BlueGrey 4x

veronatii

Member
Since I want to document the changes I make to my new van, I thought I'd start a build thread.

The Van: 2017 144" 4x4 High Roof, purchased used with ~8k miles.

The Goal: End up with an adventure rig for mountain biking and snowboarding.

So first off, some pictures..
 

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Zoomyn

Member
Looking forward to tagging along on your conversion, subscribed to the thread now, sorry to booger it up w/ my photos :wtf::rolleyes:

I know it's a day late and a few dollars short - sorry... The wheel house (kilmatted tub in photo) has another slim clamshell piece on the outside of those stamped wall supports that bridges to the fender/wheel well -- Yes I know you'll have liners and insulation but on my Italian Vanborghini it was the outer wheelhouse sheetmetal that sprayed NOISE like a pressurewasher sprayed into an empty bucket, only to be found weeks later when I got someone else to drive whlie I snooped around... For a few dollars of kilmat and twenty minutes of your time layering over them goes a long way to hushing up highway noise. If not youse then sumbuddy else reading dis then...
 

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Hutchcab

New member
These electric rotary cutters work incredible on Thinsulate. Huge price range and you'll definitely notice a difference in quality, But the $65 2" works well on thinner thinsulate, and the 4" can cut multiple layers at once. I have them for my job, but was very happy to have them when doing insulation. About 10x (no joke) faster than scissors and your hands don't get as worked, and cuts are cleaner.

http://www.cutexsewingsupplies.com/cutting-machines-supplies/electric-rotary-cutters?limit=all
 

Zoomyn

Member
Got to chime back in --- doing the back doors, including outside shell sheet metal AND the stamped inner frame forms top and bottom hushed up a whole lot of sound 'pressure', that was not really identifiable noise but a being in a guitar or drum shell so any shock/shudder/oscillation got beamed up front into the cab area. I didn't count square footage but I managed to weigh the 45-pound box after each step, 10 pounds got my brand new RAM Promaster high-roof Van back doors closing Lexus quiet AND set up the door cavities as excellent speaker boxes.
 
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veronatii

Member
I installed the @flatlinevanco roof rack over the weekend. Installation was very quick and easy, even doing it solo. The only hangup was the cross bar in front of the fan had to be moved forward out of the original bolt holes since it would have hit the fan. Easy fix however.
 

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veronatii

Member
Big weekend! The batteries and charging methods are installed and wired.

Two Fullriver 6v 224AH AGM batteries are mounted below the van in a @hein battery box and wired up underneath the drivers seat. A Kisae DC to DC charger provides power from the starter battery & alternator while the van is running. When parked, a Victron MPPT charges via the SunPower X21-335-BLK 335 Watt panel on the roof.

A Victron Energy BMV-712 battery monitor displays system data available via Bluetooth & app as well.
 

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I really dig the getting it all into the seat base. I have no where near that much space...mine is pretty well full of MB stuff in there already ...
 

jenho

New member
Thanks for posting your build!

The Kisae website shows their chargers can handle DC-DC charging and solar if you have the DMT models. Did you choose a separate solar charger for a reason? Did you have the factory Aux battery or did you just wire up the aux battery from scratch? I'm planning on a similar install, let me know how it is working out!

J
 

veronatii

Member
Thanks for posting your build!

The Kisae website shows their chargers can handle DC-DC charging and solar if you have the DMT models. Did you choose a separate solar charger for a reason? Did you have the factory Aux battery or did you just wire up the aux battery from scratch? I'm planning on a similar install, let me know how it is working out!

J
I used a separate MPPT because the Kisae charger has a DC input range of 10.5 - 32 volts and my panel runs around 57.3 volts. I would have just used a different panel, but I already had this one lined up from a friend.

I don't have the factory Aux batteries, so this was all from scratch. So far I've been very impressed with this setup. I haven't put a ton of load on it yet but when running a TV over a 500w inverter for a few hours the batteries never went below 100%.

The real test will be when I install a fridge..
 
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veronatii

Member
Its been a bit since I posted updates on my build..

I only have time on the weekends for projects, so things are moving pretty slowly, but often with deadlines.

Bed platform, side panels, rear speakers & lights:
Todo: Paint and cover with fabric/carpet







Victron Phoenix 500 watt inverter
Todo: Trim to cover the reflective tape




Bike & gear drawers
Todo: Paint, coin flooring, thru-bolt to chassis.. I was in a hurry to get these done before thanksgiving..






Most importantly, I got a chance to get out and use the van while on a Thanksgiving trip up to Kernville, CA. I am very happy with how she performed.



Next up, the Espar heater that arrived today :)
 

RVCuisineScene

Active member
Looking good! I installed a 100amp aux AGM battery under the passenger seat, it's tied into the alternator with a Blue Sea ACR https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0016HRUPE/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=makshui-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B0016HRUPE&linkId=d15b708f063f9dd04693ea6a7018409cand a 100amp Mega fuse which are located under the drivers seat. I also added a AC to DC marine smart battery charger https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079JDL3D1/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=makshui-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B079JDL3D1&linkId=0f12164d0421103ed7e08f13dfc80537 as well as a Blue Sea 12V distribution panel and cutoff switch Battery.jpeg I plan on adding solar this winter.

More pics on my blog;
http://kitchenhui.com/road-trip/
 

veronatii

Member
I recruited my Dad's help to install the Espar D2 heater on Saturday. All the mechanical stuff was pretty straight forward, but the lack of wiring diagrams and labels made the electrical portion kind of a drag. I spent a good hour or so trying to figure out what all of the wires were for, only to find out in the end that you really only need a handful of them.

The fuel pump was obvious, but I did have to find a diagram of which wire was which when assembling the connector. This turned out to be the answer:



Next was the bundle of four wires where the large red & brown were obviously power/ground. I assumed the small red was power too, and after some googling was able to confirm that. I still have no idea what the fourth wire (red/white) does.. so its coiled neatly under the seat until I figure it out.

Next, I found this blog post that stating that the brown/white & gray/red get bridged to bypass the external temp sensor. Can anyone confirm that?

When wiring the controller, I discovered that the Easy Start Timer only needs three wires: red, brown and blue/white. So I'm assuming the rest of that bundle is for the high altitude kit that I ordered with the heater, but Heatso failed to include in my shipment.

In any case, we were able to get the heater fired up after priming the pump. Now I'm excited to test it in the cold weather!
 

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Hiwallman

New member
Thanks for the build pictures. Don’t you love it when a plan comes together!! I’m getting all sorts of ideas from build outs like yours. Now if I could only find a 4x sprinter......
 

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