Recent content by Peter_n_Margaret

Why the name "Dingo"? "The dingo is a medium-sized canine that possesses a lean, hardy body adapted for speed, agility, and stamina. The dingo's three main coat colourations are light ginger or tan, black and tan, or creamy white."...

We spent 2 months on that cattle station in the Pilbara (northern Western Australia), working for our keep. A fantastic experience in some stunning country with great people. They also had a R44 that the boss used just for prospecting with a friend, and a Cessna 150 that was used for commuting...

Anyone here fly high performance sailplanes? I did for 25 years and you never quite get over it. I have flown a sailplane over a 1,000km triangle and flown ridges at low altitude and high speeds. This short video clip from New Zealand is more dramatic than anything I ever did. Cheers, Peter...

Cheers, Peter OKA196 motorhome

You need to come to Oz. :) Cheers, Peter OKA196 motorhome

I charge my 325Ah LiFePO4 directly from the 14.4V alternator if the solar can not keep up. That is what alternators do. Charge rate can vary up to 75A (from an 85A alternator), depending on the voltage of the Li. The bigger the voltage gap, the higher the charge rate. I switch it on via a relay...

What is the COP (Coefficient of Performance)? Cheers, Peter OKA196 motorhome

12v A/C are typically very expensive and very poor efficiency. My new build will include provision for a small domestic mains powered split A/C run from an inverter. I have 1160W of solar and a 20 year old PWM controller. Modern MPPT controllers would be considerably better in poor conditions...

That conveyor belt can be full length. It will last 10X a piece of wood. You still need some lateral stops. Cheers, Peter OKA196 motorhome

Rubber conveyor belt. Or air. Somewhere you need lateral stops. Cheers, Peter OKA196 motorhome

Problem there is that there are no American 4WD factory vehicles that are decent expedition options. My Australian designed and made OKA 4WD has a close coupled NP205 and "super singles" with a wide chassis, all ex factory (and no dual wheel options) in 1994. I doubt anyone who had ever driven...

And???? Many are converted 2WDs, some might be designed and built as 4WD. It makes fundamental differences to chassis design and suspension in particular, particularly if the original design includes dual rear wheels. Measure the distance between the rear springs, for a start. Most 4WD designs...

It might have been converted by the factory, but it is still a conversion. It was never designed as a 4WD. If it had been, the chassis would be 500mm wider, and lots of other compromises. Cheers, Peter OKA196 motorhome

It is another 2WD truck converted to 4WD as an afterthought. That leaves fundamental compromises, like a chassis which is much narrower than it could be. Also. it is too wide for most tracks in Oz. Cheers, Peter OA196 motorhome

My vehicle is an OKA, a unique, Australian made vehicle that was designed and built from the ground up as a high mobility 4WD, rather than a 2WD light truck converted to 4WD as the Japanese vehicles are. The OKA is a simple design. One of its features is a leaf spring suspension which is simply...