ChrisW

Morning @Ale Vallecchi - just wanted to confirm that this is the meeting point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/82PXCJd1v8omJxru5?g_st=ipc

Congrats @Mike M. - looks like that lighting modification you had in mind (beacon going straight up) could be useful after all! 😂

Great news @Imran Asghar, congrats - looking forward to you sharing your enthusiasm with Carnity drivers new and old!

Great news @Mark B - look forward to seeing the Gladiator leading the way!

@Steve Farmer Just noticed your picture in the gallery…those cameras are a right of passage! I have a very similar photo of my old Jeep…

So it’s been about six months since installing the ARB brushless compressor and I thought I’d follow up with a longer-term review. Basic summary is…great performance but it is fussier than the old-school ARB twin compressor! Pros: Great performance - it is roughly 50% faster than the brushed twin compressor, and in combination with the ARB pressure control I always have very accurately inflated tyres. Simpler wiring and install - the wiring loom is a bit simpler than the previous install, and the quick release mount makes it easier if you need to pop the compressor out to get access, clean etc. No more randomly popped fuses! The electrical setup and fusing seems a bit more reliable. Longer-Term Lessons: It’s a lot more temperature sensitive! I have the compressor mounted in the rear cubby which isn’t very well ventilated. The brushed compressor would soldier on regardless, but the brushless has throttled itself back a few times due to the heat (it beeps a certain number of times to communicate error messages). I’ve since added some venting and remote air intakes (so it draws in cooler air from inside the cabin), and all is well. The flip side to this is that it’s also smart enough to protect itself - which should pay off in time. The increased cost vs quicker inflation is still in my view marginal. It was an interesting project but if you already have a brushed compressor I wouldn’t prioritise this modification. So all in all…great performance, good install and smarter operation…but it will need some careful thought on installation location given our hot weather conditions.

Thanks to @Luke K P and @Davie Smooth_Operator for putting your heads together and working out a drive for us all today! A nice prompt start in the cool air this morning got us away well, with the convoy soon warming up to a good flow. A nice mix of terrains, with some longer open dunes to stretch our driving and engine revs on, and then some tighter more technical patches. Some great skills on show today - good convoy discipline, helpful radio work and everyone managed to self recover without any dramas. I think we also exited at just the right moment - good call, Luke…and thank you for the karak!

Thanks again @GauravSoni, I enjoyed the session - both as a skills refresh on driving technical dunes at a consistent pace, and I got to learn and practice some further recovery techniques. Thanks for taking the time to talk me through a few of them. Good work from the convoy. We had an interesting mix of issues…soft sand, some good and proper sticks and a few technical issues. Everyone kept cool, followed directions and up a good team spirit.

Congrats @Krinesh - it’s been a pleasure driving with you and seeing you learn how to pilot that Raptor round the desert. I hope you enjoy the next level and the new variety of driving styles and terrains you’ll get to try out.

Great work @Diego, hope you enjoy the continuing journey of gaining experience and having fun!

Hey @Frederic - looking forward to this one! Just wanted to double double check the meet point - which side of the fence line are we deflating?

I think the items that @Zed mentions above are worth prioritising to check first. They’re much more likely sources of a burning smell.

It’s not something I’ve experienced - I’m running 35” BFG K02’s on beadlocks. I usually run 8 PSI, although the K02’s have stiff sidewalls. If you’ve got a burning smell there must be some sustained friction occurring somewhere. The only places that come to mind are if there’s some sort of tyre rotation on the rim (which would indicate the beadlock rim is not tight enough), or if there’s tyres are flexing enough to contact the car somewhere (eg rubbing against a liner). One way to test if it’s due to the tyre being overdeflated and the sidewalls flexing too much would be to do a drive with slightly more pressure and see if that changes anything. Maybe the sidewalls of that particular tyre are not suited to running at a low pressure. The other easy thing to check is the torque of the beadlock bolts. Those do need checking periodically (I usually do it every six weeks or so). It doesn’t need much torque, maybe 20 lbf, but they do loosen slowly over time.

Great work @Sam Selim, very well deserved - and recognises both your ability to apply the techniques you have learned and your willingness to proactively help out on our drives. Well done, looking forward to doing the higher level drives with you.

What a great return to form, @DP1011! Yesterday’s drive was great fun. We started off nice and early and got straight into Nahel’s medium to taller sized dunes while the air was still cool. We found some good lines to sweep through the taller dunes, and some easy ridges to push through. We gave ourselves the chance to practice a few times on a nice long ridge section in the early part of the drive, and we found a nice bowl section which gave everyone a chance to practice managing their energy…and some great photos from @Marek! The back end of the drive was a chance for our newest support team member @Andrew John Melvill to shine, putting @Wayne Momsen back enroute again. As DP mentioned, great teamwork from everyone in keeping it together during the long recovery. Well done.

Hey @Davie Smooth_Operator - just wanted to send a belated thanks to you and everyone who joined us. We started off in the daylight with some easy lines through Fayah’s small to medium height dunes, giving everyone a chance to get warmed up and practice on the moderately technical terrain. It was also fun to catch a few sideys and some flat ridges. A stop at the fox holes was great for some social time and photos for everyone, and then preparation for driving in the dark. With the sun soon down, we trailed through some slightly larger and more technical dunes which gave everyone a chance to stretch further the skills from earlier in the day. A few refusals and stucks, all handled really well and plenty to learn from. A great day out and my passenger enjoyed it too!

Looking forward to it @DP1011 - and @Luke K P hope you get sorted soon…have missed the karak!

Great news @J-P L! Very pleased for you, and I am sure many of the club will benefit from your support and coaching along the way.

Hey Doc, unfortunately I will have to drop out - my wife lands back in AUH on Saturday night…not sure I’d be very popular if I sent a taxi to meet her… 😂

@M.Seidam Thank you kindly, Doc - looking forward to the regular Friday fixture.

The PCV is an interesting one - the connector on the Jeep gives a very firm and positive lock, but the female end of the connector is wide and does seem to gather sand. I was doing some work on my Jeep over the weekend and had it open - and was surprised to find oily sand there and a small amount on the face of the throttle butterfly.

@Ale Vallecchi Many thanks again for a great drive yesterday. We had some long periods of really good flowing lines and the convoy moved at a good pace. It was also a treat to find so many fresh ridges which gave us some very easy going rides with the sun sitting low on the desert. @Warbs, @Sam Selim, @Glenn W it was a pleasure driving with you guys - you tackled so much of the terrain with a good mindset and no dramas. All our recoveries were followed well and we worked everything out without having to step out of our cars - great work and meant that @Aser and I got to sit back and enjoy! Hope to see you all out there soon!