dwh
Tail-End Charlie
I was more thinking of a blockage of some sort, like sludge or a mouse carcass or the bit of foil from the fuel additive bottle mentioned above...
MB 1120 Coming to America! Purchase, Build and Now Travel!
- Thread starter VerMonsterRV
- Start date
I was more thinking of a blockage of some sort, like sludge or a mouse carcass or the bit of foil from the fuel additive bottle mentioned above...
VerMonsterRV
Gotta Be Nuts
We have used those on the boat as we tried to fill by jerrycan when possible in developing nations. One thing to be aware of is the water block wears out on those and they need to be replaced every so often. You can test them by putting in a bit of water and if it goes thru then get a new one.
Sitec
Adventurer
So, I have fabricated a different system to those mentioned above on several previous trucks, negating the need for second gauges, pumps, wires etc etc.... It involved a 'one way brass check valve' sat in between two saddle tanks. The right 200lt tank was the 'fill' tank, and the left 200lt tank was the 'running' tank that had the gauge sender and fuel line pickup points. Between the two tanks I had a 1" link pipe and a one way brass check valve (mounted vertically and at about the half height tank point in the middle of the chassis between the two tanks) The link pipe always has a manual isolation tap on the outlet/inlet of each tank, in case of hose burst etc. When filling, the RH 'fill' tank would fill to half and then overflow into the LH 'running' tank. They'd then both fill together until full. The gauge at this point would show full.
When in use, fuel would be used from the LH 'running' tank, and due to vehicle movement/cornering etc it would automatically be replenished from the RH 'fill' tank. When the fuel gauge finally starts to drop off the full position, I then knew that the RH 'fill' tank was now empty and I'd used just over 50% of my fuel. It was really simple, and just worked.
I plan to make the same system on the truck I'm building now. Things I'd do differently this time would be a larger 2" connecting pipe and check valve (or 2 x 1" pipes and valves if the larger 2" valve was not available). I'd also add a small balancing link pipe with a solenoid tap so I can access the last of the 'fill' tanks fuel on flat ground if ever needed.
When in use, fuel would be used from the LH 'running' tank, and due to vehicle movement/cornering etc it would automatically be replenished from the RH 'fill' tank. When the fuel gauge finally starts to drop off the full position, I then knew that the RH 'fill' tank was now empty and I'd used just over 50% of my fuel. It was really simple, and just worked.
I plan to make the same system on the truck I'm building now. Things I'd do differently this time would be a larger 2" connecting pipe and check valve (or 2 x 1" pipes and valves if the larger 2" valve was not available). I'd also add a small balancing link pipe with a solenoid tap so I can access the last of the 'fill' tanks fuel on flat ground if ever needed.
biggoolies
Adventurer
I have both my tanks connected to a three way valve on the diesel return and can fill either tank with the return. I do have a three way valve also on the uptake line. But you have to have the return clearly marked and watch your gauges or you can overflow one tank.
biggoolies
Adventurer
I have to mount them better....
VerMonsterRV
Gotta Be Nuts
Ok, off fuel tanks for a quick build update (likely bak at mounting the tank over the weekend). We have finally gotten started with the exterior metal work and it has been a bit of a frenzy for me to try and keep up with the welder. Figured might as well start with the most complicated project first, which would be the motorcycle/tire lift. Made pretty decent progress over the last 2 days and have the fixed portion bolted onto the chassis (will have to remove for painting unfortunately). You can also see the hinged arms that are just temporarily in place. The rear hitch plate is 5/8" plate and the 2 sides are 1/2". The rectangular tube is 2"x4"x3/16". The 2" trailer hitch receiver is mounted in a square hole and welded front and back. The recovery points are 1" plate. The little 12v winch will provide the lift and lower. Hard to see but near the trailer hitch is a 2" hole for the trailer plug. I am thinking we might even be able to build the platform tomorrow (some of the metal is already cut and ready to weld).
So, now of course the question. I got one of these https://www.extrememax.com/product-p/5001.5010.htm motorcycle wheel chocks. I plan on mounting it to the top of the lifting platform to catch the front tire. Now I am looking at how others secure their motorbikes to the platform? I see straps are an option, anything I should look out for?
So, now of course the question. I got one of these https://www.extrememax.com/product-p/5001.5010.htm motorcycle wheel chocks. I plan on mounting it to the top of the lifting platform to catch the front tire. Now I am looking at how others secure their motorbikes to the platform? I see straps are an option, anything I should look out for?
I'll be following suite on building a rear lowering platform, so looking forward to the finished result.
I've built a few racks for enduro motorcycles, make a lot of mistakes, discoveries in the process. A front wheel chock to help hold the bike in place while you secure it is a great solution. Simply roll the front end of the bike into the chock, then you are relatively free to work around it.
I've tried straps from the bars to outriggers, shepherd hooks over the top of the seat, fixed anchors to the frame/subframe triangle, and the one I ended up liking the most is to affix the bike down by the foot pegs. They are typically robust enough to handle securing the bike down, so long as they do not actually support the weight of the bike (which you already have a platform for). I have used thru bolts (through the pegs), bolts with hooks over the top of the pegs, the chain links that you screw closed attached to eye bolts which then screwed down through the supporting platform, and have seen a few other options.
However yo do it, it seems that having lock washers (minimal) or nyloc bolts (slower but more secure) to keep things from backing off due to vibration, etc. is critical.
To give you an idea of what is out there for foot peg hook ideas, here are a few links to products out there that you can buy or borrow ideas from for your fabricator.
https://www.bikebinderz.com - Really like this idea, but the bike does move a little from side to side due to the chains only pulling in tension. In reality not an issue, but worth thinking about.
http://alljackedupinc.com - Goes over the peg. I have this carrier, and have never had issues.
https://ultimatemxhauler.com - goes thru the peg, which may be an issue if the size of holes in the peg are too small.
http://www.addabike.com/ABFHOMEPAGE.html - This one has to move out of the way to roll the bike on, then move back securely to interface with the peg. Most promising in my book in terms of speed and security if you can dial it in.
Best of luck.
I've built a few racks for enduro motorcycles, make a lot of mistakes, discoveries in the process. A front wheel chock to help hold the bike in place while you secure it is a great solution. Simply roll the front end of the bike into the chock, then you are relatively free to work around it.
I've tried straps from the bars to outriggers, shepherd hooks over the top of the seat, fixed anchors to the frame/subframe triangle, and the one I ended up liking the most is to affix the bike down by the foot pegs. They are typically robust enough to handle securing the bike down, so long as they do not actually support the weight of the bike (which you already have a platform for). I have used thru bolts (through the pegs), bolts with hooks over the top of the pegs, the chain links that you screw closed attached to eye bolts which then screwed down through the supporting platform, and have seen a few other options.
However yo do it, it seems that having lock washers (minimal) or nyloc bolts (slower but more secure) to keep things from backing off due to vibration, etc. is critical.
To give you an idea of what is out there for foot peg hook ideas, here are a few links to products out there that you can buy or borrow ideas from for your fabricator.
https://www.bikebinderz.com - Really like this idea, but the bike does move a little from side to side due to the chains only pulling in tension. In reality not an issue, but worth thinking about.
http://alljackedupinc.com - Goes over the peg. I have this carrier, and have never had issues.
https://ultimatemxhauler.com - goes thru the peg, which may be an issue if the size of holes in the peg are too small.
http://www.addabike.com/ABFHOMEPAGE.html - This one has to move out of the way to roll the bike on, then move back securely to interface with the peg. Most promising in my book in terms of speed and security if you can dial it in.
Best of luck.
Ozrockrat
Expedition Leader
I use ShockStraps and they seem to work well (never lost a bike or the sidecar). The bike moves around a bit on the suspension but nothing crazy.
https://www.shockstrap.com
I did look at using the foot pegs as anchor points but having to have multiple different configurations due to different bikes and with some foot pegs being mounted on alloy frames it wasn’t an option I was comfortable with.
Having a camera on it to keep an eye on the bike is both good and bad. Being able to quickly check everything is ok is a real bonus. Seeing how much the bike moves around while bouncing down a track is very disconcerting initially.
https://www.shockstrap.com
I did look at using the foot pegs as anchor points but having to have multiple different configurations due to different bikes and with some foot pegs being mounted on alloy frames it wasn’t an option I was comfortable with.
Having a camera on it to keep an eye on the bike is both good and bad. Being able to quickly check everything is ok is a real bonus. Seeing how much the bike moves around while bouncing down a track is very disconcerting initially.
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Not to go off topic but: Just curious if you (Jostt) are using pre-bent corners in this rack here with internal sleeves that you showed in this post. If so, do you have a source? I see them for thin walled stuff like mufflers, but haven't for this type of thing. Want to get a tubing bender, but with two dies it seems it may not pay for itself with the limited use.
I've used a few different type straps. What I don't like is that you have to compress the suspension quite a bit, which tends to be hard on seals and springs long term. (seems to be more of an issue with an upside down fork though) The straps can also dry out due to sun/weather, but they are cheap enough to replace if you inspect them from time to time so that was never my real beef with them.
When using the cam type strap, I was glad to have a camera looking at the bike after a rain storm. The cams loosened up once the straps got wet. These were beefy 2" wide Moto straps, so it surprised me. Started using ratcheting after that until I went to the steel foot peg mounts. I see yours go over the bars and the hooks have locking gates too. Guessing the hooks on the bottom (outside of the pic) have gated hooks as well. All good things if you're going to use straps.
When using the cam type strap, I was glad to have a camera looking at the bike after a rain storm. The cams loosened up once the straps got wet. These were beefy 2" wide Moto straps, so it surprised me. Started using ratcheting after that until I went to the steel foot peg mounts. I see yours go over the bars and the hooks have locking gates too. Guessing the hooks on the bottom (outside of the pic) have gated hooks as well. All good things if you're going to use straps.
VerMonsterRV
Gotta Be Nuts
Well the fabrication for the platform is pretty much finished except for the mount for the spare tire. We do not have the tire yet, but do have the rim and Heather was able to find a tire a couple hours away at a good price, so we will go tomorrow afternoon and pick it up. So we will put the motorcycle platform on hold tomorrow and start in on the entry platform and 2 step ladder. Hopefully Charlie (the welder) can also weld up the outboard solar panel brackets which I have all cut and ready to weld. So here is a picture of the platform, in full down it is about 10" above the ground, which was planned. Just did not have enough arm length to get it all the way to the ground. We built a simple 3' aluminum ramp to roll the bike/tire up. The motorcycle front tire chock still needs the back portion bolted on, juts could not find a grade 8 lock nut for it locally. Will search at Lowes, they might have it. Still need to wire the 12v to the winch but the platform lifts by hand (well 4 hands) and can be pinned in place (3/4" hitch pins). In case you are wondering what the crooked shiny bit of metal is, that is the temporary rear light bar that we had to remove to get the lift in place. Once the 2 rear storage boxed get built the lights/license plate will be mounted there.
Shot of Charlie and I, I am on the left. Figured out at this height it makes a pretty good bench. I think he is pretty pleased with our progress and that it is an interesting project for him. I know the stream of men coming in for metal work take a pretty good interest in it and ask heaps of questions.
Shot of Charlie and I, I am on the left. Figured out at this height it makes a pretty good bench. I think he is pretty pleased with our progress and that it is an interesting project for him. I know the stream of men coming in for metal work take a pretty good interest in it and ask heaps of questions.
VerMonsterRV
Gotta Be Nuts
Oh, I am also considering the foot peg mount way. I think Charlie can weld up a short pedestal out of aluminum that I can then thru bolt the foot pegs to. He has a pile of scrap bits that I think we can make work. Will post back once I figure it out. I also just ordered a rear tire strap and will put attachment points on the platform.
VerMonsterRV
Gotta Be Nuts
Picture of the rack up and pinned in place. Picked up the spare tire yesterday so on Monday we will fit it to the rack. Got a cam latch on order that should arrive on Monday so will complete the motorcycle tie down once it arrives. The little winch I bought is 12v (hard to find 24v ones here). The truck is 24v but the house bank is 12v. So I have 2 choices, get a 24 to 12 converter or power from the house bank. Given the potential power draw the higher voltage would be nice as the wiring could be smaller, but I would need a high current waterproof converter (plus no hole in the habitat floor to get access to 12v). Any thoughts on the converter? The manual claims up to 132 amps which I find a bit hard to see given this is a 2500 lb winch intended for an ATV. I see some 40 amp ones on Ebay but they might be a bit small. My guess is the combined weight of the platform/tire/motorbike will be less than 1000lbs and there is a turning block for the winch so the load should be cut in half. Will mount the backup camera on top of the fixed portion of the rack frame.
No pictures yet, but we have started the entry steps. We will have a small slide out platform for a place to clean our shoes off. The ladder will attach to that. We have the sliders mounted and a local shop with a finger brake (Charlie does not have one) is making the small platform out of aluminum diamond plate. I picked up the raw aluminum yesterday for the small ladder so hopefully that will all go together on Monday. Charlie also welded up the solar panel mounts so once we get the Sika primer (coming early next week), we can get on with finally mounting the solar panels.
No pictures yet, but we have started the entry steps. We will have a small slide out platform for a place to clean our shoes off. The ladder will attach to that. We have the sliders mounted and a local shop with a finger brake (Charlie does not have one) is making the small platform out of aluminum diamond plate. I picked up the raw aluminum yesterday for the small ladder so hopefully that will all go together on Monday. Charlie also welded up the solar panel mounts so once we get the Sika primer (coming early next week), we can get on with finally mounting the solar panels.
Wazak
Member
Have you considered overvolting the 12v winch I.e. running it at 24v with the amount of work that you are asking it to do I don't think that you would burn the motor out. Others may disagree.
Checkout overvolting winches on a few Land Rover forums it's been done quite a few times it's far cheaper than other solutions.