Alex Raptor

What a day guys, we had a lot of fun, the teamwork ethic in this group is a dream, I think we had an early exit, for an engine issue, 5 digs and self recoveries, 4 tugs, a pop out, a wheel change and a cracked radiator, and we all left smiling so we must be doing something right, great route, a real mix of everything the desert can throw at you. Thanks everyone

well done Russ good to have you and another raptor at inter, 

17 minutes ago, Joe Biju Joseph said:

I'd love to know where you got a soft shackle for a winch. My tow hook bolt snapped off, and to be on the safe side, soft shackle seems better. Any suggestions ? 

Hi, Just to caveat I'm not advising you to make any modifications to your winch line, my new winch line terminates in a soft shackle, its part of the line, if you are left just with the loop on the end of the winch line and your hook has come off, and your winch manufacturer specifies a hook or block, then I wouldn't deviate from that, A high tension winch line is not something to self rig. Replacement pins and hooks are available or look at factor55, they make a selection of winch terminations to fit standard winch rope end loops. 

What an absolute pleasure Gentlemen, loved every minute of it, not one shovel or tug and climb after climb after climb, the route was perfect, lots of play time and some good challenges, and what a masterclass in slip face self recovery, that was epic. Thanks for a wonderful morning guys, used more fuel today than on any other drive, see you all soon.

Just now, Kailas said:

Dear @Watteau, 

Yes, as long as we have 3 RSVP, the drive is still on. 

Tomorrow we have got a very short convoy, which is great.

Plus you have got a winch😃 

Perfect, lets do it!!, just got the winch line replaced after a minor mishap, I got one of the bubba rope lines that terminates directly into a soft shackle, rather than a hook or block, any excuse to try it out, see you tomorrow evening.

Hi @Kailas just checking this is still going ahead tomorrow, thanks

see you in the morning guys, looking forward to it

All, I know it was said on the radio, but just  to reiterate that was an awesome drive. Everyone drove brilliantly and where necessary executed great self recoveries. Your convoy discipline and radio comms were exemplary and it was a real pleasure. Thank you everyone. 

1 hour ago, Wrangeld said:

OK - that's good news and saves a big detour @Watteau

I would say that’s 7 mins extra in the sleep pit, thanks Fred.

Monring, is google maps correct, do you have to go down and do a U turn or can you cut through Nazwa?

Hi Islam, waitlist please 2nd drive

looking forward to it, early start, my trucks favourite meal of the day is brake fast!!!

Wait list second drive please 

2 minutes ago, Goutam said:

“Your focus determines your reality.” —Qui-Gon Jinn, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Today I observed one of the longest time in Radio Silence, which only indicated that everyone was really focused and was enjoying the drive. A great drive @Wrangeld, thanks a lot. @Niki was fantastic in the sweep as well as @varunmehndiratta was phenomenal in the 2nd lead, great job buddy.

I had a 3 refusals, which were on account of me missing the line while crossing over the ridges, which were all obviously taking a one full circle back to the line and crossing over. @Watteau you were behind me, do you have any observations as to what I might have been doing wrong. I must confess that somehow still I don’t like criss-crossing the ridges. I think its weird to have such a dislike - who does that?

"let go of your hate" for Cris-crosses , my observations would be that you are not getting two wheels over the top of the ridge soon enough, for me in my truck my objective is to get "anchors" over the other side as soon as I can, that way the risk of fishtailing or sliding down into a pocket is massively reduced, it also avoids that 90 degree spin effect when the wheel goes over and you are left in no mans land for a moment. The higher line on a cris-cross is usually the better one, but with today's sand blowing it was tricky to see the tops, refusals are no issue at all, it means you are being pushed you are learning to trust the force, don't worry about them, it will come, this is the way.

4 minutes ago, Thomas Varghese said:

The refusals were probably because you were following my line as I was avoiding the big channels left by @Ashok chaturvedi's new AT tires. Those tires leave a big channel on the sand like a big ship in the sea and bobs up all the smaller boats around it. Those tires just cut into the sand and slice it like butter. Next time I'm buying those tires for my car. 

Out of all these pictures I like @Watteau's car against the backdrop of the rising sun. Man it looks like a beast about to pounce. 

That’s @Dodi Syahdar but great photos

Looking forward to this, I am. I like firsts, good or bad, they are always memorable. This is the way.

On 6/23/2021 at 11:30 AM, Wrangeld said:

Dear DesertnautsUAE,

The wait is almost over, We are at Wednesday and it is looking increasingly like the convoy positions are fixed (in my mind at least) from which everyone will be able to start their thinking more strategically about how this drive is going to work out. 

A little homework if you will. It would be good to set one benchmark across the drivers, just so that we can all understand what 2500RPM looks like in our cars. For instance, at 2500RPM in top gear (2WD) I am travelling at around 106kph. I imagine that for @Watteau in the Raptor, 2500RPM in top gear would even scare the speed cameras in Abu Dhabi - but maybe I am wrong.

If you have time, before now and the drive, please make a note of your metrics on this. The other measurement that it would be good to understand from everyone before we start is the PSI on which you have chosen to run for this drive. [I am assuming that you have a PSI that you normally choose and it may be this, but offering flexibility to you you make adjustments ... no stupidity please, we don't want more pop outs]. 

There are a massive number of variants that impact our abilities in the sand - most of which we cannot control (how soft it is, how the dunes shifted due to the winds the last days etc.) so I am not going to start any discussion here about what anyone might be planning in the hope of 'improving' their drive on Friday. I do feel, however, that knowing what your car offers at 2500RPM in the highest ratio and tyre PSI might have an interesting correlation. 

See you soon in the sand - convoy list to be published tomorrow morning.  

just had a chance to test this as I picked up the truck from the garage, for legal reasons I cannot say what the speed was but it was well over frightening Abu Dhabi and the driver!!!!

I think the point here is that it is all relative, there are a lot of factors that control traction, engine speed being one of them, deflation level, torque of the engine at different revolutions, throttle response, gearing ratios etc. For me personally I'm looking for the maximum traction for the least amount of accelerator input to be able to accomplish each obstacle we may find, that may lead to refusals if I go too soft or it may be that I could have achieved the same result with a lot less, there will be no "one size fits all" to this.

check out the Garmin ones we have them on work vehicles https://www.garmin.ae/product/garmin-dash-cam-tandem/

I can then see what they were doing in the car as well, as it is front and back

1 hour ago, PaoloMaraziti said:

So, summarizing the best setup you’d suggest is 

 

1. apex valves for deflation (don’t have )

2. twin ARB compressor , maybe with the digital pressure gauge (I have a twin portable now with tank)

2. I am lost about the hoses and all-wheels-at-once … clarification pls ! 

Hi, the 4 in 1 refers to the ability to deflate or inflate four tires at once, there are several brands available or it is possible to make one yourself with parts from amazon, a picture will explain it better, but 4 tire valves and a central hub to allow air into all 4 at the same time or out at the same time. the device connects directly to your compressor, this is where a powerful compressor is important as it will be working continuously for a longer time. You need to have a 100pc duty compressor such as the ARB mentioned a lot in this post for this work effectively. Duty refers to the amount of time the compressor can run without overheating and cutting off. 

13 minutes ago, Russ said:

Hi all, some really useful suggestions here and find myself in exactly the same position trying to save time inflating (a single compressor on 4 Raptor tyres is not fun!)…can anyone suggest a supplier here that can supply and install systems based on what we require, and not just what suits them to sell?

PS - Love the idea of using the phone to control what is going on!

 

I don't think we can actually mention them by name on here, but my experience is to find out what you want yourself, all of them will install a twin ARB under the rear seat and say off you go, but then you have to have the passenger door open, add an extra valve that needs a tank (or so they say) etc. etc. there are always compromises, personally for the size of tires we have, and if you desire to do it faster then the only way forward is multiple compressors, as Ahab said the air tank is no good for improving inflation times, this is proven on several YouTube videos as well, the fastest inflation method is proven to be a CO2 power tank, but needs refilling and specialist valves and has to be operated vertically etc etc. every solution has caveats. Also if you run two compressors in series as in "double" power then your hoses and chucks need to handle the added pressure as well as your tire valve, running two compressors in parallel, provides redundancy and since each compressor is responsible for two tires rather than 4 at once there should be a time saving.I'm thinking to trial the apex valves Lorenzo mentioned and Ahab and Hisham have to see if that helps, raptor wheels are deep though so need to find a supplier who would test fit rather than burn 800 AED I think for the XL versions. I can't believe I have spent so much precious spare time researching air systems, FML.

out of the box there is a system for raptors called updownair that mounts a plate under the bonnet, I haven't seen a real world timing of it though, and I'm not sure about having the shcrader valves in each wheel well. Our "mutual" friend has a set in his showroom.

https://updownair.com/product-category/gen-2/raptor-4-tire-inflation-system/

Thanks everyone for today, it was just what I needed, amazing area and some great challenges, see you all soon. Great route @Lorenzo Candelpergher

I should add as well, that by having the air tank I can run air tools as well, the idea being that I can run a high lift air jack to assist in pop outs on one compressor whilst having the other one with a single hose and chuck to inflate the offending tire, also there is another pipe hidden away that joins the two air tanks with a valve so if one compressor fails I can open the valve and still use the system on a single compressor. 

Welcome to my world, I lay awake at night optimising airflows and trying to work out a way to stay in the cab whilst this is all going on, whilst worrying about how to fold the hose and stop it taking over the truck, with such a long beast as the raptor, it needs a 5 metre run from the tailgate to the front, what about the tire chucks how do they stay on, what is the length of the valve and the flow difference between 3/8 pipe and 1/4, the list is endless and mind boggling. For some reason my tires have always been at 40 psi for the road. But now I think I have the solution. I haven't completed it yet, but I'm splitting the truck into left and right. There is a dual ARB on either side of the truck bed with a 1 gallon air tank and a pipe to an air manifold. That manifold has a pressure gauge if needed and a US standard (ARB) air socket, and a 1/2 inch solenoid valve (closed when no current). The valve is connected to a switch in the cab one for each side, along with a switch for each compressor. I arrive I connect one hose to each side and a push on "closed" (no air when off) chuck on each valve I return the the cab and I switch on each solenoid and monitor the air pressure via TPMS. because it is connected to two tires I can effectively balance the front an back pressures if one deflates quicker than the other. Once finished I remove the hose from each side and place each hose in a mesh bag. When I want to inflate, I attached the hose and chucks and turn on the compressors, using the TPMS to reach the desired pressure. By having two ARB dual compressors it will reduce the time by half to inflate, currently 20 mins will now be around 12 mins. Raptor tires are huge. Might be overkill for some people, but I have really enjoyed making this system and learning about airflow in parallel and in series and manifolds etc. I have seen some trucks in the USA that have four individual pressure switches and dump valves and a plumbed network of pipes with small whips to the valves, this allows them to set pressures manually for each tire for inflation and deflation, a central pressure switch that effectively is controlling four tires I have tested and found it not to work effectively. TPMS in my experience will have one tire every 15 inflations that fails to register but by holding a magnet close to the tire valve you can force a reading to update, the TPMS (as I understand) works by sending a signal every few times it rotates and meets a magnetic field somewhere in the wheel well. Now if only I can find a hydraulic arm to put my flag on and off................

42 minutes ago, Hisham Masaad said:

Dear @Lorenzo Candelpergher, I have here to blame and thank @Ahab Shamaafor things I made in my car. It started by recommending the Apex valves to me, which I fixed and it is really far away easier, faster and convenient than any deflating process ....Many thanks for you @Ahab Shamaa😄. Re the compressor, I fixed one in the back, and made air connections to each tire, which I connect to the tires with small hoses. As soon as I connect the hoses, I run the compressor through phone application, deciding the pressure I require. As soon as pressure required reach, alarm on the phone start. This is again has saved so much time and effort, allowing me to remove the flag and do other things, visiting other participants on the drive 😂.

Now @Ahab Shamaathe blaming part, making me paying so much, specially doing other things, which you have nothing to do, but you are the one pushed me there 🤣. But at the end, i am enjoying. Should you require @Lorenzo Candelpergher, will wait for you tomorrow morning to show you the whole process, starting deflating. 

Whats the brand of this system, is it the ARB pressure control switch?

Hi @Jeepie can I waitlist please for your drive