Build Thread MallCrl 3.0

[[ Adam ]]

Awesome - looking forward to seeing you guys next week and hearing more.

I've been to multiple Nissan factories (Tochigi, Smyrna) and it is amazing to see vehicles built, and the craftsmanship that goes into them. The Smyrna tour was enough that I ended up buying a Frontier Pro-4X off the lot the next year.

 

[j3t3r]

I decided to just pop the Starlink Mini up top with 60lb pull magnets. It is mounted on a TRIO Flat mount. In lieu of the 15m (ish?) factory cable, I got a 5m cable on Amazon that has the same waterproof (weather resistant?) ends, which is just the right length to run from the front of the roof to the rear driver's side of the cargo area where my 24v converter is.

So, you are just running the wire through the rear drivers side of the cargo door? You haven’t drilled in the hole through the roof ? Or are you planning too?

How hard do you think it would be, or even possible to de the 24v converter wired into one of the pre wired outlets that on the roof that go to the aviation switches ?

 

[anand]

So, you are just running the wire through the rear drivers side of the cargo door? You haven’t drilled in the hole through the roof ? Or are you planning too?

How hard do you think it would be, or even possible to de the 24v converter wired into one of the pre wired outlets that on the roof that go to the aviation switches ?

Correct, the wires come down the side of the seal (on the vertical portion), have a drip loop at the bottom, and then come in over the seal.

It would definitely be possible to put the 24v converter into one of the roof openings, ideally you'd just have to trace the wiring down from the roof in the interior, and splice the 24v converter into it at some point

 

[j3t3r]

Correct, the wires come down the side of the seal (on the vertical portion), have a drip loop at the bottom, and then come in over the seal.

It would definitely be possible to put the 24v converter into one of the roof openings, ideally you'd just have to trace the wiring down from the roof in the interior, and splice the 24v converter into it at some point

And you are not finding the wires getting smashed in the door? (I’m having a hard time visualizing the routing.

 

[anand]

And you are not finding the wires getting smashed in the door? (I’m having a hard time visualizing the routing.

I'll grab some photos tomorrow; and no issues with them being "smashed" the seals have TONS of give to them. The driver's side has the Starlink cable and a RG58 (if memory serves me) for the UHF/VHF antenna; and the passenger's side has the WeBoost antenna as well as 3 16AWG, 1 18AWG, and 1 14AWG wires (roof lights)

 

[j3t3r]

The last of the rapid fire upgrades are getting close...

BlendMount mount for the Valentine1 Gen2 - for how complicated it looks with all the adjustments, this was one of the easiest things I've installed and positions the V1 just under the mirror
View attachment 7855530
View attachment 7855531

Also mounted my dash cam, Rexing V1P-SE... 4K front recording (with a 1080p rear cam that I didn't install), GPS, etc. I've used these in the last 5 vehicles, always with good results
View attachment 7855532

For those keeping track, the fuse I used to grab ignition switched power to trigger the "switched power" side of the ST Blade fuse block was the power mirrors fuse (5A). I figured if the piggyback fuse holder that I added to it was going to fail I wanted it to render an insignificant circuit out of service.

So there was power behind the rear view mirror ? I was hoping to use something like a Mirror Tap power cord to connect a radar detector.

 

[anand]

So there was power behind the rear view mirror ? I was hoping to use something like a Mirror Tap power cord to connect a radar detector.

I believe some have tapped off of the airbag lights or something else in the upper console, I ran new wires from a fuse block I added under the rear seat up the a-pillar to both the Valentine1 and the dash cam

 

[anand]

A day before Overland Expo East I travelled back down to NC to install the next round of goodies, all from LFD Off Road...

Their winch mount w/ a Warn VR Evo 12-S winch, their step sliders, and the full length roof rack (with silver cross bars in lieu of the normal powder-coated, not anodized, black cross bars)

Also tossed their Maxtrax holder on the roof with a fresh pair of Maxtrax that I picked up Friday morning @ Overland Expo from good friends over at Apex Overland.... The truck then spent the weekend parked up in LFD's booth for the show

 

[anand]

A few updates today...

Finally got around to mounting my solar panel, it's a 100W Renogy black frame panel, and was purchased with the intention of putting my Starlink Mini next to it; I still need to grab a few more pieces of aluminum extrusion to mount that up, but for now at least the panel is there

Also added an essential piece for "overlanding".... The Expedition Essentials Paper Towel holder. It is held in place by 3 magnets, or, in my application, is just bolted into place

Also happened to be under the vehicle in the driveway and noticed some dampness, so I'll be making an appointment to have the rear diff pinion seal replaced

 

[anand]

Something that has been on my list since I got the truck.... a giant wind brake! Errr... I mean an awning!

I've been eyeing up the Kammok awnings for months now, and seeing one up close at Overland Expo sealed the deal on ordering one... Originally was going to order from my usual source, but Kammok had an open box on their website for a ridiculous deal, so I clicked "check out". The only thing I've found is a knick in the top of the housing, luckily that's over 7ft in the air .

I'm not overly thrilled with how high it is, but it works for now unless I decide to get creative with extrusion to build my own brackets for it.

The awning is their 5' wide model, which actually has an outer measurement of around 63", or about 4" wider than my roof rack; and it pulls outward nearly 7' without the use of any uprights or poles

In the "furthest in" setting, which is just over 3', it covers the door openings almost perfectly

I haven't driven the vehicle yet, so no idea on how this may have altered wind noise, I'm sure it'll add a good bit, but now I can cook, grab a beer, or just hang out behind the truck without getting blasted by sun or weather

 

[GrenADV]

A few updates today...

Finally got around to mounting my solar panel, it's a 100W Renogy black frame panel, and was purchased with the intention of putting my Starlink Mini next to it; I still need to grab a few more pieces of aluminum extrusion to mount that up, but for now at least the panel is there
View attachment 7874714
Also added an essential piece for "overlanding".... The Expedition Essentials Paper Towel holder. It is held in place by 3 magnets, or, in my application, is just bolted into place
View attachment 7874715
Also happened to be under the vehicle in the driveway and noticed some dampness, so I'll be making an appointment to have the rear diff pinion seal replaced
View attachment 7874716

where you going for that rear seal? I still need to get mine replaced- I called MileOne a couple weeks ago, and had a talk with the service manager, but I get the sense that I should probably just go to RDS for now until they get a bit more settled.

 

[anand]

where you going for that rear seal? I still need to get mine replaced- I called MileOne a couple weeks ago, and had a talk with the service manager, but I get the sense that I should probably just go to RDS for now until they get a bit more settled.

MileOne, next Thursday, I'll report back on how well or horribly wrong it goes

 

[anand]

Photos not in sunlight would probably show this best, but something I've had in every build with a winch has been some sort of illumination on the spool.

It's one of those things you hope you never really need to use, but great that it's there.

Normally it has been one or two rock lights, but for this time I went with a Diode Dynamics 50cm flexible LED strip which is switched via a waterproof switch inside the winch bumper (both pieces held in place via 3M VHB). Power comes from one of the extra posts on the jump start distribution plate, of course fused appropriately.

 

[BenTN]

Something that has been on my list since I got the truck.... a giant wind brake! Errr... I mean an awning!

I've been eyeing up the Kammok awnings for months now, and seeing one up close at Overland Expo sealed the deal on ordering one... Originally was going to order from my usual source, but Kammok had an open box on their website for a ridiculous deal, so I clicked "check out". The only thing I've found is a knick in the top of the housing, luckily that's over 7ft in the air .

I'm not overly thrilled with how high it is, but it works for now unless I decide to get creative with extrusion to build my own brackets for it.
View attachment 7874795
The awning is their 5' wide model, which actually has an outer measurement of around 63", or about 4" wider than my roof rack; and it pulls outward nearly 7' without the use of any uprights or poles
View attachment 7874796
In the "furthest in" setting, which is just over 3', it covers the door openings almost perfectly
View attachment 7874797

I haven't driven the vehicle yet, so no idea on how this may have altered wind noise, I'm sure it'll add a good bit, but now I can cook, grab a beer, or just hang out behind the truck without getting blasted by sun or weather

That is an impressive air brake, as you said. I've been eyeing this exact awning for this exact purpose. Seeing it in real life brings scale to the whole thing.

I am wondering if there is a way to mount it longitudinally for travel (presenting minimal wind resistance) , then rotate into this position for use as you've shown. Not simple, and would probably sacrifice a lot of storage real estate up on the rack.

I might get up there with a tape measure and sketch something up.

 

[anand]

That is an impressive air brake, as you said. I've been eyeing this exact awning for this exact purpose. Seeing it in real life brings scale to the whole thing.

I am wondering if there is a way to mount it longitudinally for travel (presenting minimal wind resistance) , then rotate into this position for use as you've shown. Not simple, and would probably sacrifice a lot of storage real estate up on the rack.

I might get up there with a tape measure and sketch something up.

An interesting concept at the very least!

I road tested it today up to the low 80s and honestly not a drastic change (if any?) in noise in the cabin which is really surprising. Not sure about fuel economy though

 

[ADVAW8S]

An interesting concept at the very least!

I road tested it today up to the low 80s and honestly not a drastic change (if any?) in noise in the cabin which is really surprising. Not sure about fuel economy though

You MPG probably shot up based upon the down draft especially around corners.

 

[Bruce]

@anand my LFD winch mount just showed up. I forget if you did a lift or spring swap at all. How is the truck handling the extra weight?

 

[anand]

@anand my LFD winch mount just showed up. I forget if you did a lift or spring swap at all. How is the truck handling the extra weight?

No spring swap at this point, although I'm considering going with the OEM blue circle springs in the front and black triangles in the rear to bump up the spring rate slightly.

There has definitely been a slight loss in height (I'd guesstimate that I've added around 700lbs to the truck overall), but nothing dramatic and no real change in driving characteristics over stock

 

[anand]

"On board water" is done simple set up with the Dometic 11L water can and USb rechargable water pump added on to the right side of the drawer system. The pump is held in place with a magnetic base and moved into the drawer for storage while driving.

Also finally got around to adding a bit more rear... Attention.

All my previous builds have added brake lighting ever since an early trip where we were rear ended; given my EMS background, this usually uses a mix of emergency lighting products. For the Grenadier, replacing the in-bumper reflectors seemed like the easiest route, as the taillights also have reflectors, so you aren't losing that function.

I'm using a pair of SoundOff Signal mPower 3" lights, in my use case I wanted multiple functions, so I'm using dual color (red/white) modules.

They adhere with 3M VHB (just like the OEM reflectors), and the only "permanent" change is drilling a small hole for the wires in the bumper cap (the reflector would cover it completely if you switched back).

The brake trigger is grabbed from the TRM in the passenger side cargo area and fed to a Feniex 4x Flasher to add some extra options to the light heads. This allows the "brake pop" feature, as well as 2 additional modes of red flashing if I decide to go down that route (or add an extra 3rd brake light to the roof rack)

The white trigger is piggybacked off of my rear roof lighting, and overrides the red. It is possible to switch these as well. So red overrides white. Other used for this could be a red/amber module that uses the amber as a dust/chase light.

 

[Trialmaster]

"On board water" is done simple set up with the Dometic 11L water can and USb rechargable water pump added on to the right side of the drawer system. The pump is held in place with a magnetic base and moved into the drawer for storage while driving.
View attachment 7876709
Also finally got around to adding a bit more rear... Attention.

All my previous builds have added brake lighting ever since an early trip where we were rear ended; given my EMS background, this usually uses a mix of emergency lighting products. For the Grenadier, replacing the in-bumper reflectors seemed like the easiest route, as the taillights also have reflectors, so you aren't losing that function.

I'm using a pair of SoundOff Signal mPower 3" lights, in my use case I wanted multiple functions, so I'm using dual color (red/white) modules.

They adhere with 3M VHB (just like the OEM reflectors), and the only "permanent" change is drilling a small hole for the wires in the bumper cap (the reflector would cover it completely if you switched back).

The brake trigger is grabbed from the TRM in the passenger side cargo area and fed to a Feniex 4x Flasher to add some extra options to the light heads. This allows the "brake pop" feature, as well as 2 additional modes of red flashing if I decide to go down that route (or add an extra 3rd brake light to the roof rack)

The white trigger is piggybacked off of my rear roof lighting, and overrides the red. It is possible to switch these as well. So red overrides white. Other used for this could be a red/amber module that uses the amber as a dust/chase light.

Brilliant - have you the time to show us the wiring and the individual modules in situ?