Overview of the M185A3
I plan to use the truck primarily as a mobile computer networking center with the additional use of functioning as emergency relief. The idea for the networking setup is to be able to drive just about anywhere and instantly have a computer network setup to play video games with a bunch of people. Using some Linux scripting, a custom router, a portable server, and my cell phone it is even capable of having an internet connection. Eventually John and I plan to have all of the internet acquisition function automatically and add the ability to be a mean War Driving machine.
As far as supporting the needs of 10 to 12 people during the heat of a LAN party is concerned,the truck so far is doing well. We’ve installed 16 Ethernet jacks throughout the inside of the box as well as 4 jacks on the outside. Using a Cisco switch with VLANs it is possible to reassign the ports to operate on different networks (secure and insecure comes to mind) as well as connecting to a WiFi router that can have multiple SSIDs.
Power for the rig comes from a salvaged 900 Watt APC uninterpretable power supply connected to two strings of 3 115Ahr deep cycle batteries (total of 6 batteries = 345Ahr@24V). The inverter is normally powered by a standard RV hookup located on the front driver’s side of the box (120V household power) but it can also be run off of the Deuce’s 60 Amp alternator. After some testing I found that I would get about 50 Amps from the alternator while idling, which is enough to power the inverter at max load (around 30 Amps) with enough power left over to charge the battery bank at the same time (around 20 Amps). We have a battery isolator connected off of the starter that allows the alternator to charge the drive batteries and the luxury load batteries at the same time without damaging or discharging them. I have a disconnect switch on the dashboard next to a 60 Amp Ammeter so that I can select between charging or not charging the rear battery bank. Once the weather clears up I need to replace the belts on the engine because they are in bad shape and squeal whenever I recharge the batteries.
The orange glowing switch on the left toggles the connection between the inverter and the umbilical. If it is in the up position it is disconnected from the RV plug on the outside and instead connected to the small blue “starter” inverter on the right. If it is in the down position it is drawing power from the RV plug. It glows orange whenever there is any source of power leading into the inverter. The two jacks next to the switch are connected directly to the RV plug so that I can run loads that draw more power than the inverter can put out (such as vacuum cleaners or even an AC unit)
The body of the Deuce seems to be in really good shape. I got lucky and fount a 1985 Deuce, so there aren’t nearly as many signs of age as their usually are on these trucks. There were a few spots that had surface rust but those were easy enough to clean up. The biggest problem is on the front passenger side of the box there are some rust strips that go clean through the box. I think there might also be something on the roof in that corner as water seems to seep in from the top and drip down to the floor. The floorboards were rotted in that one section when we got the truck. This spring we are going to pull some of the shelve/desk units out so that we can working on cleaning that mess up.
All of the stock electrical lines seem to work, though there is a ground fault issue on the driver’s side power strip. It works adequately; we just can’t connect the truck to a GFI outlet. I’ve replaced the 5 interior lights with 3 Watt LEDs to save on power. I’ll probably upgrade them once LED technology gets a little better (and cheaper) but they work well enough for now. It’s like bright moon light. The 24V lights also work, though we hardly ever have the power breaker thrown off to use them. We plan to mount a few halogen lights around the outside of the box so that we can have some area lights for when we use the truck at night.
You can probably figure out that all of this gear lends itself well to helping out in emergency situations, like when a storm comes through and knocks out power to an area. Eventually I plan on buying a 3kw pure sine wave inverter so that refrigerators can be run off of battery power, but that is a bit down the road. John and I have a lot more plans for this truck.
The new Ammeter and switch on the dashboard
The front passenger side network jack
The rear passenger side power jack.
Rear Center Network Jack
The Breaker Boxes and Raceways
The front driver's side electrical sockets and umbilical
The engine and the two tubes that lead to the Ammeter and Switch
The Battery Isolator connected to the Starter and Alternator