Off-Kilter - Ron ap Rhys' Xterra

[Ron ap Rhys]

It really did. Since I have the passenger seat folded flat and the bed is slightly above that level what I do is sit in the driver's seat, rotate up and to my right, and then crawl right back in. Getting out is pretty much the reverse. I can put my feet on the driver's seat on the way down to give myself some leverage. From there, I plop down into the driver's seat and can get out quite easily.

A few more tweaks (maybe what I'll do is put a double hinge on that section so that way I can open it up to the front and back, giving me easier access).

 

[gorillamel]

I think you need to post up pics of that badass diff cover in action in Moab.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

I do believe some pics exist. Let me do some digging...

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

In my usual manner, I've started at the bottom of my list and am working my way up. I got a great deal on some Hefty bumpers and a Smittybilt winch, so I pulled the trigger on that over suspension upgrades, a compressor, etc. Tires are still holding up, so I'm not getting those for at least a month or so. We'll see how they do over at Badlands later this month.

Here's the front bumper installed:

I do have a few projects there that'll need addressed

• My driver's side foglight isn't working. I'm not sure if it's the connection or the bulb. My guess is the connection is having a problem, but I'll investigate that later.
• I need to put a new grill in there. I do have access to the winch controls from the bottom of the bumper via the holes down there, but it's something that might not work well if I was doing a self-recovery.
• I've got those Hellas that I won two years ago that need to be hooked up. Nothing major nor particularly difficult, but it'll take me some time as I'm not used to vehicle wiring.
• Eventually, I'd like to put a relay in that isolates the winch from the battery. That way I can energize it when I want and have no worries about it draining my battery due to an internal fault or some such nonsense.

And the rear:

Just like the front, I've got a few small things to take care of:

• I need to bolt the trailer light wiring harness deal in. To do that I'll need to drill a hole in the bumper wide enough to feed it through and then bolt it in. Nothing major and I think it's an 1 7/8" hole, but something that needs to be done.
• I need to wire up the license plate light as I don't have one right now. I'm also not particularly satisfied with the current bracket, so I may fab something up for that.
• I would like to get a tire cover, just to look cool. Maybe something in desert camo with M1 Abrams Edition stitched into it.

 

[Macland]

I ran my Hellas in an evening or so with very very little experience. I still need to buy and wire in an OTTRATW switch. I'd recommend a different switch than the little green one.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

I believe I'd want to have a relay in there, not sure. I also want a Zombie Light switch, that lights with the dash, so I've got that going for me. Same with the winch, when I get around to it.

 

[drbandkgb]

So what tires are you looking at next?

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

I'll probably get the BFG AT KOs again. They've served me incredibly well, are at about 50k miles right now and still have treadlife left, and while they're not the most aggressive tire out they get the job done for the wheeling I like to do.

 

[granitex]

You are going to much happier, not running your front bumper into everything on the trails.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

Absolutely - and having a winch so that I can haul myself and others out, when necessary, will be nice as well.

 

[granitex]

I believe I'd want to have a relay in there, not sure. I also want a Zombie Light switch, that lights with the dash, so I've got that going for me. Same with the winch, when I get around to it.

There is already a relay in there, it is part of the control unit for the winch. No need to do another.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

Time for an actual build update: I finally installed the Hellas I won at ECXC 2K10. However, I didn't bother with the lame ass-switch that came with the kit. I ordered a quality Zombie Lights switch - SPST, dual-light. Took a bit of skull-work for me as I've not really done any vehicle electronic mods before. Mostly it's been R&R stuff, or using factory wiring harnesses. I managed to get it installed and everything seems to work well. Couple of points for the noobs out there (like myself) to make things easier:

1. It seems that the easiest place to get into the cabin from under the hood is around the rubber piece next to the driver's steering wheel. It's a major wiring harness entry point.
2. I used the straight portion of a probe with the the wire following it through - basically wrapped a single run of electrical tape around most of the probe and a few inches of wire. Slowly poked it throw until most of the probe was in then pulled it through with my wife helping to push the wire. I tried a few other ways but this seemed to work the best and should result in a nice tight seal around the wire itself.
3. With two-light bulbs like this, you need to find a source of light that's on when your headlights come on. It just so happens there's a damned convenient bulb in the glovebox area that you can tap into. I've tested it and it works very well - just splice into the red wire.
4. To get those @#$Q^@$&^W$$&#&ing blanks out, it's best to remove the center console around the radio and then loosen the lower fascia. That'll let you get access. Just put a slight bit of upwards pressure on the tab and push the fake switch back in.
5. The OTRATTW V-Series Contura II switches pop right into the holes. No mods are needed.
6. The easiest ground I've found is one that hold some sort of climate control unit in. It's on the bottom bar that supports the glovebox - a simple screw. That bar is a c-channel (of sorts) and it's a great place to hide wiring in. Just use some zip ties to hold everything up and out of the way.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

Random pics from this year's goneMoab trip.

Here's a shot from where I climbed Pike's Peak. 4-6' of snow, 12.5 hours of climbing. My recommendation: unless you've got snowshoes, don't do this in May. However, I did love it and I'm incredibly happy that I did it.



Here's me parked at the summit, the day before the hike.


Porcupine Rim (found $170 on the trail there. Pimp-stylin')


A view from the overlook on Porcupine Rim - apparently the Castleton-Gateway Trail runs down through the valley.


Hanging my head over the edge of the cliff on Top of the World


And a little bit o' stuffage on the way down

 

[GhostX]

Great pics...TOTW was especially gratifying this year...maybe it was the tunes?

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

It might've been the tunes. I was talking to someone a year or so back about ways I could up my signal strength and get away from that crappy transmitter I've got. He seemed to think it wouldn't be too difficult to build something that'd work. What I'm wondering, now that I think about it, is if I could update my head unit to allow for the following:

• Same basic playback capabilities - Radio, 6 changer for CDs (but maybe only single CD would work depending on a point below), aux in, etc
• In dash screen so I can have a permanently-mounted GPS unit
• I don't think I need it, but having Bluetooth phone capability built in would be cool, too.
• An output that could feed the transmitter and play over the speakers
• Ability to either store a metric shiat-ton of songs and manage playlists OR read said ton of songs off some external device (powered or unpowered).

Now, to be honest, something that does that and then building a quality transmitter sounds like it'd take some coin, so that's backburner. My current mod list includes the RTT, front and rear lockers, and a trailer. Both the RTT and trailer also call for redoing my storage set up so I can actually have a passenger with me. Now that I'm single (technically separated right now, but we're just waiting for the judge so we can sign the dissolution), I may actually find someone who wants to go off-roading and exploring with me so I want that capability. Also, it'll make the trips more comfortable for me and the dog.

 

[GhostX]

Ron...I can tell you, finding a significant other who wheels and camps is just about the best thing in the world.

Good luck on the final paperwork, I have lived that dream and when it is finished it is sweet liberation.

Back to the build...HU's seem to come in all shapes and sizes. I just recently bought a new Pioneer that functions great as a receiver for my iPod or iPhone. Not sure on the transmitter function though.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

On the plus side, this is very amicable, so there's no real drama at all to deal with. That makes life much better, IMO.

I think for the HU, it could be one with an output set up that gives me A, B, or A+B options (most likely as a preamp output) or I could simply tap into it and have a separate control for the transmitter.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

Quick bit of searching turns up this gem. It's an Alpine unit and I believe it's got a detachable face, USB input (so I can use a drive to host my songs), and multiple outputs. My general assumption is that those would run to amps, but probably could be split to power the transmitter.

Here's the problem, though. I'm not sure, but I believe the stock unit only has one amp for the sub, but the other speakers are powered from the head unit. So, to do this I'd likely want to have an additional amp to power the other speakers. May or may not want to replace the subwoofer amp, too.

 

[Ron ap Rhys]

Pics of said RTT install.



These are not incredibly light. Less fun than one might expect to install alone.



This is the most likely set up I'll have in Moab. Since there's little chance of rain and inclement weather, I'll just rock with this.



Interior pic. Roughly 4' x 8' of interior space.



The (mostly) full set up. Doors on all four sides so I can access it whichever way is out of the rain or snow, plus get into the X. Worth mentioning is that it also has a floor that zips in.



And here it is all buttoned up. I did a quick run just north of 80mph and no issues.

One install note if anyone gets one, the bolts that come with the kit for attaching it to the roofrack are too short for the Xterra's roofracks. I do have a DepHep, so I ended up buying 4.5" 5/8" bolts and Nylock nuts to replace them. If you don't have the DepHep, you should be able to get away with 4" bolts, I'd think.

 

[Jack Stilts]

Nice RTT! Is that the Mt. Bachelor? I put the same one on my DepHep.

 

[drbandkgb]

Can you tell it's up there when driving?

 

[kgbanddrb]

Awesome! I want one

that is all.

 

[gorillamel]

How much does it weigh? How long did it take you to install on your own?
Looks great!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

 

[XTorrey]

Sweet! Looks like the Mt. Shasta to me-can't wait to pick ours up at Gone.

 

[XTorrey]

How much does it weigh? How long did it take you to install on your own?
Looks great!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

If it's the one I'm thinking it is, it's 125 lb.

 

[SpongeX]

Its a Shasta.

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[Macland]

That looks great! Although it looks like rust monster has got after your bumper.

 

[GhostX]

Nice RTT Ron! Congrats...that is going to make stumbling home from the world's most unorganized cookout a snap.

 

[drbandkgb]

Can't wait to see it at noab

 

[Muadeeb]

Can't wait to see it at noab

Or at Moab, I presume?

 

[SpongeX]

I take delivery of my tent in Moab. Cant wait to have it but it will mounted on a *gasp* Toyota.

 

[GhostX]

Or at Moab, I presume?

Noab is where my ex-wife lives.


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