought a 5th roll for the top since I had had instances when water pooled on the cargo cover top would come forward and get under the Velcro and leak into the cab. I figured if I put the weatherstrip there it would divert the water down the sides of the truck instead. So I put that on there and ran silicone on either side of it the whole length. Haven't had it out in any real wet weather to test it out though.

It has been wet enough that I know that even after redoing most of the body panel seams near the firewall with Sikaflex before I painted, I've still got some sort of leak up above the driver's side footwell that is letting water in. It trickles down the firewall, under my stall mat floor piece, and out the floor drain. Pretty sure it isn't the EESS harness plug either since that has the foam doughnut. Once the engine is out, I'm going to really check to see if there's any places I can put more sealant on.

ETA: Almost forgot to mention, the weather models have drawn back from that crush job snow storm they were showing to a nuisance snow but some are now coming back up. Doesn't look like we're going to know exactly what we're getting until flakes are flying. I do know it's going to be tough for road crews to pre-treat since we're expecting a fair bit of rain tomorrow which is going to transition to sleet before the snows start up.

its morning now and the white death is here in georgetown, ky.  looks like 2-4 inches like they said.  the humvee is nestled safely in my crappy barn/garage and will probably remain there hiding from the salt.

funny story, i opened the garage to grab something back when it was 60 degrees on wednesday and as usual i glanced under the vee to see if she was still retaining all her fluids.  well, there were drips and blotches of liquid in patterns under every square foot of it.  i nearly cried.  it looked like a vehicular murder scene.

upon inspection, everything metal in the garage condensed and was dripping water.  shew.

had a chance for some decent x doors at 600 a door and shipping (but had to buy three instead of just the 2 fronts) and before i agreed someone else got em.  now a fella i recognize from g503 is selling 2 brand new 383 green fronts but he wants 1000 each and shipping.  im not interested, but if someone else is, go check it out.

That's about what we got here I'm thinking but it's hard to gauge exactly since it's drifted so much. All last night in my area winds were consistently above 10MPH with gusts at 20-25+ which made the storm a lot worse than it should have been.

Not really enough snow and too much wind to justify going out to play in it. Mine's still got salt all over it from the last 1.5" snow. I wanted to hose it off during our warm spell but was busy with work and getting home long after dark.

ETA: This was the result of a friend's trip home from Erlanger up to the Washington Courthouse, OH area.

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He said he was creeping along about 5 minutes from home when it suddenly went to whiteout conditions because of 35 MPH winds, couldn't brake hard to stop for fear of sliding, and before he knew it the passenger side tires were in the rough and the high center of gravity did the rest. Stupid pizza cutter tires on modern work vans with no footprint for traction. Thanks EPA fuel efficiency standards!

Funny thing is he literally just got it back from the body shop after tangling with a Chrystler 300.



You missed those? That really sucks... I can't believe we're almost 2.5 years since these trucks first started selling and the aftermarket still hasn't really caught up with this demand.

I mean I know there aren't a ton of these trucks out there to outfit but there are a number of them. I'm sitting here watching PowerNation and they've got 502 Motorworks on. They are selling entire kit cars of Porsche Spyders, Cobras, and C-type Jags with actual metal bodies. Talk about niche! If some tiny shop out of Louisville can turn out entire classic cars, someone has to be able to turn out reasonably priced repro X-doors and half doors.

Yeah, I wasn't looking for x doors anymore at all, so I was trying to educate myself on them and was a little reluctant to spend that $2K shipped.  but the morning I decided to fo, they had been sold!  The guy still had a new in box drivers door for $800 but that was it and I didn't want to pay shipping on one and have to search for a front passenger only.

That sucks about that boxvan.  I was headed to the interstate back in march when the highest wind I had ever seen in person hit.  the traffic lights on the highway were doing 360s on the line, wrapping themselves up and pieces of them flying everywhere.  I had just got my dual axle chevy box and I was getting pushed all over the road but it never felt like it wanted to go, thanks to all the copper weight and that wide stance.  I think we were talking 60mph during that storm but maybe I wasn't getting it at full value.

So, one thing that I've been wondering about; do you guys have a body panel behind the front seats, like a kick panel by the rear passenger's feet?  I don't remember there being a void there.  its a constant source of tree leaves and cold air into my 2-man cab.

Door prices seem to fluctuate throughout the year. I think it is almost weather dependent which causes a supply and demand issue. In the winter, they seem to sell for more as more people want to weather proof their ride. In the summer, half door interest seems to be higher. As Ryan said, I am surprised the aftermarket support hasn't grown. Its almost non-existent out side of a few companies such as Plan B and Those Military Guys. I believe I read on Steel Soldiers that the company that makes the X doors is still around and selling them to the military so the tooling is there. Besides X doors, I would have liked to have seen a plug and play AC by now.

I’m an ace away from buyin one this week.  88 model, “drives great” M998

It’s either that or a pickup truck.  It’s hard to let the hmmwv go

Who wants a boring regular pickup when you can get a HMMWV!

The HMMWV gives you all the benefits and fun of a Jeep with the utility of a pickup bed. I've used mine to make plenty of runs to the hardware store to pick up lumber and pipe and also, as every pickup owner gets wrangled into, helping someone move. The longest stuff fits down the drivetrain tunnel no problem, just have to remove my cargo partition. Any bigger than that and you'll just have to get yourself an M1101/M1102 trailer to go with it.

Whatever pickup you get, I guarantee it won't get thumbs ups and waves everywhere you go.

Hey all, heads up on a 6.5NA overhaul kit. Includes all sorts of gaskets and 8 glow plugs. Pretty sure it should work on the 6.2 as well but there could be some minor differences in the gaskets.

The seller did have them for $35+$16 S&H last night but jacked the price up when he sold a bunch. Still a good deal at $66+$16 S&H though.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/152858440780

Another heads up!

Beltfed has some good VIC-3 stuff up for sale.

VIC-3 Lite MCS
VIC-3 Radio Interface Box (Hard to find!)
VIC-3 Full MCS (damage to case lip)
VIC-3 FFCS

I keep seeing the Radio Interface box pop up, but haven't thought of a need. Any ideas of how you would incorporate this into your setup?

It would let you hook up more of Augi's interface boxes so if you were running more than 2 devices they could have dedicated connections.

I thought about grabbing it since it would be nice to have a dedicated connection for my hand held radio but then I'd have to get another interface box and if I were getting one it may a well be one of his radio versions so it's correct but, I decided no more accessories until I get the drivetrain swap done.

I've been looking into getting a humvee for quite some time now, but I'm wondering about the registration process in Illinois. I have heard that it's possible to register them out of state (such as Vermont) if your state doesn't allow you to register them. Has anyone registered one in IL or went the out of state registration route?

Thanks for any help guys!

Can't speak directly on Illinois but I know I've seen pictures of trucks recently with IL plates on them though.

You could possibly go with the Vermont registration if out of state registration is good to go in IL. This is the process to go through for it. You'll have to pay sales tax again but it's pretty simple.



You won't be able it to get a clean title to transfer to IL though as IL doesn't seem to care if it's come from a state with a clear title.

Here's a thread on Steel Soldiers I remembered seeing on IL specifically. Some useful information in it if you can wade through the usual Steel Soldiers bullshit.

I provided the OP of that thread with the NHTSA information on how they classify the HMMWV as a "motor vehicle" designed primarily for on road use. If you need it, PM me your email address and I'd be happy to send it to you. You might also consider private messaging the OP and some of the IL members in that thread to see what the most current info is.

i cant help but wonder if the steel soldiers old guard is sitting in their dens, pouting with arms crossed at all the youngins and their hmmwvs that are now legally titled.  their website is like 75% humvee threads now.  a year or two ago it was practically a bannable offense for mentioning the trucks coming from the auctions.

did they really expect us to play with nothing but deuces, 5 tons, and 70 year old jeeps until the supply completely dried up?

those guys were prepared to ride the hobby to its end; it had nowhere to go without the infusion of new trucks from auction, and with them new hobbyists.  Those old guys are akin to the Fudds of the gun world.

you could equate the humvee to the ar15 i guess.

That's why I backed away from Steel Soldiers. Too many fudds. G503 is better but more technical. That's why I prefer this thread. Almost anything I can ask here is answered by one of us and as a group we seem to be able to walk through options and go thorough manuals better.

That's exactly what it is. I gave it a go to try and make a difference over there but after some shit that went down in a thread regarding titling in Ohio, I've cut bait. There were 2 members in particular. One statist ex mil pogue who couldn't stop calling other members assclowns, assholes, "dirty civvies", and a whole other manner of other things that would have gotten most anyone the boot here. Instead he gets a slap on the wrist and is allowed to stay. Another member doesn't even own a HMMWV but feels the need to be Hall Monitor and chime in on every titling thread a newb posts and, lives in Michigan but proclaims to tell me how Ohio law is (despite me actually having a relative that's been in law enforcement for several years to run things by). Add into that one site admin (another one that doesn't own a HMMWV by the way) that does nothing but troll threads that discuss anything having to do with modding the trucks when requests to staff to make a "HMMWV Hot Rodding" forum, like the Deuces/5 tons and CUCVs have, go ignored. That Ohio titling thread was 7 months running until Mr. Pogue decided to stir some shit, name call, and get it not just locked but deleted (sorry SS staff, Google Cache is a mofo!). It had looked like it being allowed to remain open, even after site staff came in and cleaned up some trolling before it got deleted, had indicated a common sense change in direction for the site but, apparently not.

I'm just keeping my account active over there now to buy stuff.

And your part I highlighted is almost verbatim part of rather lengthy and well thought out PM I sent one admin after the Ohio thread was disappeared, politely requesting the site staff reconsider the position on discussion of HMMWV titling. I pointed out that this situation, by GovPlanet's own admission is no longer anything close to what they have listed as the reason why such discussions are not allowed. Part of that PM was a line about how HMMWV owners are the fastest growing segment of the MV hobby and, in jest, mentioned that only so many people have the ability or inclination to own trucks the size of commercial dump trucks or 1980s Chevy trucks with camo paint and funny electrical systems.

I didn't even get the respect of an acknowledgement of the multi paragraph PM from the staff member, let alone a shoot down of my request.

People like to talk shit about know-it-alls on ARFCOM running off SMEs with their bullshit and there is something to be said about that happening but, damn, SS just tries to run off everyone. There's certainly a few good people over there and I've talked privately with them but SS has made it clear by keeping the trolls around who they want to dominate the discussion over there. They keep hobbling the discussions and letting the shitposters run people off and their site will eventually fade. I already found out from my local buddy, who is a member but doesn't really post, after we went to that rally last Spring that it was nothing like the SS rallies in the past. He told me they were big and well attended enough they had swap meets, food vendors, groups camping out, and actual organization. When we went there were only 2 people who I recognize as posters and met with with several more I never met and don't know but had MVs there, no swap meet, no food except what my group brought, and only a handful of people camping.

I've decided I'm going to keep my technical questions that I don't know the answers to to here and G503. Any information my discussions on SS would add are taken for granted and probably not really wanted so why bother to give them the clicks and material to generate clicks.

It's a shame though, I genuinely like helping new owners out with things I've learned working on my truck when they have issues and talking about these trucks in general. Since I quit posting I've reached out to a couple people privately to help them with answers (and told them why I'm PMing them) but that's going to be the extent of my involvement going forward there.

different parts for you vee guys if interested

https://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/pts/d/hmmwv-humvee-m998-hummer/6432053955.html

@FKAM

Saw your question about the GMV pioneer kit tools on SS.

He may have gotten them from MSG since they sell those black colored ones but, if you read their description of them, all they've done is paint them black and coat the handles in bedliner.

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I'm actually planning on doing the same once I get my tool kit installed. Just haven't decided if I'm going to DIY the bedliner or just have someone Rhinoline/Line X some.

-----------------

Also, someone over there posted this vid of their 6.5T straight piped. I definitely think I'm going to go this route when I do the drivetrain swap since it sounds great!



Wonder if the deep fording kit stack will change that any...

Ryan, Roger that.

I picked up a mount from Greg like we talked about previously.

Didn't like the idea of painting the yellow handles, thought it would just rub off.  I didn't think about bed liner.

Good Idea. Thanx.

Digging through my email for the day, I saw an email from Old Grouch's on something folks here might find useful.

It's a first aid kit vehicle mount for $15, made to hold the green cased first aid kits for these trucks.



http://store.oldgrouch.biz/mifiaidkitmo.html

I'm definitely thinking of grabbing one (yeah I know I said no accessories until the engine swap is done but it's just $15! ) since I need some place to keep mine in my truck. It just doesn't fit in the driver's seat compartment so if I can find a suitable place to mount it, this should keep the kit secure. I'll need to scope everything out to see where it might fit best. Any suggestions? The goal is to keep it readily accessible since I've got QuikClot, an Israeli bandage, and a CAT in it, stuff you'd need in a hurry if you need it! I'm wondering if the back side of the seat base somewhere would work...

If I buy one with a clean SF97, would that make the titling/registration process easier?

Like one of the Marine Corps trucks?

Maybe but probably not. From the way it read in that SS thread they are doing like Ohio and flagging anything named a HMMWV, even if it came with a clean on road title from another state so, I'm thinking a non-branded SF97 won't matter either.

Looks like Vermont registration or historical IL registration, if that's even a possibility as mentioned in that thread, are probably your only 2 options until you get some better former military vehicle laws in IL. You might also want to check and see if IL law allows for some sort of off road to on road title change for vehicles like dune buggies, dirtbikes, and the like as well as details on home built vehicles. Maybe you could buy a mostly incomplete tub and frame then buy a new drivetrain and whatnot and get it inspected as a home build.

Just depends on how badly you want one.

I looked at those when I got the email too, the price is great. Just couldn't find the right place to mount it. Only option I came up with that was quickly accessed was on the 4 man divider facing the front as I have the SF toolbox on the back side. Decided to pass at this time as I want to put cup holders there and possibly a rifle mount of some sort. Currently all my first aid stuff goes in the rear seat compartment on the drivers side.

Damn, so no go on the back of the driver's seat base? Hmmm... Can't do the front side of the 4 man divider as that's where the impact kit normally rides.

Rear driver's seat is where I've got all my jack stuff. Rear passenger seat is where I've got all my fuel and electrical stuff (Scepter can nozzle, slave cable, etc.).

I'm going to look tomorrow to see if I can't see something. It's supposed to be mid-50s here so I'll be getting the truck out to hose off all the road salt.

With the high back seats no room as far as I can tell. I have considered the tailgate or the sides on the fenders on the inside near the rear.

i bit the bullet and paid today's prices for x doors.

the good news is, they were new and unused (2016 date stamped on the driver door) but they also ran more than the 5 or 600 per used door that you might still find.

fastenal took 3 weeks to get me a rhino from california, about 4 business days for these from kansas.  i was completely surprised when i got the phonecall.

here is a crappy pic i got from inside my crowded garage.  note that while i no longer have to take one door off to get in the door (soft door handles stick waaaay out), i now cannot get in or out of the driver door unless i back in.



fit with a softtop isnt great, but if you push the door just a bit when closing the weight allows it to press closely enough to latch.  i feel ive gone a little bit off from a milspec representation of my field artillery cargo carrier, but its not too far fetched that someone might pair hard doors with a softop.

either way, i plan to be building my garage addition over the course of spring so maybe late summer or early fall ill be ready to paint this thing in fresh woodland pattern.  which doesnt leave time to do a trans upgrade....but we will see.

Yeah, looks like it would be pretty tight on the back of the seat base in the rear passenger footwell... Well, I ordered one anyway and I guess I'll have to see where I can make it fit.

Too bad even the cheapest shipping option, USPS, was $13 - almost the price of the holder itself.

Very nice! Can't beat new and unused manufacture. No muss or fuss stripping off old CARC, patching fiberglass, replacing poly windows, or anything else so take some solace in that.

I've seen pics of X-doors on soft top trucks so you're still good on authenticity in my book. Fact is, there's so much mix and match on these trucks it's really hard to go wrong.

Also, I'm still having a hell of a time getting a good seal on one soft door myself, even after putting that D-shaped weather seal on the roof rail. It is better but when I was rinsing down the truck a bit ago (so much road salt... ), I was still getting water through the rear passenger door. The other doors did seem to seal though. I'm thinking of picking up some small diameter foam pipe insulation and sliding that onto the rail (not sure from the top or bottom), and then wrapping the soft top over that, so it pushes the top out further and the door can seal against it.

The X doors take some adjustments to get them just right. When I had mine with my soft top, I had to raise the hinges on the body up to get them aligned just right. When I switched to the hardtop, I left the body side alone but had to mess with the mounts on the door. The doors have lots of adjustment points built. Also make sure you latch pins are real and not aftermarket. I got some that were aftermarket on ebay and they didn't latch right. Replaced them with some real ones from beltfed and all is good.

Since you said your doors are marked 2016, it goes back to a few posts up about after market support. I am shocked the company isn't releasing these for sale to the public since they are still making them.

Has the manufacturer been identified and has anyone asked them about direct sales?

If they haven't been ID'd, Augas would be in a good position to find out since there should be a manufacturer number stamped on the doors with the NSN.

just checked the stamp i found.  I think it actually just refers to the carc paintjob.  i can look this evening for something on the boxes, or elsewhere on the doors.

it says "heritage finishing, may 06 2016 inspected"

i did have to adjust the hinges at the door for the driver side, nothing on the passenger.  while everything seals good, the softop on top and down the b pillar just adds so much bulk that it puts some tension against the door while its shut.  its a shame, i bet everything fits really nice against the body if it were a guntruck or a helmet top or something.

i could remedy it by maybe slotting the holes in the strikers so they would stick out just an eight inch more or so, or maybe remove the upper body hinge half and shim under it.  but if i apply just a little pressure when shutting everything latches fine so i probably wont do anything.

honestly i dont think i have been in a hmmwv with x doors since high school, in a ng truck at an airshow.  everything else i ever rode in or drove either had no doors, or was a frag 5 truck.

hmmpf.  got home early and was headed to do a lowes run and a 6 pack and 3 miles from home the temp gauge is about 220 and no fan clutching in.  (edit:  just before i turned off the road i remember it finally clutched but didnt seem to have much effect.  up till now fan operation has been fine)

got a gnarly burning smell that wasnt antifreeze before i cojld find a place to pull over.  soon as i opened the hood smoke was coming out from the 60a alternator and i noticed a bit of antifreeze had spewed out of the overflow tube on the other side of the engine.  temp never read above maybe 225 so i was surprised it would start doing that.

cooled down pretty fast and headed home keeping the speed to about 40.  when i got home i noticed the voltmeter now reads off the chart past red when engjne running but no more smoke from the alternator.  i assume the alt is no more but thats not an awful thing since i was upgrading anyways.

im confused as to why the fan wouldnt clutch in though.  i had to run errands in another truck and am just getting ready to sit down and ingest some technical knowledge to see if i have a fan clutch problem, or if the alternator going bad can cause the fan problem.

It could be it wouldn't kick on because you were in an overvolt state since all of that is electronically controlled by the Cadillac valve and the fan cutoff/time delay circuit. Did you try disconnecting the time delay module and see if the fan comes on? The fan comes on when power is removed from that circuit. Also check the thermostatic switch in the coolant crossover as well. I believe there is a test for it in the TM. That's what turns the 24v on and off for the fan circuit.

As for the coolant spewing out, your cap could just be bad and not holding the pressure it's supposed to. Also the possibility your gauge or the temp sender is bad and stuff was hotter than you think. I know when I had my hose leak and overheat, the gauge was reading lower than what it really was since I burned up my TSU.

Before you go running your truck any more with your bad alternator in place, I would disconnect the alternator so you don't fry anything else with too much voltage. You should be able to start and run your truck just fine for a bit with no alternator charge.

I took advantage of the "heat wave" here today since temps were in the upper 50s. Was just getting the itch to go work on something since it's been so cold.

Got out and put my new Harris VHF/UHF antenna on, as well as my second offset antenna mount with the modified side plates to go with both of the offset mounts.

Don't recall if I had mentioned but I had my buddy who owns my LGS stick my antenna mount side plates in his mill to elongate the mounting holes on the side reinforcement plates. Those let me space the actual antenna mount that mounts to the body rearward for clearance to get the soft cargo cover to stick to the Velcro I had put there. Without the spacers, the mount sits right on the body and you have to leave the soft cover outside of that, letting in air.

The spacers are some solid metal ones I had kicking around in my fastener bin and apparently come in various heights. Came from the shelving in my old work vans. They're similar to this. Better than a stack of washers!

You still have to remove the loop that you cinch the top buckle to but, I'm sure if you elongated the top and bottom sets of holes on the mounting plate, you could space it back far enough to leave it for use. I only did the top holes that tie to the mount, not the body. Not sure what the spacing distance you would need to still use the top straps but it would probably be at least 1-1.5".





Both offset mounts and the new Harris installed. The second offset mount has also helped restore some symmetry to the back of my truck putting the driver's side LED at the same height as the passenger's.





I can already tell there's going to be an issue with the new antenna making a racket banging into my deep fording stack while driving. Going to get some foam pipe insulation to stick on that section of the antenna.



Also, my first aid kit mount came in yesterday. I was running out of daylight so didn't have time to do much with it except find a place to mount it.

Jake, I think we must have been talking past each other in where I was thinking of putting it. This is what I had in mind:



Don't mind the grungy box, it's a spare kit I picked up from Southern Metals for $10 when I was there. My good kit is in much better shape.

That rear piece on the seat base isn't wide enough to get both mounting holes on the kit mount so I think I'll cut a metal plate to mount the kit to and then bolt the whole deal to the seat base. It would be a bit higher than where it is in the pic. I just set it there to check clearances. With it at planned height I can still open the hold down to get the kit out no problem. I hopped in the seat to check and make sure it won't affect foot space and my size 12s still fit in the footwell fine. Don't think it will be any worse than the passenger's side rear footwell with the TCU mounted.

I thought about just drilling a second pair of holes in the kit mount so I wouldn't need to use a metal backing plate but, I think the metal plate would be better to help reinforce the kit mount. That way in the event it gets kicked by passengers (which it surely will), it's less likely to bend/damage the mount.

Yep, I thought you were talking about behind the rear seats, not the back of the front seats. Now that I see were you are putting them, I am debating getting one as that is a great place.

Started in earnest today on a project I've been thinking about for a while.

Going to try and put together a plug and play 12 Volt module consisting of a CB, Ham Mobile, USB/Cig lighter, and AM/FM radio with AUX IN, so that it fits into a dual radio tray like a SINCGARS radio.

This
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Into one of these
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I started out just trying to individually place and mount stuff on the radio tray.  But over the last few months my idea kept getting more ambitious.  Goal is to have a single module that will work with the mil speakers and VIC (If Augi Box V2 becomes a reality).  We will see...the end result will probably be something in between.

Didn't get a chance to post this yesterday but I finally took delivery of my Iris Technology Quiet Power QP-1800 inverter from my buddy in NC.

Pretty nice piece of kit, especially since it came with the original wheeled Pelican case which it needs since the whole thing weighs just over 50lbs. It's a lot heavier than the ExelTech, likely since it comes with a longer and heavier duty slave cable that's 2/0 AWG. Like the ExelTech SI-1000 inverter I got before it's pure sine wave. It's 1800w/2900w surge compared to the ExelTech's 1000w/2360w. The manual lists it as "semi-ruggedized" and warns to not get it wet.

This thing is brand new and unused. The NATO slave plug still has the paper wrap on it. Manufacture date is 2015. Has both the factory manual and TM. Pelican case is a little beat up from storage and transport, probably getting lugged around on exercise.











They make a mounting system for it that mounts on the driver's side rear fender but I don't think I want to take up that much real estate and, since it is only semi-ruggedized and can't get wet, I don't think I want to permanently mount it there. Better to have it in its water tight case, I think. Plus when I looked I didn't see any readily available for sale.









This was in the TM which I thought was interesting, in regards to Optimas. Wonder what their reasoning is, if it's just because they need the adapter to properly be secured.



I'm kind of wondering about the feasability of wiring in a second slave port at the rear of the truck which would be handy for hooking this up when camping or at events. Probably wouldn't be too hard to do when running power for the eventual rear winch. Would just need to find a suitable location.

And since I've now got this, the ExcelTech is up for grabs if anyone's interested. Would be great for tailgating and camping!

Ryan, looks like real estate inside the vehicle is getting scarce. When I look at everything I have up front or want to put up front its a lot. Lets see I have the laptop, vic 3 lite and boxes for audio input behind that with power supply stuff, 3 Ibis Tek switch panels for the ibis tek lights, Fenix switch panel for everything else,  Iris 250 inverter (may be moving this to the back) and I would like to do a radio set up like FKAM posted above (would set this to the right of the laptop). With all of this stuff, some might have to move overhead and some to the rear. At least with a slantback weather proofing the rear isn't an issue and the inverter may be going back there.