Vanilla Gorilla: 2017 Power Wagon build
- Thread starter marshal
- Start date
A few questions:
1) I saw the cross-member rail for mounting the skid rails and fuel tank skid. Do the regular (non-PW) 2500/3500's have those screw holes for mounting that cross-member?
2) The White knuckle sliders really take 5" of clearance away? Do they sit 5" lower than the frame?
3) Are the Randy Ellis sliders mounted to the frame or to the body?
Awesome build so far!
1) I saw the cross-member rail for mounting the skid rails and fuel tank skid. Do the regular (non-PW) 2500/3500's have those screw holes for mounting that cross-member?
2) The White knuckle sliders really take 5" of clearance away? Do they sit 5" lower than the frame?
3) Are the Randy Ellis sliders mounted to the frame or to the body?
Awesome build so far!
ttengineer
Adventurer
If he got the sleekster rail, then they mount to the rocker panel.
That area already has 2 or 3 layers of sheet metal and is arguably one of the strongest sections of the body. Randy Ellis adds ⅛" boxed steel to it to further strengthen the area. So much so that it will bear the entire weight of the vehicle and is usable as a jacking point for maintenance on the trail.
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Kingsize24
Well-known member
Hell yea!!! I gotta' see these things when he gets them on. I'm really looking hard at something similar to use along with AMP steps. I rarely see any under panel hits, but lower side rail impact is usually a given.
ttengineer
Adventurer
I wouldn't be doing drops and extreme rock crawling with them but for your average trail ride and the occasional difficult obstacle, they are perfect.
If you want to be doing ledges, drops, rock crawling, etc, then the white knuckle sliders are the right call.
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If you want to be doing ledges, drops, rock crawling, etc, then the white knuckle sliders are the right call.
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Yeah I agree. I think the new GM ZR2 uses a similar mounting method for their "sliders." For mild exploration stuff, I don't see an issue with that setup. Hardcore stuff might be a different story.
My main concern, as someone who lives in the northeast, is whether or not they would accelerate rust along the rocker panels, since I could envision a lot of water, snow, salt and gunk getting caught in there over many miles of hard usage.
ttengineer
Adventurer
I've wondered the same as well. I know at least part of the slider is mounted behind the door sill though.
I'm guessing it's nothing a little sealant couldn't prevent but I've never seen a set up close. Only pictures.
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I'm guessing it's nothing a little sealant couldn't prevent but I've never seen a set up close. Only pictures.
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marshal
Burrito Enthusiast
I think only a couple fit, the PW's have an extra crossmember that the regular trucks dont have. Im not certain on this though.
you lose 5" of clearance at the rocker panel. they are roughly even with the bottom of the frame rail give or take a little.
the Randy Ellis sleeksters mount to the rocker panel section of the body with bolts and rivets.
sandwiched up to a 1/4" in most places. It is quite substantial. the White Knuckle HD's mounted with their hardware and backing plates are around 140lbs each. the randy ellis rails are 120lbs total.
the upper lip of the Sleeksters sit inside the door sil so they should be well protected. they also cover the entirety of the rocker panel and would be the main line of defense from rock chips and other paint damaging bastards. My plan is to do a very detailed alcohol cleaning of the rocker and fix any paint chips before putting the slider on. I dont foresee there being any moisture entrapment issues.
Oilbrnr
Active member
Any update from Expo1 RE the camera and rear park assist? This is what I got from them yesterday from Roger:
This is what I can tell you the rear park sensors have to be put in the hole correctly so it can give you the correct readings. It seemed like the one we did for SEMA has gotten better over time by keeping the sensors clean.
The camera will use the stock wiring because the camera mount is closer. It no longer goes up the tailgate but the wirer now will run through a hole in the bumper to the new bracket that sits above the license plate.
Let me know if you have any more concerns that I can answer.
I guess I'll take a wait and see approach to this. Not sure I follow the camera wiring logic, as I know I've read elsewhere as well that the harness forks in the gate, and I assume it forks close to the camera or the lock solenoid.
As to the Park Assist, if it is reading the shackle mounts, I'll see if they can just eliminate them, as I already have a Factor55 receiver mount anyway. Cleaning them is BS. Mine are covered in dust all the time as I do over six miles of dirt a day in AZ, never a false alert in over a year.
This is what I can tell you the rear park sensors have to be put in the hole correctly so it can give you the correct readings. It seemed like the one we did for SEMA has gotten better over time by keeping the sensors clean.
The camera will use the stock wiring because the camera mount is closer. It no longer goes up the tailgate but the wirer now will run through a hole in the bumper to the new bracket that sits above the license plate.
Let me know if you have any more concerns that I can answer.
I guess I'll take a wait and see approach to this. Not sure I follow the camera wiring logic, as I know I've read elsewhere as well that the harness forks in the gate, and I assume it forks close to the camera or the lock solenoid.
As to the Park Assist, if it is reading the shackle mounts, I'll see if they can just eliminate them, as I already have a Factor55 receiver mount anyway. Cleaning them is BS. Mine are covered in dust all the time as I do over six miles of dirt a day in AZ, never a false alert in over a year.
ttengineer
Adventurer
The factor 55 receiver mount should be more than sufficient since the hitch is designed to tow 2x+ what the truck weighs. Plus removing the shackle mounts will give a cleaner look and snag less when off road.
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marshal
Burrito Enthusiast
ooookay, updates time!
current ass standing!
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
i relocated the camera down to the license plate. unfortunately despite E1's initial promise of a cable to extend the harness, i unhooked it from the tailgate and i no longer have a power lock on the tailgate. We're back to 2005.
Backup sensors are still in-op. E1 has no fix for this. they offered to send me extenders to push the sensors about an inch outside of the bumper. i declined.
I noticed an issue with the tire carrier, which i think is related to my super heavy wheel and tire combo. despite everything being tightened down, im getting some pretty substantial oscillations of the gate with the tire mounted. the fitment is so tight, that with the tire carrier adjusted so that the tire rests against the carrier arm itself, the tire is about 3/8 of an inch from the tailgate spoiler. This tight fit means that when the tire shakes, my tire is hitting the tailgate and rubbing against the paint. I mentioned this issue to E1 asking for help, and they said that they knew about the issue and suggested i tighten everything again, and said that they designed it for smaller/lighter setups. So, im pretty disappointed with it and I think im going to be taking it off here soon.
night shot of the sPOD HD panel. sPOD just sent me vertical legends for my switches and i've logged into the HD panel and im going to fine tune the color of the backlighting to accurately match the OEM dash lights. You can adjust the brightness of the red green and blue LED's that backlight the switches to perfect the colors to match exactly. the App also lets you set the switches to either be on/off, momentary, strobe, or flash. you can also link multiple switches together so if i wanted to have a Emergency switch that would turn on all of my lights on flash, i could. pretty neat setup!
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
i put my SDHQ a-pillar light mounds on yesterday. these are stout and totally ************
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
I then fitted both my XL80 and Squadron pods to see which one i liked better. Ive had about a dozen people tell me the XL80's because the squadrons look too small
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
i think i've settled on the Squadron's because i like the sleeker/tighter look. these are PRO's so they're still nearly 5000 lumens each. i'll take the weekend to think about it though
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
current ass standing!
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickri relocated the camera down to the license plate. unfortunately despite E1's initial promise of a cable to extend the harness, i unhooked it from the tailgate and i no longer have a power lock on the tailgate. We're back to 2005.
Backup sensors are still in-op. E1 has no fix for this. they offered to send me extenders to push the sensors about an inch outside of the bumper. i declined.
I noticed an issue with the tire carrier, which i think is related to my super heavy wheel and tire combo. despite everything being tightened down, im getting some pretty substantial oscillations of the gate with the tire mounted. the fitment is so tight, that with the tire carrier adjusted so that the tire rests against the carrier arm itself, the tire is about 3/8 of an inch from the tailgate spoiler. This tight fit means that when the tire shakes, my tire is hitting the tailgate and rubbing against the paint. I mentioned this issue to E1 asking for help, and they said that they knew about the issue and suggested i tighten everything again, and said that they designed it for smaller/lighter setups. So, im pretty disappointed with it and I think im going to be taking it off here soon.
night shot of the sPOD HD panel. sPOD just sent me vertical legends for my switches and i've logged into the HD panel and im going to fine tune the color of the backlighting to accurately match the OEM dash lights. You can adjust the brightness of the red green and blue LED's that backlight the switches to perfect the colors to match exactly. the App also lets you set the switches to either be on/off, momentary, strobe, or flash. you can also link multiple switches together so if i wanted to have a Emergency switch that would turn on all of my lights on flash, i could. pretty neat setup!
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickri put my SDHQ a-pillar light mounds on yesterday. these are stout and totally ************
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on FlickrI then fitted both my XL80 and Squadron pods to see which one i liked better. Ive had about a dozen people tell me the XL80's because the squadrons look too small
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickri think i've settled on the Squadron's because i like the sleeker/tighter look. these are PRO's so they're still nearly 5000 lumens each. i'll take the weekend to think about it though
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Untitled by Will Marshal, on Flickr
Kingsize24
Well-known member
I REALLY HATE to hear about your Exp1 bumper. After MUCH delay, mine finally comes in on Monday. Now I get to see if my experience is the same as yours. It will really suck if the problems are still there.
Anyway... the truck looks excellent. I honestly think the Squadron pods look perfect. Any larger and it would be out of place IMO.
Anyway... the truck looks excellent. I honestly think the Squadron pods look perfect. Any larger and it would be out of place IMO.
chet6.7
Explorer
"Backup sensors are still in-op. E1 has no fix for this. they offered to send me extenders to push the sensors about an inch outside of the bumper. i declined.
I noticed an issue with the tire carrier, which i think is related to my super heavy wheel and tire combo. despite everything being tightened down, im getting some pretty substantial oscillations of the gate with the tire mounted. the fitment is so tight, that with the tire carrier adjusted so that the tire rests against the carrier arm itself, the tire is about 3/8 of an inch from the tailgate spoiler. This tight fit means that when the tire shakes, my tire is hitting the tailgate and rubbing against the paint. I mentioned this issue to E1 asking for help, and they said that they knew about the issue and suggested i tighten everything again, and said that they designed it for smaller/lighter setups. So, im pretty disappointed with it and I think im going to be taking it off here soon."
Thanks for the update.
I am sorry to see the problems with the bumper,I ordered one on May 5th,I am running a smaller tire,and I have barn doors on my camper so maybe I will be OK. The issue with the backup sensors should have been sorted prior to release of the product or at least a warning from EP1. I am also using an aftermarket backup cam,so my fingers are crossed on that issue as well.
I noticed an issue with the tire carrier, which i think is related to my super heavy wheel and tire combo. despite everything being tightened down, im getting some pretty substantial oscillations of the gate with the tire mounted. the fitment is so tight, that with the tire carrier adjusted so that the tire rests against the carrier arm itself, the tire is about 3/8 of an inch from the tailgate spoiler. This tight fit means that when the tire shakes, my tire is hitting the tailgate and rubbing against the paint. I mentioned this issue to E1 asking for help, and they said that they knew about the issue and suggested i tighten everything again, and said that they designed it for smaller/lighter setups. So, im pretty disappointed with it and I think im going to be taking it off here soon."
Thanks for the update.
I am sorry to see the problems with the bumper,I ordered one on May 5th,I am running a smaller tire,and I have barn doors on my camper so maybe I will be OK. The issue with the backup sensors should have been sorted prior to release of the product or at least a warning from EP1. I am also using an aftermarket backup cam,so my fingers are crossed on that issue as well.
Kingsize24
Well-known member
Well I ordered in Febuary, and won't get mine till Monday, so I hope you're not impatient. After that wait I expect ALMOST perfection. If it isnt close, it will be sold.