Building for Alaska/ TransCanada Adventure

[Blue Phoenix]

Thuri and Bogo, thanks for the info. I definitely am planning on spending more time in SE Alaska than originally thought. Im not sure how long this trip is going to be, but its definitely inching towards the two months mark. From Dallas to Prudhoe Bay I calculated the trip to be upwards of 4500 miles. Good thing Ill have a newly rebuilt engine.

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Well the truck is finally done! I'll give a run down of the rebuild in the tech section, but as promised, here are some pictures...

 

[Blue Phoenix]

More...

 

[Blue Phoenix]

And More...

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Last ones...

 

[Blue Phoenix]

If youre curious about the specs on what I had done to the engine go here: https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/355941-complete-rebuild-188k-miles.html

 

[Blue Phoenix]

UPDATE

Well, now that everything is done with the engine, its on with the tires and lift.
After spending alot of free time looking at tire specs among different brands and sizes Im sticking with the BFG AT but Im bumping the size up to 315.
Most of the reason is because of the lift. Im going with Frankies Off Road 3.5" lift. I originally was going to go with OME, but I feel in many ways its a higher maintenance lift and I HATE the stinkbug look.
In addition, after reading all the threads on his work, it sounds like other brands are hard pressed to beat his workmanship. I looked at SLEE's 4 INCH system, but feel like its just a little much, if only a half inch. Also, Im a big fan of progressive spring rates as its very commonly used in sports cars.
As far as the tires go, in reading the specs, the difference between 295s and 315s are within 1.2", which to me seems pretty small.
This month the tires are being put on and I assume Ill have the lift put on around the time I return home in MAY. Ill be taking part in the lift build, so Ill take as Many pics as I feel necessary.

 

[Hoochie Time]

I would highly recommend 10 ply rated tires, though most of your travel will be on pavement the gravel that you will travel can cause grieve for anything less than a 10 ply rated tire. Around British Columbia we spend a lot of time on forest industry roads and the "gravel" can really vary from area to area. Every time over the years that I have bought anything less than a 10 ply rated tire I have been rewarded with flats.

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Still considering this option. One thing Im still weighing is the fact that Im sticking with stock gears until a later time when I have the patience and money to regear. So 315 is cutting it close and I feel an even heavier tire will make things worse for mileage. Also, Ive read many peoples write-ups and from what I see, for the most part, is that my tire selection should be good enough with two spares.

 

[Blue Phoenix]

So, Ive had a lot of time to reflect and catch up on reading and research, along with hashing out rough timelines and expenditures to reach a final trip-plan:

First I'll outline everything thats in the pipeline for the near future to be added on to Godzilla.
Composite Lift- OME Heavy Lift with Bilstein 5150 14" shocks at all the corners. F.O.R. doesnt yet have a
"Heavy Lift" option available yet and Im definitely thinking about more bang for my buck.
BFG 295s (6)- Sorry, I know youre as sick of me changing my mind as my wife is. But theyre going on
this weekend.
ARB Winch bumper
Warn XD9000
Hella 1000s
National Luna Battery Isolator with dual Optimas
I also just bought an ARB Onboard Air Compressor

It has also been decided that we are sleeping inside the vehicle on an air mattress if camping is out of the question because RTTs are just too @#$% expensive. So, I need a roof rack for sure now, which from what Ive seen are also pricey.
My options:
ARB Touring Rack
Yakima Mega Warrior
Baja Rack
All seem good and all, but the main things being carried up top will be two Zargas style cases, cooler, fuel and water cans, and a spare tire. So I definitely think Ill have to opt for the full length rack whichever it ends up being. And ALL are expensive!

Sorry this has been so long, BUT if anyone is still reading this, you'll know the updates. PS- I COME BACK FROM AFGHANISTAN IN THE MIDDLE OF MAY, WHICH IS WHEN I, WITH MY MECHANIC, WILL INSTALL EVERYTHING!

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Now for the FINALIZED TRIP DETAILS. Im alotting for around 40 days of travel, but the days are more or less set, but theres still allowance for whatever comes up as far as side trips are concerned. Here are the stops along the way though:
- Family Cabin in Saskatchewan
- Calgary/Banff/Jasper area (Lodging Suggestions?)
- Whitehorse
- Fairbanks (Lodging Suggestions?)
- Prudhoe Bay
- Denali N.P.
- Anchorage (Lodging Suggestions?)
- Kodiak
- Whittier to catch AMHS
- Juneau
- Island hopping (Recommendations?)
- Prince Rupert
- Vancouver to end the trip (Lodging Suggestions?)
- HOME

This is the trip plan and I feel very comfortable Ill be able to accomplish it in 6 weeks, the time I have set aside for the trip. I definitely am still open to suggestions, I just thought it would be easier to give them if you guys knew where I was going.

 

[alia176]

it's interesting that you're leaning toward 14" shocks as I'm not thinking that'll be realistic. I have a 4" of lift and I am doing well with 12" 7100 res shocks in the rear and 10" 7100 res shocks in the front. I think you may end up bottoming out the 5150s on compression. I think the 6" lifted guys are running 14" shocks.

I see that you bought an ARB air comp - for inflation duties? If so, I hope you bought the large one! You could've gotten by with the cheapo MV-50 air comp from Pep boys that seems to be making lots of wheelers happy. Heck, you could've bought two MV-50s for the price of one ARB!

Toss the Optimas and get two DieHard Platinums. One group 35 for the main, one group 65 for aux. These have far better warranties and great reviews on this site.

Hella 1000 - this is purely subjective but I don't think these lights are worth the money, nor do they put out a nice, sharp pencil beam. Anything with a depth of 3" can't have a focal point that goes very far. Dollar for dollar, I think you can find something else that's less "blingy" and more useful.

Other than that, everything looks good so far. You've had a serious reality check so it's good to see that your list is getting paired down to the bare essentials!

There is no reason to purchase a new rack when used ones come up for sale quite regularly. There is a Mule rack for sale currently, or at least it was, in the DEN area.

Also, I don't know if you have the funds or time to acquire this but I'd highly suggest getting a York air comp on board air system installed. Some folks are selling their york brackets but they're easy to make up. For tire inflation duties, nothing beats a belt driven York.

For your air mattress, I hope you will purchase a dedicated cig lighter powered 12vdc air pump. Or get an air mattress that has a built in battery powered air blower. DON'T use your air compressor for this task. It'll take forever and a day to inflate a huge volume like an air mattress. You'll need a high volume low air pressure dedicated blower for this task.

these are just my opinions so take it for what its worth!

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Alia,
Hey no problem on the advice. Its why I made the thread and youve contributed a lot.

As far as the shocks are concerned...typo...I was caught between the Fox 2.0 shocks which were 14" and the Bilsteins, which are 12". Definitely overkill especially for overlanding.

I got the ARB AC second hand for cheap, which is why I bought it in the first place. I currently hae an air compressor thats on its way out. In addition to the compressor, Im hooking up a tank to keep a better supply of air to go to the tires and whatever else I have use for it.

Ill definitely look into the Die Hard batteries. In all honesty I was going with the Optimas purely because I know nothing about batteries except the difference in types.

My original choice for lighting were the Lightforce 240s because of their output and ability to focus the beam, which I definitely like....Theyre just so freaking BIG.

Ive been trying to keep up with racks going for sale to buy second hand since its definitely something I dont see being damaged over time due to use. I saw the mule you were talking about a while back IIRC, but I think it sold. We'll see.

Already have an air mattress with built-in air compressor, so thats done.

 

[96r50]

If you haven't already seen it, check out this thread: Alaska 2009 - Expedition Portal Forum

 

[alia176]

another thing that I just thought of: when I was traveling from IL to the West, I was capturing every specie of bugs known to mankind on the I-80 corridor in my radiator fins. To combat this, a simple screen was made up from something I purchased from a hardware store. I'd suggest doing something similar to protect the radiator fins from bugs and rocks. But first, you need to painstakingly remove all of the bugs and rocks from the fins and straighten them out. If you'd like more info, just shoot me an email.

 

[Blue Phoenix]

UPDATE: Just purcased the Mule rack that was on sale in the Classifieds section. As I mentioned before, I'll post pics of everything as soon as I can.

 

[alia176]

Cool, congrats on the purchase.

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Finally set a date for the trip...June 15, 2011 is the start date for the trip. As mentioned before the trip should take around 40 days.

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Just emailed Slee about the final work to be done on the truck.

Ill be going the the OME Heavy Lift as FOR doesnt currently have a Heavy lift available. In addition Ill be getting the ARB bumper and Hella 4000 Driving Lights. Its So Close I Can Taste the Grease! Less than 3 weeks and Ill be home!

 

[Blue Phoenix]

Alright, hopefully this will revive the thread a little because I have another question:

I just bought a pair of HELLA 4000s for the truck and Im foregoing the ARB right now because I cant find one for a price thats palatable enough for me. Also, Im using the money to get the camera Ive wanted for a couple of years now.

Does anyone have any experience running wires from the roof rack to the engine bay without drilling holes? This vehicle has no holes in the roof and I dont plan on putting any there if I dont have to. I looked at some peoples ideas using the SEARCH in the 80 section, but Im still not seeing what I want.

Maybe Im being too picky, but Id like to not have to run it inside the A-pillar door sill. Anyways, theyre not going to be up there forever, a year at most, but I dont want them to look ghetto. Again, it looks like another situation where compromise is unavoidable, but you guys have had good advice in the past. Thanks for any suggestions.