"Big Foot 42"

 

or

 

September till November 07

 

Some details from the issues described in Big Foot 41 were still missing. So the cover for the heating has been finished meanwhile (painting of this part plus some more paint-job in the “cellar” / double floor are still missing – job for periods where nothing else needs to be done!).

 

 

This is the regulator between the two air heaters. When both are switched on they blow the warm air into different areas, the “new” one into the restroom and shower plus the sleeping area and the “old” one into the rest of the cabin. In case just one is switched on the disconnection will be disabled and the one who is working will blow into all areas.

 

 

 

The mounting plate for the registration plate (pls. refert to here at the very end) was ribbed off when I used last time the trailer. To give more space for the trailers drawbar I had moved it completely backwards to the cabin support frame.

But now the required angle of view onto the registration plate of 30° was no longer achieved. So it was only an intermediate solution for the few remaining tours for this year. So I asked for a stainless steel mounting plate with a protection frame plus the nut welded on the rear for fixing the registration plate to it. This was mounted to the rear door and hopefully it will be now the final solution!

 

 

On the driver cabin I have since quite a while an air-pressure horn in addition to the normal horn. The air-pressure horn was engaged in “real trucker style” by a rope next to the top of the driver’s door! But I got several notes that this kind of operation allows the use only as a kind of gimmick and not for emergency use (one hand off the steering wheel). So I have now combined the two ways of operating and can either engage both horns by the rope or the standard switch at the lever next to the steering wheel. The combined mode can we reversed in separate operation by pushing the original switch from Mercedes Benz for this mode. Of course the switch is connected completely to allow illumination!

 A further improvement is planned within the painting work: The electric valve for the horn is currently underneath the seat. This will be moved up to the ceiling more or less directly next to the horn. As a result the pressure will be immediately at the horn and the raise of the tone and volume will be history.

 

 

A side-cover for the diesel tank was built from aluminium. The cover contains a door to lock the tank filling and of course the locking cylinder fits to the other locks (one key system). But because the cover is connected to the cabin and the tank to the frame and frame and cabin twist against each other in heavy terrain I was afraid that the tank cold swing out in the bottom and hit the cover – although I never tested this since the mounting of the cover. Therefore the lower part is connected to the upper part by hinges (hidden behind the black rubber). The very bottom is pulled to an end-stop by springs. So in extreme situations it is no problem if the lower part of the diesel tank hits the lower part of the cover because this will easily swing away – without any damages. This was as well a good opportunity to mount the last missing side-lighting to have them on both sides in periodical distances.

 

 

I meanwhile removed the diesel pump of the water heater. The gap in the water heater was bridged by a short piece of fuel-hose. I took the opportunity to move the fuel hose of the water heater into the cabin (incl. the electrical wiring of the pump) as much as possible and not as Agtar had done in the first place by just laying it in the easiest way just under the cabin. I hope to have now better performance in real cold environment. The pump of the water heater (for elevation from 0 to 1.750 meter) plus the additional pump (for elevation from 1.750 up to 3.500 m) were mounted next to the other pumps. To switch from one mode into the other is done by the central switch in the dashboard and operated by relay.

 

 

Last but not least the two flaps for the generator. As already explained option with the wastewater shutters was too expensive, so I had asked to built for me the two flaps from aluminium. When I was at Ormocar last time I had found some remaining meters of really soft protection edges, which I used to apply to the frame on the sides and on the frame of the flaps.

 

Double-action cylinders push the flaps open or pull to lock. For those ones who are interested in the source, these parts are from Pneumatic-Welt, Mr. Streubel is very helpful.

 Two fans each push in fresh air respectively pull out the warm air. An additional fan is located at the end of the extension-tube of the exhauster (sorry- still missing!).Each fan has a capacity of +/- 1 m³ / minute, should be sufficient!

 

This will be the last update for a longer period, I hope to have the next available in January 2008 or so and hopefully I can then report about the big paint job!

 

Special thanks again to Klaus Sonnenschein und Reinhold Leuchter, who offered to prepare Big Foot in their garage and even offered their help for the paint-job! BUT just the preparations so far took more than 10 days - and I am still not ready! This means that I would have required up in northern Hesseb more than 2 weeks holidays, down here in Bad Kreuznach I just used the last weekends who were jammed with work! But thanks anyway for the very kind offer!