Charge Wiring Complete

Finally... I am now able to charge all the batteries at once, with very little effort. I completed all the soldering on the truck side connector and then mounted it inside the gas door. It took some time to sort through all the wires and group them to the correct spots ( one set to the under hood batteries, one set to the rear batteries, two sets to the mid batteries ), and then route and attach them. Thank goodness for tie wraps!

Each battery connection has a 30A fuse in line at the battery terminal. This will protect chargers, batteries, and wiring should any shorts occur. These can be seen in the photos. Next I made all the connections from the umbilical cable to the terminal strip on the charge board. I had to cut them a second time to get all the lengths correct. I bought a nice hat hook from Home Depot for the cable to hang on when not connected to the truck.

Once all this was complete, I plugged in the truck and let it charge. I have been keeping the batteries topped off and ready to go. My chargers go to "float" mode when they are complete. My upgraded controller should be back on the truck next weekend and the truck will be ready for it's first road test. I acquired insurance and license tag this week.

My "to do" list is starting to get shorter. I am pretty sure I want to install an on board battery charger so that I can charge away from home. I have not chosen the one to use yet. The truck needs cosmetics. Sanding and painting, some body work, and some minor things to do to the interior. I want to install a removable tow bar on the front, also.

Until next post...it's been a long tunnel, but the light is getting brighter :)

Tilt Bed, Take 2, Charger Wiring Begin

This post includes some photos of the failed bed tilt attempt and then some pictures of the completed tilt bed. Since the last post, the bed was removed from the truck and the new hinges reinforced and welded. Two pins made from cut off trailer hitch pins were added in the front to hold the bed when down. These work nicely and I will try to take some photos for the next post. I ordered 2 200lb gas springs and attached these to the truck frame on one end and welded brackets onto the bed cross member on the other. When raising the bed, it is lifted a few feet and then the gas springs take over to raise it the remainder of the way and holds the bed up. Closing is very easy also. The bumper was not able to be reattached where it was originally. It was bolted to the frame and this is not possible due to the tilt bed. New brackets were welded into place and attached to the existing modified bumper brackets. This turned out very well. The bed was then returned to the truck and hinges bolted into place. Some priming and black paint was applied to the new steel pieces, then the bumper attached. Small spacers were cut to put onto the hold down pins between the bed and the cotter key. This works very well also to keep the bed down. This completes the tilt bed. Access is provided to all batteries for servicing. The bed is also totally removable for battery replacement when needed.

My work then turned to charger wiring. I cut 24 6 foot lengths of #12 stranded wire and soldered them to a 24 pin cannon plug. I then ohmed each wire out and labeled them all. This will attach to the charger board on the wall of my garage and will plug into the truck to charge the batteries. There is a photo of the completed assembly. Next, I had to determine the lengths of wire needed to go from the gas door cannon plug down the bed and to all the sets of batteries. I cut all these lengths, labeled them, and began to solder them to the connector. The last group of photos show my work setup for soldering and the mess of wire that I will deal with soon.

That brings us up to date! My one year anniversary of buying the truck is in about a week. I had hoped to be finished by now, but alas, it was not to be. The light is shining at the end of the tunnel, stay tuned for more!