78 Series Tourer (2 Viewers)

[gilghana]

Any battery and charging gurus?

Well, like so many things it often takes longer than planned, and I don't have much spare time, 12hr days and half days Sat&Sun doesn't leave much time for Toyota stuff... However I got the first two panels done with everything placed behind. The right hand one has the amp (sticking out for cooling) and the subwoofer behind a lot of holes. Sounds great and I am really happy to get all this stuff tucked away:

Behind the left hand one is the Sterling battery to battery charger and the serious duty wiring prepared and ready for the second battery(s). The next left hand panel will have the shunt and battery monitor plus a couple of 12v sockets, the fridge connection and my compressor. There will still be space for the jack, wheel brace, air hose. On the right hand side I will leave it free for a few lesser used tools, ropes and straps.

I will need to wait for the African outback drawers to arrive so I can be sure of final second battery location and then the cargo barrier. Speaking of batteries, some advice would be good...

Okay, I have a CAT cranker and a Deltec deep cycle on the way. The CAT cranker I bought as a second battery simply because there was no locally available deep cycles. Looking at the Deltec battery BushPower - Products it looks even like the same casing as the CAT (both are same A/hrs). Now if I wire them both in then it gives me a pretty serious power supply. I also "found" (in the store, gathering dust.....liberated!) a couple of solar panels. But back to batteries: I am a bit concerned that the fact that the batteries are not completely identical might have an adverse effect over time? The sterlings charge program matches both batteries (sealed lead acid) so I can't imagine too big an issue?

Dobinsons heavy duty springs, shackles and bushings arrived over the weekend as well, Koni shocks are in an airfreight consignment tomorrow, so I have plenty to be getting on with for a good while! Funnily enough I couldn't see the Dobinsons leafs 'handed' in any way like stamping etc. Compared them side by side though and one is higher, so marked it ready for the drivers side. Heavy bloody things. Happy to have some lifts and willing helpers in our workshop for those!
Gil

 

[roscoFJ73]

Well, like so many things it often takes longer than planned, and I don't have much spare time, 12hr days and half days Sat&Sun doesn't leave much time for Toyota stuff... However I got the first two panels done with everything placed behind. The right hand one has the amp (sticking out for cooling) and the subwoofer behind a lot of holes. Sounds great and I am really happy to get all this stuff tucked away:

Behind the left hand one is the Sterling battery to battery charger and the serious duty wiring prepared and ready for the second battery(s). The next left hand panel will have the shunt and battery monitor plus a couple of 12v sockets, the fridge connection and my compressor. There will still be space for the jack, wheel brace, air hose. On the right hand side I will leave it free for a few lesser used tools, ropes and straps.

I will need to wait for the African outback drawers to arrive so I can be sure of final second battery location and then the cargo barrier. Speaking of batteries, some advice would be good...

Okay, I have a CAT cranker and a Deltec deep cycle on the way. The CAT cranker I bought as a second battery simply because there was no locally available deep cycles. Looking at the Deltec battery BushPower - Products it looks even like the same casing as the CAT (both are same A/hrs). Now if I wire them both in then it gives me a pretty serious power supply. I also "found" (in the store, gathering dust.....liberated!) a couple of solar panels. But back to batteries: I am a bit concerned that the fact that the batteries are not completely identical might have an adverse effect over time? The sterlings charge program matches both batteries (sealed lead acid) so I can't imagine too big an issue?

Over a period of time they will take on each others characteristics. If the internal construction is the same (the thickness of the plates) it shoudnt be too much of a problem.


Im using a Delkor Calcium 100 amp deep cycle and Ive had my weaco 80 litre running for 4 days+ on low
Im thinking of buying another.

Dobinsons heavy duty springs, shackles and bushings arrived over the weekend as well, Koni shocks are in an airfreight consignment tomorrow, so I have plenty to be getting on with for a good while! Funnily enough I couldn't see the Dobinsons leafs 'handed' in any way like stamping etc. Compared them side by side though and one is higher, so marked it ready for the drivers side. Heavy bloody things. Happy to have some lifts and willing helpers in our workshop for those!
Gil

I remember the weight of my Dobinsons and having one roll onto my foot
I thought mine had a A and B stamp where the U bolt goes on the smallest leaf.
Mine was about the thickness of a leaf higher on one of the rears. The fronts were the same but that was a long time ago.

 

[gilghana]

Well not going as fast as planned (of course)! We were away for three days at the coast - Ghana has some great beaches, so the battery and fridge got thrown in again and tied down. Then got back and had a dose of malaria (like flu here....). Anyway, back to business!!!

Well obviously with all this not much got done to the troopy. However all sorts of goodies arrived over the last two weeks. Firstly the Dobinsons stuff:

Will get cracking on it tomorrow afternoon. I will use the workshop and a couple of our mechanics.

But the real PORN is the Koni Heavy Track "Raid" shock absorbers.... These arrived today What can I say. They are bigger than the shocks on our trucks
When I saw them I just had to whip off a front wheel and take a picture for MUD:

I knew they were larger than stock, but not that large!

Only problem is the stupid 'no language' picture type instructions - can I figure out the adjustment of rebound damping? Can I hell! If anyone knows would be great... Will go and google it now. You would think they could at least provide a 2 cent instruction page... Will get some install pictures tomorrow I hope.

 

[gilghana]

Super speed today

Well today things went a LOT faster. I asked a couple of our mechanics (Vincent and Simon) if they wanted to help out so we got cracking in the workshop. These guys are doing leaf springs every day, but I was surprised at their speed... Believe me they don't work like this when it is company stuff! We met at 2pm.

First we basically stuffed a 2 post lift (it is pretty much on the way out, but we didn't help) bolts are coming out of the floor! But we managed to get it high enough to pack it safely and get full droop and more...

The front springs and shocks were done within the hour:

Vincent was pretty pleased with getting pictures taken of his work - first time! It's not often a camera is seen in the workshop

Just behind him on the wall is a home made safety sign. Very cool - shows a guy sort of exploding under a pick-up as he didn't use proper packing!

So these are the rears before:

We had to drop the 180L rear tank slightly to get the old shackles off. When fitting the tank Longranger recomend turning the shackles so the pins can be withdrawn from the outside in the case of future suspension upgrades. Glad I didn't bother as it is way less hassle to drop the tank a bit then turning the shackle!

And that was us done by 5pm. I was pretty happy at 3 hours for complete suspension change. I have kept the air bags on and will see if they are needed. For sure they would seem to limit rear axle articulation, but I am not too bothered as the car is not a mud or rock beast but a tourer as the title says. Will get some pictures of flex this week at some stage.

Now the drive home is all of about 10 minutes, but it is corrugations and a sprinkling of potholes... The ride felt fantastic - major improvement. To be honest one of my fears was that the heavy duty Dobinsons (they don't make heavier!) would be too stiff, but I was really pleased. Okay about 80 litres of water and twin wheel bumper is on, but the Dobinsons felt great. Cliche I know but I felt it rides better than the coil sprung 105 GX (which I have actually never liked compared to a std 105 that I had before. No idea why!?!). So next one is fitting a handbrake cable from a 79 series as mine was too short when the water tank was fitted. Lift is not much (also happy as I did not want big height) 2 inches max. Didn't measure before or after, as I say the objective is not clearance but load carrying - and this it can do!
Gil

 

[Hltoppr]

This thread makes me drool....

-H-

 

[mot]

This thread makes me drool....

-H-

x 2.

I'm jealous that you guys have "really" cool places you can travel to in your cruisers!!

 

[gilghana]

Hey thanks for drooling guys! Glad you like it. Okay, well I learned today that my African Outback drawers, deep cycle battery and roof tent are in a container, sitting on our truck down at the port - was loaded last night, but customs won't allow it to move until Monday morning ggggrrrrrrrrr! Oh and our MD has flown in for one of his rare visits, which means several weeks of meetings now leaving sod all time for cruiser tinkering Anyway the cool thing is that I told him our decision to hit the road in six months with no real plan other than see more of Africa for a good long while. We see where we end up. I have been here 13 years and worked up to GM from a junior manager out of college, so it is a big step to jack it but my girlfriend and I are getting very little satisfaction from long hours/high pressure jobs with little reward (apart from financial) in a place where there is zero free time, bugger all social life and a whole bunch of new expatriate asian managers targeting me and my job....... they are f*****g welcome to it in six months. We see, and if things go pear shaped I can always come back. Not in current position but probably in a more fun one! Okay, rant over.

Back to Cruisers. To keep the interest levels up! Well I mentioned that I never really liked the GX 105 series. I always felt it heavier, looser and more "unsolid" than my previous 105 Std wagon. I really don't know why - checked everything. The previous Std however ended up with a tree being felled on it And African hardwoods tend to be big (no pics unfortunately due to a hard drive issue). So, as I am the boss (well for six more months) and we have a very nice 105 Std that we use for managers/customers traveling to the airport airport etc . So executive decision made - swap!!!

Took the TJM 13 bar and the winch (comeup and mine not company) off the GX and put some spacers (hacked up conveyor belting) in the front coils to compensate for the weight. Stuck on a new set of General AT2s and result!
- wind up windows
- manual mirrors
- 'hose out' interior
- no side steps
- sub tank
- not even free wheeling hubs!
- part time 4by

Now the asian managers can fight over who gets to travel in the GX with the chrome and I get to play with a stripped out bush wagon that matches my troopy.
Gil

 

[roscoFJ73]

I had a a 400klm race this weekend with a 105 vs my 75 He had an almost empty trailer and I had my camper on the back.
It was close,I would lose him on the hills, but on the corners the 105 just hung in there. My 75 series leaf springs make you pucker your ass cheeks on long bends

 

[gilghana]

Rosco,
know what you mean! 1996 I got given a 75 pickup company car, got it brand new with an identical one given to another young forest manager and we used to do some very puckering cornering!!! The 105 is no sports car thats for sure! Both utes still going to this day after no small amounts of abuse.

As of this morning drawers, tent and battery are sitting in our store - excited as a dog with two tails... Pictures this weekend and if we are lucky maybe Sat night try out the new roof tent (and see how the Dobs and Konis deal with roof generated oscillations ).
Gil

 

[gilghana]

South African kit arrived!

Well, two massive boxes were pulled out of a container a few days ago... and I didn't even get to open them until tonight. What would you rather be doing - meetings about world Mahogany markets or rooftents and drawers? Exactly! So we got the boxes home and started unpacking this evening.

Firstly the drawers. African outback, 1.3m long, full steel construction. Damn solid. The AO system is such that on top of the right hand drawer is a full length sliding top for mounting the fridge (pictured here on the right).

The only parts not sheet steel are the fronts of the drawers and the tops. Yes I have access to some amazing timber and machine shop etc but when I see these and bearing in mind I got a GREAT deal thanks to a plummeting Rand, I don't regret it at all! I paid the same amount of cash for the tent and drawers and battery as I would for only the tent back home in UK.

Here is the frame:

And some frame detail:

 

[gilghana]

Now the roof tent. So first the biggest cardboard package I have ever received!

Package opened and the roof tent popped open in the middle of the living room. Very cool piece of kit - gas struts and a very simple mounting system to bolt onto roof bars. Built in National Luna strip light. Ahhh, the damn thing is great! We were so excited we were thinking of sleeping in the tent in the living room tonight, but decided better the bush first!

Now, we have a Hannibal conventional roof tent (which is going to be getting shipped to my folks now) which we love, but this just takes thing to a whole new level of speed and ease. If you have ever packed up folding rooftents on the 1st of January under a desert sun - late morning - after far too much red wine then you will know EXACTLY what I mean...

So the plan is to use the winch on the 105 and a tree to make for some easy roof tent mounting tomorrow! Can't wait and should make for some good photos.
Gil

 

[Phil in BC]

Nice toys Gil. If you dont mind me asking, what did you pay for the tent and drawers? I would like to get a tent like that to mount on my BJ74 for next summer. First I have to finish the exo-cage/roof rack to mount it to, but with winter now here I have plenty of time for that project. Nice stuff and thanks for the pics.

Phil

 

[gilghana]

Hi Phil,
Once had a great Pizza in Kamloops! I paid €1,300 for the drawers and the tent. Not bad considering that in Germany a Maggiolina Columbus (of which the Hannibal Impi is pretty much a direct copy) was going to cost me €1,600. If you are interested in buying from ZA I did it through a friend, but Frontrunner (ZA manufacturer of stuff and able to procure things also) we found to be really helpful. You could also contact 4x4 Megaworld also of South Africa. The exchange rate issue really helps.

 

[gilghana]

Rainy rooftent fitting

Well, we are supposed to be moving into the dry season in West Africa, but murphy's law dictates that when you want to fit a rooftent on a Saturday afternoon it lashes down. Rain here is like a shower - really, really hard tropical rain. Anyway I decided to go for it. I positioned the 105 so that with the help of a tree and a snatch block I could use the winch as a hoist. This really helped a lot.

So, old one comes off:

The mountings for the hannibal Impi are simplicity itself - some aluminium tracks are on the bottom of the tent, into which you slide 4 pieces of flat bar each with two bolts welded. You then tighten down a small piece of drilled flat bar on each of the four mounts, effectively clamping the roof bars.

What I really like is that the tent is relatively narrow - 1.3m. This means that unlike some others it doesn't overhang the sides of the vehicle.

I will get some pictures of it opened out tomorrow as well as the interior. Darkness and rain stopped anything else this evening. Raining so hard now we can't even think about trying it - just getting bedding from house to car it would be soaked! In front of the tent is going to go a solar panel replacing the old bit of plywood I had up there before.

 

[roscoFJ73]

Is it that heavy Gil? I thought 2 people could have lifted it into position quite easily.
Im still considering getting a Hannibal camper myself. A new shipment arrived in oz a few weeks back

 

[gilghana]

Small People...

Well, two big (tall) guys could easily lift it on - 60kgs - but to leave the bars on I would have had to open out the folding tent - and it was lashing! And my assistants were a couple of watchmen who are short (like a lot of Ghanaians) and tend to be a bit shaky - they are mostly pensioners! So the easy route - and more fun/better pictures - was to go the garden hoist route. Unfortunately have not even had the chance to get it open in daylight yet... but initial impressions are that it really is the biz, and this ZA Rand rate made it. As I say the width is great and the fibreglass seems damn tough. In built national luna strip light is cool but connections are Hella type so hard wiring will be done - Hella plugs are unheard of here. Reckon it would be very fine on your alu demountable camper.
Gil

 

[roscoFJ73]

. Reckon it would be very fine on your alu demountable camper.
Gil

Dont make me do it,Dont!PLEASE !!

 

[gilghana]

Well, first dry afternoon here for over a week, enabled me to pop the tent for a view of it up:

 

[gilghana]

So then onto the African Outback Drawer System. Damn heavy stuff it is. The installation was fairly straightforward, although I did change the installation slightly. Instead of drilling the floor I utilised some VERY strong mounts which originally lock the side bench seats to the floor. The drawer system is not full length (originally designed for a troopy 'RV') as I wanted to maintain the possibility in future for a small second row bench seat. Immediately in front of the drawers are going to be the two batteries, and immediately in front of them is going a full height Milford cargo barrier for two good reasons:
1) You can then pack up bags etc on top of the drawers
2) I do not want a fridge behind our heads with nothing holding it down other than the usual straps or turnbuckles...

Basic drawer installation is completed, tomorrow afternoon will tackle properly bolting down the top covers etc.

The right hand cover is actually the fridge slide, also running on roller bearings like the drawers. The system is really well designed, with stoppers that stop the drawers coming out and act as anti-rattle devices when the drawers are closed. The drawers lock too.

 

[gilghana]

Drawers were finished off this evening, what was quite surprising was that as I increased the size of the side panels (with my custom marine ply ) slightly it meant the drawers are quite a tight fit... Trimming back some of the edges makes it all nice and tight but still able to open the fridge slide.
Next up is mounting the fridge to the slide. To this end I have "sourced" some Toyota tie down eyes (i.e. unbolted them from the rear of the company 105). Couldn't find anything else lying around... Will lock down the fridge with some turnbuckles. Only thing is that the fridge is going to be pretty damn high of the ground - so I am thinking of some sort of folding step that goes into the receiver on the rear bumper. Wouldn't want to be sorting my cheese and beer by touch alone! After that is the wiring - that should occupy a good few hours.
Oh yeah, also got a 70 series red turbo emblem on order with my local toyo guy... That has to be done I reckon. Will get some pics up soon,
thanks for the interest folks,
Gil