My gratuitous and unneccessary on-board air setup

[1979]

The setup includes a Schrader valve in each wheel well. I use a short, lightweight whip to connect the valve stem at each wheel. The tubing is run along the frame and the system allows inflating and deflating and then equalizing pressure to all 4 tires at the same time. Previously I had been using a 4 tire inflation/deflation hose setup that I put together but it takes up a lot of space, and can be annoying to deal with.

This was put together using the parts list from the Wifey On-Board Air System currently sold by Rago Fabrications. The system itself is nothing special or proprietary and is easily pieced together with fittings and parts from Amazon or any other vendor. Rago's kit is all-inclusive and really nice but it can be put together for a little cheaper with some nicer components. I also had some of the parts already which offset a big chunk of the cost.

I splurged on a few items and still came in overall a little cheaper than the kit. If you're looking to save money, different chucks and manifold could easily get you under $300. I have a significant amount of tubing left too so careful measuring and ordering the right amount could save even more.

I mounted the schrader valves in existing clip holes in the fender liner and did have to enlarge the hole on the bracket. This was the only permanent modification I had to make. There's an external universal air chuck mounted to a 3d printed bracket that I attached to a Mountains to Metal antenna mount on the tailgate. The ARB twin compressor is mounted to an American Adventure Labs mount inside. The manifold is attached to an existing bolt on the roll bar.

Here's photos of where the Schrader valves are mounted. It's the same left and right. The non-Raptor fender liners may be mounted differently, I'm not sure. I simply removed an existing clip and enlarged the hole to fit the valve. It works very well. I used red caps from 41.22 Products to easily locate them when the wheel wells are covered in mud.

Here's the external universal coupler.

And here's the manifold setup itself.

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[PWillette]

Nicely done sir! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Brian_B]

That was a lot of work - looks nice!

 

[2door]

That’s a killer setup!
Now you can inflate duck balloons for every Jeep owner you meet on trails.

 

[GnormalGnome]

Gratuitous?


Unnecessary?


Do I suddenly want to do something similar?
You can bet your bottom dollar that I do!


Nice job!

 

[Brian_B]

Gratuitous?


Unnecessary?


Do I suddenly want to do something similar?
You can bet your bottom dollar that I do!


Nice job!

Totally agree, and wish I had thought of it. Using 4 short whips rather than trying to untangle Medusa's deadlocks makes a 4-tire air setup actually enticing.

 

[1979]

Totally agree, and wish I had thought of it. Using 4 short whips rather than trying to untangle Medusa's deadlocks makes a 4-tire air setup actually enticing.

This was the number one motivation for doing this. The long, heavy hose that gets muddy af and sucks to try to wrap up and store was too annoying to keep dealing with.

The 4 hose whips wrap up and store nicely and hardly weigh anything.

 

[swamp2]

Cool set up, but a lot of install work.

Lets race, perhaps air down and air up, including hose tasks .

I have a 10 lb CO2 tank in the rear on a shelf.

I run one long 400 psi rated hose to each wheel sequentially. I looked for a reel solution, as I do hate uncoiling and recoiling the hose, but none support this pressure. Since I cheaped out a bit and built my own tank, internal siphon (so tank can run horizontal) and regulator, it only supports 300 psi, not the 400 you get from Power Tanks. But topping everything off with Monster Valves and this thing inflates (and deflates) FAST. 15->35 psi in about 20 seconds.

 

[1979]

Cool set up, but a lot of install work.

Lets race, perhaps air down and air up, including hose tasks .

I have a 10 lb CO2 tank in the rear on a shelf.

I run one long 400 psi rated hose to each wheel sequentially. I looked for a reel solution, as I do hate uncoiling and recoiling the hose, but none support this pressure. Since I cheaped out a bit and built my own tank, internal siphon (so tank can run horizontal) and regulator, it only supports 300 psi, not the 400 you get from Power Tanks. But topping everything off with Monster Valves and this thing inflates (and deflates) FAST. 15->35 psi in about 20 seconds.

Powertanks are cool. I have no interest having one taking up my cargo space. Speed was not a priority when choosing this setup. Getting rid of the annoying hose system was. I can’t do that with the power tank.

Install was about 90 mins. Much less if I had to do it a second time. A large portion of that was just deciding the layout and where to route the tubing.

 

[5GENIDN]

The setup includes a Schrader valve in each wheel well. I use a short, lightweight whip to connect the valve stem at each wheel. The tubing is run along the frame and the system allows inflating and deflating and then equalizing pressure to all 4 tires at the same time. Previously I had been using a 4 tire inflation/deflation hose setup that I put together but it takes up a lot of space, and can be annoying to deal with.

This was put together using the parts list from the Wifey On-Board Air System currently sold by Rago Fabrications. The system itself is nothing special or proprietary and is easily pieced together with fittings and parts from Amazon or any other vendor. Rago's kit is all-inclusive and really nice but it can be put together for a little cheaper with some nicer components. I also had some of the parts already which offset a big chunk of the cost.

I splurged on a few items and still came in overall a little cheaper than the kit. If you're looking to save money, different chucks and manifold could easily get you under $300. I have a significant amount of tubing left too so careful measuring and ordering the right amount could save even more.

I mounted the schrader valves in existing clip holes in the fender liner and did have to enlarge the hole on the bracket. This was the only permanent modification I had to make. There's an external universal air chuck mounted to a 3d printed bracket that I attached to a Mountains to Metal antenna mount on the tailgate. The ARB twin compressor is mounted to an American Adventure Labs mount inside. The manifold is attached to an existing bolt on the roll bar.

Here's photos of where the Schrader valves are mounted. It's the same left and right. The non-Raptor fender liners may be mounted differently, I'm not sure. I simply removed an existing clip and enlarged the hole to fit the valve. It works very well. I used red caps from 41.22 Products to easily locate them when the wheel wells are covered in mud.

Here's the external universal coupler.

And here's the manifold setup itself.

Nice! I am in the middle of doing the same thing.... figured 4 short whips would be a lot easier to care for and store than a long tangle of hose. I am running the ARB APP controlled system. Little frustrated that they choked it down to 1/8 inch when everything else was/is 1/4 inch... BUT should be painless.... plug it in for air up or down and walk away... phone tells me when it is done and all 4 tires will be at the exact same pressure.

 

[swamp2]

Powertanks are cool. I have no interest having one taking up my cargo space. Speed was not a priority when choosing this setup. Getting rid of the annoying hose system was. I can’t do that with the power tank.

Install was about 90 mins. Much less if I had to do it a second time. A large portion of that was just deciding the layout and where to route the tubing.

Nah, I gotcha, just messing with you. A compressor wasn't for me.

Your install, complete, with compressor, wiring, all hose, fittings and routing work on frame and each fender well was 90 minutes? Honestly, don't buy that...

Also, anything you do with hose install with a compressor you can do with CO2.

 

[1979]

Nah, I gotcha, just messing with you. A compressor wasn't for me.

Your install, complete, with compressor, wiring, all hose, fittings and routing work on frame and each fender well was 90 minutes? Honestly, don't buy that...

Also, anything you do with hose install with a compressor you can do with CO2.

Running air lines and assembling the manifold took about 90 minutes and again, a large chunk of that time was spent just deciding what to do. It’s all push to connect fittings. Nothing special, time consuming, or complex. The compressor itself has been mounted with a standard coupler for while now but It’s a quick and very easy installation.

2 hours total including the compressor. Does that make you feel better?

 

[swamp2]

2 hours total including the compressor. Does that make you feel better?

It's not about me feeling anything...

I still call BS on the updated 2 hr claim. I'm not a bad wrench at all and I can barely get anything done in 2 hrs. Just yesterday it took me 2 1/2 to replace my damaged antenna cable from in the trans tunnel to the mount on the drivers side mirror. That was also hand prepping the RF cable, soldering and crimping it. I also did a small bit of VSWR testing and put away all my tools...

Did you pull wiring from the engine bay to the compressor? That in itself is some disassembly work and getting the wire through the firewall sucks.

How do you get the air tubing from inside the truck to outside? Is that waterproof?

How is the tubing secured to the vehicle? Just a ton of zip ties?

I'm guessing no fender liner removal was required? Those are a bitch to remove and not fast, nor are they fast to reinstall.

 

[1979]

It's not about me feeling anything...

I still call BS on the updated 2 hr claim. I'm not a bad wrench at all and I can barely get anything done in 2 hrs. Just yesterday it took me 2 1/2 to replace my damaged antenna cable from in the trans tunnel to the mount on the drivers side mirror. That was also hand prepping the RF cable, soldering and crimping it. I also did a small bit of VSWR testing and put away all my tools...

Did you pull wiring from the engine bay to the compressor? That in itself is some disassembly work and getting the wire through the firewall sucks.

How do you get the air tubing from inside the truck to outside? Is that waterproof?

How is the tubing secured to the vehicle? Just a ton of zip ties?

I'm guessing no fender liner removal was required? Those are a bitch to remove and not fast, nor are they fast to reinstall.

How long should I say it took? At the end of the day, the main goal of this post is definitely to make sure swamp2 agrees with the time I’m claiming it took to install. I think the quickest way to get that done is for you to just let me know how long it took and I’ll agree.

I’ll answer all your questions so can you accurately calculate.

The compressor wiring is run through the firewall. The only disassembly required is removing the dead pedal, sill trim, the flap that covers the space between the seats and the cargo floor, and the right side cargo trim. It all just snaps in. I’m not sure if you’ve installed one of these before but I’ve done it a few times now and there’s nothing to it.

The tubing is run through an existing grommet in the floor. Remove the 4 bolts and the cargo floor comes out. It’s then split and run along the frame and zip tied to the existing wire harness that runs front to back. It uses push to connect fittings.

No, the fender liners do not need to be removed. There’s plenty of room to get your hands back there to insert the schrader valve with them installed.

I’m don’t know what you think takes a long time here but again, let me know how long you think it took and I’ll just agree so that we can move on.

 

[swamp2]

How long should I say it took? At the end of the day, the main goal of this post is definitely to make sure swamp2 agrees with the time I’m claiming it took to install. I think the quickest way to get that done is for you to just let me know how long it took and I’ll agree.

I’ll answer all your questions so can you accurately calculate.

The compressor wiring is run through the firewall. The only disassembly required is removing the dead pedal, sill trim, the flap that covers the space between the seats and the cargo floor, and the right side cargo trim. It all just snaps in. I’m not sure if you’ve installed one of these before but I’ve done it a few times now and there’s nothing to it.

The tubing is run through an existing grommet in the floor. Remove the 4 bolts and the cargo floor comes out. It’s then split and run along the frame and zip tied to the existing wire harness that runs front to back. It uses push to connect fittings.

No, the fender liners do not need to be removed. There’s plenty of room to get your hands back there to insert the schrader valve with them installed.

I’m don’t know what you think takes a long time here but again, let me know how long you think it took and I’ll just agree so that we can move on.

Thanks for answering questions. That should be particularly useful for those wishing to leverage your install in theirs.

You already admitted your first estimate was an understatement by 1/3rd.

I'm not trying to be a PITA, I'm happy to end this thread of the discussion.

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