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mah deuce

1M views 1K replies 260 participants last post by  jesusgatos 
#1 · (Edited)
introduction

In December of 2008 I decided to pack it all in and hit the road. Load up my dogs and my bikes and go wander through what's left of the wild west, keeping an eye out for places where I might eventually like to buy some land and build a place to live. Had been living up in Bend, OR for the last 4-5yrs and spent a lot of time exploring different parts of the Pacific NorthWest (mostly on dirtbikes). Been all over the west coast wheeling and camping in different vehicles that I've built over the years. But my wanderlust goes back much further, to the days I spent playing in the wilderness as a kid, looking forward to a time when I'd be able to set out on bigger adventures. When I was about 19yrs old I started making plans to build a custom motorhome out of an old schoolbus. Was going to haul my bikes and my Jeep around in the back of it. Had it in my head that I was going to spend my life traveling around the country/world writing about my adventures, and would do this all under the Trails Less Traveled banner. Was almost exactly 10yrs later that I found myself in a position to follow-through on what it felt like I'd been planning all my life.

The decision to build a deuce and a half was a simple process of elimination. Did a ton of research on different vehicles and didn't find anything else that was comparable and I could, 1) afford, and, 2) get in the US. After finding out that I could buy a deuce for a fraction of what a decent 1-ton pickup truck would cost me, it was a done deal. After learning all about the different variations of these vehicles, I settled on an M109, which is just a basic deuce and a half (M35A2) with an insulated 12ft box on the back of it (instead of the regular cargo bed). Ended up finding one for sale, listed right here in the Pirate classifieds section. Drove down to Lake Shasta from Bend and bought mah deuce for $3500 from Ed (Hammer). You can buy trucks straight from military surplus for a lot less, but couldn't afford the uncertainty that goes along with buying surplus.

There's nothing particularly unusual about traveling/living in a motorhome, but the imposing nature of mah deuce tends to give people the wrong idea. A lot of people see a military vehicle and assume that I must be preparing for the apocalypse, and a surprising number of people try to relate to me like that nutjob in the military surplus store in the movie Falling Down. They want to tell me all about their bunkers and their stockpile of weapons and food and whatever. Like we're brothers in arms or something. Creeps me out. But this is just a motorhome, much like any other motorhome, except that I want to be able to travel and live unsupported for extended periods of time, in some pretty remote places.


This is what it looked like when I picked it up.





 
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#183 ·
rollcage

Went down to Salinas today and picked up the doors and windshield frame so I can cut down the hardtop and start taking some accurate measurements for the rollcage. Hoping to get busy on that this weekend, but am working outside so am at the mercy of the weather.
 
#186 ·
hardtop

Started cutting down the 900-series 5-ton hardtop to fit the new cab. Was exactly 12" too wide. Got the lower/back part of the new hardtop cut down and welded back together. Kinda like the offset rear window. Not going to matter most of the time anyway.



















 
#188 ·
hardtop & roofrack

Got the top part of the hardtop cut apart today. Took the width right out of the middle. One of the support ribs was right on a cut-line, so I removed it. Peeled it using a hammer and chisel instead of drilling out all the spot-welds. Not too concerned about the holes because I'm going to reinforce the roof by gluing a laser-cut panel on the outside. That panel will also serve as a low-profile roofrack with integrated tiedown points. Think I might also try to reinforce the roof on the inside by adding layers of insulation and fiberglass. Gotta look into how I might want to go about that.



















 
#189 · (Edited)
dogs

Was really nice out today, so I stopped work early and took my dogs for a run. Gonna take a minute to introduce them because they're a big part of this whole equation. Slayton is the big red one and Lola is my little girl. They're both carolina dogs. Designed and built this motorhome with them in mind. Wanted to have enough room to live/travel with another person and my two dogs comfortably. Was pretty challenging making room for everyone and everything in a 12ft box... and then my dogs had puppies. Six of them. This was back in March of last 2010, almost exactly a year ago. Ended up keeping two of them, sort of by default. Couldn't find homes for them with friends/family, and didn't want to sell them. So my wolfpack has doubled in size and it's got me scratching my head. Honestly don't have any idea how I'm going to make this work. Will probably end up designating a large portion of the trailer as the doghouse. Seems like the obvious answer.















 
#192 ·
fuel system

As part of that first round of maintenance, I drained the fuel, changed all the filters, and pulled the pump. The fuel filters were in pretty good shape but there was a bit of gunk and sludge in the tank and in the bottom of the filter cans. No rust though, which was a relief. Posted on steelsoldiers, asking about the best way to clean out the fuel tank, and decided to have it hot-tanked. Also had it lined with a product called Red-Kote too. Learned afterwards that I could have purchased applied something similar at home.











 
#193 ·
fuel system

The fuel pump did have a bit of rust on it, and the guys at the radiator shop where I had the tank cleaned and lined suggested using muriatic acid. Worked great after I figured out how to neutralize it afterwards. Forgot to snap a picture of it all cleaned-up.




Also noticed that the rubber pickup hose had a hole in it where it had rubbed up against the hinge-clamp on the pump. So I replaced it and routed it carefully.

 
#194 ·
Isn't it funny how those little thing drive you crazy?
Once you get them all addressed you'll think it's worth a fortune.
I rebuilt and repowered a 37 ft RV the same way about 10 years back.

Good looking dogs you have. I spent many a years camping with my Sheltie years ago. He went everywhere with me.
Keep up the good work.
If you ever come through North Central Texas and want to srop in I've got planty of room for the Rig and Dogs to run out here for a visit.

Would enjoy looking over the Deuce.
 
#196 · (Edited)
Yep, you'd like it out here. I ride Adventure Bikes too.
Got a tricked out KLR. We use to ride into Mexico a lot only the climate is not to heathy down there right now.
Here's a link to our ride last Summer.
http://www.klr650.net/forums/showthread.php?t=83156&highlight=Geezers+Dual+Sports
I'm the guy in the Neon Jacket!

One of my riding buddy has a plated XR 650 Honda that's a hoot to ride on the street.

We're North West of DFW and lots of work going on the Oil Bidness around here. A man with skills can make a living here a lot easier than other places.
But, you gotta get used to the heat. And Texas is a big place to find work and a place to fit in.

We've got plains, forest, mountains, Ocean and Hills all in one state.
And Colorado is our Official Playground!

When you come this way drop by. I've got RV hookups for two next to the Shop. Complete with a dump station!
Even got a shop big enough to fix your Deuce inside.

Curtis
 
#197 ·
I've been thinking of building an M109 as a camping/expo rig for a while now. I'll have to pass this on to my father in-law that lives in Lakeview too. I'm sure he would love to do something like this for long camping trips. He might even want to drive up and take a look at yours sometime. :beer:

A lot of good ideas in here and very well put together. Thanks for the effort in sharing all of this with everyone.
 
#198 ·
fuel system: filtration

Posted this on steelsoldiers: ultimate onboard fuel filtration / processing setup. I'm new to all this stuff, but I knew that some of the steelsoldiers members have a lot of experience dealing with WMO, WVO, and filtering/processing a variety of other fuels/fluids - so I asked them to take a look at the list of components I'd put together. Got a lot of helpful input about things like heating, magnetic filtration, what to look for in selector valves, etc.


In the spirit of using my new multifuel LDS engine to it's full potential, want to equip Mah Deuce with the ultimate fuel system. Talking about being able to pour just about anything flammable right into the fuel tank, knowing that it will be processed and filtered before it reaches the engine. Since I'm going to be living/traveling in this M109 motorhome fulltime, all the fuel processing equipment has to be built into the fuel system.

When I started researching fuel filters and related components, the name Racor kept coming up. Everything I read seemed to indicate that they set the standard when it comes to fuel filtration. So I contacted them, and they've been really enthusiastic about this project. We're calling it 'an exercise in overkill'. Although Racor has a ton of experience filtering all types of fluids, it's not often that they're asked to do it all in one system. The problem is that a lot of components (filters, seals, etc.) are made to work with one type of fluid, and are not compatible with another. But I think we've came up with this list of components, that when properly configured, would seem to be able to filter just about any type of fuel.

So here's a basic rundown of the system as I'm currently envisioning it:

There will be a total of 100 gallons of fuel capacity, split evenly between two tanks: one 50 gallon tank in the stock location on the passenger's-side, and another stock 50 gallon fuel tank on the driver's-side (where the spare tire used to be). Was planning on duplicating something like what's in the deuce and a half and 5-ton tractors, which were equipped with dual tanks and selector valves to switch between tanks. But steelsoldiers members like cranetruck changed my mind and convinced me that I should separate the diesel and alternative fuel systems. So one tank will be designated as the clean diesel tank, and the other will be designated as the 'slut-tank'.

1) Filtration will start with one of these funnel filters, which I'll use whenever I'm filling the slut-tank with fuel/oil from questionable sources.

2) Racor's Marine Turbine 1000 units will serve as the primary fuel filters (one for each system, equipped with 20-30 micron filters). These things look amazing! It's a centrifuge, a filter, and a water-separator all built into one unit. Cranetruck told me these were stock equipment on the HEMTT's.

3) Although the Turbine 1000 units are specifically designed to separate water from Diesel, Racor told me that I would need an additional water filter to separate the water from used motor oil, ATF, hydraulic fluid, and WVO. They recommended one of these filters in one of these filter housings. Evidently those have a much higher percentage of water in them, and the water is suspended in those fluids in such a way that it makes it difficult for the Turbine to separate the water from them. Only caveat is that this filter is not compatible with gasoline, so I'll have to make a bypass line that I can switch over to whenever I put gasoline through the slut tank. No problem.

4) And then these filters will be equipped with 10 and 2-micron filters, and will serve as the secondary and final filters in the system.


So what do you guys think? What would you add, or take away, or do differently? How would YOU design/build the ultimate fuel system for a deuce? The only thing to keep in mind, is that space is at a premium. This is a motorhome. I'm not trying to turn Mah Deuce into any type of dedicated fuel-truck.


Turbine 1000 (1 of 2)




FBO filter (look at the size of those fittings!)



 
#199 ·
fuel system: filtration

Also been talking with the people at Magnom about their magnetic filters. Evidently, they're able to remove 99% of all ferrous metals from just about any type of fluids. It's not a mesh/media-type filter, so they're not rated in microns, but I was told that they can/will reliably filter down to less than 1 micron. Sounds great, right? I'm looking at the Max and the Clear 5. The Clear 5 looks like it would be a lot easier to service (clean), with it's removable bowl - but's it's also pretty spendy (about $800). Would like to use at least one of these magnetic filters, especially after reading about all the metal that's suspended in waste motor oil (WMO).
 
#200 ·
fuel system: heating

Not exactly sure what I'm going to do about heating in the tanks. To start off, I'm just going to install one of these Racor coolant heaters in each of the fuel supply lines, before all the filters. I know that the tanks will also need to be heated in really cold weather too, so I might also drill a few holes in the top of the tanks and install some bulkhead fittings that will run engine coolant through a coiled loop of copper tubing (or maybe something like PEX tubing?). Radiant heating is being used throughout the vehicle, with multiple heat sources, so it will be very easy for me to create a dedicated loop to heat the fuel tanks (going to do something similar for the water tanks).
 
#209 ·
Not exactly sure what I'm going to do about heating in the tanks. To start off, I'm just going to install one of these Racor coolant heaters in each of the fuel supply lines, before all the filters. I know that the tanks will also need to be heated in really cold weather too, so I might also drill a few holes in the top of the tanks and install some bulkhead fittings that will run engine coolant through a coiled loop of copper tubing (or maybe something like PEX tubing?). Radiant heating is being used throughout the vehicle, with multiple heat sources, so it will be very easy for me to create a dedicated loop to heat the fuel tanks (going to do something similar for the water tanks).
Check these guys out real good stuff for what you want to do. Love the build,Carry on
http://www.arctic-fox.com/sitepages/pid74.php
 
#201 ·
fuel system: pumps

Going to retain the stock in-tank electric pumps, and these multifuel engines are also equipped with mechanical fuel pumps that are strong enough to pull fuel from the tanks. This just goes along with the requirements that these vehicles had to be able to operate without any type of functional electrical system. But I'm concerned about the restrictions that the filtration equipment will create, so I'd like to build-in another backup. The stock electric in-tank pumps are expensive to replace, and that's not the type of part that I could pick up at a local auto parts store. So I was thinking about adding inline pumps. Then I found out that Racor makes an optional 24V electric priming pump for the Marine Turbine, and I've been told that they're working on a full-flow electric pump too. Would like to add a pair of those full-flow pumps whenever they become available. Just like the idea of having a backup (or two) when it comes to parts like fuel pumps that I might have a hard time replacing in the middle of nowhere.
 
#327 ·
Going to retain the stock in-tank electric pumps, and these multifuel engines are also equipped with mechanical fuel pumps that are strong enough to pull fuel from the tanks. This just goes along with the requirements that these vehicles had to be able to operate without any type of functional electrical system. But I'm concerned about the restrictions that the filtration equipment will create, so I'd like to build-in another backup. The stock electric in-tank pumps are expensive to replace, and that's not the type of part that I could pick up at a local auto parts store. So I was thinking about adding inline pumps. Then I found out that Racor makes an optional 24V electric priming pump for the Marine Turbine, and I've been told that they're working on a full-flow electric pump too. Would like to add a pair of those full-flow pumps whenever they become available. Just like the idea of having a backup (or two) when it comes to parts like fuel pumps that I might have a hard time replacing in the middle of nowhere.
Just to bring this back up.

http://www.facet-purolator.com/inde...ent&task=category&sectionid=7&id=17&Itemid=37

available any place that services refrigerated units. Tons of lift from the tank, built in pre filter. I'm probably going to do one to replace the mechanical lift pump on my Uhaul. Self priming to 10 feet.
 
#202 ·
fuel system: polishing

This FPM-050 fuel polishing unit, along with a FPM-PTC-12 timer/controller, will circulate the fuel through the filters on a programmable timer, so I shouldn't have to worry about fuel going bad if/when Mah Deuce might be parked somewhere for a while. Evidently these fuel polishing units are used on a lot of ocean-going boats and in industrial applications where large quantities of fuel need to be stored for long periods of time. These fuel polishing units are pretty energy-efficient and my inverter will automatically turn on a generator whenever the batteries discharge to a pre-set point, so power shouldn't be much of a problem. But ideally, I'd like to power the fuel polishing units (and everything else onboard) with an array of solar panels on the roof of my M109 box.

 
#203 ·
fuel system: plumbing

There are going to be several selector valves in the system, that will need to do things like:

1) switch between tanks

2) return fuel to the tank it came from

3) redirect fuel from the clean tank to flush out the slut tank's lines & filters

4) bypass the FBO filter when running gasoline in the slut tank

5) run in closed-loop to filter / polish fuel

I'd like to set it up so that when I select a tank using valve #1, valve #2 would also be switched over so that fuel is coming from, and being returned to, the same tank. I'm sure I could do this with some type of simple mechanical linkage, or two switches, but it would be ideal if I could find one valve that would operate two circuits at the same time. What would be the best way to handle the electrical side of things? Should I just use manual switches to turn fuel pumps on/off, or should I tie them into the selector valves in the fluid circuit somehow?

hammer suggested 5-ton selector valves and I thought those were exactly what I was looking for. But I'm having second thoughts as I'm starting to make line drawings to figure out how to plumb everything. When feeding the engine from the diesel tank, I'll want to return the fuel to the diesel tank - and when I'm feeding the engine from the slut tank, I'll want to return the fuel to the slut tank. But when I'm purging the system (running diesel from the diesel tank through the slut tank's lines and filters), I'll want to return that fuel to the slut tank. So I think I'm going to have to use two separate control valves. That is, unless there's a three-position valve that would allow me to:

1) pull from diesel tank -> return to diesel tank

2) pull from slut tank -> return to slut tank

3) pull from diesel tank -> return to slut tank

Also thinking that position 3) would also allow me to transfer fuel from the diesel tank to the slut tank without having to install another fuel pump. This might be useful if I ever need to thin any of the alternative fuels in the slut tank.
 
#235 ·
There are going to be several selector valves in the system, that will need to do things like:

1) switch between tanks

2) return fuel to the tank it came from

3) redirect fuel from the clean tank to flush out the slut tank's lines & filters

4) bypass the FBO filter when running gasoline in the slut tank

5) run in closed-loop to filter / polish fuel

I'd like to set it up so that when I select a tank using valve #1, valve #2 would also be switched over so that fuel is coming from, and being returned to, the same tank. I'm sure I could do this with some type of simple mechanical linkage, or two switches, but it would be ideal if I could find one valve that would operate two circuits at the same time. What would be the best way to handle the electrical side of things? Should I just use manual switches to turn fuel pumps on/off, or should I tie them into the selector valves in the fluid circuit somehow?

hammer suggested 5-ton selector valves and I thought those were exactly what I was looking for. But I'm having second thoughts as I'm starting to make line drawings to figure out how to plumb everything. When feeding the engine from the diesel tank, I'll want to return the fuel to the diesel tank - and when I'm feeding the engine from the slut tank, I'll want to return the fuel to the slut tank. But when I'm purging the system (running diesel from the diesel tank through the slut tank's lines and filters), I'll want to return that fuel to the slut tank. So I think I'm going to have to use two separate control valves. That is, unless there's a three-position valve that would allow me to:

1) pull from diesel tank -> return to diesel tank

2) pull from slut tank -> return to slut tank

3) pull from diesel tank -> return to slut tank

Also thinking that position 3) would also allow me to transfer fuel from the diesel tank to the slut tank without having to install another fuel pump. This might be useful if I ever need to thin any of the alternative fuels in the slut tank.
look at the factory fuel tank selector valves from the dual tanked F-series trucks in the early 90's they switch the return to the same tank as the source. I'm thinking specifically of the '94-97 powerstrokes but the earlier IDI trucks would have the same valve also, you'd have to research fuels compatibility though many are running B100 and WVO with no problems and wmo blends, you would need to evaluate it for gasoline. Then you would only need a 3 way valve to provide pulling from the diesel and returning to the slut. Be aware that this configuration (pulling from one and dumping to the other) has the potential to quickly overfill the return tank.
 
#204 ·
fuel system: plumbing

cranetruck had some good advice for me about sourcing valves,

cranetruck said:
...use aircraft, direct action type. Stay away from "pilot" operated valves, they will clog...all those little passages...
Haven't gotten into that yet though. Need to figure out where/how everything is going to be installed first.
 
#205 ·
fuel system: installation

As far as where I might locate all of these components: yes, I've given it some thought, but I'm not going to worry about it too much until I figure out exactly what components I've got to make room for. One option is to put them between the framerails, right where the airtanks are. I need to relocate the inside tank anyway (to make room for the t-case PTO driveshaft). Another option might be to mount them where the stock toolbox is (under the driver's seat). Not sure if that space is tall enough though. I've also still got quite a bit of room in the engine compartment (no heaters or other accessories in there yet, except for a Spinner II centrifuge - for the engine oil). So yeah, got a few options. No definitive plans yet though.
 
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