Frederic

If you are camping in Al Qaa please take some night shots and share them as this is the darkest spot of UAE Have fun !

Hi @Niki Patel yes i will definitely try the iphone as well. Have tried playing with Camera+ app but was confused. I will be trying Night Mode as well:

Congrats @VipinShetty !

Great news @Denizzalbayrak !!

I found this online: https://photographylife.com/landscapes/how-to-focus-for-star-photography Not sure if its helpful. I have very little experience in shooting stars, and using manual focus will take me a while too. Love to engage in talking with others and learn a lot that evening ! I have my eyes on a Samyang14mm 2.8 Ultrawide lens i might be picking up secondhand (inshallah).

Congrats @Mobeen Anwar I heard good things about you through @Humayun Ghias, see you soon on one of the drives !

Congrats @Baskaran P.R !

Congrats @Bernd Stucke !

According to the Moon Cycles, @Mikhail Lukichev found out that the evening and night on 12-13 Feb 2021 is going to be excellent for night photography! We will have an almost new moon which will hide below the horizon right after the sunset. The plan is to have a meetup with max. 10 members to practice and enjoy the art of night photography and learn from each other. Bring whatever camera you have and have a look at the advisable settings in your camera manual or ask in the forum. After the event you can publish your photos in our gallery ! Location: Faqa- https://goo.gl/maps/PF1YQ8DSDwxo7QzaA There will be no need for deflation, but please bring your offroad tools as you would do for a regular offroad drive. (pressure gauge, deflator, compressor). What to bring: headlamp and/or flashlight, warm clothing, camping chair, Camera or Smartphone, tripod, film/memory cards, extra battery, Recommended Lens(es).

Fantastic idea @Mikhail Lukichev i have created a calendar event. Now lets try to find a suitable location. https://carnity.com/calendar/event/561-star-photography-meetup

Mira community where I live are doing regular desert cleanups on the weekend. Unfortunately my weekend is filled with Carnity drives, but they collect hundreds of trash bags and work together with DM.

Cool shots @imranaasghar81 !!

You might have imported it twice in Gaia

Glad to hear that ! I was not sure if this trick would work for the X as well, so that’s really good to know and I agree it makes just enough difference sometimes to get a little bit of traction to wiggle yourself out.

First time I see Dobinsons compressors. Build quality looks good but haven’t heard or seen any reviews about them. If your budget is in that range, consider the Mean Mother compressor and Bushranger models as well, and check which warranty you get (1y vs 5y)

Very well said, these hoses can be repaired by cutting off the broken part and using a small hose clamp to attach it again. Its always recommended to avoid having that connection piece at angle while using the compresor. It should be relaxed and not bent.

Many off-road members have the Camel double cylinder heavy duty compressor which is an amazing compressor in terms of affordability vs performance, but as with many Chinese branded compressors, reliability is a bit of an issue sometimes. Luckily most of the faults are related to wiring and the on/off switch. Occasionally there might be an issue with the circuit board inside which contains the relays but this is less common. If you have a small multimeter with “ohms” setting you can easily measure the continuity and diagnose the fault. First things to check if your compressor stopped working: 1) Wiring. Have a look if the wires are not cut or damaged. 2) Battery clamps: the wires are soldered onto the battery clamps and sometimes become loose: 3) On/off switch. This is the most common failure as sand gets inbetween the contacts and eventually it will stop working: in this above case the switch was faulty and was replaced with another model. You’ll find these switches on Amazon or some shops in Deira. So if you ever start experiencing problems with your compressor, have a look at the above most common root causes before buying a new model.

There is no denying that Jeeps have a tendency to disturb others 😜

Drive report As I was little early to the meeting point I came across @AnishS and @Veedooshee who came all the way from Lisaili. Soon the rest of the convoy arrived and everyone was hungry to enjoy the beautiful dunes. A few days back i was pondering the possibility of trying to get Newbies into the Lisaili dunes, which is normally quite difficult as Lisaili is consisting out of complete super technical areas with little baby dunes and soft sand that sucks you in immediately. I was lucky to find a farm track that leads from the pylon track straight into the long range dunes. This meant we had to drive on the pylon track for a good 20mins but I think it was totally worth it having once discovered those creamy beautiful unspoilt dunes that allowed us to do more sideys than we could possibly imagine. The whole convoy drove amazing, and refusals or stucks were minimal and easily dealt with. As the sun was going down we planned our way to the sabkha but had to cross a farm where the farmer has made his own fence of tyres, bushes, and even tent fabric along the ridge. Result was myself getting crested on that tough fabric and even the magic button wouldn’t be of any help. Kailas to the rescue and soon we exited towards the Love Lake dirt track. After a few hundred meter there was a massive queue with cars on the exit track that came back from love lakes. We had to turn around and go back on the pylon track towards Qudra. @Melenany as my second lead you never set a foot wrong and communicate perfectly towards the vehicles behind you. Amazing work ! @Adhir Saxena brought his little Pajero to the match this time and after some initial lack of momentum, soon he found the rhythm and drove fantastic. Well done ! @frederic demolder who has done his fair share of newbie drives is now in complete control of his discovery sport, with perfect self recovery and beautiful sidesloping. @Humayun Ghias And his Wisconsin buddy brought smiles to the drive and never struggled with the Patrol ! @Veedooshee as the perfect center forward helping out whenever and wherever needed. Smashing job ! @luwaimn little hesitant on the side sloping but very good support and no struggles throughout the drive ! @Gavin Hill That flag could be seen from miles away, but in no way did it slow down your beast. Your momentum for side sloping is perfect now as you glide like a pro. @Chris Meir That Wrangler got some small mods and looks beautiful. As usual no struggles from your side at all ! @rajeshkumar rathod the same applies for you my friend, the Xterra is such a potent car and you deliver every time. Well done ! @Junaid120120 you’re managing so well with the FJ, that needs no mods whatsoever as it’s a super capable off-roader. Good job ! @Mario Cornejo and @Kailas both at the back with two super capable cars, but both driving with amazing skills and attitude ! The fantastic support I had from all of you meant that I could shovel a bit less today and enjoy the scenic views 🤣 By now some of you have done 5 newbie drives and are eligible for a promotion to Fewbie. You can do this entirely online via below link: https://carnity.com/support See you guys soon !

There are no cons, the ATS is made for off-road and drives very well on road. You’ll notice better traction in the dunes as well and it will allow you to deflate to 10psi which will make your little Pajero float 😉