Meet my 90, and share the adventure.

It has been a quiet few weeks on the landy...the Tamworth Country music festival rolled into town, along with just about every grey nomad between Port Douglas and Ceduna... so getting around town and getting things done was severely compromised. firstworldproblems.jpg

Next steps will be to do with the dual battery install. Lots of planning to do, and considerable capital outlay needed. It's a job I only want to do once, so I'll probably take this one slow.

As for the ex box, I can finally put this one to rest. I've removed the mulgo foam strips that seal it up, and replaced with some rubber seals which are used on boot trim. I've had to wind out the latch on the front a bit to make up for the extra thickness of the seal, but it will definitely help to keep a lot of the dust out.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1070.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1071.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1072.jpg



Also a pic of the winch wiring and associated rubber end seal to stop chafing.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1073.jpg


That's all for now folks,
Until next time, Cheerio.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Toxic_Avenger

And today's efforts was mainly tidying up the last tasks on the ex box, and re-fitting the interior.

Some pics of the 99% finished project:

Cut a hole in the insulation for installation of the thru terminals for power and earth. Used some gasket goo to seal it all up.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1059.jpg


In Situ
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1060.jpg

For now I've just bundled the cables and connectors under the fuse block flap. I'll probably end up re-jigging it a bit so that the connectors line up along the rear or driver's side of the ex box. The lay of the wire as it stands is down the passenger side, which I will need to re-route.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1061.jpg

Having some method of attaching the connectors to a rail using their factory grooves would be ideal... just not sure where I could find such a beast. LR use a slide on style clip which has a press fit 'christmas tree' style fastener, but I want to avoid any more holes in the ex box if at all possible.


I put some of the foam matting down below the fuse block, so that any wires do not abrade on any grit which accumulates, or any steel surfaces. It's not stuck down, so this may or may not be a permanent addition. We'll see what I can manage with the wiring loom as it is.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1062.jpg

I even stuck the fuse block sticker on the lid of the ex box. Bonus points!
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1063.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/02/1064.jpg

---

You are SO TALENTED thanks you for pictures l really love the consistency and the perfection of all your wiring
I THINK I AM IN LOVE:p:p:p

You must be very happy with the end result.

Very neat work, well done! :BigThumb:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Crocodile Dundee

You are SO TALENTED thanks you for pictures l really love the consistency and the perfection of all your wiring
I THINK I AM IN LOVE:p:p:p

---

I won't tell my missus if you don't ;)

I wouldn't call it talent... I'm just a backyard hack mechanic with a drill, some spanners, and an appetite for destruction :p

To date, the build success is down to:
Lots of research
Lots of measuring
Lots of trolling thru parts catalogues and other builds for ideas
...and the members of aulro

I just want to add that I'm standing on the shoulders of giants.
I've gained inspiration from the following members (in no particular order), and summarily taken their ideas, and bastardized these concepts to suit my evil ways, and somehow come out the other end unscathed!
-Chook73 - ex box layout
-Nugg_et - ex box layout
-willow4 -wiring and DBS
-tikka7mm08 - wheel arch winch solenoid relocation

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Aguy

You must be very happy with the end result.

Very neat work, well done! :BigThumb:

---

Cheers, stay tuned though, because the thread is far from over!

I've been keeping an eye on your build too, I admire your dedication to even the smallest of details- That dynamat job seems to be a mammoth task, but I'm sure you are reaping the dividends with every extra patch you cover. I'll be sure to take on board some of your dust-proofing ideas / innovations in the future.

Excellent work and great thread... well done!

Awesome job mate. You have done most of the mods I did to my 90 when I had it but yours is much neater. Love it.

Like the Ex box result - very neat.

bumping thread for more updates!!!!!!

I've just been driving it! Approaching 8,000km traveled since I purchased it may last year. I should probably do something about increasing that number. :o


Yesterday we took a nice trip to Manilla NSW - Which isn't far from me. We went to see the Manilla show, which was the usual 'country' show, showcasing local grower's produce, wool and arts and crafts. Watched the working dog trials for a bit, then watched the farmer's challenge, which was good for a laugh (a relay type event for things like getting out the a swag, putting boots on, cracking whips, and drenching sheep etc). The humour was mainly from the MC - but the showgirls trying to crack a whip was also amusing.

Manilla is situated at the confluence of the Namoi River and Manilla river, and is known for its fishing in the rivers, and paragliding on mount Borah- an internationally acclaimed gliding destination. By the river, there is a large reserve where you can find a sneaky spot to drop a line or just relax in the shade. We went for a drive after checking out the show, and snapped some pics on the Namoi river:

there are a few shallow water crossings and a number of sandy tracks along the river banks - nothing extreme
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/03/1259.jpg

Nice view from the river crossing
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/03/1260.jpg


As for the build, progress is slow going.
I'm working on designing the dual battery system, which I've alluded to in this thread.
I need to finish the main power wiring for the winch (the cable run between the solenoid box back to HD switch, fuse and secondary battery).

Charging relay
I'm pretty much sold on the Blue Sea Systems ML-ACR unit, as per Brett/ Bushman's thread and youtube clips. I'm leaning towards model 7622 - which is a magnetically latched automatic charging relay (ACR), which is IP-66 rated for dust and water ingress. It is dual sensing, and will accept charge from a range of inputs (alternator, solar amongst others). It's got the battery combine function to allow joining of batteries, start isolation to protect accessory circuits from voltage spikes and sags when the engine is being started (this is one function that stops the accessory loads from turning off and on again when the engine is started). It's the usual marine grade gear, battle-proven, and built to handle the most unforgiving environment.

Battery selection
Looking to stick with the optima D34 batteries as per Loneranger's build. I understand people have a good amount of success with these, and I'm happy to follow suit. Total Ah rating is less than I'd like, but I want a battery that can handle the loads of winching, while still having a deep cycle pedigree (which I understand is a trade-off due to the construction of the battery cell plates, more than anything else).

I've crunched some sums of a power requirments 'wish list' for camping. Used an online calculator to calculate battery Ah needed, and waved my usual over-engineered 'fudge factor' over the top for good measure:

Designed loads: Camping max 3 days
1x fridge @ 4.2A 12hr/day
work light @ 1A 3hr/day
Inverter 1500W with 500W load drawing 50A 1hr/day
0.5A fridge for 24hrs = 24Ah @ 20hrs
4.5A Fridge for 24hrs = 214Ah @ 20hrs
1A lighting for 3hrs = 8Ah @ 20hrs
50A inverter for 1hr = 132Ah @ 20hrs
360A winch for 0.1hrs = 118Ah @ 20hrs
...in retrospect, I can't recall what the total Ah required was... but there was some method in my madness.

Removable Aux power
I'm toying with the idea of a portable battery for camping- a larger capacity and physical size true deep cell with its own charging relay and anderson style connection - think of it as a 'plug and play' battery for extended stays. Still in the hair-brain planning stages, but well and truly possible if I plan for it now. There would be possibility for AC-DC charging as well... being able to plug into 240V would be good for extended stays, but again, space and where I'd put this item is up in the air (not an IP rated device, so needs to be high and dry).

Battery isolation
Still undecided if I want battery isolation in the battery box or not. I've been tossing up a Remote Battery Switch setup (Blue sea systems ML-RBS model 7700), however for the purposes of extra electronics (and the space they take up), it seems overkill- especially given that their use is to disconnect / lock out the battery systems for repairs remotely- I can imagine the issues with the security system if this is used incorrectly. It is still on the cards for switching the winch though. It would be extra bling points to be able to disconnect batteries at the flick of a switch, and be an additional anti-theft function if managed correctly. Not to mention they look totally bad-ass when wired up correctly (pic below is a stock image of marine wiring):
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...15/03/1261.jpg
If I were into that social media stuff, it would probably be filed under #wiringporn
Edit: there's a sub-reddit for this! Cable Porn; The Art of Tidy Data Centers




Battery Tray
Still not sure if I'll pull the pin on the devon 4x4 battery tray. I'm looking for something that will put the BCI Group 34 batteries hard up against the battery box wall, with plenty of room to slide them in and out of place, as well as keep room for all the other wiring going on around them. Might get motivated to get some measurements and actually weld something up for a battery tray. Something basic, probably mild steel angle, and definately no scratch start TIG welding this time...


So that's where I'm at. It's a long and thought provoking journey, learning a heap along the way, and hoping to stuck into more wiring soon!