The Boreal Badlands

[Boreal]

With all of the business in the front, I needed more party in the back. Who better to call than @Diode Dynamics

While the Hitchpod was slick and effortless, it left me feeling as if it was a hassle. I understand the ease of removal and all, but any weekend that I wanted to take the camper out or go snowboarding (soon to be biking too, all needing a hitch rack/hookup) it required the owner to get underneath and tie up the extra wiring. From the get go I thought that the Pro level pod should’ve been used, not Sport… as a single central LED, it certainly could use more output.

So, I did what any rational person would do. Ordered some more lights and Swiss cheesed the bumper based on internet strangers! Shoutout to @BroncoAZ for the inspo, and I swear I saw another owner who did a SSC2/S2 below the tire (let me know if you know who).

Enter two SSC1 Pro Floods and a single SSC2 Pro Combo, all flush mounts.

Starting off with masking and measuring the SSC1's... the passenger cutout is "in space". There is really nothin but the "eyecrometer" and some ballpark measurements to guess where the hole should go. The driver side is pretty obvious as it only fits in one place. The first hit with a drill and there was no going back. I used a 2" hole saw for these and a rasp on a pneumatic die grinder.

After hollowing out the SSC1's, the SSC2 cavity was up next. Dead centre and aligning the top of the flush mount flange with the bottom of the plastic cap. For this I used a 1.75" hole saw and ever so slightly spaced out the holes to avoid the wrist breaking kickback when the holesaw bites. After the webbing was cutout and the rectangle shaped was appearing, I noticed that the plastic bumper cap has a couple of mounting tabs that are in the way of the cooling fins. I flipped the SSC2 flushmount flange to maintain legible writing and slip the angled cutoff of the fins in the space alongside the mounting tabs.

Dont mind my artistry... Now there was no way that I was able to get any tools in the bumper to mount the SSC2 with the tow package in the way. Off the bumper goes, probably for the best anyways.

This allowed me to spray paint the raw bumper edges and properly run wiring harness'.

A buddy came by with dome deustch connecters and we got to work looming and pinning. This is where it gets fun, I made the executive call to reuse the Hitchpod tap off harness to power the dual SSC1's. I sure hoped it worked, after all, 3A has got to be well within the system/wirings capabilities.

I also ran a line from the Engine Bay/Firewall Aux hook up to the rear - I really didn't want to pull the side panel today... This line got ran to the back, and was used for the SSC2.

The SSC2 wiring was left long to allow the bumper to be dropped without yanking on the line. The SSC1 had its own bumper harness. It all looked good and worked even better!

Now this is backup lighting!

This came together very well, had I had some actual time and temperature (-8ºC outside) I would've added some black silicone to the edges of the freshly cutout bumper and to fill the radius'd areas around the light and its gasket. I was more in a "lets get the done" mode and chose to truck along with the install.

The SSC1's in Floods are perfect for the corners where they are ever so slightly angled outwards and they come on with reverse while being very low profile. Even with the silver hardware! The SSC2 is angled downwards ever so sightly; being triggered with the Aux switch, it still can double as a highbeam deterrent for those clueless drivers behind me.

All in all, this is a 10/10 mod and I am extremely happy with how it turned out! I hope to see someone else re-create this with their own flare one day.

Please let me know your handles and I can share your photos!

We appreciate the love!

My Instagram is Colby_Spence!

Now that's awesome to see a fusion of our products, @Baja Designs, and @ORACLE Lighting all together in sync with amber accent lighting.

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[buzpro]

The cold has set in, -35ºC these nights/mornings. I like to always carry a little extra fuel on the travels in case of a general emergency, getting stuck, etc. you know.

Im not a fan of any of the roof rack/storage solutions yet, so for the time being the @JcrOffroad Spare tire rack fits the bill for a decent price. It can always be sold in the future if a suitable roof setup comes along or even just used for extra storage on longer trips. The fact that a pair of the DV8 Traction boards fit perfectly in the basket is icing on the cake.

While hunting for this I came across some images and FAQ's that showed and stated that 1&2 Gallon Rotos were tested and proven to work. While yes, the bolt pattern is there for the rotopax DLX mount... It does not immediately fit a 33" tire while spacing the feet inward to clear the third brake light. The Mount fits just fine, but the 2 Gallon Pax is too large for the overhang of the tray, makes contact and just simply doesn't work.

Im not about to change up to a 37" tire and relocate the third brake light for this... the quickest and easiest solution to the solution is to make up a spacer. 4" Delrin. 1.25" Thick. I broke into some of the machines at work between jobs and while guys were on break to whip these up.

Fastenal (Bolt Supply) down the street had 2" long 1/4-20 SS Carriage bolts, and I was able to reuse the supplied washers and lockers. A bit of percussive assistance to seat the carriage heads into the Delrin and in no time the assembly was tight.

The spacer just clears for contact with the hardtop at full door open, and it clears the tray by the slimmest of margins. PERFECT. It all aligned up First Second kick at the can. Its only 15L/4G but its enough to have for a day drive almost to anywhere in Manitoba. For those extended journeys I can always throw a jerry in the cargo area like normal.

With it all going so right, there had to be something to pop up. Hello MIC Micro Fractures..... YAYYYYYYYYYY. Ill have to mention that next time it goes in... March for the Trans ⅚ Synchro TSB..

The latest cool thing the Bronco has lead me to was this Cool Cat! so, at least there is that

Great pics .... hey how would you rate your cargo rack? is it easy to install and remove? was it a good buy?

 

[Boreal]

Great pics .... hey how would you rate your cargo rack? is it easy to install and remove? was it a good buy?

Im gonna give it an 7.5/10. The overall quality of the unit is good, with the exception of the feet that bite the tire - which they made out of steel, probably due to the bend, where aluminum would be prone to cracking, SS should have been used.

As shown in the thread, if you need to setup the feet narrow in order to clear the 3rd brake light, you most likely need to add a spacer for a Rotopax to clear - I didn't find any other method suitable.

The grippy feet also don't seem to go wide enough on fatter setups. The 285/75 Falken WPs are noticeably thicker than the 285/75 OEM KO2s, and now the tray tends to sit on one side of the tire or the other...

It fits DV8 Traction boards perfectly, holds two 2Gal Rotos, and does exactly what I need it to do - apart from my gripes listed above.

 

[Boreal]

Ive never done any tinting before, but I did watch the guy do the windows on my old FXT and have a few YouTube videos to reference... I ordered some cheap amazon vinyl and gave a sunstrip an attempt (or two).

The sunstrip was fitted on the exterior of the glass, as you normally would to cut tint to size. I decided early on that with the ADAS camera is in a spot I didn't want to fuck with, it would be best to break up the sunstrip into two pieces. The amazon order was for two presized tint rolls (7.875"x59"), and its gotta be the shittiest material ive ever come across.. full of pit marks and creases. For $8/roll, whatever, im sure she'll need a new windshield in a year or two - where it'll have to be done again.

I sized the tint to maximize coverage for the harsh winter sun and to reduce glare from the S8 Lightbar (it was throwing a bit of light onto the dash that the windshield refracted).

That last photo is the actual POV that I have from my seat.

A couple days before that I managed to get in another Oil Change. All looked good, all went good. not much to report there. I had previously stocked up in Pennzoil Platinum D1G2, finally ran out and it looks like Shell is onto another formula for D1G3.

A few weeks back we had a cabin trip, got some lovely weather and some lovely encounters! The bronco has been proving quite hardy since im just racking up the miles as of late.

 

[marklio]

Can we get some more info on how you routed the wiring for your light bar? You mentioned that the "weather stripping pulls out of it's home to allow easy routing". Do you have any more details? Which part did you remove, and where did you route things? You also mentioned the wire fed through a pinhole in the roof seal. Where was that? Sorry. I just can't tell from the photos. Looks great though!

 

[Boreal]

Can we get some more info on how you routed the wiring for your light bar? You mentioned that the "weather stripping pulls out of it's home to allow easy routing". Do you have any more details? Which part did you remove, and where did you route things? You also mentioned the wire fed through a pinhole in the roof seal. Where was that? Sorry. I just can't tell from the photos. Looks great though!

The wiring is ran from the engine bay, through the firewall grommet into the cab, around the fuse panel and dash mounting brackets, up along the A pillar and into the trough of the roll cage. Keeping note of airbag deployment and routing accordingly.

The roof weatherstripping is double walled, if you feel around by the accessory mount, you will feel where it drops to a single layer - this is where I poked a hole through the stripping and fed the line through - siliconed the wire surrounding. All connections are soldered. If I ever have to take the bar off, it'll be an ordeal due to the permanence within the install methods - luckily BD is quite reliable and proven to be long lasting.

 

[Boreal]

This is more of a check in than anything else, not much to share photo wise. It’s been a few months slog of photo work and day job. For all you hockey fans out there, Go Jets Go!

Not much has been going on as far as the ride is concerned, we are simply racking up the miles. All is ask for is boring reliability and am very happy to have that.

Dealer called and most of my minor issues have been approved by warranty, MGV Cracking on Drivers Seat, MIC Micro Fractures on Clamshell and Driver Panel, Steering Wheel Airbag Cover Crack, and attempt #2 for the 7MT Trans Grind TSB. They’ll have the rig for a few days next week to address all the issues.

One of the larger dealer networks in town also dealt with all the golfball sized dents I received from Mother Nature this past summer. A few were on body lines across the hood, fenders and driver door. Well, they appear to have done an excellent job as I can’t find any evidence of the damages!

Recently Windshield #3 took a hit on the passenger side - it was only a matter of time. I drained the catch can, and did a tire rotation on the Falken WPs… gotta keep them happy for the long run. Oh, and got the Ford Performance Rear Diff cover on order with a fresh gasket.

Planning is well underway for the Fall of 2024’s big trip, Alaska 3.0! Myself, the Rig and and the self-built camper will be taking on the Last Frontier, yet again. During my previous adventures, I always had the rear seats folded to maximize storage space within the bronco. This renders the center console power supply (120v and usb ports) useless - and of course is dead weight/space.

With that said, I’ll be removing the rear seats, building a raised flat floor setup that contains storage, a space for a hideaway Nanuk/Pelican Case (for camp gear or things needing to be out of sight), and a subwoofer setup! I’m really looking forward to this project. Initially I thought that those Molle Panels were the way to go, but I am obviously not cool enough to rock them… and having had the roof on and off a bunch, I’d rather keep things out of prying fingers as much as possible.

The only physical trip prep the rig will need is brakes (rear pads for sure) and some fresh engine oil. Alongside the bronco prep will be some camper changes - possibly adding a second pair of batteries to double the capacity, as well as upgrading the suspension/leaf springs to a 3700lb capacity instead of the 2000lb capacity.

Following the trip will be a maintenance sesh to drain and replace all the fluids, install that rear diff cover and swap spark plugs (as I’ll have hit 100,000kms)

Till then, there’ll be loads of weekend adventures!

Bella Tax:

 

[NVCowboy]

4,006 flawless kilometres shouldn’t be celebratory, but it sure feels like it.

Pup and Peaks Trip Report is well underway. We’ve landed back home to an immense backlog of edits to tackle comprising of Trip, Drifting, Comedy Shows, Hockey, and a Portrait Sesh… plus the usual wildlife stuff that’s been shot throughout the year. Future Colby has a lot to do

What's your thoughts on the basket and fuel setup? Noticed your not running a tailgate reinforcement plate. I'm always looking for peace of mind that comes with more fuel.

 

[Boreal]

What's your thoughts on the basket and fuel setup? Noticed your not running a tailgate reinforcement plate. I'm always looking for peace of mind that comes with more fuel.

Are we in a time loop?? Back on Page 3 replying to ya. But no warping, no alignment issues, nothing to be concerned with after 50,000kms. I only carry fuel on trips, not day to day FWIW

Further up on page 7, I also touched base on my most recent thoughts.

I am a big fan of the overall usefulness of of the carrier, but not everyone has the ability to make spacers and such... even though @JcrOffroad ensures fitment, they don't guarantee fitment with all accessories, perhaps they should be selling some of my spacers

Documentation says that the tailgate is approx capable of 133lbs. Atleast I came across that somewhere.

OEM Sas Wheel weight Is approx. 87lbs. I’m on OEM 33’s…. So there will be some weight savings there…

The JCR Rack is about 20lbs. The DV8 Trax, Rotopax (Empty) and mounts are negligible ~5lbs.

Fuelled up Pax are 15lbs (15L).

87+40lbs (wet) and you are right at the limit of 130lbs.

I mostly run with the Pax empty to minimize the weight… one day ill swap the bumpers and suspension out to build everything up properly

Im gonna give it an 7.5/10. The overall quality of the unit is good, with the exception of the feet that bite the tire - which they made out of steel, probably due to the bend, where aluminum would be prone to cracking, SS should have been used.

As shown in the thread, if you need to setup the feet narrow in order to clear the 3rd brake light, you most likely need to add a spacer for a Rotopax to clear - I didn't find any other method suitable.

The grippy feet also don't seem to go wide enough on fatter setups. The 285/75 Falken WPs are noticeably thicker than the 285/75 OEM KO2s, and now the tray tends to sit on one side of the tire or the other...

It fits DV8 Traction boards perfectly, holds two 2Gal Rotos, and does exactly what I need it to do - apart from my gripes listed above.

 

[Boreal]

Here's a video enroute to the cabin on a night drive showing the forward facing lights as I stage them. Approx 65,000 lumens of auxiliary output.

The long video simply has an additional 10 minutes of night cruising (at 2x speed)

Short Video:


Long Video:

 

[NVCowboy]

Are we in a time loop?? Back on Page 3 replying to ya. But no warping, no alignment issues, nothing to be concerned with after 50,000kms. I only carry fuel on trips, not day to day FWIW

Further up on page 7, I also touched base on my most recent thoughts.

I am a big fan of the overall usefulness of of the carrier, but not everyone has the ability to make spacers and such... even though @JcrOffroad ensures fitment, they don't guarantee fitment with all accessories, perhaps they should be selling some of my spacers

Time loop indeed. I’ve started typing posts to long term threads, read back a bit and figured out I already said what I was going to say. I didn’t read back far enough this time, and I missed this one. Graveyard shift has unintended but predictable consequences sometimes. Sorry about that.

 

[Boreal]

@NVCowboy Allllll Good! No worries at all! I took a look at the gas strut mount too, after seeing that WarHorse Brace. There doesn’t appear to be any extra stresses/bends down low either.

Now, a small update. The rig was taken in for TSB 22-2371, attempt #2. As well as Roof, driver horn/airbag, and driver lower seat cushion replacement - all for cracking in the materials.

They confirmed that the TSB round 2 went well, but upon test drive the Slave Cylinder failed. It’ll be parked, yet again, for a few weeks till parts arrive. (I griefed about it over in the Grinding thread) @Ford Motor Company has yet to address any concern along the way with the various factory faults on this build, I’m glad that I now have to time my dealer appts to be expecting the rig to be down 3-4 weeks when another part inevitably fails… ***insert Bernie yet again asking for support and overnight parts from Japan memes here*** atleast this time the fuel line has not failed, yet. And it didn’t require a tow from ford roadside that subsequently roars the transfercase. I digress. The repair will be underway in a few weeks, then they can continue on the rest of the warranty work. Hopefully Roof 2, Seat 2, Trans TSB 2 and CSC 2 all hold fast. This rig will soon be full of 2024 upgrades, whether I like it or not apparently.

In other news, plans for the rear cargo build are well underway. I’ve ordered Kit 14 from @plugnplaykits, this contains the T Harness, a Kicker 200.4 and an LC2i Pr(LOC). From there I intended to reuse my Hifonics Brutus BRZ1200.1D, this amp started life by powering a pair of Audioque 15’s that shook windows out of the ol’ van and more recently drove a Focal E30KX K2 in the FXT.

I always do this dance where I try to find room for an 8”, realize that it’s not going to be enough (Denial). Think about two 8’s for the size benefit, recognize that they won’t play that low (Anger). Convince myself to move up to a 10” (Bargaining). Inevitably decide that it’s not going to hold the power that I aim for(Depression)… and finally settle on a 12”, that is the best of all worlds (Acceptance).

So, I’ll be designing cargo space/system around the integration of the sub box and amp rack that’ll contain the LC2i Pro, the Focal E30KX K2 (800w, DVC 4OHM, Wired in Parallel down to 2OHM) and the Hifonics 1200w Amp (down to 900W @ 2OHMs, and further detuned for safety). At the moment, the sub will be down firing in order for it to be hidden from prying fingers and the elements. The amps will be held within the 8-9” tall floor storage cavity for the same reasons.

Whenever the rig returns, first step is to tear the seats out.

This’ll be a fun project for the spring/summer!

 

[NVCowboy]

Damn. Sorry to see you're the poster child for all things that can go wrong with a Ford Bronco. I'm hoping that I fell into a late 22 sweet spot where bugs were worked out and before stupid price increases went into affect.

 

[Boreal]

Damn. Sorry to see you're the poster child for all things that can go wrong with a Ford Bronco. I'm hoping that I fell into a late 22 sweet spot where bugs were worked out and before stupid price increases went into affect.

At the end of the day, it’s only a vehicle. there are far better things worth getting worked up over. It is real sad to see how many problems there are after “Quality is Job 1”, a joke even… the 21 Base that I leased before this BL had wires that weren’t crimped properly in its engine harness, it had an issue with the T-Case/Front Axle Disconnect (in the cold, 2H, it would try to engage the front axle or drop into 4H without command)…

I hope yours proves to be fault-free for a long time!

 

[Dialtone]

Should work a treat!

You get colder temps than i'll ever get, but those thread tapes have a questionable lifespan in my experience. Once I started using the tried and true Indian Head Shellac on my modern cars the issues went away. This is OG stuff that was the best available in the 60's and an old hotrodder secret weapon to have in your trunk tool kit.

That is a flashback to my youth. Didn't know it was still on the market. Bug squeezin's.

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