Got my new (used) pair of TSUs in today. They both allowed the glow plugs to energize but one looks like part of the base that goes in the crossover is eroded. Wonder how that happened...

Installed the better looking of the two. Took the truck out for a quick cruise to get up to temp. Firing when cold, not when hot. All is back to normal with the glow plugs again.

So, a word of warning, an overheat could toast your TSU!


Also got the ducting to the rear permanently installed tonight. The part running vertically on  the windshield frame curves a little because I opted to use an existing screw hole instead of making a new one right next to it.

The 2" P-clamps were slightly small with the rubber padding on them to get them to close on the duct without crushing it. Had to get some 3/4" spacers. Screws used were 1-1/2".

None of the ducting really blocks any of your view from the driver's seat.

I called my insurance company today, GEICO, and asked about insurance once I get it. Once the guy realized I was talking about a Humvee and not a hummer, I was put on hold for about 10 minutes. Once he came back he apologized for the long delay but told be insurance would be no problem as long as I didn't take it serious offroading and didn't mount any weapons. We both laughed at the last part.

I use Liberty Mutual myself and didn't have any issues. I did make a point of calling my agent versus trying to do it online though.

I've heard from several people that they have USAA and don't have any issues - but I also know of two people that HAD USAA insurance until USAA called them after the fact and told them that the vehicle doesn't fit their policy requirements and recommended they call Progressive. I'm not exactly sure of what their requirements are, but applying for insurance seems pretty cut and dry, so be wary.

Well, today was day 1 of the GMV transition. I managed to get a lot done - but there is still a ton of work to do.

That's going to be so rad.  I took my soft doors off and put the X-Doors back on.  It is amazing how it handles better with the extra weight.  





 

Here's a bad ass GMV an he's a H1 owner as well...
http://www.hummernetworkforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=244251&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

I plan on getting some hard doors once I get mine on the road. I'm sure with the these hitting the auction block they will be getting more expensive as time goes.

It seems like foreign users are the guys who like to go without the actual roof. I've seen pictures of what were very early GMV's with the c-pillar like that, but have never actually seen one. They all have the side rails, MSG tubular rails or the MSG "Penalty boxes" now.

I've been messing around inside mine since yesterday just tinkering - I was going to get it ready for paint, but lo and behold - there's actual rain forcasted, so I'll wait. Anyway, it's worth commenting on how much more user friendly this configuration is over a slantback. There's actual room for storage and the open layout makes it a lot easier to get around in.

I meant to mention it but I realized I should probably add that insurance information you guys were discussing above to the OP. Might help readers. Thanks for adding that info guys!


I recently noticed I had developed a bit of a brake squeal. Sprayed my front and rear brakes down with brake cleaner this morning thinking it might have just been from when I did the coolant flush and got coolant all over the front diff. Stopped squealing for a bit and then started back up while out driving earlier. Crawled under and noticed the passenger side caliper, pads, and disc were oily. Checked the brake fluid reservoir and the front circuit is definitely lower than the rear. Looks like I've got a leaky caliper. Went ahead and ordered a caliper seal kit from Kascar.

So, looks like I've got yet another project to tackle.

Ryan,

Did you ever get the interior lighting installed?

You know, I did not.

I ran into an issue with the wiring harness it came with being a bit unclear on layout and where I needed to tie into since it is supposed to plug into an MRAP's existing harness. It just ended up on the back burner. I got in touch with BAE and actually had a really helpful engineer there give me some of the pinouts on the harness. With all of the other stuff I've been doing with the truck, I never got back to verifying those pinouts and going further with it. I may still end up having to wire the lights independently if I can't get it figured out. Also he warned me that the model kit I got is actually 12v.

I had kind of decided to wait to install the lighting until I had an overhead console I could install the switch in, along with switches for all of my other accessories. I've got a picture in my head of a console with a couple rows of Carling style switches mounted to it to control stuff.

It may end up being a project I tackle over the winter though if I can get the console fabbed up.

Ryan, too bad those are 12V. I have been looking for a military plug and play interior lights, but no luck. However I have found these led rock lights that come in 24V and multiple colors. Trying to get all my wiring needs now so when I install the top I can hide the wires.

Those are pretty interesting! Compact too.

If you were looking at the same kit I got, you could always either wire it to just your rear battery or get a step down transformer. I don't think wiring some LED interior lights to the rear battery would put much strain on it.

Also, I forget the model numbers but, Grote does make the exact same dual color dome lights in 24v versions.

Well, my Rhino tire carrier finally has a tire on it!

Went out earlier to pick up my Sam's Club knockoff Pelican cases and stopped to fuel up when a gentleman pulls up behind me, introduces himself, tells me he's got a 5 ton he takes off roading and wanted to know if I'd be interested in some HMMWV tires left over from a batch of HMMWV parts he happened into. Says if I've got a minute, I could follow him back to his place right nearby (). I figured I had my AMT Backup on me so why not!

Turns out he had 2 worn MTRs on E rated 24 bolts, 2 100% MTs on 12 bolts, and 1 slightly worn MT on a 12 bolt. Since I'm going to the MTRs on 24 bolt wheels I was really only interested in those. He didn't want to break up the set of 5 tires (even though they weren't really a set) since they were the last of his HMMWV parts and he wanted to get rid of them all but I told him once I got my MTR's from Southern Metals in NC, I'd work with him to get him a complete MT set with the MTs on my truck.

So $150 later I've got 1 MTR that's got about 40-50% tread but has a slow leak that he said was probably either the o-ring seal or the valve core and, another MTR that the tread is pretty much trashed on but does hold air.

I figured since I just paid $70 shipped for each bare 24 bolt wheel (not including the $14 for new o-rings for each of them), paying $75 for two complete wheel/runflat assemblies with tires wasn't too bad. Thought they'd be good to have around as emergency spares after I get the newer MTRs.










Turns out he's headed out to Haspin Acres in October with his truck.

Also, anyone anywhere near me need a couple 100% MTs on 12 bolts? He's definitely motivated to sell them.

I'll most likely be needing some tires relatively soon but until I get my truck I won't know for sure. Anyone have any recent sightings of newer tires? At this point I'll probably keep the 12 bolt wheels but things may change.

If you're going to stick with the MTs on 12 bolts, you want me to see if the guy I got mine from would mind shipping? The two 100% tires still had the molding nubs on them. Like I said, he's motivated to sell and that would get you at least 2 tires pretty inexpensively.

Yes please. Thanks.

Got the soft top painted today with the Green 383 Behr Marquee latex.

I started yesterday with giving it a good scrubbing and letting it dry 24 hours. There were still some stains on it from where I had to use it for a bit earlier in the year before I got my shelters put up.

I had a little trouble deciding how I was going to accomplish the actual painting. At first I thought I'd put down my big tarp on my truck first, then put the top over the tarp on the truck, then paint it but I decided it might be a bit tough to get at the center of the top if it were up that high. Ultimately decided to just lay it on the driveway. That's the nice thing about having a gravel driveway, you don't care if you end up getting paint, bedliner, etc. on it.

The paint went on pretty easily. I mixed some Flotrol with the paint and it sprayed well out of the Harbor Freight HVLP gun I got. Used a segment from Power Nation's Truck Tech that did some instruction on auto painting to help set up the gun since I've never applied paint using this method.

I ran the gun at about 30 PSI and it seemed to do well. The material the top is made of was pretty forgiving on the application. Didn't get any runs or puddles since it seemed to kind of soak in. It was a good material for a novice to start on. I figure had I been trying to put a gloss paint on a vehicle it would have ended up much worse. Ended up putting down about 3 coats. The only problem I ran into was that my oil/water separator I bought for the Lizard Skin application decided to start leaking and would drip water on the paint which is bad for this stuff. Had to wrap a couple shop towels around it. Going to have to get a new one before I do the CARC paint next year.

I'm hoping to get the doors painted either tomorrow or Thursday.

Didn't really take too many pictures because this was pretty straightforward and easy. The real test will be the longevity of this on the top and how it deals with the top being taken off and put on.

The top when I started out:




Top after the last coat:



(Sorry, the sun was near setting and throwing off the lighting.)

I ended up letting it cure for about an hour so it was a bit dry to the touch and then moved it inside of the shelter where I've got it laid out over my big shop fan. Supposedly this paint needs 3-4 weeks to fully cure against water.

Looks good Ryan! I picked up 3 gallons of Desert Tan Behr Ultra Premium the other day to do the GMV inside and out. I won't be getting to it this weekend, but hope to get to it the one after. I intend to also use a throw away HF HVLP gun for mine. I've never used one on anything of this magnitude, but I have used an HVLP Detail gun for shooting Moly-Resin and Duracoat. I'm hoping the learning curve is pretty shallow for getting the hang of it.

I yanked out the old seat frame today and put high backs up front. I actually don't mind the original seats, but the high backs do provide at least a little bit more comfort while still "official".

Here's the Truck Tech episode I used for tips. Segment starts at the 11:00 mark. A lot of good info! Definitely do the test pattern thing.

Got a couple more things taken care of today.

Had the repair shop in town weld a boss into my new crossover pipe for my pyrometer's thermocouple. The thermocouple is 3/8" NPT so I couldn't just get them to weld a nut to the pipe. Ended up finding a piece at Fastenal that fit the bill perfectly.



It looks like it is close to the driveshaft but it isn't. It's just zip tied into place under the truck until I can get the 12v pyrometer wired up with a 24v relay tied to the ignition, hopefully tomorrow.


Also got the doors painted. Turned out well! Ended up putting just 2 coats on. Still need to paint the hardware. When I paint the body next Spring, I'll put a camo pattern on them.



The paint really helped clean them up. Went on as easily as it did with the top.

Ryan, looks good. Today I have some Alodine 1201 being delivered to touch up the bare aluminum spots I have before priming. Hope to be coating and painting the inside within the next two weeks if work slows down and the weather holds out.

Was watching some of the posts on here about the Charlotte riots in the riot thread and saw a Facebook video of National Guard HMMWVs headed down.

https://www.facebook.com/timmy.e.richardson/posts/1757415991192301

It made me wonder about something that maybe current and/or former mil can answer.

Why do so many of those trucks have a Rhino carrier but so few actually have spares?

I noticed the same thing in a convoy I passed back in August:








Those were just a couple of the trucks but not a single spare among them. Why?

Seems strange. Do you guys still have the runflats in yours? I'm planning on having a few spares with 1 of them being on the truck but thinking maybe it isn't a huge deal with runflats in them.

All wheel assemblies should have the runflats still installed because they also act as a beadlock, unless you've got an aftermarket beadlock installed instead.

I can't recall off the top of my head the stats but, the runflats are pretty limited in how far and how fast you can travel on them. When you are running on them, you are generating heat inside the tire though there is grease in there to somewhat help mitigate the friction, and you're almost certain to trash the tire driving on them for extended periods.

Personally, I like the idea of having both the runflats to rely on and a spare to be able to swap out. Use the runflats to get to a safe spot, swap the spare to get where you're going.

The spares are too easy to steal, so unless they going war zone, they usually leave them off...

Hmm... Certainly makes sense, especially driving into a riot. Might come back and find the whole truck up on blocks!

There was also something to do with run-flats not being allowed to stay in a stationary position for overly-long periods of time - like,  the ones with gel in them would slowly puddle at the lowest point on the tire making for a really unbalanced, bumpy ride or something. I really don't remember all the details, but I would guess they never found an adequate solution to it all because like you, I haven't seen the spares mounted up in a while...

The old bias ply tires were notorious for getting a flat spot if left stationary too long. The newer Baja's and MTR's don't exhibit this problem - the MT's really don't either for that matter.

I know that there are folks who want to remove the run-flat from the tires and replace it with PVC and I never quite understand why. With the run-flat in, that big tire can now safely deflate in the event of a blowout, you can slowly drive to more suitable terrain to put on the spare and plus cleaning all that grease out is a pain in the ass. They're not difficult to deal with, so I just leave them in.

In other news, I made some more progress with the GMV today. I put on the jack rails, grab handles, turbo hood and MSG bumper on today. I've got a few more things to take care of and then she'll be ready for paint soon.

That is looking super sharp! Totally jelly...

Interesting, saw a lone HMMWV last weekend.  Also had the tire carrier but no spare.  

Desert tan, X doors, uparmored slantback (newer style), A/C condensors in rear wheel well.   Exact same as Ryan_Ruck posted on page 37.  I'd post the pic I snapped, but arf's photo server says the attachment is too big.

Spare tires just slow you down..

Made a lot of progress this weekend!

Last weekend I started putting the GMV together:



This weekend I got the jack rails, grab handles, MSG bumper and the ECV hood installed:







And actually got the lights working:

Looks good. I spent time between the rain storms cleaning, sanding, and prepping for paint. I kept finding more dirt and loose paint every time I washed it. Seems like there is an unlimited supply of dirt in the closeouts on the A and B pillars that washes out every time I clean it.

I dug thru my storage building today.  Found a used pair of front soft doors.  Put an ad in the EE for them if anyone needs them.  They arent perfect, but better than not having doors.

Looks like RetiredWarHorses is trying to get interest in an aftermarket AC that goes where the blower motor sits and be plug and play. I am interested as the Red Dots take up too much space.

I saw that earlier. I'd be interested, but it appears he's seeking out more of a group buy than anything.I'm a little short right now, so didn't pipe up

Been out and about enjoying the beauty of Northern Idaho the last couple days after being on the road so I haven't been spending a ton of time online.

Sounds like an interesting idea but... a) I already put that new heater in there and am not keen on pulling it out, b) not sure why it would need to be 12v when frankly, a lot of the trucks out there are the standard 24v alternators from what I've seen and making it 12v would cause even more expense when folks have to then stick a dual volt alternator in their trucks, c) I'd want to see what a final design looked like before I made a set in stone decision since I'm not sure how good that heater would be compared to the one I've got and frankly I need heat more than I need A/C.

Another problem with it being 12v, at least for me personally, is that I don't want to tax my 12v side any more than I will be when I have to use the winch(es).

Like I said, I'd want to see more specifics before coming down one way or another but the 12v part isn't helping sell me though. Truth be told, I'm not all that worried about making a universal A/C kit (like the 24v on on eBay I linked to earlier) work except when it comes to getting the compressor mounted to the engine.

Finally got my EUC approved at exactly 3 months.  I am pretty happy, because the GP guy in Indy is going to meet me tomorrow morning to pick it up.  So I don't have to wait too long.  He was checking my 998 out while we were on the phone and seemed to think it looked pretty good.  It sounds like it is missing the 2 left side doors, but it has 2 Red Top Optima batteries, so hopefully they will take a charge.  I think he said the tag stated that it had been rebuilt in '05 in Maine.  Now I just have to get my trailer ready.

Congratulations on getting your EUC cleared. Now the real fun begins. Do you have a list of things you want to do to it?

I'm hoping mine clears in the next couple weeks.

Congrats! When you're not too busy having fun with your new purchase, post some pics for us!

PICS!!  







The day went extremely well considering I got home from work at 12:15 in the morning and woke up 4 hours later to head down to pick it up.  It rained for probably 2/3 of the trip, but we had sun down in Indy.  When we pulled into the lot Mike already had the HMMWV running and pulled up front.  Drove it right up onto the trailer.  It's clean.  The only real defects on the body are the bent mirror bracket and one of the hold down clips for the cargo area cover is missing.  The top for the cab has a small slit in the center between the front seats, and the rear has a hole cut into it for an antenna apparently.  The velcro for the rear cover needs to be redone, and the stitching for the rear window zipper is coming apart.  The right rear door needs some stitching repair also.  Mike had 2 green left side doors without handles and also in need of some stitching.  We let it sit and idle while chaining it down to hopefully charge the batteries, but it didn't even attempt to turn over after we shut it off.  It does have a tag stating it was rebuilt in December of '05 at the Maine Military Authority.

The trip back was uneventful, and we pushed the 998 off the trailer to make it easier to swap in a pair of 6 year old 850 CCA Wal-Mart batteries that have been sitting around.  It fired right up.  It runs, drives, stops, and steers great.  All regular and blackout lights work except for the passenger side low beam headlight.  The only other thing that doesn't seem to work is the temperature gauge.  For some reason the passenger side mirror was mounted on the wrong side of the bracket making it nearly impossible to use.

I am extremely happy with my purchase.

I'm not saying I'm jealous but...............

Lawman or Ryan, have either of you seen the fender liners installed on any vehicles. I am thinking of picking some up to see if they will reduce tire noise in the rear. If anything else, they have the holes for where I will be installing the slantback kit and I could use them as a template, just thinking.

That is a good looking, solid truck!

Now, prepare to say goodbye to all of your spare free time and money!

If I were you, since your low beam is out, go ahead and bite the bullet and get LED headlights. You'll thank me later!

If you're not up to hand stitching, a boat/upholstery shop should be able to fix up your doors. For the cut in the top, you might try this repair adhesive. I picked some up to try and fix a couple holes in my rear curtain before I saw how bad they really were and just replaced it.

One question, in your last pic, it looks like the seatbelt receptacles are really long. Do you have a length from about the bolt hole to the receiver? I've had a couple passengers complain about how short the belts seem and if those are longer than the ones I've got in there now, I might need to replace mine, especially since a couple are a bit picky about staying latched at first.

Anyone have any idea what's up with that plate on the rocker panel near the B-pillar in the same pic?




Those are interesting... Never seen them before. Looks like they are to keep you from poking holes in the aluminum when tossing stuff in the bed.

If you do pick them up, I'd caution that it looks like they could make installing the cargo divider a little troublesome since the brackets for the partition go near that slant at the front and you'd be making an already tight fit widthwise tighter. But, looking closer, it looks like they may have holes (the two big ones near that slant at the front) to accommodate them. Probably going to be one of those things that you'll have to just try to see if it works and "field form" to make work if it needs it.

I was wondering how tight of a fit the 4 man divider will be with these. I ordered a set from the other vendor on ebay, will see what they look like when they come in. You are right, the holes for the divider bracket look like they are there. How much extra space do you have on yours?

Also, going to pick up my slantback kit on the 14th, was hoping for delivery closer to home, but looks like 300 mile road trip.

That's nothing, I just did 4300 miles last week. Totally worth it for the trip I went on though. Anyway...

Not sure exactly how much space there is but it isn't much. I'll get some measurement tomorrow for you.

Worst case, you could probably trim the plates to accommodate the brackets.

Yours is perfect! Tan is what I want.

Hmm, can't say that I've ever seen those before. I'd have to echo Ryan's thoughts on the fitment though. if you bought them, let us know how they well they work at reducing road noise.  me thinks it won't really matter much though.

On another note - I did do some painting today. Overall, I'm very pleased but the hood can definitely use another coat - it'll be another couple of weeks before I can get to it though.