weekly update cont.
Once the bumper was mounted we bent some tube for the rear quarter protection. By then we had lost our daylight so I grabbed the pieces to work on them the next day. Zack started asking if I had this or that to take with me on the trail and I ended up going home with a bunch more recovery gear to sweeten the deal! Thanks again and much appreciation!
I decided to cover the back-up lights since those aren't working right now anyways. I tacked them all together to get what I wanted, removed the bumper and welded it up. I slapped on a 20ft paint job and put the bumper back on. With my
gone I had to go bug my neighbors to give me a hand sliding it back in the frame. I'll have to get pics of it completed but I like how the protection turned out.
With the rear bumper complete I turned my attention to the line lock. I went to Portland Oil Filter Service and asked them about adapting 1/4" line to 3/16" line. I walked away with a couple adapters and some brake line. I borrowed a bender and flaring tool from the local auto parts place and started getting things ready. They didn't have a small pipe cutter but my other neighbor did and that makes cutting lines 100 times better for flaring.
These ends were cut off to use compression fittings for the line lock valve.
Compression fittings are easy and effective. There are three pieces to it and that's the valve I'm using. I lucked out and got these for free which is why I went to the hassle of adapting to 1/4" line.
This is where I put my line lock and how I mounted it.
For plumbing I got an adapter to 1/4" for my master and ran the line to the line lock and then back to tie into the factory line. I bought an adapter for 3/16" line to 1/4" thread and used a union to connect the two. I needed to cut off the 10mm fitting on the factory line, put on the new fitting and flare the tube.
Flaring the line
The inverted flare turned out fine.
This is the 1/4" union to connect the 1/4" line I ran to and from the line lock to the factory line.
I again bugged the neighbor to help bleed the rear brakes so I could test for leakage and see if it actually worked. Works like a dream!
I picked up some 2"x1.5" tube to make some cross members for my skid plate. I didn't get started on this until yesterday evening so I was running out of time quickly. I cut, shaped, and repatched a couple ideas and decided on this.
I then literally just cut some 1/4" plate out and slapped it on. Don't know if it will hold and I'll definitely have to redo this later but at least I was able to get something underneath there.
I've been looking for some 16" rims on the cheap for a spare and a posting showed up yesterday so I grabbed them. It was listed as 16". Broke the beads and pulled out the old rim from one of the boggers and when I slipped in the rim I realized it was a 15 incher.
So now I have to try and find a rim before next wednesday. I work until saturday, leave sunday, and report to the trail on wednesday. I'm hoping I can find something on Monday that will work.
So I didn't get the antiwrap bar put on, didn't get the CB installed (didn't find the antenna at the local truck stop anyways), didn't get a sleeping platform made so we'll be bringing a tent, didn't get my ready welder wired up but I think I'll sacrifice some jumper cables for that because I'm definitely taking that with me, and I still need a rim for my spare.
I'll be packing up the next two days and am excited to wheel the rubicon.
