Mr.BlueSky

My 1st project with my new welder was welding a plate on to the ladder to mount a fuel tank. I have been wanting a long time trying figure out how to mount a fuel tank there.

Greetings to all you deal grabbers!!!
 
As many of you now, we at RoverWare.US (that's www.RoverWare.US) don't usually participate in the mayhem of pseudo-sales.  You know, the "up to 30% off" but what you want has just 10% off, or less.  We prefer to offer deals all year (after all, if a company can sell cheaper, why don't they do it all year around?)
 
This year we are making an exception for LR3/LR4/RRS owners.
 
We have stock of wishbones/control-arms that are just getting in the way and need to go!
 
Usually we sell these 'each', but these deals are going to be pairs (that's one for each side!) at a discount of at least 20% off our usual already low price.
Some are genuine LR others are Bearmach (which I believe to be OE).
 
 
Please check fitment for your vehicle, as these are "no returns".  Just one set of each available.  Delivery to most of Bay Area free (and possibly along the I80 corridor too).
 
 
Remember, prices per pair!
 
Rear upper LR3
RGG500052/RGG500042 OE at $192
 
Front Upper RRS (stiffer bushes apparently than LR3)
RBJ500840/RBJ500850 OE at $145 -- sold
 
Front Upper LR3/4
RBJ500232/RBJ500222 Genuine LR, one even in a box, at $154 (at that price we're giving them away!!!) SOLD
 
Lower Rear LR3/4
LR051592/LR051594 genuine LR at $300 (find a better deal than that and we'll try to match it and give you a free sticker!)
 
Lower Front LR3/4
RBJ500446/RBJ500456 BM at $300 -- sold
 
 
Hope you all had sufficient turkey!
 
Regards,
 
Graeme

It is sort of like a chicken - egg kind of thing

It is sort of like a chicken - egg kind of thing

It is sort of like a chicken - egg kind of thing

I was not referring to Don's ability to flop a truck over but rather his trucks ability to withstand being flopped over with it's chopped top and roll bar installed.

Looks like there is oodles of clearance for Type 31 in a D2
 
I literally just got done rebuilding the 110 Battery box. I'd say 5 seconds after the paint was dry I decided I'm starting over.
 
Couldn't keep stomaching the idea of the Type 31 millimeters from touching the passenger seat bottom. (Even with a rubber mat).
 
*gets out cut-off wheel*

I'am very interested! 

Looks good Andrew. I’ve gone a different route and found the most powerful and highest energy battery that I could fit into the standard D2 battery tray. I fitted an Odyssey Group 31 into the tray with only minor mods. Standard tray, clamp and battery cover.
 

 
I have a DCDC charger with solar input in the back for an auxiliary power supply for the fridge and camping gear. I’m not sure what type of battery I will use there (sealed and deep cycle, obviously).

The shopping cart with the bottle holder really seemed like a tempting option until you realize the backend cost of feeding and care...like a horse as an off-road vehicle...it never stops eating.
Nice setup and thread

"and you could flop it over all you want" -- using Don's D1 as a reference?
 
Regards,
 
Graeme

Made my annual Rubicon trip with friends this weekend. My RRC did great with the minor mods I did since last year...until it didn't...blu the rear biff just before the giant granite bowl on our way out heading to our camp at the Loon lake trail head...had to get towed through the gate keeper (that wasn't fun)
Opportunity knocks...lemons make lemonade... time to up grade...
I'm not looking to make my rig into a full time rock crawler but want it to be a little more capable and reliable.
Since I have to rebuild the rear diff anyway and I've been wanting to regear it...I'm thinking 4.43 gears and true-trac front and rear (currently running 265/75-16 BFG AT...like to go up a couple inches)
What's your guys opinion on those gears and double True-trac combo?

I’ll be there! See y’all!

\Sounds like it was a great trip. 
 
Thanks for the awesome write-up! A lot of good information here.
 
I will certainly be referencing it when we plan a Mojave trip.

This is some info from my 4-days in and around the Mojave Road and Preserve (3 nights camping) in a stock LR4.
 
MPG and MPH
 
Over 4 days I averaged 10 mpg and 10 to 12 mph, almost all on dirt. I filled the tank and a 5-gallon NATO can in Laughlin NV. I refilled the tank at the end of 4 off-road days, in Baker CA. I bought 15.2 gallons in Baker, so I used a total of 15.2 + 5 = 20.2 total, or about 5 gallons per day.  
 
Baker is a side-trip up the east side of Soda Lake. IF I HAD KNOWN, I would have crossed Soda Lake and taken Rasor Road up the west side to the Shell Station on I-15 at Rasor Road. That station was not on my maps. My fuel computer said I did not have the fuel to make it to Barstow, so I aborted before crossing Soda Lake. 
 
BEST MAP
 
Tom Harrison, by a clear margin. Why?
        (1) Codes 4 levels of dirt roads: graded, usually OK for street autos; high-clearance usually needed; rough, 4wd usually needed; extremely rough, 4wd required.
        (2) Covers more of the Mojave Road, from Nevada to west of Afton Canyon (Nat Geo Trails Illustrated cuts off on the EAST side of Soda Lake).
        (3) All on 1 page, easier to use.
 
The Nat Geo map has one main plus: it shows private land (which can be gated or posted, although this is rarely marked on either map).
 
BEST GUIDE BOOKS
 
For the Mojave Road and history of the Preserve area, Casebier's Mojave Road Guide is tops. For side-trails off the Mojave Road or nearby, Huegel's California Desert Byways and Massey, Wilson and Titus' California Trails: Desert Region both prove worth their prices. Huegel favors minimalist but sufficient summaries, maps and GPS coordinates, and has more trails.  Massey et al. has much greater detail on history, geography, maps, GPS coordinates, and turn-by-turn directions. Both cover the Mojave Road as well as some cross-trails. Massey et al. would work as a substitute for the full-blown detail of Casebier's coverage of the Mojave Road. 
 
DON'T TRUST THE MAPS, BOOKS AND GPS GADGETS ENTIRELY
 
Make no mistake, there are no complete and certain representations of places like this. In addition to the sources above, I had my Rover in-dash GPS and a TRX7 specialized off-road GPS. My Jeep friend also had an excellent Garmin GPS. We still managed to make wrong turns, find roads that were not mapped, mapped roads that no longer existed, and supposedly public roads that were chained and posted. ADVENTURE. Expect it. 
 
HOW HARD?
 
My stock LR4 with street tires (Toyo Open Country light-truck) had no trouble on the "extremely rough, 4wd required" parts. I did use the IID Tool to lift the reference (standard) height. This was useful going fast on sand or slow for rock crawling. Sand is by far the most common. The only rock crawling was a short optional stretch in Carruther's Canyon north of the campground. I made it almost as far as my friend in a lifted and locked wrangler with 33 inch tires. The only trouble I got into was later on a little-used, unmarked trail over a ridge of loose rock. I started to slide sideways down the edge, and needed to shore it up and back out.
 
I recommend wandering off on some of the side roads not in the books.  Sometimes we had to turn back. Sometimes we found trails that made us feel like pioneers or ranchers. Many of the best views were on these secondary trails.  
 
AIRING DOWN?
 
I doubt that airing down or zooming over sand is necessary east of Soda Lake. I did drop about 4 psi, and switched Terrain Response to sand mode in the soft areas. 
 
A few days after leaving the Mojave Preserve, I slashed a sidewall in Redrock Canyon State Park. I had dropped the psi some, and was zooming on soft sand when I encountered sharp rocks in the sand. Whoosh. Flat. So much for that day. I limped back fully inflated, with 60 psi in a hard-rubber spare. Never sank in once, and scrabbled over rock just fine. Airing down and "floatation" may be over-rated for stock Rovers.
 
PLACES RECOMMENDED
 
PIUTE GORGE.  From the Mojave Road, just north of Piute Corral and the Piute Springs hiking trails. Worth seeing this rent in the valley and range. Good for lunch, camping, or hiking. As a side-trip, better than the Fort. It is on the East Lanfair Valley trail that runs along the western foot of the Piute Range and then crosses the valley going up to the Castle Mountains. Be forewarned that roads across the south side of the Castle Mountains are blocked by renewed operation of the gold mine up there.
 
CARRUTHERS CANYON CAMP. Huge granite boulders in a canyon forest. The road up is fun. The rock crawl just north is short but worthy. The camp could get full for holidays or popular weekends. There is lots of private and group overflow space.  Its especially nice to have all to yourself.
 
ZIG-ZAG THE GOLD VALLEY.  Old ranch and mine roads criss-cross between Wild Horse and Black Canyon Roads, south of Round Valley and Midhills Campground and north of Hole-in-the-Wall Campground and visitors Center. For the best views run north to south. Feel like a pioneer rancher for half a day. For longer and slower views, walk the north-south hiking trail that is crossed by the 4wd roads at several points.
 
AIKEN CINDER MINE. Odds are you'll want to see the Lava Tubes on the Aiken Mine Road, near the intersection of Kelbaker and Mojave Roads. Go the extra mile and see the mine. The drive is fun, the views fabulous, and the abandoned machinery a photographer's dream.

We will see you on the 17th.

Getting the newly found treasures back to the house, I was pleasantly surprised the tool cart managed to use all the same fasteners everywhere.... 
 
Well done HF. 
 

 

 
Next up was to hack up the tool tray.
 

 
First I drilled out all the rivets off the support brace hinge and tossed that aside. 
 

 
By folding the tray backwards, I could easily weld the two folding pieces together eliminating the hinge functionality.
 
Up next was to shorten and fold up a 1 inch section of the tray to form the bottle holder. 
 
Using the scraps from shortening the tray, 2 45 degree supports were made. 
 

 

 
All welded together:
 

 
Painted and installed:
 

 
I ended up setting with the welder in the bottom rack. It allows the power cable to lay inside the tray when not in use, and I can keep the top tray for grinding equipment.
 
I've got add a few more items, namely a proper chain on the tank and a cord hanger. Once complete, a happy camper I will be.
 
The best part, is that the final product was a fraction of the cost of a proper welding cart that would take 5 days to ship.
 
 
 
 
 

See y’all on the 17th

yup, can validate this cart works!
Nice DIY MrBlueSky!

Getting the newly found treasures back to the house, I was pleasantly surprised the tool cart managed to use all the same fasteners everywhere.... 
 
Well done HF. 
 

 

 
Next up was to hack up the tool tray.
 

 
First I drilled out all the rivets off the support brace hinge and tossed that aside. 
 

 
By folding the tray backwards, I could easily weld the two folding pieces together eliminating the hinge functionality.
 
Up next was to shorten and fold up a 1 inch section of the tray to form the bottle holder. 
 
Using the scraps from shortening the tray, 2 45 degree supports were made. 
 

 

 
All welded together:
 

 
Painted and installed:
 

 
I ended up setting with the welder in the bottom rack. It allows the power cable to lay inside the tray when not in use, and I can keep the top tray for grinding equipment.
 
I've got add a few more items, namely a proper chain on the tank and a cord hanger. Once complete, a happy camper I will be.
 
The best part, is that the final product was a fraction of the cost of a proper welding cart that would take 5 days to ship.
 
 
 
 
 

I am planning on attending for the next DITD on the 17th.

I would love to go... but right after the holidays (We are back in the mid-West) and Theresa says I can't take time off 
 
We might try to go in the late fall next year.

Here is NCLR Google Photos Link - Feel free to add here
 
https://photos.app.goo.gl/woDSn2UFRkTWC63s5

Planning a Mojave road run the week after New years .This will be a mid week trip.
 
Confirmed
 
Mffoster  110
Tammy     p38
lutz          110
Chuck      sUB
 
 
 
Interested
 
Tammy
Chris
Andrew
Mffoster 
SplurGn
Chuck
 
Date : Jan 7-10
 
Agenda/Itinerary:  Meet up at AVi casino on Jan 7th 9am .Will be  3 day 2 night trip but plan on staying the night at the end of trail.
 
Day 1 - 9am Meet at Avi Casino Gas StationHead to trail headGo to Picture CanyonVisit Fort PiutePotential  camp sites- East of Rock Springs -Pleasant View School -Camp Phallus  Day 2 - Continue on RoadSide trip to Death Valley MineVisit Kelso Visitor CenterVisit Mailbox and Marl SpringsCamp at Mojave Camp or Seventeen Mile Point  Day 3 -Visit Lava TubeSand DunesVisit Traveler’s MonumentDrive through Afton canyon to camp  
Trail info
 
https://www.desertusa.com/desert-trails/mojave-road-page1.html
 
GPS Track
 
https://gofile.io/?c=3kRFsj
 
Additional Info:
 
Fire Wood Everyone must bring at least 2 bundles of firewood.  It will be cold and there is no wood collecting on the Preserve. On Trail Communications Ham Radio will be primary form of communication, simplex frequency TBD but mostly likely will be 146.460 Gasoline We are planing on traveling around 200 miles between gas stations, so bring extra gasoline if you feel like it is necessary.  We are bringing an extra five gallons just in case. Traveler's Monument It is tradition to bring a rock from home to put on the Traveler's Monument

Very nice write-up Miles. I do look forward to one day visiting South Cow Mountain. I am definitely looking forward to hearing about the scur-fluffl.