Another Garage Weekend

 Do you ever have those times when you are so busy that you can't keep all of your thoughts straight? That's what it has been like around here and our adventures have been suffering. Lately it seems like we just can't find an escape which means we haven't had much fun to share with you guys lately. I didn't want you to think that we forgot about you, though, so I'm going to give you a quick update on what we have been working on.

 Simply put, we've been working on getting the Jeep ready for Moab. I've been crawling on both ends of Klondike for two weekends in a row. I finished the wiring of the dual batteries and found time to install a new tie rod and drag link to beef up the steering. 
 The batteries are now controlled by a system from National Luna. Haven't heard of them? Well their a little more well known in the overland community but they are a company from South Africa. This controller separates the batteries in a fashion that I don't have to use the same type of batteries if I don't want to. In this case I chose to use two Optima batteries because I like the look of the matching batteries. Yeah, I'm a little weird that way. Once the engine is started the system charges the main battery for five minutes. After the five minutes it kicks over to the second battery and charges it. They remain completely separate so they don't drain one another. Our new ARB fridge will be wired into the second battery so that it never drains our main battery, leaving us stranded or in need of a jump start. In fact, if the main battery tanks on me, I can jump myself off the secondary battery with a push of a button. Brilliant.

  We installed the Currie Enterprises Correctlync system to beef up our steering to help handle the bigger tires and possible impacts from crawling in the rocks. In truth, the ball joints went bad and I just figured that I might as well improve things while I'm working on the front end anyway. Today we got an alignment as the final step to the installation and while they were doing that they found that the front track bar bolts were loose. That was a little annoying to me because I've checked those bolts a few times. The good news is, the Jeep feels like a completely different Jeep. The steering is tighter and more responsive. Guess a tight track bar helps quite a bit, huh? 
 This week I've go to wire the plug for the ARB fridge and install the third brake light relocation kit that I've been waiting for. Hopefully I can get this done before the weekend so that I can go do a quick shake down out in the dirt. That would make a much better story than all this boring "work" stuff. 
  Well, there's my quick update on the last week. Life keeps passing by and we try to enjoy as much of it as we can but sometimes you've just got to stop and work. Don't work to hard out there. See you this weekend. 

Brandan