Gifting our TC

Ditto to the other comments re: Tigers. Like TC's they don't fit the mold and share more commonalities with TC's than any other group. As long as the mods let it roll, please continue to let it roll. Tiger4x4 is as big a contributer here as anyone, and if we can lasso you (Diplostrat) into sticking around and posting we'd all be the wiser for it. Please start a thread at some point on your rig. I really want to hear more about the electrics; your plan on big charging via truck mimics the method I have chosen as well. I have a second 150a alternator on my engine, hooked up to nothing so far...but it's future is dedicated to nothing but TC charging. Looking forward to learning more from you and Steve.

Joe - sorry to digress again!

3 tons wrote:


Well, I for one (and I'm quite sure a majority) hope you'll keep on posting here.

3 tons

Thank you.

DiploStrat wrote:
Steve,

Will indeed start a new thread, somewhere. (Some in this forum tend to be unhappy with Tiger threads.)

Well, I for one (and I'm quite sure a majority) hope you'll keep on posting here. We have a 'big tent', share in the same joys, and can only benefit from your interesting post! BTW, that is one flat awesome looking Tiger you've got there!!

Best Regards,

3 tons

Does $2500 in tires, $6000 in new ATS transmission, new U-joints/carrier bearing/balanced driveshaft, and a new nearly 2K radiator count? All in the last 4 weeks or so? Nobody else is getting any gifts including myself now?!?!?!?!

A nice covered place to sleep, once I clear it out and tear down the makeshift second story someone built in there.

Steve,

Will indeed start a new thread, somewhere. (Some in this forum tend to be unhappy with Tiger threads.)

Apropos of your electrical posts, here is an interesting thread about the installation of a new C-TEK system into a rather old Tiger van. Lots of pictures and discussion. http://tigerowners.freeforums.org/viewtopic.php?f=218&t=523

Because of where we lived, Europe has always been "fly-over" country for us; something we want to change. Your guide to French Aires is most interesting. We have stopped for lunch in them and found them excellent. Wish we had them in the States.

Won't know until we actually see the beast, but I suspect that our Magnum inverter/charger is 50/60Hz. A lifetime in the Third World has given us a basement full of step down transformers. The Magnum advertises the ability to current limit so as not to blow fuses when plugged into 15A circuits. These folks, friends of ours, use a step down transformer quite successfully: http://www.travelin-tortuga.com/Travelin-Tortuga/Home_Page.html

So our Christmas gift to ourselves is our new Tiger! See you on the road.

Also, possibly another gift for the camper, or maybe for us - I'm ordering the 2014 book of French Aires - municipal campgrounds / overnight parking areas in villages - closer to staying in Walmart car parks than in a normal commercial campground - good for quick overnight stops when travelling. Got to start getting stuff to prepare for next year's travels.


Diplostrat - I think everyone would be interested to hear more about your new camper - maybe you could start another thread about it to save us hijacking this one.

One last point though:

DiploStrat wrote:
As close to total independence from shore power as possible, to allow extended operation in Europe without worrying about transformers.

Given the weather in Europe I will take whatever electricity I can get, so don't rule out a transformer. Electrical tools on construction sites (so get wet) are generally 110v over here - I don't know how sensitive your electrics will be to 115v at 60Hz v. 110v at 50Hz, but if not then < $150 should get you a small transformer as used on construction sites, you could then create an adapter cable to run your camper. Outside of summer we usually stay in campgrounds with electricity meaning we can run the fridge / small electric heater / computers / etc. off their electricity.

Also, devices like computer power supplies can often take anything from 100v to 250v.

Steve.

bka0721 wrote:

DiploStrat wrote:
Steve,
-- A large enough battery bank to run an air conditioner. (The American south is soggy. :))

We take delivery this month and will begin to collect some real world data. Keep yer fingers crossed!

You're not seriously planning on running an Air Conditioner off of a battery bank? I can run one off my battery bank, for a short period of time (as witnessed by one of the TC Moderators), but have you put pencil to paper and determined how big a bank of batteries you will need to run one, for say 2 to 4 hours? After you do that, how do you plan on bringing the S.O.C. back up? If you say, solar panels, where are you going to mount them and store them? If you say you will charge them up by shore power, why not use shore power to begin with, or alternator how long will you run your engine? I am not doubting you, I am just curious in how you plan to solve this issue.

b

Long/short answer(s) ;)

Actually, I have spent a lot of time with a pencil on this and the results are in the design of Ndeke Luka. Sadly, it is now too late in the year to see if I got the answer right. :( But it goes like this:

-- Small camper, under 100 cubic feet.
-- Small air conditioner, around 5k BTU.
-- Big insulation on all four sides and dual pane windows.
-- Double roof (solar panels).
-- 600Ah battery bank = 300Ah usable
-- 500w solar.
-- 250A alternator with over 150A charge rate to the batteries.
-- 2800w inverter/charger to handle air conditioner starting loads. (With transfer switch and 100A charge rate.)

If all goes well, this gives grossly two days of autonomy at 150Ah per day.

If the air conditioner draws 10Ah, then you have five to ten hours.

At 150Ah charge from the alternator, then a recharge should work out to about two hours of bulk charge.

500w of solar should harvest about 100Ah per day.

Real world numbers? Sorry, not yet. Earthroamer and Roadtrek claim numbers like these; I will simply have to wait for next summer.

However, there is nothing in my design that precludes simply opening a window and turning on the Fantastic Fan if all my numbers are wrong. (And I do have a shore power cable for use in the U.S.!) :W

Hope this is helpful.

DiploStrat wrote:
Steve,
-- A large enough battery bank to run an air conditioner. (The American south is soggy. :))

We take delivery this month and will begin to collect some real world data. Keep yer fingers crossed!

You're not seriously planning on running an Air Conditioner off of a battery bank? I can run one off my battery bank, for a short period of time (as witnessed by one of the TC Moderators), but have you put pencil to paper and determined how big a bank of batteries you will need to run one, for say 2 to 4 hours? After you do that, how do you plan on bringing the S.O.C. back up? If you say, solar panels, where are you going to mount them and store them? If you say you will charge them up by shore power, why not use shore power to begin with, or alternator how long will you run your engine? I am not doubting you, I am just curious in how you plan to solve this issue.

b

Steve,

Spent months wrestling with battery charging issues. Looked at many different ideas before I was tipped to Sterling Products by a former Tiger owner, Rob Blackwell. (http://www.whiteacorn.com/vehicle/rtw/electricalpart1) He is using two Sterling B2B units on his Unimog.

Another Tiger owner just retrofitted two CTEK products into his old Tiger GT. (http://tigerowners.freeforums.org/preliminary-results-alternator-inverter-charging-t518.html) He and I had some great crossed wires in previous exchanges, but he seems to have things working the way he wants.

My major goals were:

-- As close to total independence from shore power as possible, to allow extended operation in Europe without worrying about transformers.

-- Elimination of genset to gain space and avoid noise issues while still assuring that I could run the induction stovetop and microwave, even with the batteries down.

-- A large enough battery bank to run an air conditioner. (The American south is soggy. :))

We take delivery this month and will begin to collect some real world data. Keep yer fingers crossed!