2qik2see

Thx again jscherb! I'm printing this off..alreading got the modular conversion printed off. Actually been hitn CL for used tops but just may use mine. Thanks again man..can't wait to do this! Great directions..

jscherb

Haven't had much time to work on projects or post much in the last month, I've been traveling a lot. First a two-week trip to Colorado for some off-road adventure in the LJ Safari, then 4 days at home, and now I've been in Florida for the past two weeks helping mom move into an apartment. Drove my Wrangler pickup down to move furniture and boxes; the move is done so I escaped to Sanibel Island with my bicycle for a little r & r. Took a few cell phone photos of the pickup on the Sanibel Causeway, I park there and ride the bike onto the island, I rode up to Captiva Island to look for shells at Blind Pass Beach. You've seen my JK Safari and my LJ Safari but not sure I've ever shown my pickup here so here are a few photos.





I'll be back home in a few days and I've got a bunch of projects to catch up on, stay tuned.

Travel resumes at the end of October, I'll be driving the JKU Safari to Las Vegas for SEMA and afterwards spending a few days RTT camping in Death Valley.

2qik2see

Now that sounds like a fun trip! LUV goin to Sanibel..beautiful place! Awesome pickup ya got too! Is that a Chevy stepside bed??

jscherb

The bed sides are reproduction parts for a '46 Chevy. The fenders are custom fiberglass and the tailgate is custom, a combination of Jeep, Chevy, Toyota, Mazda and Nissan parts. The truck was my very first Jeep design and construction project, I built it in 2008 starting with a 2006 LJ with 10,500 miles and it's now got 105,000 miles on it. My goal was to build a modern version of the classic Willys pickups...

2qik2see

You've definitely accomplished that..WOW!!!!

jscherb

I'm outfitting the JK Safari for my upcoming RTT camping trip in Death Valley and since it is a desert and there's soft sand on some of the trails I'll be doing, I'm bringing the sand ladders. I'm going to mount the RTT on top of the Garvin rack, which leaves a perfect space under the RTT for the sand ladders.

I made up some simple brackets out of some u-bolts and a short piece of steel angle; welded together, the angle hooks around the bottom of a floor rail of the Garvin and the legs of the u-bolt are spaced perfectly to go through two holes in the sand ladder.



A view of a bracket installed.



The nuts on the brackets are easily accessible by reaching through the side of the Garvin/under the RTT, and once the brackets are removed, the sand ladders slide out through the side of the rack.



Also in the above photo - one Rubican for water is mounted (I'll stack two up there for the trip), my DIY awning is installed off the back to cover the pull-out kitchen, and a hinge step is installed on each rear door.

I'll install the RTT next to verify the fit of everything together.

jscherb

For my upcoming trip I don't need the rear seat and I could use a little more cargo space, so I removed the seat. It frees up a lot of space, and saves 91 lbs. (I weighed it).



The seat is bolted to the Jeep with nine 12mm bolts, all very tightly secured with thread locker. There are also two 12mm nuts, but it appears there is no thread locker on those. You'll need an 18mm socket and as long a breaker bar as you've got, I had to put a pipe on the end of my 18" breaker bar to get the three most stubborn bolts out. It took a lot of muscle to get all the bolts out, but when I replace the seat I'll use new bolts and I'll chase the threads in the holes with a tap to clean out any remaining thread locker, so future removal/installation will go much easier.

jscherb

Installed the roof top tent to verify that everything fits properly, this is the first time I've installed the tent on the Garvin rack basket. All is good. This is the configuration for my upcoming Death Valley expedition.

2qik2see

That'd be a great "get away from everyone" kind of set-up! That'd be so nice..lol..enjoy your trip and stay safe!

jscherb

Thanks. I'm driving out to Las Vegas for the SEMA Show and when the show is over I'll be exploring trails and camping in Death Valley for a few days. I plan to post photos from the show and my expedition so stay tuned.