What did you receive in the mail today for your Ranger?

[SD4160]

Top right: newly installed Bilko Auto 12V plug. (Not shown, pigtail option capped and tied up under side wall.)
Bottom left: the dummy plug from the harness for the 12v outlet- my son insisted on both wire and zip tying it to the tie down hook incase I need it later. ?‍

Gave a much needed wash! Tried Meguiars new Ceramic based wash/wax... not impressed at all. Literally no suds. Maybe I used it wrong??? Mix with water, no?

Hopefully its the last time cleaning these wheels and tires before my new ones show up. Lift, wheels and tires all happening at once!

? just realized I'm in the wrong thread. Sowwy ?

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[SD4160]

My attempt at redemption...
My 100Ah LiFePO4 battery, 1000w inverter, 50a Anderson plugs, and 12v pigtail(for yet to arrive DC to DC charger) arrived today.

My original plan was to build it into a pelican 1440 case (cause wheels!) Or this plano case. I foolishly thought I could possibly fit 2 batteries into the plano here along with charger and inverter, but in true "just gonna wing it" fashion, that clearly isnt gonna happen.

Ordered a pre-fabbed marine battery box pre-fitted with 12v outlets, USB and 50A anderson plugs to see if it makes sense to work with that as a platform. Guess I'll see what makes the most sense as the last few parts arrive.

 

[Colo_Ranger]

Got some recovery gear in today. Should make recovering myself easier, when I am out alone.

 

[subquark]

As some of you may know, I like doing dump runs visiting the recycling center and since I seem to haul an inordinate amount of brush for a tiny yard, I always use ratchet straps, but I often have a hard time reaching the tie downs. I can hook the one side before I load up, but since these are fancy-pants self-retracting ones, you can't really do that with the other side.

So I got some US-made 24" soft loops to leave hanging out so that I can connect the ratchet strap. They are plenty strong for the brush and the 1.6 mile, 25 mph trip.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084VQT8MM

And I also got this to transfer my soft pouch first-aid kit to. I can now just leave it in the truck (bed too) and throw it in the kayak as needed.

Made in Canada and reasonably priced (same price on Amazon as their site, plus they were in stock on Amazon but not with them).

Thank you @DukeCanBuildit for the heads up and photos of this case - it's perfect for us! =)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08L9R1N2S

 

[subquark]

Top right: newly installed Bilko Auto 12V plug. (Not shown, pigtail option capped and tied up under side wall.)
Bottom left: the dummy plug from the harness for the 12v outlet- my son insisted on both wire and zip tying it to the tie down hook incase I need it later. ?‍

Gave a much needed wash! Tried Meguiars new Ceramic based wash/wax... not impressed at all. Literally no suds. Maybe I used it wrong??? Mix with water, no?

Hopefully its the last time cleaning these wheels and tires before my new ones show up. Lift, wheels and tires all happening at once!

Nice install, I'm looking forward to putting mine in. I also have a BedRug (albeit a bit baggy in some places!).

Any tips for a hesitant person like me?

 

[BS67]

Got a 4DTech programmer today! This one disables/Enables the Auto Start/Stop.

 

[SD4160]

Nice install, I'm looking forward to putting mine in. I also have a BedRug (albeit a bit baggy in some places!).

Any tips for a hesitant person like me?

Im sure you will be fine! I used an xacto knife and started by just cutting the size of the bed wall hole using the factory hole as my template... then peeled the BedRug back, installed the receptacle and opened the hole up in small increments until I had a nice snug fit around the outlet.

You can always remove more, you can't add any back!

 

[subquark]

I got some magnets to try to hold my BedRug up. It keeps unsticking at the front, despite having wiped it well with rubbing alcohol. I think I must be trying to connect it too high. The magnets were not strong enough on their own (30 pound pull). I have a couple of 110 pound pull coming to try (N52s).

If that doesn't work, I have gobs of double-sided 3M tape and will wipe down the bed and the existing sticky side of the velcro 3M and place it there and a bit lower (I have it trying to stick to the angled part at the front of the bed).

These could be handy for something else. If all else fails, I can use them in my tool cabinet.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08C7SXBKZ

It's never held very well. When it first came loose, I used rubbing alcohol again but I think I'm sticking it up too high. You can't see it too well normally cause the rolling tonneau covers it up, but still ...

All six finally held a little, but that won't be enough. So I'll be lazy and try stronger ones, but the real solution is to use fresh 3M. Since it's the velcro backed one, I'll clean up the sticky side (the part that's supposed to be on the bed) and stick another layer of 3M on it (one inch wide's what I have) and see if that hold.

The BedRug itself can't go anywhere, the six tie downs are also holding it in place.

 

[TVRangerSTX]

I got some magnets to try to hold my BedRug up. It keeps unsticking at the front, despite having wiped it well with rubbing alcohol. I think I must be trying to connect it too high. The magnets were not strong enough on their own (30 pound pull). I have a couple of 110 pound pull coming to try (N52s).

If that doesn't work, I have gobs of double-sided 3M tape and will wipe down the bed and the existing sticky side of the velcro 3M and place it there and a bit lower (I have it trying to stick to the angled part at the front of the bed).

These could be handy for something else. If all else fails, I can use them in my tool cabinet.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08C7SXBKZ

It's never held very well. When it first came loose, I used rubbing alcohol again but I think I'm sticking it up too high. You can't see it too well normally cause the rolling tonneau covers it up, but still ...

All six finally held a little, but that won't be enough. So I'll be lazy and try stronger ones, but the real solution is to use fresh 3M. Since it's the velcro backed one, I'll clean up the sticky side (the part that's supposed to be on the bed) and stick another layer of 3M on it (one inch wide's what I have) and see if that hold.

The BedRug itself can't go anywhere, the six tie downs are also holding it in place.

Hmmm...too many dump runs maybe. David? ;●》

 

[subquark]

Hmmm...too many dump runs maybe. David? ;●》

Darn it! I have a problem, I need Dump Lovers Anonymous ...

 

[SD4160]

As I continue to "wing it" with this inverter project, my dc-to-dc charger and modified marine box arrived.

My two main routes:

Now I'm at a crossroads and not sure with way to go. With the size of the charger and inverter, I have an all-in-one solution with the larger plano box. I would outfit the top with 12v, USB, and 120v outlets and charge ports for connecting an array of charging options (12vdc for the dc2dc, 120ac to 12vdc, and solar, possibly all wired to a rotary selector switch for full isolation from each other). That said, the foot print is larger than I wanted for just one battery.

Second option is more modular. Use the smaller battery box and mount the dc2dc charger and inverter on the side wall of my bed (thinking builtright molle panels down the line) and have the smaller battery box tucked out of the way behind the wheel well... I could then order a second battery and basic marine battery box- by adding an anderson plug and make a 6ft jumper, double my ampacity running the two in parallel, and have them both tucked against driver and passenger side out of the way.

Only concern would be having the charger and inverter mounted right under the edge of the tonneau cover and the possibility of them getting water in/on them.

As a bed rack and RTT are still far out additons on this project, I'd contemplated purchasing the truck bed tent (fordpass points maybe?) and air mattress by Napier in the mean time, so something tighter to the side walls was a consideration with that in mind.

Choices?...


Any thoughts, suggestions or similar setups to what I just described? Thanks!

 

[Doc]

As I continue to "wing it" with this inverter project, my dc-to-dc charger and modified marine box arrived.

My two main routes:

Now I'm at a crossroads and not sure with way to go. With the size of the charger and inverter, I have an all-in-one solution with the larger plano box. I would outfit the top with 12v, USB, and 120v outlets and charge ports for connecting an array of charging options (12vdc for the dc2dc, 120ac to 12vdc, and solar, possibly all wired to a rotary selector switch for full isolation from each other). That said, the foot print is larger than I wanted for just one battery.

Second option is more modular. Use the smaller battery box and mount the dc2dc charger and inverter on the side wall of my bed (thinking builtright molle panels down the line) and have the smaller battery box tucked out of the way behind the wheel well... I could then order a second battery and basic marine battery box- by adding an anderson plug and make a 6ft jumper, double my ampacity running the two in parallel, and have them both tucked against driver and passenger side out of the way.

Only concern would be having the charger and inverter mounted right under the edge of the tonneau cover and the possibility of them getting water in/on them.

As a bed rack and RTT are still far out additons on this project, I'd contemplated purchasing the truck bed tent (fordpass points maybe?) and air mattress by Napier in the mean time, so something tighter to the side walls was a consideration with that in mind.

Choices?...


Any thoughts, suggestions or similar setups to what I just described? Thanks!

Cool

 

[that408guy]

Wanna share the secret code?

I forget the exact code but on the site I used last time they are showing S3M100 as another 100$ off. Unfortunate the exhaust is no longer on sale.

 

[Colo_Ranger]

My charging cable for the truck developed a crack in it. This was $46 off on Amazon, so I went this way instead of replacing the cable. I have @DirkM's tray coming too, so I will start working on my system.

 

[Ranger Lariat]

Chemical Guys polishing kit, other members seemed happy with it, so I figured I’d give it a try.

Remember... "less is more" when it comes to using an orbital tool on your paint. The paint (and or clear coat) is SOOOO thin on these trucks (at least my 2022) I'm afraid to even look at it wrong.

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