1983 Toyota 4X4 Chinook Build

AggieOE

Trying to escape the city
Looks good! How do you expect the headliner fabric, or more so the glue, to hold up after some time?
 
Looks good! How do you expect the headliner fabric, or more so the glue, to hold up after some time?

Thanks! I don't expect the glue alone to hold. During my research, I found that most upholstery shops thin out fabric glue, spray it down on both the board and the fabric with a gun, let it tack up, then lay the fabric down. Apparently that'll keep it in place. But mine is held in by 20 or 30 screws, the light fixtures/fan, and that glue, so I think it'll be fine.
 
Build update time: I finally got the solar system installed with the help of my father, who owns all the tools and has all the knowledge. I went with mostly Renogy products. I've got a 250ah lithium battery, 2000w inverter charger, and 320w of panels on the roof. On my recent trip to Ouray, we went through 2 snowstorms in 3 days with no sunshine and the battery was plenty to run the fridge and diesel heater nonstop, with lights intermittently. I'm also pumped on how everything fit into the space between the cab and wheel well; I'll need to do some ventilation work once the bed is walled in. Also, there may be some wiring sins in the photo below; I took it before we finalized the install. We also added another breaker after I took this photo.

For the trip, I got the shore power capabilities hooked up, though we never needed to utilize it. I have a Victron DC to DC step up converter sitting on my workbench so I can charge the camper battery from the engine alternator. I ran out of time to install it since I will be upgrading the alternator with the higher output GM kit. Our camp spot was about 7 minutes from where we were climbing, so it wouldn't have gotten much use, anyways.

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I also got a diesel heater installed with a 5 gallon fuel cell under the rig. It fills to 4.3 gallons and will be enough to run the heater for over 6 days straight on low. On low, when the outside temps were negative digits, the heater kept the camper at about 75 degrees. I can't complain. It comes with a computer and barometer and automatically adjusts fueling for elevation. It's a Lavaner 5kw Alpine; I found it recommended by a Chinese diesel heater Facebook group.

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Here's some more rig photos from the trip. It wouldn't have been complete without a breakdown; this time, I lost the clutch hydraulics going through Buena Vista and Gunnison. I was able to limp it to the only open parts store in Montrose, which happened to have both the master and slave cylinders. I replaced both because we were short on time and I didn't want to diagnose anymore. We were back on the road in about 30 minutes.

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Henry_G

Observer
I follow him on Instagram and we've spoken a few times about our 4x4 Chinook builds. I haven't heard back from him in a while though. 😕 Hope they are okay.
 

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