Stupid Additions that you will never use effectively and/or also are dangerous.

[Lunentucker]

Years ago my FIL worked as a machinist/mechanic at a local hydroelectric dam.
He routinely hauled various parts and pieces for his personal projects to and from work for machining, etc.
One January morning he was driving his single cab Chevy pickup to work, with a large and heavy piece of solid round bar stock on the seat beside him. Maybe 3" x 8".

He hit a patch of black ice and the truck went off the side of the road and rolled about 3 times.
He was wearing his seatbelt and was uninjured, but he said he remembers watching that several pounds of solid steel fly by his head a couple of times, totally helpless as to whether or not it was going crack his head open.

Ever since then I am very conscious of what's in my vehicles loose and what it could become in a similar incident.

We never plan or expect to be in a violent crash. Nobody does. But I do think about what if and try to not have something in there that could become a major problem if it starts flying around.

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[ChrisNLA]

What could possibly go wrong with this setup?

Great question. Probably nothing.

I have the same kit in my truck, but with the tablet on the left and phone on right. Holder for GMRS radio in the center.

Doesn't hurt my view in the slightest. The tablet is low enough that it falls where I'd just be seeing hood if it wasn't there - but I suppose if you were short and driving with the seat leaned back it would be a problem...

Hi-lift jacks are ridiculous on vehicles that don't have lift points for them. If your rig has useable lift points - go with it if you think you may use it. Not my problem.

 

[shawnebell]

Well............ there's another law suit against a US company that makes air bag charges - and guess what......... shrapnel, other dangers. San Francisco sued ARC stating they used ammonium nitrate among other problems. ARC says the ammonium nitrate has been stabilized and isn't a risk. So it's still being used according to the suit.
Nissan is also warning people about putting cutsie and fun stuff on the dash as "airbags deploy with explosive force, ~200 mph", and can force objects between it and a person into their face.

There's ALWAYS going to be 'another lawsuit' ... we live in a nation of laws, and everyone thinks they're a lawyer because they watched a couple of episodes of NCIS or Law & Order written by a writer who couldn't figure out how to negotiate a contract without holding up an "ON STRIKE!" sign and grabbing a handful of wooden splinters along the way.

Nissan's warning is based on the same "McDonald's coffee is hot" type of lawsuit shenanigans that attorneys who measure how tall public bathroom counters are and then sue because it doesn't meet ADA standards like to pull.

Case in point:

At the end of the day, a lawsuit doesn't mean the defendant did anything wrong; it only means at least one attorney is getting a paycheck. A lawsuit isn't a judgment.

Does Shit Francisco have a case? Who knows? All I know is that there used to be a great steakhouse in the tenderloin that I can't go to anymore because I'm unwilling to step over feces, urine, and needles to get murdered for trying to get a nice ribeye.

We are living in an Idiocracy where one man's "stupid addition" is only stupid because he doesn't know how to properly use the tool ... or how to throw a sandwich wrapper away.

 

[talljeeper]

Great question. Probably nothing.

I have the same kit in my truck, but with the tablet on the left and phone on right. Holder for GMRS radio in the center.

Doesn't hurt my view in the slightest. The tablet is low enough that it falls where I'd just be seeing hood if it wasn't there - but I suppose if you were short and driving with the seat leaned back it would be a problem...

Hi-lift jacks are ridiculous on vehicles that don't have lift points for them. If your rig has useable lift points - go with it if you think you may use it. Not my problem.

Chris, I am a little on the fence on the dash accessory mounting system(s). First responders use multiple accessory mounts in their vehicles. However, with that being said, those systems have significantly stronger mounting points than a JT dash. I can see the value of having certain types of equipment on the trail. Heck I was one of the first in the country to utilize (get this) PC based cameras and nav on trail Jeeps in the 90's. The one thing that does bother me is not only the potential visibility issues but distraction. Thanks for your thoughtful response.

 

[HooliganActual]

However, with that being said, those systems have significantly stronger mounting points than a JT dash.

I'm not saying this is "bomber", but I have this dock in all 3 of my Jeeps. I liked and used it over others because there are a few more hold down bolt points than the others I researched:
https://vectoroffroad.com/products/jl-tube-dockbar

I've been happy with the functionality and it allows me to mount things in more places than just the center of the dash (in the attached picture I'm all centered up, but in my Wranglers things are mounted more towards the doors and not in the center).

I have my Garmin mounted in the center, driver and passenger phones on either side. CB mic is mounted off the grab bar bolt.

 

[ChrisNLA]

Chris, I am a little on the fence on the dash accessory mounting system(s). First responders use multiple accessory mounts in their vehicles. However, with that being said, those systems have significantly stronger mounting points than a JT dash. I can see the value of having certain types of equipment on the trail. Heck I was one of the first in the country to utilize (get this) PC based cameras and nav on trail Jeeps in the 90's. The one thing that does bother me is not only the potential visibility issues but distraction. Thanks for your thoughtful response.

I feel that sentiment. I build emergency vehicles for a living and fastening radios through an aluminum sheet dashboard in a custom cab is sure different than the attachment points on a Jeep dash.

I use my tablet for off road navigation but if I am not on the trail then the tablet is stowed away. Same for my GMRS radio.

 

[HooliganActual]

I feel that sentiment. I build emergency vehicles for a living and fastening radios through an aluminum sheet dashboard in a custom cab is sure different than the attachment points on a Jeep dash.

I use my tablet for off road navigation but if I am not on the trail then the tablet is stowed away. Same for my GMRS radio.

Take a look at the Vector Offroad Dock from my previous post. It uses the same mounts as the Bulletpoint does (I believe) which are somewhat iffy mounting locations/bases; but it also uses two actual hard mounted existing nuts that are behind panels up in the defroster area:

It's a little bit more positively mounted and Vector Offroad claims it:

 

[Gvsukids]

Well............ there's another law suit against a US company that makes air bag charges - and guess what......... shrapnel, other dangers. San Francisco sued ARC stating they used ammonium nitrate among other problems. ARC says the ammonium nitrate has been stabilized and isn't a risk. So it's still being used according to the suit.

Nissan is also warning people about putting cutsie and fun stuff on the dash as "airbags deploy with explosive force, ~200 mph", and can force objects between it and a person into their face.

Saw a Wrangler with many colorful sequins covering the dash. Talk about projectiles.

 

[Rahkmalla]

3) Stacking so much crap across your dash. Phone mounts, Nav., etc.. It doesn't really take a rocket scientist to figure out these vehicles need as much as help as possible with a optimal field of view.

not really sure what your issue with phone mounts is. The only thing i'm blocking the view from is my hood, and no one in the history of driving has said "man i could've avoided that accident if I was able to see more of my hood"

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Saw a Wrangler with many colorful sequins covering the dash. Talk about projectiles.

There's actually information out there warning people to not do that. Apparently with a certain car, people put those things on the steering wheel center and dash - and people have been hurt.
Once that air bag fires, it's ~200 mph, similar to a BB gun. Anything in the path would be smacked and propelled out at a pretty good speed - enough to embed in skin and eyes.



Invented well over 100 years ago.
Mine is probably older than I am, and came with all of the original accessories for stretching barbed fence wire. Detachable base made it handle for wire stretching, pulling or pushing. Holes in the base meant it could be bolted to a larger base for more stability.
No stamped steel parts, all cast and forged parts.
These also work great for pulling out fence posts. You can bolt braces to the top to hold it upright while pulling up a post, or put a block between the jack and post to keep the jack from tipping toward the post. A chain wrapped around the post and looped over the lift part does the work.

Remove the base, use the cam lock to hold a wire or cable or rope for pulling and stretching -

Brand is "jackall" on mine. Not sure if made by the original company or not but sure looks like them. Maybe patents ran out. Originally know more commonly as known as the Handyman or Sheepherder's Jack.

Loosen the bolt, rotate the handle down to the right (clockwise) 1/4 turn and snug the bolt back up and you have a cam lock on this end for pulling, stretching wire, etc.

So I could toss this in my Jeep, drive out to the far end of the south pasture and fix that fence, or whatever needed to be done.

The company founded by the inventor is still around - Hi-Lift.

 

[SIG551-A1]

Hi-Lifts have some uses on the trail other than lifting, e.g. pulling a vehicle sideways off of rocks. I’m not sure those scenarios are likely enough or can always helped by a hi-lift to justify dealing with the bulk and weight of carrying one. I’d prefer a small come-along and a large steel bar (6 feet long).

As an actual jack they’re absolutely terrible and obviously dangerous. About 20 years ago I had a 60” hi-lift. Out of the box I tested it to understand what I was getting in to. To this day whenever I see a 48” one strapped to a Jeep I wonder if the owner did the same. On my TJ, lifting from several locations I could only get my tires about an inch off the ground with my 60” maxed out because of the suspension droop. A 48” wouldn’t have gotten the tire off the ground. In the driveway this looked absolutely insanely deadly; 4500lbs on a stick. I didn’t want to be anywhere near the thing, so I quickly lowered it down. I carried mine horizontally across the bottom tube of my rear swing out tire carrier because it seemed like the least likely place for it to become a missile. But it began rusting immediately (Hi-Lift brand quality) and was always in the way. I stopped carrying it a few years later, never having used it.

A good bottle jack or even the stock jack with a good raised base works far better for lifting the truck and you can just lift from the axle tube directly the inch or so you need to get a wheel off. Using a hi-lift is like trying to do something simple in the most dangerous and complicated way possible.

They make an attachment to hook directly to your wheels so you aren’t having to overcome all the suspension travel first before you get the wheel of the ground.
Hi-Lift Jack LM-100 Lift-Mate https://a.co/d/cFIeyS0

 

[ShadowsPapa]

They make an attachment to hook directly to your wheels so you aren’t having to overcome all the suspension travel first before you get the wheel of the ground.
Hi-Lift Jack LM-100 Lift-Mate https://a.co/d/cFIeyS0

That's fine unless you are trying to get the wheel up in the air free to plug and air it up again or re-seat the bead.

 

[SIG551-A1]

That's fine unless you are trying to get the wheel up in the air free to plug and air it up again or re-seat the bead.

Lift wheel. Put a log under the axle tube and then lower

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Lift wheel. Put a log under the axle tube and then lower

Better carry a log with you ? some of these pics of crawling over rocks don't include trees.

 

[HooliganActual]

There's actually information out there warning people to not do that. Apparently with a certain car, people put those things on the steering wheel center and dash - and people have been hurt.
Once that air bag fires, it's ~200 mph, similar to a BB gun. Anything in the path would be smacked and propelled out at a pretty good speed - enough to embed in skin and eyes.



Invented well over 100 years ago.
Mine is probably older than I am, and came with all of the original accessories for stretching barbed fence wire. Detachable base made it handle for wire stretching, pulling or pushing. Holes in the base meant it could be bolted to a larger base for more stability.
No stamped steel parts, all cast and forged parts.
These also work great for pulling out fence posts. You can bolt braces to the top to hold it upright while pulling up a post, or put a block between the jack and post to keep the jack from tipping toward the post. A chain wrapped around the post and looped over the lift part does the work.

Remove the base, use the cam lock to hold a wire or cable or rope for pulling and stretching -

Brand is "jackall" on mine. Not sure if made by the original company or not but sure looks like them. Maybe patents ran out. Originally know more commonly as known as the Handyman or Sheepherder's Jack.

Loosen the bolt, rotate the handle down to the right (clockwise) 1/4 turn and snug the bolt back up and you have a cam lock on this end for pulling, stretching wire, etc.

So I could toss this in my Jeep, drive out to the far end of the south pasture and fix that fence, or whatever needed to be done.

The company founded by the inventor is still around - Hi-Lift.

Great piece of history/nostalgia:

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