Project "Autonomous" F-350

[rayra]

So you're going for the race-truck style interior?

2" ABS sewer pipe makes good sturdy ducting. You just graft the vent grills on the end. And you might as well plumb a branch so it's pumped into the seat back / butt.

/once you mutter the 'custom' incantation, there are no limits (except your wallet).

// need some custom gauge and switch panels, in exotic woods?

 

[pappawheely]

So you're going for the race-truck style interior?

2" ABS sewer pipe makes good sturdy ducting. You just graft the vent grills on the end. And you might as well plumb a branch so it's pumped into the seat back / butt.

/once you mutter the 'custom' incantation, there are no limits (except your wallet).

// need some custom gauge and switch panels, in exotic woods?

My first step is a trip to my storage to get my Vintage air stuff and gages.

 

[rayra]

Nice stash. You keeping any of the stock dash, you going for a spartan Class 8 -style interior? Or you want something cluttered with gadgets, like I've been building?

I call it the Tower of Power / Tower of Babel. Or 'Incipient head-on collision due to driver distraction'



Speaking of which, how's the planning going on the accommodations side of things? You have your workstation / living quarters entertainment figured out yet? Would be clever to combine the two with a wall-mounted monitor and a fold-up table you could drop down against the wall when not needed.
I've got long range plans for a mobile woodworking shop in a 14' tandem axle utility trailer. Including a couch / bunk / desk. Been thinking about a lot of similar stuff to what you'd likely need for getting maximal use out of limited space.
And as I've been getting more into my storage platform / multi-flavor power setup, I've been seeing a lot of great 12v stuff / solutions. Which also dovetail into battery bank / prepper sort of projects.
So if you haven't got that figured out yet, I can help there too.

 

[pappawheely]

Nice stash. You keeping any of the stock dash, you going for a spartan Class 8 -style interior? Or you want something cluttered with gadgets, like I've been building?

I call it the Tower of Power / Tower of Babel. Or 'Incipient head-on collision due to driver distraction'



Speaking of which, how's the planning going on the accommodations side of things? You have your workstation / living quarters entertainment figured out yet? Would be clever to combine the two with a wall-mounted monitor and a fold-up table you could drop down against the wall when not needed.
I've got long range plans for a mobile woodworking shop in a 14' tandem axle utility trailer. Including a couch / bunk / desk. Been thinking about a lot of similar stuff to what you'd likely need for getting maximal use out of limited space.
And as I've been getting more into my storage platform / multi-flavor power setup, I've been seeing a lot of great 12v stuff / solutions. Which also dovetail into battery bank / prepper sort of projects.
So if you haven't got that figured out yet, I can help there too.

I want the truck interior clean and simple but with nice textures and colors.





One of my reasons to scrap the factory dash is because I want a work station in the passenger seat. I have worked sitting in the passenger seat before; the view is awesome. I want a fold out desk area and a comfortable reclining seat.

 

[rayra]

Hmmmm that's all kinds of possibilities. And I wonder how PSA veneers would hold up in the blistering desert sun / heat. Deinitely some UV-resistant topcoating

Passenger Seat Workstation, how about a slide out desk / drawer, with hard mounted / docked laptop. Idea akin to the 2U server rack pull outs.

LOTS of 19"W rack-mount hardware options out there, which could be readily modified or integrated. Even just a bare 1U tray setup would be beneficial.

Edge of the slider could be mouldng, blended into dash treatments, not obvious. Release a catch and slides right out. There's some nice thin 17" laptops out there these days, maybe mount two and own wireless hub / network, so you can pull images or switch workstation locations without having to mess with hardware.

But if you are gutting the dash it would be possible to build just about anything at all, even something as swoopy as those design illustrations. You could have a cowl and slightly receded below it your gauge array and sort of horizontal middle stata with ventilation ducts, radios, switches. And on the passenger side that strata is the face trim on the pull out workstation surface. When closed it's just a horizontal fascia spanning the cabin dash area. Reach for the drawer, release a catch with the same motion, pull out the workstation shelf with laptop in place already.

 

[rayra]

heck that Batmobile cockpit design lends itself to a slightly raised center pedestal on the cowl area where you could have a 1/4"-20 mounting stud for your camera, and use its video function as a dash / trail cam. And secure your camera close to hand while relocating on a race course.

for that matter, your high box would make a great vantage point for a couple remote-control day/night cams, they don't cost much these days. For both race day area shots and bump in the night.


/Spending other people's money is easy and fun!

 

[pappawheely]

Spending other people's money is easy and fun!

Spending my money would leave you very disappointed. I got my vintage air stuff and will be taking it to the shop. How cool are these? Throttle blade vent openings.

 

[Hillbilly Heaven]

Those are nice. Can you also rotate them? How do they mount?

 

[pappawheely]

Those are nice. Can you also rotate them? How do they mount?

I'll have to get back to you. My parts are buried behind a mobile DJ set-up in my truck bed right now. Doing some hauling for a friend.

I pulled the seat and floor mat out of the uhaul. No openings in the trans tunnel for the trans or transfer case shifters. :ar15:

 

[pappawheely]

I'm going with a pair of these fuel level gages from Prosport. I like the orientation of the scale on the gage face. They also give you several options for colors. I got blue gages but by changing the wiring they can be white during the day/blue at night, blue or white at all times, etc.

 

[chet6.7]

There are a lot of graduations on the gauge face,I like that.

 

[pappawheely]

There are a lot of graduations on the gauge face,I like that.

Me too. A fuel gage is important when you have a 460. :truck:

 

[njtacoma]

Me too. A fuel gage is important when you have a 460. :truck:

That much gauge sweep you might actually be able to see the needle moving when you really push that 460.
i'm not sure if that would be cool or terrifying.

 

[Wilbah]

That much gauge sweep you might actually be able to see the needle moving when you really push that 460.
i'm not sure if that would be cool or terrifying.

Haha! Exactly what I was thinking.....if you go fast enough it becomes a fan! :sombrero:

 

[rayra]

Just mod the guage so you get the sound of a cash register at WOT. My old 400 Firebird was like that. Open those huge secondaries and watch the fuel gauge go down. That part of it I don't miss.

Those vents would be interesting. Are they 3-4"? They look YUGE. If the whole thing could be rigged to spin you'd get the ability to aim the airflow about anywhere, instead of just up and down.
So aluminum bezels and some sort of wood.

If you want those kinds of swoop curves, pressure-sensitive-adhesive (PSA) -backed veneers would be best, but again I don't know if they can take ~140deg heat. I have some nice oak veneer scraps laying about from my kitchen remodel, I can work up some sample curved pieces, affix the veneer and leave them up on the dash in my black Suburban oven and see how they fare.