Ram 2500 XL for overland / expedition trips

[ttengineer]

FYI

The expedition one bumper will fit an 18k winch.

https://expeditiononestore.com/products/dodge-ram-ultra-hd-front-bumper

They can also add the bar.


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[Bayou Boy]

A 24volt setup is going to require a separate bank but you can use this thing to charge it.
http://www.yandina.com/troll2400info.htm

I use the lower amperage versions of these for trolling motors so I can charge the batteries on the run.
Also, you can use "Trolling Battery 1" as an auxiliary battery for a fridge of whatever. I use the Trolling Battery 1 on my boat as the house battery.

The largest benefits of a 24 volt winch are that it should require lower amperage and correspondingly smaller wires

 

[Ravenmad]

Today was ARB compressor / front locker day. I am by no means proficient with electrical stuff, so I took a very long time today to make sure It was as close to correct as I could be.

I got out all my electrical supplies and made a run to the local hardware store for insulated stainless steel clamps, wiring loom, extra wire in the appropriate gauges to match the ARB provided harness, Di-lectric grease for all the connections, a fresh roll of electrical tape and a bag of pellets for my Traeger BBQ / Smoker.

I had the compressor mounted when the ARB and Gears were installed by Northridge 4x4 so all that was left to do was;
Locate the harness and extend it.
Connect the ARB harness to the factory Aux. switches.

 

[Ravenmad]

The compressor is mounted high inside the inner fender well on the passengers side, in front of the rear tire and bolted to a main bed support that runs from right to left. I still need to build a shield to protect it from debris as well as install the inner fender liners for all the wheel wells. For now, its nice to not have the inner fender liners in as it provides better access to a lot of stuff I need to still do.

I extended the wiring harness and ran it though the plastic automotive wiring loom. I measured and pre drilled pilot holes for the galvanized self tapping screws that I used to fasten the stainless C clamps that hold the wiring loom to the body.

I ran the loom from the compressor down the inside of the body and then followed the relocted factory wiring harness (as per AEV's high mark fender flare install instructions) up through the passenger side front inner fender well.

I ran the 2 wires for the factory Aux. switches inside wiring loom as well and over to the factory Aux. provided connections.

 

[Ravenmad]

For anyone wanting to do the same and use the factory Aux. switches to control air lockers and the ARB compressor, it was actually very simple. The primary harness for the Compressor has a power and two ground wires. The large power and ground are for the compressor and the small blk wire (ground) is a common ground for the switches.

Also part of the main harness that connects to the compressor are 4 wires (red - blk - yellow - green)

Because the primary harness has a common ground for the switches (small blk wire) that connects to the battery, the only wires you need to concern yourself with on the second part of the main harness are the (green - yellow - red). Green and yellow control your ARB locker switches and red is for the pressure switch that controls the ARB compressor. In my case I only needed the yellow and red wires (front ARB locker and ARB compressor pressure switch). I simply cut the second harness used to connect to the ARB provided switches, inserted the appropriate color coded wires, extended them to reach the factory Aux. harness provided by the factory and connected them to the appropriate Aux. wires. Walla.... actually very simple....

 

[Ravenmad]

Bumper is sitting on the deck in pieces, I am hopeful I can install it tomorrow and start to modify it. I am thinking I will either raise the center bar 3 inches (high bar) to make room for my JW Speaker lights, or, I will build a whole brush guard that will protect the grill and headlights from branches and brush. I am also considering modifying the bottom portions of the side "wings" to gain more clearance.

IF you could modify an AEV bumper, what would you do and why?

I am hopeful I can get the bumper finished this week and send it off to powder-coating early next week. Its a pain to install, modify and dissemble again to powder coat and then reinstall with the WARN 16.5, but ow well, thats the way it goes. Powder-coating will match the wheels. Im also considering having the recovery points powder coated orange to match the synthetic rope I want as well as the MatTrax.

 

[ttengineer]

I like the idea of powder coating the tow points. It would add a cool pop of color.

The paint matched AEV bumpers do look really good too. I've actually thought that for someone who doesn't get too extreme with their rig, a chrome plated AEV bumper would give it a great look. People often forget how durable chrome is too.


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[Explorerinil]

I like the idea of powder coating the tow points. It would add a cool pop of color.

The paint matched AEV bumpers do look really good too. I've actually thought that for someone who doesn't get too extreme with their rig, a chrome plated AEV bumper would give it a great look. People often forget how durable chrome is too.


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I feel that using the tow points, the power coat would wear off, scratch bad and look horrible, as for paining to match, I disagree for a truck that’s getting used... I purchased a 2014 black appearance ram 2500 before the sport package was reintroduced. After a year the painted front bumper was scratched and had tons of rock dings, it looks real bad.

 

[Explorerinil]

Bumper is sitting on the deck in pieces, I am hopeful I can install it tomorrow and start to modify it. I am thinking I will either raise the center bar 3 inches (high bar) to make room for my JW Speaker lights, or, I will build a whole brush guard that will protect the grill and headlights from branches and brush. I am also considering modifying the bottom portions of the side "wings" to gain more clearance.

IF you could modify an AEV bumper, what would you do and why?

I am hopeful I can get the bumper finished this week and send it off to powder-coating early next week. Its a pain to install, modify and dissemble again to powder coat and then reinstall with the WARN 16.5, but ow well, thats the way it goes. Powder-coating will match the wheels. Im also considering having the recovery points powder coated orange to match the synthetic rope I want as well as the MatTrax.

I wouldn’t modify it at all, if I was interested in more protection I would have gone with a buck stop bumper... just my opinion.

 

[ttengineer]

I like the idea of powder coating the tow points. It would add a cool pop of color.

The paint matched AEV bumpers do look really good too. I've actually thought that for someone who doesn't get too extreme with their rig, a chrome plated AEV bumper would give it a great look. People often forget how durable chrome is too.


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I feel that using the tow points, the power coat would wear off, scratch bad and look horrible, as for paining to match, I disagree for a truck that’s getting used... I purchased a 2014 black appearance ram 2500 before the sport package was reintroduced. After a year the painted front bumper was scratched and had tons of rock dings, it looks real bad.

I think it just depends on how you use the truck. The majority of people who are just trail riding shouldn't have a problem with scratching and denting with a paint or powdercoated bumper. But if you're rock crawling and pushing your rig to the limits, yea it's a concern. But I'd be more concerned as to why that person choose the AEV bumper in the first place using the rig like that when there are WAY better options for off road clearance.


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[Ravenmad]

I do like the Backstop "outback" bumper. I got the AEV bumper for such a good price that I could not pass it up though. I do really like the basic contour of the AEV bumper, I also like that it sits very tight to the truck body and really does not waste space. Crazy thing, my brother put a Mercenary off-road bumper on his RAM 2500 and instantly lost 1 mpg. I remember the first time I put an aftermarket bumper and winch on a JK and instantly lost 1.5 mpg, crazy, but I digress.

I get that it seems odd to cut up an AEV bumper to gain more protection for the front of the truck when I could have just bought a different bumper, but a deal is a deal. I think for the time being I will just cut and extend the center tube to make it a "high" bar so I can actually fit my lights on the bumper. LED light bars are nice, but I have a metric ton of JW speaker lights, so that's what I will use. Interestingly enough, my round JW speaker lights fit in the light bezels on the "wings", a win for the team lolol...

I wonder if "clear bra" or some similar product would help protect the bumper from rock chips the same way it helps protect the paint on the leading edges of a car/truck from rock chips? Im really not going to be rock crawling the truck and I would like to keep it looking good through the end of this year if possible, we are in the process of negotiating a deal for a vendor to use the truck for a week or so towards the end of the year. I will be retired by the end of this year, so really, the rest of this year is just about getting the truck finished and ready for retirement use.

Forgot to say, I am planning to take the truck out this coming weekend for a shakedown run, its still very early in the season and most the high mountain passes are still covered in feet of snow, but I think I will make an attempt to see how far I can get up / over either mosquito pass, the back side of Mt. Antero or Tin Cup pass.

 

[Tex68w]

The painted front bumpers on all of my F-250's have chipped and left little rust spots within a year of owning them. I fear the powder coated bumpers on my Power Wagon will eventually do the same, you just can't win when you have pebbles hurled at your bumper at 100+ mph. That said, I'd be more worried about bug guts and how they eat through your clear coat and paint in no time at all. I wouldn't bother putting clear bra on your bumper, that's a tad over kill.

 

[Ravenmad]

All very good points, I think I will just leave the bumper alone for the time being (AEV blk powder coating) and I will extend the "low bar" to make it a "high bar". It will work great and still look good.

 

[ttengineer]

There is always LineX. The new Ultra LineX coating looks incredible and is specifically designed for bumpers and fenders.


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[ttengineer]

There is always LineX. The new Ultra LineX coating looks incredible and is specifically designed for bumpers and fenders.


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