Fishnerd’s Build Thread

[Fishnerd]

Cool, I figured that you just used theirs for the color coding. For the accessories grounds I was thinking about using a bus bar, but your harness solution seems pretty good as well.

A bus bar would be equally effective, and will allow you to have a place to ground outside of the switchpros setup. I went this route just to keep to keep it clean. I have a slight modification planned to the setup but havent got around to it yet. Will be replacing the common ground with a connector:

 

[Etoimos]

Oh, I like the looks of that.

 

[Trail_Wagon]

Excellent build info!
About the airbag controls. Do you ever find the system putting more air in one bag over the other? Do you have a means of measuring pressure in the system or do you just eyeball height? I was thinking of doing something very similar but having up and down controls for each bag, so I can level side to side while camping.

and about the shocks... you wrote an excellent review on the rear trackbar.... what about the shocks?

 

[Fishnerd]

Excellent build info!
About the airbag controls. Do you ever find the system putting more air in one bag over the other? Do you have a means of measuring pressure in the system or do you just eyeball height? I was thinking of doing something very similar but having up and down controls for each bag, so I can level side to side while camping.

and about the shocks... you wrote an excellent review on the rear trackbar.... what about the shocks?

Thanks for the kind words!
They are actually dead even when filling, I made sure to make both lines equal length (which helps with that, in my mind at least)

When filling I just eyeball, but if i need to take precise readings or make adjustments to one side, i have Schrader valves in place of my license plate bolts. I also put a main shut of valve so that in the event there is a line failure from the solenoid to the bag, i can inflate from the Schrader valves individually.

Ive been meaning to write a review on the shocks and a update on the trackbar. I got a another vehicle project that ive been working on so havent really had the chance. Ill do a review later this evening.

Cheers!

 

[Systems_Engineer]

***Started as a OBA system thread but evolved so decided to make this a comprehensive build thread***

I know there are probably a lot of posts on OBA systems, but figured I'd share mine to offer up different ideas and help others who are contemplating doing their own.

First obstacle was debating where to mount the compressor. My initial thought was to mount in the Rambox but I wanted to utilize that space for recovery gear and other necessities. I ultimately settled on mounting in the engine compartment, it also was easier to wire up the solenoids for the air suspension.

View attachment 19481

There are 3 daisy chain solenoids (controlled via Switchpro in the cab). Two are for inflate (driver/passenger) and the third in the deflate (all 3 solenoids open up to exhaust the air through this one). The manifold also has two connections for front and rear air couplers.
View attachment 19482

For the front coupler I had to fabricate a bracket so I could mount in the area for the clutch access without interfering with the clutch itself
View attachment 19483
View attachment 19484

For the rear coupler i mounted in the area where the trailer tpms would have been
View attachment 19487

for air suspension I settled on the Airlift 5000 and Daystar cradles. Im not a fan of 90deg "sharp angles" anywhere near the tires (even though the likelyhood of it hitting is minimal), I considered it cheap insurance so I ended up modifying the mounts a bit.
View attachment 19492
View attachment 19493
View attachment 19494
passenger side with main airline routing
View attachment 19497

Cheers!!

This is excellent work. Good job brotha!

 

[Trail_Wagon]

Thanks for the kind words!
They are actually dead even when filling, I made sure to make both lines equal length (which helps with that, in my mind at least)

When filling I just eyeball, but if i need to take precise readings or make adjustments to one side, i have Schrader valves in place of my license plate bolts. I also put a main shut of valve so that in the event there is a line failure from the solenoid to the bag, i can inflate from the Schrader valves individually.

Ive been meaning to write a review on the shocks and a update on the trackbar. I got a another vehicle project that ive been working on so havent really had the chance. Ill do a review later this evening.

Cheers!

Much thanks. I love the built in fail safes.

 

[thkbaron]

Shocks installed:

Install was pretty straight forward, but I did run into some tricky sections.

Pre-install modding:
- Painted reservoir mounts
-Thuren brake line mount (rounded the edges and painted)

Rear install:
Most difficult part was compressing the shock and trying to align the shock guard, bottom oem mount and bolt. I usually used a mini pry to align on my other installs but with the shock guard, there isnt an easy way to use one.

Any particular reason you felt the need to paint the shock reservoir front mounts from CJC? I believe them come painted don't they? Also how are they holding up to rock chips etc? I live in northern MN so this is a valid concern to me. I'm assuming they are steel correct? I've currently got fox w/ reservoirs waiting to be installed on my 22 and I have the Fox aluminum mount so I have the just clamped to the bottom side of the main tube. It works fine but you don't get to look at that reservoir at all. I know it doesn't really matter but it's kind of a neat look up top.

 

[Fishnerd]

Any particular reason you felt the need to paint the shock reservoir front mounts from CJC? I believe them come painted don't they? Also how are they holding up to rock chips etc? I live in northern MN so this is a valid concern to me. I'm assuming they are steel correct? I've currently got fox w/ reservoirs waiting to be installed on my 22 and I have the Fox aluminum mount so I have the just clamped to the bottom side of the main tube. It works fine but you don't get to look at that reservoir at all. I know it doesn't really matter but it's kind of a neat look up top.

The front reservoir mounts werent from CJC, they are a King part. My rear shock guard were from CJC and were PC’d black. I chose to paint the front purely for aesthetics, theyve held up pretty well (scuffed, 4 coats etching primer, 4 coats paint)

 

[thkbaron]

Gotcha. I didn’t pay super close attention to the mounts. Good to know. I’ll have to decide what I want to do when I decide to install my suspension parts.

 

[Trail_Wagon]

Where did you tap into the trucks harness for the ignition on for the switch-pro? There are a ton of options, but your work is so clean... you probably have something slick.

 

[Fishnerd]

Update on the AEV rear bumper. I finally got around to installing rear backup/“euro fog” in the bumper openings. Ive been a long time Baja Design fan but decided to try something new.

This go around I ended up going with Diode Dynamic SS3 Pro with combo lens and red back lighting. I have been very impressed so far with the build quality and output.

 

[Rockcrawlindude]

Update on the AEV rear bumper. I finally got around to installing rear backup/“euro fog” in the bumper openings. Ive been a long time Baja Design fan but decided to try something new.

This go around I ended up going with Diode Dynamic SS3 Pro with combo lens and red back lighting. I have been very impressed so far with the build quality and output.

View attachment 41929View attachment 41930View attachment 41931

That’s awesome

 

[el_barto]

Damn that’s awesome. I was going to get those exact same lights(red Backlight and all) for my AEV rear bumper as well… but I got fed up waiting 3 months later and canceled my order

How is the fitment behind? I was a bit concerned it would be tight since the connector sticks straight back on those ss3 lights

Set up as brake or running lights? Picture of the light spread? And compared Vs factory reverse and mirror lights?

 

[Fishnerd]

Damn that’s awesome. I was going to get those exact same lights(red Backlight and all) for my AEV rear bumper as well… but I got fed up waiting 3 months later and canceled my order

How is the fitment behind? I was a bit concerned it would be tight since the connector sticks straight back on those ss3 lights

Set up as brake or running lights? Picture of the light spread? And compared Vs factory reverse and mirror lights?

I ran into the same issue with my order. The original plan was to have a red backlight on the driver side and a amber back light on the passenger (chase light). After months of waiting I finally called them and they said that individual lights would take time, but they had a set of red in stock so i jumped on that.

Not going to lie, the install was a pain. I could not find a way to install without making modifications. You are correct the connector proved to be an issue and being “ocd” i wanted the light flush to the opening, without modding the connector and wires were pinched against the bumper back wall and the light was too recessed. After hours of tinkering and adjusting, the simplest solution ended up bending the ears of the supplied bracket and using the middle cutout vs the designed bolt hole. I was able to get it to fit almost perfectly flush.

Im using the switch pros to toggle the lights, switch 4 as my “hazard” for the red backlight and switch 5 for rear reverse white. I changed the setting on switch 4 for 1 press on 2 press flash. Ill try to take some night pics for comparison.

 

[el_barto]

Well I guess knowing that it was a pain to get them to fit I’m kind of glad I ended up cancelling…though the finished product looks great!

How bright is the red relative to the running lights/brake lights?

 

[Fishnerd]

Well I guess knowing that it was a pain to get them to fit I’m kind of glad I ended up cancelling…though the finished product looks great!

How bright is the red relative to the running lights/brake lights?

Yeah i was thinking it was going to be plug and play when i ordered them, my first attempt i gave up and sat on the install for 4 months. Im curious what AEV uses/recommends? I should have checked but I really wanted the back light functionality.

The backlight I would say is on par with the running lights, not on full brake brightness. I was hoping it would be a little brighter. Recently my family and I were caught driving in monsoon rain in AZ were visibility was so bad, and was hoping to utilize the backlight as extra warning/precaution, its what prompted me to get off my butt and install it.

 

[Quick]

Where did you tap into the trucks harness for the ignition on for the switch-pro? There are a ton of options, but your work is so clean... you probably have something slick.

Inquiring minds would love this info as well (I'm about to start my own install)

 

[Fishnerd]

Inquiring minds would love this info as well (I'm about to start my own install)

Apologies to Trail wagon, i totally missed his original questions.

The top part off the fuse panel actually comes off and you can splice into the wire bundle below. I tapped (cut and splice solder) off the the interior dash cig socket. Chose this for primarily because I dont like tapping into system or primary function circuits. The cig lighter fuse is easy to identify since its the only one that can be moved for Always on or ignition only function.

 

[Trail_Wagon]

Apologies to Trail wagon, i totally missed his original questions.

The top part off the fuse panel actually comes off and you can splice into the wire bundle below. I tapped (cut and splice solder) off the the interior dash cig socket. Chose this for primarily because I dont like tapping into system or primary function circuits. The cig lighter fuse is easy to identify since its the only one that can be moved for Always on or ignition only function.

no worries... I wanted to do the same. I took the top off but I could not figure out which fuse goes with which wire underneath so for now, I used two fuse taps. If I can ever get hold of a wiring diagram I would prefer to properly and permanently splice into the harness.

I made the fuse taps as clean as I could. The wires exit through a small grommet by the positive stud, then under the distribution center where they connect to the switchpros.
1

 

[Fishnerd]

no worries... I wanted to do the same. I took the top off but I could not figure out which fuse goes with which wire underneath so for now, I used two fuse taps. If I can ever get hold of a wiring diagram I would prefer to properly and permanently splice into the harness.

I made the fuse taps as clean as I could. The wires exit through a small grommet by the positive stud, then under the distribution center where they connect to the switchpros.
View attachment 420591

That is clean! Extremely well done!