Graham and Ann's Great Adventures, when not travelling our beautiful country we are sharing videos on how to modify and improve your caravan as well as fixing some of the problems that may occur on your journey.
That’s strange, the Backjack was approximately 8 Kg heavier than the old manual jack…not sure why it would increase your tow ball weight by more than double…
I like your improvements Graham, thank you for sharing. I've fitted a Blackjack to our 18.6 BASE. I have the wiring loom and switch that you've used in this video and plan to wire it like yours. Where did you connect the negative wire in your loom? Also, I'm planning on adding an Anderson plug under the area of the tunnel boot to power our 45 litre fridge when camped up. I put the fridge under the van. Any ideas where to pick up a power lead from the BASE?
Hi Stephen, good to hear from you, I’m presuming you have the same Enerdrive Power Board system as mine. On the video where I added the additional fuse under the seat, you will find the neutral bar next to the existing fuses, plenty of spare terminals to connect too..just unclip the clear plastic cover by squeezing the ends in to access the Silver bar. For your additional Anderson Plug for the fridge, you could add another circuit where I have added the Black Jack circuit in the same way and run a “8 B&S “ cable through the chassis channel with the Black Jack circuit, fit a separate 30amp fuse for cable protection. Don’t forget to make good tight connections and label everything for future reference. Hope that helps, any more questions, just send me another message. Cheers Graham
@@grahambelby9117 Yes Graham, the same Enerdrive power Board system. Thanks heaps for the help. Very much appreciated. Looking forward to your next videos. Take care. Cheers Steve.
We have only done lightly shrubby tracks, and so far so good, wash the van with the special VANTEC wash/ polish cleaner and it has come up like new with no marks…
The VANTEC is more of a Sun/ weather protection so you don’t have to annually polish the Fibreglass. I just looked up the Bushrwapz, and being a wrap it would probably give you more protection from scratches. It is still important to protect all the fibreglass that is exposed to the Sun/ weather including the roof. The VANTEC cost us $2K when we did it 2 1/2 years ago, and that includes the application. Hope that’s some help Cheers Graham
@@grahambelby9117 cheers mate, thats the challenge , working out which one to go with as they both do slightly different things, maybe i will put couple more solar panels on hey and they will sort the roof issue out....
Have you had any issues with your Sizzler BBQ? I have one and I have found it terrible : - It is had to ignite; very poor even heat distribution; and very hard o control the temperature. I would be interested in your comments. Maybe, I have just got a lemon.
Hi John Will answer based on our experience; We had problems controlling the heat initially, when I had a gas technician out fixing our Combo Room/ Water heater he checked the gas regulator at the gas bottles and found it was never set correctly from the factory, once set I now had good control and was so much happier with the performance of our Sizzler, so possibly your gas regulator may require adjusting, they use a special meter to set it correctly. I do find it takes usually 3 clicks of the ignition for it to initially fire up. Also be careful not to kink the gas inlet hose. It’s a fairly long hose and I have done that on a few occasions from when I turn it 90deg to slide it in and out of the tunnel boot. The left side of the plate is hotter by design, but I am use to that and it works for us. We had a Baby Q in our previous van and I could never get the plate hot enough to cook a good steak. Finally; If none of those ideas work, you could reach out to Sizzler’s main office in Sydney, I’m sure they would want to assist you. Hope that is of some assistance, cheers Graham
Thanks for your reply. I will look at our regulator to see it that makes a difference. It is certainly a well made unit, if only I can get it to perform.
Hi Graham, have you done a video on the setup of your Landcruiser? I recall you mentioning a suspension upgrade - what was the key driver of that upgrade?
Gidday Peter, yes I did do a vid on Car & Caravan set up in February 22 entitled; “Zone RV 20.6 Base Touring set up.” Covers all the mods to the van and the cruiser. The Land Cruiser only has a modest payload of 610 Kg, once you add the tow ball weight from the van (320Kg) + Bull bar, extra battery and the two of us, there is nothing left for gear in the back, hence a 300 Kg upgrade was required to stay legal. Cheers Graham…
We have found the new heating system such an improvement, especially the hot water in winter where we use to be limited to short showers even when to mains supply.
I was quite impressed by the Zones when I’ve been looking at them and some friends purchased one which we got to have a good gander at. However I’ve nicknamed them ‘The Asylum’ because of that horrible clinical white interior. Why can’t / don’t Zone offer any colour choices for inside to tone down the glare of the white?? It’s the only thing stopping me from buying one - well that and the fact I’m not sure what would happen in the case of a small ding (eg tree damage to a panel) given that those panels are ‘glued’ to the internal cupboard furnishings etc.
Yes, they are very white and a little clinical at first sight, but we look at it more like a blank canvas where we can splash our own colours around, bedspread, pillows, wall pics etc. As for repairs, the fibreglass can easily be repaired if you damage it, we have seen first hand on other vans, a few holes before and after, and you wouldn’t be able to pick it. The furniture glued to the body gives additional integrity and strength to the whole van. We love our van, sometimes it comes down to personal preference. Thanks for viewing and your thoughts. Cheers Graham & Ann
Awesome as usual thanks Graham. We installed the same lock box upside down as i think the dust cover could vibrate loose and hang down on the corro. ZPP72
Congratulations Rhys and Marsha Gerkhe on organising another fantastic muster!!! I’m loving my new BOS legs on our van. Looking forward to next years 🏕️🔥🍾🥂
Thanks for producing such a wonderful story of the muster Graham. We were wrapped to see it as we are currently in WA. Missed not being there this year. Looked absolutely fantastic. Cheers Pete and Tan 💫⭐️👍🏻
Thanks, we saw you both the other day with lifestyle pioneers in Lucky Bay WA. The Zone get together was a great weekend with so many nice people, terrific information in a beautiful setting, it was a pleasure to film and get the drone up. Cheers Graham & Ann
Was that on You Tube? Must have been on our Lucky Bay, Cape Le Grand Episode Graham, yes we had a wonderful time together🤗 Once again - we so enjoyed your video. Many thanks 💫
Fyi using a socket extension affects your torque figure. Why dont you use a shorter extension bar? Sorry to hear you lost your mate. 😢 Thanks for sharing
Graham, you are going to have to stop putting out these videos. They're costing me money! In truth, I've been planning to do this myself, and now with this excellent "how to" video I can go ahead with confidence. I nervously await your next upgrade suggestions.
Hi Graham & Ann, so sorry to hear of your loss. Shadow was not only your great mate, but also a star in his own right. I have no doubt you gave him an amazing 14 years of love and memories. Hopefully we see you guys again one day in the future. Kindest regards Gary & Tanya