On Board Air Install 2022 F350 - need help saving $

[Yoda]

Was a really good day.
Horns are installed


Brackets attached to U-bolts over the frame - no drilling. Horns are fairly well protected here. The mudflaps and running board keep the area pretty clean. I do have covers on the front of the horns too. I plan to run the air line against the frame

[Yoda]

Now on to the air tank Its a Vixen Air VXT4100 4 Gallon Steel Air Tank. I got it here with a coupon https://www.hookedontronics.com/ . Tank specifications here https://www.hookedontronics.com/show...00&cat1=602005

Please look closely at the picture as I need advice in creating mounting brackets.



The tank is being held in temporarily by the green strap, feet first with the two side ports down. There are no other ports on the other side. All ports are accessible in this orientation.


The legs extend beyond the cross bar of the spare tire carrier. I was thinking of using 1.5" wide flat bar and bolt it flat to that cross bar on the back side. This would move it back a bit to have the tank legs flush with the back of the spare tire cross brace. Which is good as it would give room for some isolation padding to reduce and vibration from the air compressor.

Is 3/16" thick flat stock rigid enough or should I go 1/4". The exposed leg us about 1.25" wide (1.5" full width) Cross member is 2" deep I can get the 3/16 in thick in 1.25 wide, or go 1.5" width 1/4" thick and cut a slight notch to clear the spire tire base plate so it would be straight

I have 1/4" grade 8 bolts available. or should I get some 3/8" bolts.

If you look at the first tank picture the two round holes in the cross member bottom would allow me to drill and bolt through the back face as I can get the bolt in and sticking out and get a wrench on the head to hold it through the hole during tightening.

Thoughts?

Thanks
Keith

[Jlawles2]

What's the orientation of the feet, up?

Can you take 2 pcs of 2x2 angle iron drilled to match the feet, then run that over the top of the frame rail and use flat bar on the bottom of the rail with bolts up to the angle clamping the rail?

If the feet point at the rail, then use 3/16 flat stock drilled to match the feet holes, then run it long so that it hangs below the rail. Then with another piece of flat stock and some bolts strap it to the frame. The flat plates shown below are used to sandwich the frame for mounting a lift pump. Figure 8 on page 10 shows the bracket installed, bit hard to make out but it's there. https://airdogliftpumps.s3.amazonaws...100-FP-150.pdf Figure 7 here is a bit clearer https://airdogliftpumps.s3.amazonaws...100-FP-150.pdf



My only other alternative idea would be to make a set of plastic saddles and U-bolt it straight to the rail.

[Yoda]

Jlawles2 Joseph the tank is on its side. The feet or tank legs are resting on top of the spare tire cross member and pushed as far back as possible. In the last picture in post # 47 you can see the bottom of the tank feet. There are two 3/8" holes there.


Maybe these picture will help. The tank is sitting upright on the feet/stand in the small photo on the work bench. the side ports are facing away. so the side with the lettering is up against the bed (post 47). The area in is where the tan is sitting on its side. The tank feet are extending over the top of cross rail towards the rear of the truck . In the pictures the feet cam be seen extending over and just outside of the center tire carrier frame near where the round holes are. I was going to use the flat bar stock attached to the tank feet bottom, and extend it down the inside face of the cross member and through bolt that back face as I can use the holes to get the bolts in. Nothing can be attached to the bottom of that cross member as that is where the tire sits when in the up position.

Hopefully this makes sense, or did I just make it worse

Thanks
Keith

[Jlawles2]

Better sense now.

OK. New idea, figure out how the tire winch support plate is held up there, my guess is a couple of bolts up through the offending crossmember. 2x2 or 2x3 angle iron drilled to use the bolts holding the plate in place, drill holes in the other flange of the angle to possibly new holes in the tank feet.

If you are not opposed to punching holes in the cross member for the tire, you could flat stock up from that to the tank feet.

[Yoda]

Better sense now.

OK. New idea, figure out how the tire winch support plate is held up there, my guess is a couple of bolts up through the offending crossmember. 2x2 or 2x3 angle iron drilled to use the bolts holding the plate in place, drill holes in the other flange of the angle to possibly new holes in the tank feet.

If you are not opposed to punching holes in the cross member for the tire, you could flat stock up from that to the tank feet.

Interesting thought on the spare tire carrier being bolted in. However from what I can see its all welded in place. However I will double check - the holes must be there for some reason. I have just not looked inside. Its a tight fit for my dainty body Need to run into town on a few errands. Ill stop by TSC and see what the have. I need to find a few brass reducers for the tank too and a couple of plugs. Not many places here have that kind of stuff in stock.

Thanks for brainstorming with me

Keith

[Jlawles2]

Based on what I see on the up fitter site, the spare tire support appears to be tack welded in place. Does not mean that you cannot mount through the cross member vertically or find a way to attach to the top of the support.

[Yoda]

OK now where was I - Yep tank install - solution found

I fabricated up a set of brackets fro, 1.5" by 3/8" bar stock

They bolt to the tank base and bolt to the inside of the cross member, one on each side. The notch clears the pan of the spare tire carrier. In the photo the tank can be moved sideways to get the second bracket on.


This is the other side when secured. Note the tank sits a bit back and there is room to work with the fittings.


Note that I installed the pressure switch on the bottom of the tank, but it protected by the cross member with the tank on its side. The red and yellow wires are extensions to the pressure switch leads so I could attach to the up fitter switch and the compressor.

[Yoda]

then on to the wiring. I ran the 8awg power and the air valve trigger wire in some loom and then covered with nylon sheeting

First picture is the wire bundle cumming up by the up fitter box. I had removed the up fitter box from the mount and got the wire bundle exposed. Second picture is it tied to the compressor through the pressure switch. The small red wire runs to the air valve for the horns.

Now my original intent was to tie into the brown horn wire that I thought would be easy to get to - NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! After popping and breaking most of the plastic rivets for the radiator front cover, I found no way to get tho the horn, unless I pulled the grill which I was not going to do. I tried looking in the harness that runs across the top of the radiator, but there was no slack to even get at it. I just gave up.

Then I remembered someone saying tie it into the up fitter switches so that is what I did. I wired the horns to switch #1 and moved my DC-DC to switch #2 and the compressor to #6.

I was able to turn the up fitter box on its side (carefully) to get better access to the wires. First picture is of the attachments. For the 8 awg connection I used a step down but connector. All attachment were heat shrink type and I covered the connection with a second shrink tubing. The second picture is everything secured and the box back in place. As all of the up fitter switches are already fused I decided not to add additional fuses. Tips to get the up fitter box up there are two clips on the battery side. Just press in and lift up. The black wire ends on the up fitter wires is a type of heat shrink. I heated them up to makes striping them off with a utility knife possible. Otherwise they are as hard as a rock.

I ran the wire bundle along the outside of the frame, but as the compressor is on the drivers side I needed to cross over. I used a hollow cor member that runs for frame to frame just in front to the rear tires to take the wiring across. I used this same cross member to run the air line as well.

With the wiring done and tested is was time to move on to the air tubing.

[Yoda]

Air tubing is the mos wonderful stuff to work with - right? I had it stretched out in the house for several days to warm it up and try and get the loops out. That helped some. Next I tried my heat gun to soften and remove loops - nope. So I got it the best I could and started to tie things together. I like the push to connect fittings, except I had one leak but it was operator error I had not seated it fully.

I started with the horns

Ran the tubing form each to a T and then to the air valve. I used the frame cross member to get to the other side to keep it safe form the exhaust.


I mounted the air valve on the bed cross member. To keep the tubing bends gentile I looped around over the spare tire assembly.


One line from the brass T goes to the air valve, the second one goes to a remote air port that I mounted on the passenger side of the hitch assembly. BTW - Does anyone know of an environmental cover for this? In the photos the tire is back up and everything clears.

Once this was done I fired everything up and found a major leak at the brass fitting. I had not properly seated the tubing and the end was not totally square, So I detached the line, trimmed it slightly and reinserted.

And fired it up

Talk about Loud .

It even surprised me, The larger 1/2" tubing and higher pressure make a huge difference. So now I can quietly honk the stock horn and if that does not get thier attention......well lats say this set up will wake the dead

Questions - ask away

Keith

On edit - I want to install a small pressure gauge somewhere - maybe rear pumper through the plastic part, or inside the hitch where the safety chains attach.. Can anyone recommend something that is waterproof and suitable for an exterior install?

[Jlawles2]

Ok, let's spend some $$$....

https://www.amazon.com/Compressor-Va.../dp/B00BBZGWIC so you don't have to crawl under the truck to check the tank for moisture.

Gauge, something like https://www.amazon.com/PIC-PRO-204L-...0&sr=8-10&th=1

[Yoda]

Ok, let's spend some $$$....

https://www.amazon.com/Compressor-Va.../dp/B00BBZGWIC so you don't have to crawl under the truck to check the tank for moisture.

Gauge, something like https://www.amazon.com/PIC-PRO-204L-...0&sr=8-10&th=1

Thanks Joseph

With the outer mounting benzyl it is to big big. I was thinking of mounting it here beside the plate below the spare tire port. I do not want to drill a big hole there either.

I would need a casing style mount. Or maybe just use a bulkhead fitting and let it stick out. Or an L shaped holder I can mount to the hitch frame near the air port. I think I have one of those in my scrap pile - just need to look.



Are theses gauges any good
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...WRICA0ITI&th=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...4Z36UDX1I&th=1

Thanks
Keith

[Jlawles2]

Don't know how you would mount it, but https://www.grainger.com/product/787...B&gclsrc=aw.ds

The only way I can think to mount it would be drill the hole and use a spring or U-bracket to hole it tight to the plastic using the NPT fitting as the jamb nut.

The next option would be https://www.ashcroft.com/products/pr...ator/#_form_46 but I don't know how much room you have, that's about a 1.5" hole.

BTW both of those are 2-1/2" face so I am guessing close to 2-3/4" possibly 2-5/8".