Thinking of buying a utility shell for a stealth/adventure vehicle camper.

[Telcobilly]

Got the front bumper installed on Tuesday. I took apart the stock bumper on Monday and had everything ready to pop off quickly. All the heavy lifting had me sore all over. After some ibuprofen I was able to get the job finished. I'm pretty happy with the results, but the empty winch bay has me wanting a winch. I'm going back to trucking in the next week or so, so it won't be long.
Pix coming after I wash the truck.

 

[Zil]

Hey, a truck should have a truck bumper. Looks good.

 

[Telcobilly]

Pix as promised. Hopefully the dirt isn't showing too badly. Lol

Probably be trucking next week, so a winch will be next to fill that big hole. Plan on throwing $ at the loan to pay it off fast. No real overhead as I will live in the truck or on my dads boat.

 

[Seraphim]

Looks good. You're making nice progress...

 

[Telcobilly]

Thanks Seraphim, after the winch, I think I'm pretty much done. Just going to rock and roll on the payments to get back into a paid off vehicle again.

 

[Telcobilly]

got the truck cleaned yesterday. Amazing what you can do with two spray bottles and some towels. Here's a pic taken today with a little distance to give some perspective of the front bumper.

 

[Kisatchieman]

Looks good Billy. What brand and size winch are you thinking about? Amazon has a Warn VR8000 winch for $479.<BR><BR><A href="http://www.amazon.com/WARN-86245-VR...4693&amp;sr=8-5&amp;keywords=warn+m8000+winch" rel=nofollow target=_blank>http://www.amazon.com/WARN-86245-VR...4693&amp;sr=8-5&amp;keywords=warn+m8000+winch</A><BR><BR>I put one on my tundra and bought a snatch block to double the pulling power.

 

[Telcobilly]

Thanks Kisatchieman, just put it in my wish list on Amazon. I'm sure it will be more than enough if it works on a Tundra. I guess I can have the mounting bolts spot welded to discourage theft unless anyone has any other security ideas.

 

[Kisatchieman]

I've been told the 8,000 lb winch is a little light for a the newer, heavier tundras, but to save some $$ I decided to go with it anyway. Got a big snatch block&nbsp;to make up for the weaker&nbsp;winch. Will&nbsp;pull a lot slower, but I'm in no big hurry.&nbsp;I'd think it would work fine in your situation. I'd be interested in ways to prevent theft also.

 

[sparky1]

install with&nbsp;&nbsp;called (castle)Bolts &amp;&nbsp; Nuts they have cotter pins in them like tie rod ends.

 

[Telcobilly]

Found these security bolts for my future winch. Have them saved on my Amazon wish list. They are from a company called Factor 55.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I enjoyed this thread very much. Congratulations.

A couple of random thoughts on winches ...

Consider getting a winch with synthetic rope instead of steel cable. Or replacing your steel cable with the synthetic line.

Yes, it's a lot more money, but it's also a lot lighter - less strain on your front springs - and a lot safer. People have been maimed and even killed when steel winch line snaps under strain and goes flying. Synthetic will be more likely to just fall to the ground if it breaks. Google the Masterpull and Viking Winch Line sites for more info.

Lot's of winching tends to drain batteries. Dual batteries are often suggested for rigs with winches.

If you drain an ordinary starting battery down to half charge and then recharge it, you can get away with doing that maybe 40 or 50 times before the battery is permanently ruined.

True deep cycle batteries - like golf cart batteries - will handle a thousand or more such cycles.

There is a hybrid battery called a Marine/RV battery. It has ample capacity to serve as a starting battery - some of them have as much as 900 or 1000 Cold Cranking Amps - and it will handle 400 to 500 charge/discharge cycles.

In your case, I would look into replacing my battery with one of them.

Regards
John

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

PS on winches ...

There's debate in various off-road forums about whether or not a winch needs a fuse.

A fuse heavy enough for the kinds of loads a winch draws - 300 amps or more - is VERY expensive.

Most people don't use one. Most people seem to get away with not using one.

And after all, the winch manufacturer's don't include one with the winch, so you must not need it, right?

Electrical engineers have a simple rule of thumb: "Any unfused circuit is simply a fire waiting to happen."

Regards
John

 

[Telcobilly]

Very good points to consider John, thanks for sharing. I had read about synthetic line, makes sense to go with that for weight and safety. Also, I've been considering some sort of deep discharge battery as a future replacement. I had my battery tested recently at a Toyota dealership during a recall I had done. Apparently it has 4 years life left.
I'm with you on fusing stuff. All of my accessories are fused including the 1000w inverter with a 150amp breaker. Some type of protection will be included in the future winch. I just added a cutoff to the main battery.

 

[Zil]

Heavy cartridge fuses are cheap enough protection. At least one very close to the battery. Protect your wire in case of short circuit. LA batteries can explode if short circuit.

 

[Telcobilly]

I know it's been awhile since I last posted, I've been out trucking the 11 western states since mid-April. I'm really living in a truck now, a '11 Volvo.
I have a 1500 watt inverter, running a microwave, coffee pot, toaster, crock pot and a skillet. The truck came equipped with a refrigerator, so I'm living the same way as I do on the boat.
My assigned truck is the one in the foreground.

Mt Shasta in Northern Cal

On the OR 58 headed towards Eugene, OR.

 

[Telcobilly]

On my personal truck, I just added a matching spare wheel and a trickle solar panel. I added a battery shutoff so my truck starts when I get home now. A winch is my next upgrade. Right now I'm throwing money at the loan, I would like to have the truck paid off at the end of 2014.

 

[Telcobilly]

Bought an inexpensive mini-fridge yesterday as the truck unit was barely working. Just under $80 at Walmart in Midland TX. it's serving as a console/ tabletop as well and only draws about 90 watts from my 1500 watt inverter.
The food is kept cool so spoilage should be reduced now. It has a small ice tray too.

 

[arizonatruck]

They are out of the phoenix area, at least the people I contacted were.&nbsp; I was quoted about $10000 for a shortbed f250.

 

[Telcobilly]

Some more appliances I'm running easily on the 1500watt inverter in the big truck. Would work in your own vehicle as well.

$16 fan provides cooling and white noise to aid sleep.

Coffee pot, small crock pot and toaster.

Small 700 watt microwave oven.

View of my truck.