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M1088 camper conversion

TechnoWeenie

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Ok, so silly little side project, but I impressed myself with it. I put in a GMRS radio and picked up two antennas for it- one better in obstructed terrain, the other in open, flatter areas. I wanted them both to stay in the rig, but storage would potentially be awkward. My solution was to install a dummy mount in the cab and keep the one which isn't in service mounted on it. Mounts only were ~$20 each by the time shipping was added, and I'm cheap and own a lathe, so yesterday was the day I figured out how to cut threads with it.

After a bit of trial and error with some scraps, I thought I figured it out and put a chunk of billet in the jaws. Sure enough, I did figure it out! I turned the OD down to the appropriate size and then worked the gearbox to get the threads cut. The most convenient place to hang it was in the back corner of the cab, so I finished it off with a 90° alu bracket and bolted using the interior panel anchor bolt in the corner. Worked out perfectly.

Roughing in the blank:


Completed piece:


Wider view:
where is the NMO mount?
 

ckouba

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1/2 wave would work better since there's almost no groundplane
If you have a recommendation, I'd be open to it. It's a new subject for me... added the 7 db antenna and it came with a 3 (I think those were the numbers). In OR/WA, we will be dealing with mountains, valleys, and trees (3 db), but on longer trips to the SW, it will be more open desert (7db). It was my understanding that they work better in those respective environments. That's why I went with what I did, but it's easy enough to swap them out though.
 

TechnoWeenie

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If you have a recommendation, I'd be open to it. It's a new subject for me... added the 7 db antenna and it came with a 3 (I think those were the numbers). In OR/WA, we will be dealing with mountains, valleys, and trees (3 db), but on longer trips to the SW, it will be more open desert (7db). It was my understanding that they work better in those respective environments. That's why I went with what I did, but it's easy enough to swap them out though.
That micro antenna you have has negative gain, and if it's NOT made by a well known brand like Maxrad, Antennex, Comtelco, etc then it's probably even worse, and doing damage to your radio.

Higher gain = lower angle of radiation. That box blocks most of the signal behind you.

A 1/4 wave antenna is a unity gain antenna. Its radiation pattern is more like a bubble, so while it doesn't go out as far as say, a 5/8 or a 1/2 wave, its radiation pattern is more even. The higher the gain, the more the pattern gets squished from the top, until it's more like a donut, with almost no radiation to the top, and squeezed out more to the horizon. So, the 'small antenna in mountains, long antenna in desert' actually is a good way of doing things.

A 1/4 wave antenna on UHF is only 6".... and it's a whip. Very thin, compared to that thick, wide dummy load that leaves much more surface area to hit/snag on something.


BUT, 1/4, 5/8, 5/8 over 1/4, 5/8 over 5/8 etc all require groundplanes. A flat plane that's a reference to ground, to 'push' the signal off of. Think of it as a trampoline of sorts. Without a groundplane, not only will the radiation pattern be absolute garbage, but more energy will be reflected BACK into the radio - too much, and it damages the radio. So, if you have a 50W radio, and a 2:1 SWR (which is probably MUCH worse, with lack of groundplane and poor antenna) ~11W is going back into the radio and dissipated as heat.

A 1/2 wave doesn't really require a groundplane, as it's half of the antenna, working much like a dipole. A 1/2 wave without a groundplane is unity gain and works much like a 1/4 wave, but with much better SWR. A 1/2 wave WITH a groundplane will have ~3db gain and will have a radiation pattern in between a 1/2 and 5/8 wave, which is the best of both worlds, IMO.

Also, not only are Chinese antennas known for false marketing, but even well known manufacturers engage in some tomfoolery with stuff like '3db MEG' - "mean effective gain", which is BS. You'll also see dbi and dbd.
Dbi = gain over a magic isotropic radiator that radiates equally in every direction.
Dbd = gain over a dipole.

If you have some friends that are hams - ask them to borrow an SWR meter or find out if one of them has a nano-vna..

As far as suggestions.


I'd run a 1/2 wave 99% of the time, and only switch out the 5/8 when absolutely necessary. I think a 5/8 over 5/8 might be a bit much, though, and you won't see the benefits you think you will, but you have it, so it won't hurt anything. The half wave will actually have more gain than the 1/4 wave due to the 1/4 wave requiring a groundplane and the halfwave doesn't require one. The difference in gain between a 1/2 and 5/8 wave will be virtually null due to the fact that the 5/8 requires a groundplane. The 5/8 over 5/8 realistically might be 5db, at absolute best. Vs a little over 2db for the 1/2 wave... While a 1/4 wave will most definitely work better if you're in a valley in the mountains, the difference at shorter ranges is going to be neglible.

The bigger issue is, the proximity of the box is gonna lead to bad SWR regardless.

1/4 wave



1/2 wave

 
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ckouba

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I have still to learn how to navigate the TM's... Can anyone point me at the priming procedure for the motor (dry fuel tank)? Is there one? Am I overthinking this?

Looking at it, I am tempted to loosen the plug on the unused output port and push the button until the air is out and the fuel arrives.
 

chucky

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I have still to learn how to navigate the TM's... Can anyone point me at the priming procedure for the motor (dry fuel tank)? Is there one? Am I overthinking this?

Looking at it, I am tempted to loosen the plug on the unused output port and push the button until the air is out and the fuel arrives.
Crack the fuel line nut loose going into the top front of the head on drivers side and unscrew the knob on top of the fuel pump and start pumping till it starts pushing fuel out of that fitting ( it might take a while but it will eventually get there !
 

chucky

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Ive also had to use a big rag and an air hose to pressurize a fuel tank to push the fuel to the filter/pump when the tank had been sucked dry !
 

ramdough

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I have still to learn how to navigate the TM's... Can anyone point me at the priming procedure for the motor (dry fuel tank)? Is there one? Am I overthinking this?

Looking at it, I am tempted to loosen the plug on the unused output port and push the button until the air is out and the fuel arrives.
@Ronmar has a video


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

ckouba

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Thanks gents. I also got a few pointers today from Rick and will be giving it a shot tomorrow. Will look up Ron's vid shortly as well.
 

ckouba

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Have crossed a number of things off my list recently-

New AD-9 dryer:


Installed fresh water tank level gauge:

(powers up when I turn illuminated switch on)

The 120 side of panel has been validated. I have been running through the Victron now, pulling 120 through the inverter to run tools and whatever when working in the camper.

I installed a small inverter in the cab, just to have some power up there too. It's nothing to get excited about and I will only use it with the motor running, but it'll be nice to have the ability to plug in a computer without an extension cord.

I got the truck re-started without issue following replacing the fuel lines. The collective experience was spot on- there was no specific trick to it. Primer pump and go, and I'm not even sure my pump works all that well.

I filled up the enlarged fuel tank. Seems to be fine. The pressure testing I managed to do seems to have paid off.

The furnace continues to function flawlessly. We had ~7 days of freezing temps. I set the t-stat to 55° and that's where it stayed- both on shore power or diesel. Very happy to see this!

Truck is running well in the cold. It was a little sluggish starting when we were in a deeper part of the freeze, but still ran like a champ. It's warmer today and it's back to its normal self.

All this prep is getting set for our first long distance trip next month from Portland to the Kanab, UT area. I got a permit for The Wave in Feb, and there's no way this truck isn't going on that trip! Heads up if you're in that area or live along the way (Feb 15-25)
 

ckouba

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Curious why ad9 vs the purest version used on newer trucks?
Sounds like lots of good news!
I've had it for so long to do the swap that I honestly forget how I landed on it. I want to say that it was a recommendation from someone on here but I can't place it right now. They seem to be the OTR standard and widely available, and it's working well for me so far. It doesn't seem to be restricting the compressor cycle time- seems to take just as long to refill as it did with the OE unit.
 

ckouba

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After getting just about everything working in the camper, the wife, dog, and I headed out into the Gorge last week for a few nights out in the cold as a shakedown for a much bigger trip in Feb. Things started off extremely well, including finding some sunshine and some interesting scenery. It's been quite soggy and cold recently...

Lovely, plowed dirt roads


Tolerable scenery


Some historic structures


And a little bit of snow to play in


The weather for days 2 & 3


Part of the purpose of this trip was to exercise the systems and see what happens under actual use case. I am happy to say that it all worked out quite well.

Despite very a very obscured sun for days 2 & 3, we were net positive for daily solar production. Looking at the Victron apps, I was charging between 100 - 200W at any given time and was able to build the batteries back from high 80's % SOC to mid-90's % SOC over the course of the day. Given the conditions, I thought these numbers were great to see on the monitoring. I initially found it hard to believe due to minimal experience with solar, but it seems the numbers didn't lie. Batteries were charging!

As it was all a systems test, we used power as we wanted and needed it- running a dual burner induction cooktop for breakfast and dinner, fridge was on, hydronic heat circulating with fans on constantly, lights on as desired, and a myriad of devices either charging on 110v or 12v feeds. All in all, very pleased with the performance of all the systems. Everything was run as we wanted and it all worked.

Unfortunately, we also had a failure on the way home. The engine just died, like someone switched off the ignition. It took a full day with Rick, Brandon, and another local to sort through, but we eventually traced the issue back the the bypass harness for the EMI protection module on the ECU power supply. When checking the continuity of the connectors, their wires basically fell out of their cannon plug shells. Once we deleted the bypass harness and its chassis loom connectors (just butt connected them together), the motor fired right back up.

Bummer that it happened, yes. Thankful that it was close to home, absolutely! A MASSIVE thanks to Rick and Brandon for getting me back on the road WAY faster than I ever would have been able to if I was working alone.
 

TechnoWeenie

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Despite very a very obscured sun for days 2 & 3, we were net positive for daily solar production. Looking at the Victron apps, I was charging between 100 - 200W at any given time and was able to build the batteries back from high 80's % SOC to mid-90's % SOC over the course of the day. Given the conditions, I thought these numbers were great to see on the monitoring. I initially found it hard to believe due to minimal experience with solar, but it seems the numbers didn't lie. Batteries were charging!
How much total wattage is on the roof?
 

ckouba

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Posted earlier:


New SolarEver 455W Solar Panel

$257.00

The SolarEver 455W is a 9 bus bar Monocrystalline 144 Half Cell solar panel that has high module efficiency, PID resistance, severe weather resilience, durability and excellent performance in low-light conditions.

Features:
  • 20.38 % Module Efficiency
  • Cell Type: Mono PERC
  • Frame: Anodized Aluminum Alloy
  • Junction Box: IP67 Rated
  • 9 Busbar Solar Cell
  • High Durability Against Extreme Environmental Conditions
  • PID Resistance
  • Excellent Performance in Low-Light
Specifications:
  • Power: 455W
  • Maximum Voltage (VMP): 41.51 V
  • Maximum Power Current (IMP): 10.96 A
  • Open Circuit Voltage (VOC): 49.35 V
  • Short Circuit Current (ISC): 11.44 A
  • Maximum Fuse Rating: 20 A
  • Maximum System Voltage: 1500VDC (IEC)
  • Dimensions: 82.44 in x 40.86 in x 1.37
  • Weight: 51.8 lbs.

Link to the listing for the panel (will only be valid as long as they have stock):
New SolarEver 455W Solar Panel | SanTan Solar

www.santansolar.com
www.santansolar.com

No affiliation with them.

I wired them in parallel/series- two serial pairs combined in parallel (front pair and rear pair). The other system specs are in/near that post as well.

San Tan may not have them any longer, but I'm sure they can be located somewhere. I am quite happy with them so far, and this was definitely a typical PNW winter weekend.
 
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