Mighty Dodge Ram
Senior Member
Oh my, you are a brave soul indeed!
Hodakaguy's 4wd Sprinter Build - Pic Heavy!
Uploaded the next set of pics from last summers road trip.....
Full pics here: https://advrider.com/f/threads/the-...port-photo-mega-thread.1460644/#post-41802657
Hodakaguy
Full pics here: https://advrider.com/f/threads/the-...port-photo-mega-thread.1460644/#post-41802657
Hodakaguy
Mobility and fun on the go! I've been looking at options for a personal EV's to take with us on trips and keep coming back to Onewheels. A Onewheel is basically a single wheel electric "Skateboard" that is capable of traveling on dirt, gravel, pavement, etc. Two of the smaller Onewheel Pints will take up little space and provide a ton of fun while on the road.
Here's a youtube video (Not Mine) that shows a Onewheel Pint in action:
Link to the official Onewheel site here: https://onewheel.com/?msclkid=f3f18617e4b01a1e7585e6546de409c4
Our two Pints fresh out of the Box and ready for fun.
20 minutes or practicing and my son and I were cruising around the neighborhood, they are very intuitive to operate. Here's a shot down at the park putting on miles
Now to figure out how to haul the two Pint's in the van. There is only one spot that is "open" where the boards can be stored and out of the way, that's the rear passenger side corner.
Next up.....stare at the space and figure out a design that will keep the boards secure and take up as little space as possible. After a while of staring and with a plan in my head it was time to start cutting metal.
I have some left over aluminum and Birch ply from my bed project which will work perfectly for this mount and match the bed system in the process. Here I'm starting to cut metal and assemble the rack.
Still practicing/learning welding aluminum, starting to get a bit better at it. Aluminum is really fun to weld.
Here I'm using scrap pieces of foam to figure out the correct spacing and height for the wheel mount.
Temporarily setting the assembly in place to check for clearances to make sure the door still closes etc. I had measured all that ahead of time but better to find out now if there is an issue
Rubber caps will make the open ends look a tad more finished.
Next up it's over to my buddy Mike's place. Mike runs a sweet van up fitting business called Vanlab and made quick work on cutting out the base and back plates from my scrap birch on his sweet CNC router. We decided to cut a Onewheel Pint image into the back board for an extra touch. Thanks Mike!
Continued Below.....
Here's a youtube video (Not Mine) that shows a Onewheel Pint in action:
Link to the official Onewheel site here: https://onewheel.com/?msclkid=f3f18617e4b01a1e7585e6546de409c4
Our two Pints fresh out of the Box and ready for fun.
20 minutes or practicing and my son and I were cruising around the neighborhood, they are very intuitive to operate. Here's a shot down at the park putting on miles
Now to figure out how to haul the two Pint's in the van. There is only one spot that is "open" where the boards can be stored and out of the way, that's the rear passenger side corner.
Next up.....stare at the space and figure out a design that will keep the boards secure and take up as little space as possible. After a while of staring and with a plan in my head it was time to start cutting metal.
I have some left over aluminum and Birch ply from my bed project which will work perfectly for this mount and match the bed system in the process. Here I'm starting to cut metal and assemble the rack.
Still practicing/learning welding aluminum, starting to get a bit better at it. Aluminum is really fun to weld.
Here I'm using scrap pieces of foam to figure out the correct spacing and height for the wheel mount.
Temporarily setting the assembly in place to check for clearances to make sure the door still closes etc. I had measured all that ahead of time but better to find out now if there is an issue
Rubber caps will make the open ends look a tad more finished.
Next up it's over to my buddy Mike's place. Mike runs a sweet van up fitting business called Vanlab and made quick work on cutting out the base and back plates from my scrap birch on his sweet CNC router. We decided to cut a Onewheel Pint image into the back board for an extra touch. Thanks Mike!
Continued Below.....
Continued from above....
Back to work on the frame. Drilling and inserting Tric nuts (Similar to Rivet Nuts) into the frame to hold the base and backboards on.
Sealing the boards with OSMO....great stuff.
Adding some extra height to the ends to lock in the boards.
Here I'm cutting down some rubber floor mat panels to install in the carrier. All surfaces that touch the boards will be foam padded. The base foam panels are held in place by compression, the side pieces are applied with Gorilla glue.
The notched areas are for the bolts that will bolt the base of the carrier into the OEM floor tie down points.
Next up I'm making foam rails that will attach to the back board. The rails are comprised of aluminum strap cut to size and foam strips glued to the aluminum, then the whole assembly is screwed onto the back board.
Here I'm using the optical center punch to mark out the hole locations on the aluminum strap.
Continued Below.....
Back to work on the frame. Drilling and inserting Tric nuts (Similar to Rivet Nuts) into the frame to hold the base and backboards on.
Sealing the boards with OSMO....great stuff.
Adding some extra height to the ends to lock in the boards.
Here I'm cutting down some rubber floor mat panels to install in the carrier. All surfaces that touch the boards will be foam padded. The base foam panels are held in place by compression, the side pieces are applied with Gorilla glue.
The notched areas are for the bolts that will bolt the base of the carrier into the OEM floor tie down points.
Next up I'm making foam rails that will attach to the back board. The rails are comprised of aluminum strap cut to size and foam strips glued to the aluminum, then the whole assembly is screwed onto the back board.
Here I'm using the optical center punch to mark out the hole locations on the aluminum strap.
Continued Below.....
Continued from above.....
Getting there....
Now to make the upper mount/brace that will tie the carrier into the vans L-track. I'll be making a removable mount that will bolt to the upper bar on the rack, that way if I want to use the rack in the house when it's not needed in the van I can remove the upper brace.
The upper brace bolts on via rivet nuts on the top and rear.
And here is what happens when you get in a hurry and drill holes for the rivet nuts in the wrong location....extra holes lol. Luckily they were on the back side and I was able to just move the holes inboard a bit so the two rivet nuts wouldn't hit each other. Oops....lol.
Using these L-track studs to attach the upper brace to the L-track. These are genius and have sooooo many uses.
Removing the OEM bolts out of the tie down points, the rack will mount in these locations using longer bolts.
Installing the longer bolts through the rack and into the tie down locations.
And here the rack is fully bolted into position. The rack is super solid and keeps the whole assembly away from the wall panel so nothing will rub/wear on the tweed fabric.
These are going to be a blast!
Hodakaguy
Getting there....
Now to make the upper mount/brace that will tie the carrier into the vans L-track. I'll be making a removable mount that will bolt to the upper bar on the rack, that way if I want to use the rack in the house when it's not needed in the van I can remove the upper brace.
The upper brace bolts on via rivet nuts on the top and rear.
And here is what happens when you get in a hurry and drill holes for the rivet nuts in the wrong location....extra holes lol. Luckily they were on the back side and I was able to just move the holes inboard a bit so the two rivet nuts wouldn't hit each other. Oops....lol.
Using these L-track studs to attach the upper brace to the L-track. These are genius and have sooooo many uses.
Removing the OEM bolts out of the tie down points, the rack will mount in these locations using longer bolts.
Installing the longer bolts through the rack and into the tie down locations.
And here the rack is fully bolted into position. The rack is super solid and keeps the whole assembly away from the wall panel so nothing will rub/wear on the tweed fabric.
These are going to be a blast!
Hodakaguy
billharr
Senior Member
ATGATT. That is all.
Parts are starting to show up, lot's of mods coming soon!
While I'm waiting for the new suspension to show up i decided I would make some progress and get the new tire carrier installed.
I wish all products came packaged with the care and detail that the OWL setup showed up with. You can really tell they care about their product and want to make sure that the end user has the best experience possible.
Popping off the door panels. I like to use an extended reach clip removal tool, I reach down into the door and pop each clip by applying pressure as close to the clip as possible. This allows me to easily remove the panel without worry about breaking clips.
Installing the bolts through the hinges. The bottom bolt (Stainless) has been ground down to fit the slightly smaller recess and prevent the door from binding. Everything is kept slightly loose at this point.
Washers are used to shim up the hinges. Didn't get a photo but there are plastic bushings that insert into the carrier where the bolt slides through.
The OEM magnet is removed off the rear door and an internal reinforcement plate is installed. Then the insulation and door panel are re-installed.
All bolts are tightened up at this point. Grease was installed on the bolts/pivot points.
Nice and solid! Quality of the whole setup is top notch! Now the wait for suspension and getting the new tires installed on the wheels so I can mount the spare on the rack.
Lot's more to come.....
Hodakaguy
While I'm waiting for the new suspension to show up i decided I would make some progress and get the new tire carrier installed.
I wish all products came packaged with the care and detail that the OWL setup showed up with. You can really tell they care about their product and want to make sure that the end user has the best experience possible.
Popping off the door panels. I like to use an extended reach clip removal tool, I reach down into the door and pop each clip by applying pressure as close to the clip as possible. This allows me to easily remove the panel without worry about breaking clips.
Installing the bolts through the hinges. The bottom bolt (Stainless) has been ground down to fit the slightly smaller recess and prevent the door from binding. Everything is kept slightly loose at this point.
Washers are used to shim up the hinges. Didn't get a photo but there are plastic bushings that insert into the carrier where the bolt slides through.
The OEM magnet is removed off the rear door and an internal reinforcement plate is installed. Then the insulation and door panel are re-installed.
All bolts are tightened up at this point. Grease was installed on the bolts/pivot points.
Nice and solid! Quality of the whole setup is top notch! Now the wait for suspension and getting the new tires installed on the wheels so I can mount the spare on the rack.
Lot's more to come.....
Hodakaguy
Range Baby!!
A longer range fuel tank has been on our wish list for a while now. We love to travel to remote areas, and not having to worry about fuel is a Huge benefit when traveling away from civilization. The larger fuel tank also allows us to skip areas that are high priced and fuel up where prices are lower.
We ordered the tank from Cory at Peak10Customs and had the tank in just over a week. The tank came well packaged, and nothing was damaged. The install instructions are online, and a QR code is included with the tank to access them. There is also a YouTube video showing the install that covers it pretty well...for the most part.
New tank came well packaged and in great cond.
OEM Tank before Removal.
Separating the Fuel lines. Here I used some Little Red Caps (Normally used to cover the open tips on Caulking tubes) to slide over the open fuel lines to prevent any dirt intrusion....and yes I know what they look like lol. These have been super handy for many uses around the shop.
Note: The links below are my Amazon Affiliate links, I make a small portion each time someone purchases from Amazon using one of my links, at no extra cost to the buyer. I only provide links to items that I personally like and use myself. i use the money to put back into my builds and support making videos/posts. If you prefer not to use my links you can search for the same items directly off Amazon. Thank you for the support!
Amazon link to the generic version of these here (Same thing and more cost effective): CLICK HERE
Removing the stock tank. After disconnecting the fuel lines and electrical connector, removing the fuel filler tubing retaining bolts and tank retaining straps it's time to remove the OEM tank. Here I used a jack to drop the tank down and slide it out from under the van.
A Ziplok bag keeps the female ends clean on the fuel lines.
Just a bit of difference between old and new! This is the tank the van should have left the factory with!
Here's the OEM Fuel sender assembly that will be removed and transferred to the new tank. Make sure you clean all the dirt off and around this assembly before removal as you want to keep the internal parts as clean as possible.
They make a special tool to remove the threaded hold down ring that you can pick up at the auto parts store, that said I had a large pair of channel locks that worked perfectly.
New O-ring installed on the S&B tank, ready for the fuel pick up assembly to be installed.
I had ran the fuel tank down quite a ways but there was still some residual fuel left. I transferred 5.2 gallons into a fuel can and will use this to pour into the new tank once it's installed, this will allow me to drive down to the fuel station for a full fill up.
Continued Below....
A longer range fuel tank has been on our wish list for a while now. We love to travel to remote areas, and not having to worry about fuel is a Huge benefit when traveling away from civilization. The larger fuel tank also allows us to skip areas that are high priced and fuel up where prices are lower.
We ordered the tank from Cory at Peak10Customs and had the tank in just over a week. The tank came well packaged, and nothing was damaged. The install instructions are online, and a QR code is included with the tank to access them. There is also a YouTube video showing the install that covers it pretty well...for the most part.
New tank came well packaged and in great cond.
OEM Tank before Removal.
Separating the Fuel lines. Here I used some Little Red Caps (Normally used to cover the open tips on Caulking tubes) to slide over the open fuel lines to prevent any dirt intrusion....and yes I know what they look like lol. These have been super handy for many uses around the shop.
Note: The links below are my Amazon Affiliate links, I make a small portion each time someone purchases from Amazon using one of my links, at no extra cost to the buyer. I only provide links to items that I personally like and use myself. i use the money to put back into my builds and support making videos/posts. If you prefer not to use my links you can search for the same items directly off Amazon. Thank you for the support!
Amazon link to the generic version of these here (Same thing and more cost effective): CLICK HERE
Removing the stock tank. After disconnecting the fuel lines and electrical connector, removing the fuel filler tubing retaining bolts and tank retaining straps it's time to remove the OEM tank. Here I used a jack to drop the tank down and slide it out from under the van.
A Ziplok bag keeps the female ends clean on the fuel lines.
Just a bit of difference between old and new! This is the tank the van should have left the factory with!
Here's the OEM Fuel sender assembly that will be removed and transferred to the new tank. Make sure you clean all the dirt off and around this assembly before removal as you want to keep the internal parts as clean as possible.
They make a special tool to remove the threaded hold down ring that you can pick up at the auto parts store, that said I had a large pair of channel locks that worked perfectly.
New O-ring installed on the S&B tank, ready for the fuel pick up assembly to be installed.
I had ran the fuel tank down quite a ways but there was still some residual fuel left. I transferred 5.2 gallons into a fuel can and will use this to pour into the new tank once it's installed, this will allow me to drive down to the fuel station for a full fill up.
Continued Below....
Continued from above....
Performing the pressure test. With the fuel pick up assembly installed in the new tank we covered the ports and used some low air pressure to test for leaks around the O-ring seal, all good! The instructions from S&B said that the tank comes with a rubber cap to put over the filler port then you poke a hole in the cap and put the air in at that point. Our kit was missing the rubber test cap but a stack of paper towels with a hole poked in the middle worked just fine.
The upper vent hose assembly gets cut off the original tank and will be re-used on the new tank.
Here the filler neck assembly has been cut off the OEM tank and is about to be installed on the new tank. There is an internal check valve that gets installed in the included rubber filler neck hose (Only snapped a picture once it was already installed in the hose).
Ready to go back in the van. The filler neck hose clamps are left slightly loose at this point so you can rotate the filler piping up into place as you slide the tank under the van, once in place then they can be tightened up. The instructions showed installing 3 clamps total on the filler neck but my kit was only supplied with two clamps, I had another spare on hand so it wasn't a big deal.
Getting ready to re-install.
Tank installed in place and filler neck tightened back up, guards haven't been re-installed yet in this picture.
On the rear of the tank there is a vent line that is slid through the boxed section of the frame then connected to another vent barb on the forward section of the tank during install. The instructions show just sliding the hose through the OEM holes and letting it rest on the metal. I was concerned about wear on the hose over time so installed a couple rubber grommets to keep the hose from resting on the metal.
On the OEM tank I had my Espar fuel pump mounted on the front metal tank guard. Now that the new tank is installed I had to come up with a new way to mount the pump. I bent up a piece of steel to form a mount that would attach to one of the tank strap mounting bolts, I installed a longer bolt into this location. i didn't spend a ton of time on this making it pretty since it will be living under the van.
Continued Below....
Performing the pressure test. With the fuel pick up assembly installed in the new tank we covered the ports and used some low air pressure to test for leaks around the O-ring seal, all good! The instructions from S&B said that the tank comes with a rubber cap to put over the filler port then you poke a hole in the cap and put the air in at that point. Our kit was missing the rubber test cap but a stack of paper towels with a hole poked in the middle worked just fine.
The upper vent hose assembly gets cut off the original tank and will be re-used on the new tank.
Here the filler neck assembly has been cut off the OEM tank and is about to be installed on the new tank. There is an internal check valve that gets installed in the included rubber filler neck hose (Only snapped a picture once it was already installed in the hose).
Ready to go back in the van. The filler neck hose clamps are left slightly loose at this point so you can rotate the filler piping up into place as you slide the tank under the van, once in place then they can be tightened up. The instructions showed installing 3 clamps total on the filler neck but my kit was only supplied with two clamps, I had another spare on hand so it wasn't a big deal.
Getting ready to re-install.
Tank installed in place and filler neck tightened back up, guards haven't been re-installed yet in this picture.
On the rear of the tank there is a vent line that is slid through the boxed section of the frame then connected to another vent barb on the forward section of the tank during install. The instructions show just sliding the hose through the OEM holes and letting it rest on the metal. I was concerned about wear on the hose over time so installed a couple rubber grommets to keep the hose from resting on the metal.
On the OEM tank I had my Espar fuel pump mounted on the front metal tank guard. Now that the new tank is installed I had to come up with a new way to mount the pump. I bent up a piece of steel to form a mount that would attach to one of the tank strap mounting bolts, I installed a longer bolt into this location. i didn't spend a ton of time on this making it pretty since it will be living under the van.
Continued Below....
Not a lot of difference in ground clearance, maybe about an inch lower than OEM.
And installed! The install process took about 3 hrs and was pretty easy over all. One of my tank straps was bent a little long from the factory (The 2nd strap from the front) and isn't quite touching the tank on the drivers side. S&B seen my post on FB and reached out to me saying that had just made a production change and that strap got messed up, they are sending me a correct replacement strap....Nice! I love companies that have great customer service and care about a quality product.
Overall the tank is rock solid and very high quality. It feels tougher than the OEM tank for sure. So glad to have the new tank installed, no more range anxiety!
Hodakaguy
And installed! The install process took about 3 hrs and was pretty easy over all. One of my tank straps was bent a little long from the factory (The 2nd strap from the front) and isn't quite touching the tank on the drivers side. S&B seen my post on FB and reached out to me saying that had just made a production change and that strap got messed up, they are sending me a correct replacement strap....Nice! I love companies that have great customer service and care about a quality product.
Overall the tank is rock solid and very high quality. It feels tougher than the OEM tank for sure. So glad to have the new tank installed, no more range anxiety!
Hodakaguy
Teaser pics......New tires mounted up! Oh Yeah!!
The smell of fresh rubber! Going from 235/85-16 up to 285/75/17. This will give us a bit more ground clearance and traction for our off-road adventures.........plus I just love the looks of this combo and let's be honest; that's always a huge factor!
.
Just a wee bit of difference.
And the spare mounted up on the OWL carrier, Looks sooooo good next to the Roam ladder.
Lot's more to come......
Hodakaguy
The smell of fresh rubber! Going from 235/85-16 up to 285/75/17. This will give us a bit more ground clearance and traction for our off-road adventures.........plus I just love the looks of this combo and let's be honest; that's always a huge factor!
Just a wee bit of difference.
And the spare mounted up on the OWL carrier, Looks sooooo good next to the Roam ladder.
Lot's more to come......
Hodakaguy
searching for nowhere
Senior Member
Why did you move your spare tire to the back of the van? To make room for the larger fuel tank? Did the new size tires not fit underneath? Also, how hard is it for install the spare tire on the tire frame? Tires are heavy. Do you have to hold the tire and align bolt holes?
Thanks for posting all your upgrades. I appreciate it. I may get a van someday.
Thanks for posting all your upgrades. I appreciate it. I may get a van someday.
goinoregon
Senior Member
thx for the post, and great pics. keep up the good work
searching for nowhere said:Why did you move your spare tire to the back of the van? To make room for the larger fuel tank? Did the new size tires not fit underneath? Also, how hard is it for install the spare tire on the tire frame? Tires are heavy. Do you have to hold the tire and align bolt holes?
Thanks for posting all your upgrades. I appreciate it. I may get a van someday.
Yeah the new tires are to large to go under the van so a rear carrier was a must....I have some ideas for the now open space under the van
I should have taken photo's but there is a stud that screws into the carrier then you slide the tire onto the stud and it hangs there while you install the bolts. Once the bolts are in you remove the stud.
Lot's more pics to come!
Hodakaguy
Oooohhhhh yeah. The UPS man brought me some goodies today!
Vancompass 6.3 kit that I ordered from Cory at Peak10Customs showed up today.......Now it's just a LOT of work and it will be all installed.
All laid out on a table to take inventory and prepare for install.
Rear lift kit (Includes the spring pack on the floor).
Front Shock mounting kit.
Front 2" lift kit and Sumo Springs.
Falcon adjustable stocks.....Oh yeah!
Install pics to come soon!
Hodakaguy
Vancompass 6.3 kit that I ordered from Cory at Peak10Customs showed up today.......Now it's just a LOT of work and it will be all installed.
All laid out on a table to take inventory and prepare for install.
Rear lift kit (Includes the spring pack on the floor).
Front Shock mounting kit.
Front 2" lift kit and Sumo Springs.
Falcon adjustable stocks.....Oh yeah!
Install pics to come soon!
Hodakaguy
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