Land Rover ideas for Jeeps

[Zeep]

Definitely would go with something flush mounted. I have been looking for a flush mount LED, to mount on the inside removable panel, inside my factory top. I've already added a hot lead to the tops power connector.

I installed 1 of these with velcro straps, for ajustablity, to the rollbar.

 

[Zeep]

Sorry for the hacked up post!

 

[jscherb]

The new Land Rover Life magazine I posted about is available for subscriptions in the U.S., so I signed up. If there are useful ideas for Jeeps in the magazine, I'll post them.

 

[jscherb]

Right now I'm reading a book I found at a recent library book sale about the history of Land Rover, it's entitled The Land Rover: Workhorse of the World.

In it is a mention of a booklet published by Land Rover entitled A Guide to Land Rover Expeditions, which the book describes this way: "over the years they [Land Rover] had built up so much know-how on the art and craft of of crossing unknown territory that they were able to publish a useful little book...". I searched and found a PDF copy, and it is indeed useful: https://www.roverhaul.com/pdf/a_guide_to_land-rover_expeditions.pdf. It's worth downloading and printing a copy (it's only 24 pages), there are many useful Land Rover Ideas for Jeep (expeditions) in there. The cover and introduction:

 

[14JKURX]

Interesting guide.
Thanks for sharing

 

[jscherb]

Received my first issue of the new Land Rover Life magazine yesterday. And also the December issue of Land Rover Monthly came yesterday. There are some interesting ideas in both magazines, I'll post them as soon as I get a chance. The Land Rover Life issue I got is actually their second, my subscription went in too late to get the initial issue, so I ordered the first issue from their back issue page yesterday so my collection will be complete.

 

[jscherb]

This was in the current issue of Land Rover Life:



On my September Colorado Expedition I tested a similar product. It's called a LifeStraw, and I actually bought it for India, where I shouldn't drink any water that's not bottled (or any bottled water that isn't factory sealed - sometimes they get refilled).

It claims to remove almost all bacteria and parasites (from 99.99% to 99.999999% depending on the type) so I brought it on this trip and figured I'd try it in a Colorado stream.

I found a good stream to try along the Engineer Pass trail. Filling the bottle:

Later that evening I tried the filtered water from the bottle.

It looked very clear but that indicates nothing because the contaminants the bottle is supposed to remove aren't visible to the naked eye. Anyway, the water tasted great. I haven't died or gotten sick yet, and I probably could have drunk the water directly from that mountain stream without filtering, but it's nice to know it was filtered before I drank it.

I think these are a good idea, especially on a longer expedition away from civilization - in most places you can find a stream (well maybe not the Utah desert) so a supply of drinking water will always be available. I recommend adding one or more to your overlanding kit (or for those who don't speak British, "overlanding gear").

 

[Paddler Ed]

I scored a Katadyn filter set at a market stall; it was one of those buys where I knew what I was looking at, the seller sort of knew what they had and the price was very much right. I love the water we get from it (we use it when backpacking). The nice thing with the Katadyn is that it screws straight onto a Nalgene wide neck bottle, so you get everything straight into the bottle.
This is what we use:

Katadyn Vario Filter

<p>Perfect for a small group, the award winning Katadyn Vario is a powerful companion in a small, lightweight package. This variable filter offers higher output or longer life, your choice!</p>

www.katadyngroup.com

So worth having when getting water from sources where you can't see too far up stream.

 

[jscherb]

Featured in both LRM and LRL this month, an idea I haven't seen in the Jeep world - an arched rear tonneau cover.



All of the Jeep ones I've seen are flat. This one comes with a frame to provide the arched shape; flat Jeep ones are simpler because they don't need the frame, but this one claims to be more waterproof because water can run off the sloped sides rather than pool up in the center. It also offers increased storage because it's higher off the floor of the Jeep.

What do you think of this idea?

I doubt this will catch on in the Jeep world, and maybe it won't catch on in the Land Rover world either, but it is from Exmoor Trim, which is one of the leading Land Rover accessories companies in the UK.

 

[jscherb]

Also in the recent issue of Land Rover Life... I'm sure we've all seen aluminum or steel diamondplate overlays for Jeep fenders, hoods, etc. A UK company is now making them from carbon fiber.



Their ad in the same magazine:



If I were to put diamondplate on my hood or fender, I'd probably go for this. If I was doing it as side armor, maybe metal would be preferable though. I doubt this will show up for the Jeep world, with the rising costs of fiberglass/carbon fiber production over the past 10 years, most suppliers of Jeep fiberglass parts have closed down so there's almost nobody left to do this.

I played with the idea back in 2014 - I made a small test mold from a sheet of aluminum diamond plate I had on hand and molded a test piece of fiberglass diamond plate. In this photo, it's the one that doesn't match (didn't have a realistic rattle can aluminum paint on hand)...



Another view of the same sample - I was thinking it might be cool to mold a large piece to skin a trailer lid I was working on.



I never did anything with it beyond this quick test, but it would be pretty easy to mold hood and fender overlays this way. They would be a lot lighter than comparable aluminum parts and painted black or body color you'd never know they weren't metal.

 

[jscherb]

Air up or air down all 4 tires at the same time? This was in the most recent issue of Land Rover Owner:



At $300 US, it's seems a bit pricey to me. Coincidentally, I've been experimenting with the same idea, but using much less expensive parts. Mine is just a proof-of-concept prototype, it's not finished yet, but it uses 4 clip-on Schrader chucks, a 4-way valve assembly, a Schrader valve for connecting a compressor (or letting air out) and a pressure gauge.

It works as expected, which means I can air up or air down all 4 tires at the same time, monitoring the pressure on the gauge. The cheap hose I first used is prone to kinking, so I talked to a hose supplier I've worked with in the past to find some better hose and he sent me a sample - that's the black hose in the photo below. The new hose is perfect. A smaller digital pressure gauge would be better for this application, so I'll source that and get enough of the back hose to replace the kink-prone clear stuff.



The initial testing suggests this could be very useful not only on the trail but also useful to synchronize all 4 tires to the same pressure so the JKU's TPMS system will show all 4 tires being the same. And a lot less expensive than the UK product. I believe there's at least one similar product in the US, but I think it is also kind of pricey.

My project has the interest of a compressor company and I'm meeting with them at SEMA this week to discuss this and a few other ideas I've got for them.

 

[Florida Native]

My big complaint with that setup would be the amount of space all that hose would take up. Seems like a lot of space to waste to maybe save a few minutes of time.

-Mike

 

[jscherb]

My big complaint with that setup would be the amount of space all that hose would take up. Seems like a lot of space to waste to maybe save a few minutes of time.

-Mike

Mike,
I agree that's a concern, and that's why I first tested the clear hose which as you can see from the photo takes up very little space. Unfortunately that particular hose is prone to kinking so it won't work in this application.

In the photo I posted yesterday, the black hose is much too long, I didn't cut the sample they sent me, I just tested it at the length as it came. But even when it's cut to the proper length it will take up some space.

We'll see how much space it takes up when I get enough of the black hose to do all 4 tires and I cut them to the proper length. One goal I have is for it to fit inside my compressor bag, which has more space available even when it's got a 25' (!) long Flexzilla hose inside...





I've also got some ideas for a carrying bag just for the hose assembly that will store in minimum space, so if it passes the "fits in my compressor bag" test, after that I'll sew a prototype bag just for the hose assembly.

Still a work in progress.

 

[grizzlypath]

Air up or air down all 4 tires at the same time? This was in the most recent issue of Land Rover Owner:

View attachment 803243

At $300 US, it's seems a bit pricey to me. Coincidentally, I've been experimenting with the same idea, but using much less expensive parts. Mine is just a proof-of-concept prototype, it's not finished yet, but it uses 4 clip-on Schrader chucks, a 4-way valve assembly, a Schrader valve for connecting a compressor (or letting air out) and a pressure gauge.

It works as expected, which means I can air up or air down all 4 tires at the same time, monitoring the pressure on the gauge. The cheap hose I first used is prone to kinking, so I talked to a hose supplier I've worked with in the past to find some better hose and he sent me a sample - that's the black hose in the photo below. The new hose is perfect. A smaller digital pressure gauge would be better for this application, so I'll source that and get enough of the back hose to replace the kink-prone clear stuff.



The initial testing suggests this could be very useful not only on the trail but also useful to synchronize all 4 tires to the same pressure so the JKU's TPMS system will show all 4 tires being the same. And a lot less expensive than the UK product. I believe there's at least one similar product in the US, but I think it is also kind of pricey.

My project has the interest of a compressor company and I'm meeting with them at SEMA this week to discuss this and a few other ideas I've got for them.

MORRFlate is a US owned company by a Sacramento local named Tyler. He was one of the first (if not the first) to the multi-tire inflator market and is active in the off-roading community.

 

[ihatemybike]

When I look at those four tires at once setups I can't help but think, mount some lines to the vehicle, then attach a short line between the vehicle and each tire and compressor when needed.