Low Cost Mods

[hoyden]

Yes same thing but shorter. It's actually 3 1/2 gal. I did a web search about $6. We just happened to already have a couple for car washing ect. I just used one of those. The lid snaps on the same.


As for the Cat litter we just take a bag of what Mama Squatch keeps in stock for her cats. Special Kitty unscented from Walmart. Cheap and absorbs well and no perfume to mess with allergies.


I don't care what is used in it for litter the bucket will smell when opened after a couple days use. But so do Porta Pots in my experience. Easier to throw a thrash bag in a dumpster than dump the liquid pot to me.

Right on! Thanks for the info! I think I'll get one of those 3.5 gal buckets and test this out.

 

[Mushhuskies]

You know the old line, "Put your eye out with that kid!", well those flip up side windows on my 2004 Grandby shell have damn near done that to me! Finally got some safety orange duct tape and highlighted the window edge. Sure, it looks like hell but then again I'm still in the seeing business! Unfortunately can't find a decent pic of it. but it catches your attention.

 

[PaulT]

You know the old line, "Put your eye out with that kid!", well those flip up side windows on my 2004 Grandby shell have damn near done that to me! Finally got some safety orange duct tape and highlighted the window edge. Sure, it looks like hell but then again I'm still in the seeing business! Unfortunately can't find a decent pic of it. but it catches your attention.

After catching my shoulders on the bottom corners of the jack brackets several times at night, I wrapped short pieces of reflective tape around the lower corner of each bracket. Helps in avoiding sharp shoulder pains & makes locating the camper easier in the dark. Works great with red headlamp.

Paul

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Found this nice compact sink at the store in Denali NP.
Handles are nice to carry your wash water to the restroom/woods to dump it.
It folds up into a nice 4" carry bag.
It's made for backpackers,but we sure can use it.
Price was a bit high $24 but I needed it,so.
Sure it can be had cheaper on line.
Frank

 

[craig333]

I was looking at this welding package. http://www.trailweld.com/shop-online/ Pretty dang pricey. So I dropped by my local welding supply store. They talked me out of the welding goggles, said it was bad idea even for emergency welding and I already had a helmet anyway. So, fifteen feet of 2/0 welding cable, a rod holder, ground clamp and a few battery terminals I'm out about sixty bucks. Still need to go get something to toss it all in.

My welding skills are fair at best but I should be able to get myself off the trail at least.

 

[GroovyDad]

Hey Craig333, can you actually weld something together from just a car battery? I'd love to see how that works and if does any damage to the battery, etc. I've been welding most of my life (stick, MIG, TIG, etc.) and I've never seen something like this before.

Thanks for sharing!

 

[wuck]

Attaboy, MacGyver. You might want to add a couple more cables, 30-36 volts works better. The hard part might be talking a couple of friends into using their batteries. But, 12 will get by in a pinch. Way cheaper than a recovery tow

 

[craig333]

Well I'm told by others 24v works quite well. My Jeep has two batteries, two in the truck and two in the camper so I'll never have to see if welding with 12 volts would work. As for harming the batteries unless you're doing a heck of a lot of welding it shouldn't. Anyway if it gets me off the trail its worth the risk.

If I'm doing a group run or the rubicon or something like I'll try and wait for someone with a welder and a bit more skill than me. I did break a rear spring hanger only a couple miles into the Deer Valley trail. Lucky for me the guy behind me had a welder.

If its something mission critical (i.e. it might cause steering failure or something similar) I'll have a pro go over it as soon as possible.

Good idea Wuck. I'll add another cable to the kit.

 

[cwdtmmrs]

craig333, Your welding store didn't like the self diming compact goggles that are on the trail weld web site? Is it because of face coverage or they didn't trust a $30 goggle to dim properly?

cwd

 

[craig333]

The face coverage.

 

[Frstnflt]

I use a camp stove outside but pretty much need coffee coursing through me a few minutes after waking up so I made a budget burner box. I used the crate FWC shipped me a replacement AC in (bonus for using free stuff) and drop in a single burner stove (~$15). Ill use it on low so I don't melt the wall.

 

[Bseek]

Can I just say, I get an adrenaline rush whenever I see a new post in this thread? Nothing new to share, but keep them coming.

 

[ntsqd]

RE: welding, at $110 it fails the cost criteria of this thread, but I've long thought that these were the best idea for field repairs as it should be much easier to transport & store than a typical helmet:
http://www.discountsafetygear.com/huntsman-welding-helmet-leather-800-series.html

Quite some time ago I polled the 4x4 email lists that I was on asking what stick-arc electrode was preferred and the answer by a large margin was 7014

 

[craig333]

Nice helmet. Would be much easier to store than mine. I'll to see just how annoyed I get at mine before I fork over that much though.

 

[ntsqd]

They used make a better one for this use, it used a baseball cap as the "head gear". Unfortunately I haven't seen a listing for it in a couple of years.

 

[badtoytrd]

$3 drawer dividers.

 

[ETAV8R]

Posted this in my build thread and one other but figured I'd put it here too. This tarp awning works great other than in dire winds. During windy conditions I took it down but covered my table and items near my truck by securing the tarp over the items. The awning works and is a fraction of the price of other awnings. There was a lot of moisture in the valley during new years and the tarp got the condensation where the things underneath did not.







This was after a breezy evening and one corner was blown off.

 

[yovik]

This is the tent/tarp pole. I got mine several years ago at walmarx with the intent to use with a Kelty Tarp.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VTJKB1O/ref=crt_ewc_img_dp_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

I found these from a retailer on ebay that look promising. They are lighter and have less corrosion potential:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Pair-Sunshade-Camping-Beach-Shelter-Tarp-Shelter-Pole-Adjustable-2M-6.6FT-to-2.5M-8.2FT/53728954

I'm actually curious about the mounts used to secure the poles.

Can you tell more about them?

Do the poles stay attached to the mounts whennot in use?

Thanks! Alex

 

[ETAV8R]

I remove the poles when not in camp. The poles are held in place by clevis and cotter pins along with snug-fit vibration damping loop clamps. They all came from Ace Hardware. I think I based the clevis/cotter pins size by using the bolts for the jacks. For the clamps I did bring in one tent pole to make sure it would wrap around the whole way.

Here are some links for McMaster-Carr but I don't remember the exact sizes.

https://www.mcmaster...clamps/=165nlmt

https://www.mcmaster...s-pins/=165nnkt

 

[CougarCouple]

I remove the poles when not in camp. The poles are held in place by clevis and cotter pins along with snug-fit vibration damping loop clamps. They all came from Ace Hardware. I think I based the clevis/cotter pins size by using the bolts for the jacks. For the clamps I did bring in one tent pole to make sure it would wrap around the whole way.

Here are some links for McMaster-Carr but I don't remember the exact sizes.

https://www.mcmaster...clamps/=165nlmt

https://www.mcmaster...s-pins/=165nnkt

Real good way to secure the poles ETAV8R. Not having to drill or mount to the camper using what was there.
Russ