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Pics of your latest purchase
- Thread starter Wehan
- Start date
Panther6834
I wanna be Dave
Latest purchase is an Element Enduro Gatekeeper Builder's Kit, and IFS Conversion Kit. As usual (always?), I'll be doing some mods...just, not as many as usual. First "mod" isn't so much a 'mod', as it is a 'swap'.
Since I'm not using the Phoenix portal axles in building my VS4-10 Phoenix, I'm also not using the wheels & tires included with the Phoenix kit...so...just as the portal axles will (eventually) find their way onto another build (probably a cities C2 rig), I thought I could use the included wheels/tires on my Gatekeeper. I think they look like a "perfect fit"...plus, they're sticky as heck.
As for electronics, picked up the Castle Copperhead "4x4 MT Edition" combo - Copperhead 10 ESC & 1415-2400kv motor. Steering will be handled by a ProTek 370TBL. Only thing (electronics-wise) left to decide is whether to control via Futaba 7PX, or FlySky Noble NB4.
~ More peace, love, laughter, & kindness would make the world a MUCH better place
Since I'm not using the Phoenix portal axles in building my VS4-10 Phoenix, I'm also not using the wheels & tires included with the Phoenix kit...so...just as the portal axles will (eventually) find their way onto another build (probably a cities C2 rig), I thought I could use the included wheels/tires on my Gatekeeper. I think they look like a "perfect fit"...plus, they're sticky as heck.
As for electronics, picked up the Castle Copperhead "4x4 MT Edition" combo - Copperhead 10 ESC & 1415-2400kv motor. Steering will be handled by a ProTek 370TBL. Only thing (electronics-wise) left to decide is whether to control via Futaba 7PX, or FlySky Noble NB4.
~ More peace, love, laughter, & kindness would make the world a MUCH better place
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hpiguy
Rock Crawler
I’ve sort of collected flashlights for a while now. Just picked up two new ones.
Noctigon KR1 W1 green osram emitter. Tiny, tons of throw, and I picked up the green as we have predator animal issues, and green isn’t suppsoded to spook them as much.
The rock pile I’m lighting up is 90yds out
And I had Christmas and birthday gift cards, so I picked up a Sofirn BLF LT1 lantern. I really thoguht this would be for emergencies, camping, etc. But I have to say, it’s quickly become my bed side light when I want very little light so I can wind down. USB C charging, change bank use, tint ramping, and all the good stuff about the Anduril 2 UI as well. I’ve had it for a month, charged it once, and it still shows full charge from four 18650 cells.
Warm
Cold
Noctigon KR1 W1 green osram emitter. Tiny, tons of throw, and I picked up the green as we have predator animal issues, and green isn’t suppsoded to spook them as much.
The rock pile I’m lighting up is 90yds out
And I had Christmas and birthday gift cards, so I picked up a Sofirn BLF LT1 lantern. I really thoguht this would be for emergencies, camping, etc. But I have to say, it’s quickly become my bed side light when I want very little light so I can wind down. USB C charging, change bank use, tint ramping, and all the good stuff about the Anduril 2 UI as well. I’ve had it for a month, charged it once, and it still shows full charge from four 18650 cells.
Warm
Cold
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DRED805
Rock Crawler
Sniper4370
Quarry Creeper
I didn't THINK I needed another flashlight, but yet... here I am lol.
Unfortunately the prices on those Noctigon KR1's are a little steep. I'd love to find a well-made compact rechargeable with almost as long a throw as that one but for less $.
Unfortunately the prices on those Noctigon KR1's are a little steep. I'd love to find a well-made compact rechargeable with almost as long a throw as that one but for less $.
hpiguy
Rock Crawler
Hmmmm, those words sound familiar. :mrgreen:
I'm not really aware of anything with onboard charging, at this size, with that amount of throw. All the Hank Lites (Noctigons) are really well made. That being said, I picked my step Dad up one of these for Christmas. Onboard charging, power bank mode, tons of throw, and still small but not pocket sized.
There's a also a 15% off coupon right now too.
https://www.sofirnlight.com/product...ection_detail_1.1&spm_prev=..index.header_1.1
Hey, thank you! I really appreciate the link. That Sofirn might be the ticket. I also like that it has a clip... makes 'ultra-compact size' not as much of an issue. That's not a bad price either.
hpiguy
Rock Crawler
You're very welcome!
Sometimes, all it takes is 1 piece that inspires you to build another rig. '81 lexan Hilux work truck build coming soon.
Sometimes, all it takes is 1 piece that inspires you to build another rig. '81 lexan Hilux work truck build coming soon.
Ain’t that the truth! Can’t wait to see it[emoji1687]
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Same... looking fwd to seeing that build!
TheLetterJ
RCC Addict
I ordered some custom long travel rear leaf springs for my Econoline van (yes, you read that right!) and a pair of replacement front coils to try to get my ride height back up (it's lost 2 3/8" over the last 8 years of towing and heavy offroad use.) I got a shipping quote of nearly $500, so we spent all day on the road yesterday to go pick them up in El Cajon instead (about 5 1/2hrs each way, plus a couple detours to say hi to a cousin, and get some 'Berto's asada fries and burritos.) While I was at the shop, I was checking out all their cool builds https://weldtecdesigns.com and ended up coming home with a new front bumper too (not entirely an impulse buy, but my wife said "just get it so we don't have to drive all the way back to pick it up when you change your mind!" Yep, she's a keeper! I also stopped by my old work (Offroad Warehouse) and picked up some new spherical bearings and shock oil so I can rebuild my Fox reservoir shocks and add some more low speed compression valving, more high speed rebound, and less high speed comp while I've got things apart. Race Van!
DRED805
Rock Crawler
Rad! Send me some pictures!
tjohanne
Rock Crawler
I bought myself a Tamiya CC-01 FJ Cruiser. A heavily outdated rig.
I had a few upgrade parts and a lowering kit lying around from before. So I I needed a chassis to put them on. And I figured I'll make a lowered FJ Cruiser with some fancy colours on the body. Some matt black, or chrome, or iridecent purple/green all of it. I don't know. It just seemed like a fun thing to do, something different than crawlers.
So.. we'll see
I had a few upgrade parts and a lowering kit lying around from before. So I I needed a chassis to put them on. And I figured I'll make a lowered FJ Cruiser with some fancy colours on the body. Some matt black, or chrome, or iridecent purple/green all of it. I don't know. It just seemed like a fun thing to do, something different than crawlers.
So.. we'll see
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DRED805
Rock Crawler
Brake Weight
I wanna be Dave
That van looks fun.
TheLetterJ
RCC Addict
Uh oh. Now you've done it. You asked about my van. You brought this upon yourself!
It is 2wd. I guess calling it "long travel" is relative... it's a pretty mild setup with about 12" of travel all around, but would easily do 14" if I'd bother to move the shock mounts.
Front suspension consists of Camburg bent I-beams, Camburg extended radius arms with uniball pivots, Fox 2.0 reservoir shocks that have been revalved by Agile offroad (I'll be altering the valving slightly soon since they're due for rebuild anyway), coils from Camburg (soon to be switched out with 6" lift Bronco/F150 coils that are ~20-30% stiffer that should net me 5" of actual lift), some Energy Suspension (or maybe Daystar?) polyurethane progressive bumpstops, and limit straps.
Rear suspension has 4" of lift from custom leaf springs that were spec'd by Weldtec Designs (who specializes in vans) and built by Atlas, "long travel" shackles are on their way from Dirt King Fabrication (meant for the last generation of Raptor/F150) to allow the leafs to droop further (stock shackles are currently able to lay flat against the hanger at full droop, new ones are 1.5" longer and boomerang shaped to cure that) and lower the rear ride height ~3/4" in the process. Shocks are just Fox 2.0 IFP's that were also revalved by Agile Offroad.
The rear axle is a full float Dana 60 with 35 spline Dutchman chromoly shafts, Detroit locker, 4.56 gears, and a Spicer ribbed/nodular iron diff cover (I managed to peel the stock cover off in the desert over Thanksgiving, oops!) I'd still like to build a truss over the top of the rear axle to save my bacon in the event of an "oh $4!+" moment, and build bump pads into that (likely just use urethane bumps in the back.)
Tires are 315/70/17 Hankook RT03 muds, I've managed to cut/rip 2 of them in the last 3 months and I can't find anymore replacements (there's a new tread pattern out now) and wheels are 17x9 American Eagle 012's with faux beadlocks (Eagle is now defunct too, so I hope I don't break one!)
Other exterior goodies include RunCool hood louvers which really helped reduce in-cab temperatures when the going gets slow with heavy loads... and I think they look cool. 30" curved LED lightbar in the bottom of the grille, LED projector headlights, amber LED marker lights (all 5, not just the 3 in the grille), Aluminess swing away spare tire carrier with full size spare, Weldtec front bumper, Bully steps (which I'm hoping to replace soon since 2 of them are bent after *somebody* decided it was a good idea to drop an 8,000lb van on them, thinking about giving Nfab's steps a try, and trying NOT to set them on rocks... or MX track tabletops.)
Interior has front swivel seats, an Rtic cooler that lives between the front seats, 2 more bucket seats mounted kinda in between where the 2nd and 3rd row benchs used to reside, and a BoltItOn motorcycle rack directly behind that (can haul 3 fullsize dirtbikes inside.) Yes, it's a 15 passenger van that only seats 4! There's 2 layers of limo tint on all but the front doors and windshield, ~200lbs of Dynamat and various other sound deadening materials, stereo is still in the works (head unit is in but the 2-12"s and 2000w amp haven't gone in yet... I hate running wires)
9 years of ownership and it still does everything I ask of it. Great for roadtrips, days at the beach, hauling dirtbikes, pulling trailers (though it could benefit from more power, it just has a 5.4L) running through the dunes, forest roads, easy "4x4" trails, desert exploring at a spirited pace, etc. and it still gets surprisingly decent fuel economy (16-18 on our last 2000 mile trip NOT towing, 10ish mpg towing at ~16k lbs combined)
We went looking at a new truck a couple weeks ago since I can absolutely justify another heavy (3/4-1 ton) 4x4, but I just don't see the value in dropping 90k on something that we'll use 5k miles a year. We won't be replacing the van anytime soon so I'll likely keep throwing more money at it to help it do what it does... better.
It is 2wd. I guess calling it "long travel" is relative... it's a pretty mild setup with about 12" of travel all around, but would easily do 14" if I'd bother to move the shock mounts.
Front suspension consists of Camburg bent I-beams, Camburg extended radius arms with uniball pivots, Fox 2.0 reservoir shocks that have been revalved by Agile offroad (I'll be altering the valving slightly soon since they're due for rebuild anyway), coils from Camburg (soon to be switched out with 6" lift Bronco/F150 coils that are ~20-30% stiffer that should net me 5" of actual lift), some Energy Suspension (or maybe Daystar?) polyurethane progressive bumpstops, and limit straps.
Rear suspension has 4" of lift from custom leaf springs that were spec'd by Weldtec Designs (who specializes in vans) and built by Atlas, "long travel" shackles are on their way from Dirt King Fabrication (meant for the last generation of Raptor/F150) to allow the leafs to droop further (stock shackles are currently able to lay flat against the hanger at full droop, new ones are 1.5" longer and boomerang shaped to cure that) and lower the rear ride height ~3/4" in the process. Shocks are just Fox 2.0 IFP's that were also revalved by Agile Offroad.
The rear axle is a full float Dana 60 with 35 spline Dutchman chromoly shafts, Detroit locker, 4.56 gears, and a Spicer ribbed/nodular iron diff cover (I managed to peel the stock cover off in the desert over Thanksgiving, oops!) I'd still like to build a truss over the top of the rear axle to save my bacon in the event of an "oh $4!+" moment, and build bump pads into that (likely just use urethane bumps in the back.)
Tires are 315/70/17 Hankook RT03 muds, I've managed to cut/rip 2 of them in the last 3 months and I can't find anymore replacements (there's a new tread pattern out now) and wheels are 17x9 American Eagle 012's with faux beadlocks (Eagle is now defunct too, so I hope I don't break one!)
Other exterior goodies include RunCool hood louvers which really helped reduce in-cab temperatures when the going gets slow with heavy loads... and I think they look cool. 30" curved LED lightbar in the bottom of the grille, LED projector headlights, amber LED marker lights (all 5, not just the 3 in the grille), Aluminess swing away spare tire carrier with full size spare, Weldtec front bumper, Bully steps (which I'm hoping to replace soon since 2 of them are bent after *somebody* decided it was a good idea to drop an 8,000lb van on them, thinking about giving Nfab's steps a try, and trying NOT to set them on rocks... or MX track tabletops.)
Interior has front swivel seats, an Rtic cooler that lives between the front seats, 2 more bucket seats mounted kinda in between where the 2nd and 3rd row benchs used to reside, and a BoltItOn motorcycle rack directly behind that (can haul 3 fullsize dirtbikes inside.) Yes, it's a 15 passenger van that only seats 4! There's 2 layers of limo tint on all but the front doors and windshield, ~200lbs of Dynamat and various other sound deadening materials, stereo is still in the works (head unit is in but the 2-12"s and 2000w amp haven't gone in yet... I hate running wires)
9 years of ownership and it still does everything I ask of it. Great for roadtrips, days at the beach, hauling dirtbikes, pulling trailers (though it could benefit from more power, it just has a 5.4L) running through the dunes, forest roads, easy "4x4" trails, desert exploring at a spirited pace, etc. and it still gets surprisingly decent fuel economy (16-18 on our last 2000 mile trip NOT towing, 10ish mpg towing at ~16k lbs combined)
We went looking at a new truck a couple weeks ago since I can absolutely justify another heavy (3/4-1 ton) 4x4, but I just don't see the value in dropping 90k on something that we'll use 5k miles a year. We won't be replacing the van anytime soon so I'll likely keep throwing more money at it to help it do what it does... better.
Brake Weight
I wanna be Dave
I completely agree on throwing money at an older, paid off vehicle. I was looking at a van for work last year and never pulled the trigger. I was shooting for a mid ‘90s Dodge. Went with this Audi instead.
My recent purchase was a set of Jeep Cherokee wheels off of FB Marketplace. Added fresh rubber and put them on. Added S6 rear springs for a little drop as well as additional load capacity. Front got A4 v6 ‘sport’ springs for a light drop and stiffer ride. Height is between an S and standard with handling of an S.
My recent purchase was a set of Jeep Cherokee wheels off of FB Marketplace. Added fresh rubber and put them on. Added S6 rear springs for a little drop as well as additional load capacity. Front got A4 v6 ‘sport’ springs for a light drop and stiffer ride. Height is between an S and standard with handling of an S.
