The Pig Rig!

[ericjon262]

I snagged this bad boy pretty cheap, it's a mile marker SI12000, rated to 12000 pounds of line pull.



I don't like it sitting this high in the grill, or this high above the frame rail.



I made a piece of channel to mount it in out of some of the box steel I have.



then I drilled and notched it for the fairlead



here's the assembly on the bumper



next step was to cut a notch. the plasma cutter made short work of it.





initially, the tray overhung the front of the bumper by a large margin, so I notched the frame a bit so I could recess it some.



hard to tell by the pictures, but it made a big difference.



then I test fit the whole thing.







I also started trying to drive it as much as possible, to work out any little problems while I'm still close to home.





I pulled the whole bumper back off, added some angle stubs to the ends to contour the truck a little better, and capped off the ends of the tubes. I also capped off the fairlead mount, and added a gusset. can't forget the custom paint either!

[ericjon262]

it would also be a shame to do all this work and not live a life of luxury on the road...

some frosty pipes in the engine compartment!







I also went ahead and installed my 40 gallon fuel tank and skid plate:





From empty on the gauge I have about 7 gallons left in tank.

[1976gmc20]

Nice bumper and winch!

The 40 gallon tanks are handy, except when you have to drop them to change the fuel pump (again). Maybe things are different with your lift, but mine I have to sort of see-saw it up between the tailpipe and hitch and spring mounts. Hardest part is reaching in to get the lines connected. I dunno why GM couldn't have put a short line on the top of the tank with a union that you could reach over the axle? There's a pigtail and plug for the wires.

[ericjon262]

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

Nice bumper and winch!

The 40 gallon tanks are handy, except when you have to drop them to change the fuel pump (again). Maybe things are different with your lift, but mine I have to sort of see-saw it up between the tailpipe and hitch and spring mounts. Hardest part is reaching in to get the lines connected. I dunno why GM couldn't have put a short line on the top of the tank with a union that you could reach over the axle? There's a pigtail and plug for the wires.

Thanks!

I don't know why either, it's crazy. same with the wiring pigtail, why is it way far out there, it's a royal PITA.

[ericjon262]

well, life happens, and I haven't updated anyone on whats really been going on.

crummy pics, sorry...







on the night of the morning of June 26th(morning being 2:00 am...) I was on the way home from picking my dad up at the airport for the Alaska trip, and then disaster. I looked into my side view mirror, just in time to see rapidly approaching headlights with just about enough time to say holy F**K before a drunk nailed the rear bumper and began pushing his way up the entire side of the truck, no driver's side panel was spared from damage. cops came, arrested the POS drunk, and dad and I finally got home around 4 am, tired, angry, and a bit frustrated, I downed a beer called my insurance company, and went to bed. about 2 hours later, the adjuster calls and asks if he can swing by that day, which worked out better for my dad and I because we were planning on leaving one way or another, for Alaska the following day. the adjuster showed up, started looking at the truck and kept saying he thought it was in excellent shape, but, would almost definitely be totaled. this was not at all unexpected, but still, hearing it was a major bummer.

at this point, dad and I have 3 options,

1: take my 06 2500hd to Alaska instead, I needed to put the shell back on, and do a ton of last minute maintenance, I've neglected it a bit in favor of fixing the Pig Rig for the trip.

2: don't go to Alaska, there are bunches of cool places to go closer to home. but, I already spent a ton of money on a ferry.

3: F**k it, take the Pig Rig to Alaska anyways.

after about 45 minutes of debate, and attempting to beat the bumper back to at least halfway straight. we chose option 3! we loaded the truck, with gear, and took off!

the first leg of the trip, we had to cannonball a bit, I had the a ferry booked, that left Port Hardy on the 29th, and the booking slip says be there two hours early, so, 5 am... we hauled all the way up to Port Angels, WA, and picked up a ferry to Victoria, BC. We then drove the length of Vancouver Island, all the way to Port Hardy for the ferry.

in Port Angels/ferry









Pig on a ferry



into Canada







the sign at the Bear Cove Ferry terminal



The next Ferry





Me and the truck in the ferry



From the ferry

























Camping spot in Prince Rupert, BC



Thats all for tonight, I'll upload some more over the next few days.

[RyanAK]

Oh, man! Sorry brother. I can only imagine the feelings you went through. Luckily no one was hurt. And I admire your perseverance in taking the rig anyway. Says a lot about the capabilities of these trucks. Your "4x4 beater camper fun truck" just got a little more beat, but can still have fun. Good on ya.

What was the drunk driving and how did it fare against the Pig?

[1976gmc20]

So, can you transport a firearm through to Alaska in a vehicle on the ferry?

I wouldn't want to be roaming around the back roads of AK without at least a 30-30 or a 12 gauge.

[ericjon262]

Originally Posted by RyanAK

Oh, man! Sorry brother. I can only imagine the feelings you went through. Luckily no one was hurt. And I admire your perseverance in taking the rig anyway. Says a lot about the capabilities of these trucks. Your "4x4 beater camper fun truck" just got a little more beat, but can still have fun. Good on ya.

What was the drunk driving and how did it fare against the Pig?

the POS was "driving" a late model dodge challenger, not sure of the exact year, but probably a 2015 or so. my guess is that he was doing over 100 MPH when he hit me, I was doing about 60 MPH and he deployed all of his airbags, and destroyed his radiator and front suspension, he wasn't going anywhere if he wanted to.

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

So, can you transport a firearm through to Alaska in a vehicle on the ferry?

I wouldn't want to be roaming around the back roads of AK without at least a 30-30 or a 12 gauge.

in Alaska, probably, I know Canada has very strict gun laws compared to the USA, so getting them there becomes problematic.

[ericjon262]

Found this neat lava flow!













at the end of the Lava flow, was a very narrow wooden bridge, probably only a few feet wider than the truck!








And our first dirt road!







More to come!

[68Timber]

I would ask the adjuster not to total it and repair. Good that you’re ok and the truck could still make the trip. Looking forward to more pics.

[ericjon262]

Originally Posted by 68Timber

I would ask the adjuster not to total it and repair. Good that you’re ok and the truck could still make the trip. Looking forward to more pics.

the truck is pretty banged up. I'm keeping it, but we'll see where we go from here.

My sister made us this awesome dehydrated chili!, add some water and/or beer, let it soak for about 30 mins, heat and eat! Super good, and very hardy! the stuffed pigs "piggles and wiggles" had their picture taken all over the place for my 3 nieces.



next morning, we saw our first (and only) Grizzly bear. I actually drove past him, turned around, and came back to get these pictures. he didn't have a care in the world about us being anywhere near him, but I wasn't going to get out of the truck and try my luck...





some on the road shots near destruction bay IIRC.









The next day, we again crossed the border, this time into Alaska, the crossing was cool, marked as far as the eye can see.











the next day we checked out Eklutna lake and Thunderbird falls

[1976gmc20]

We used to go up to Eklutna Lake for picnics and driftwood bonfires on the gravel beach

It was just a few miles up the road from Chugiak so perfect for a quick getaway.

One time at Thunderbird Falls, a couple friends and I got adventurous and climbed up above the falls. As "brave mountaineers" we scrambled up this cliff and found ourselves in somebody's backyard looking right into their patio door - oops!

[ericjon262]

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

We used to go up to Eklutna Lake for picnics and driftwood bonfires on the gravel beach

It was just a few miles up the road from Chugiak so perfect for a quick getaway.

One time at Thunderbird Falls, a couple friends and I got adventurous and climbed up above the falls. As "brave mountaineers" we scrambled up this cliff and found ourselves in somebody's backyard looking right into their patio door - oops!

lol, we definitely saw a few structures fairly close.


We drove down to Homer Spit, which looked really cool in the pictures, and it was a pretty awesome drive, but when we got there, it was absolutely packed with people, so we rolled on. it's a shame, because the ongoing forest fires greatly reduced visibility.

I thought these were kinda cool for bridge railing. they were somewhere in Anchorage



Road pics on the way to Homer





you can see a little snow still clinging to life...







it's a real shame how poorly the depth and color shows in the pictures...









on Homer Spit, we didn't end up with a ton of pictures, it was a nightmare trying to navigate the place because there were so many people around. I'm hoping the go-pro I had on the dash caught some good shots.

[ericjon262]

We left the Spit, kinda disappointed, but on the way back north, I saw a small trail with a sign that said "Daytime use only" (like there's any other kind of time in Alaska in the summer!) I pulled over to check it out, and there was a neat foot trail that led to a rocky beach.















driving up from homer, I saw my oil pressure gauge go to zero pulling up to a stop, I immediately turned the truck off an pulled over, I popped the hood, and check the oil level, and it was about 1/4 of a quart low, but nowhere near low enough to cause issue. I looked around very carefully, and noticed an oil drip near the oil pressure sending unit. I restarted the truck, and it dripped a little bit quicker, but nothing insanely crazy and it wasn't making any of the typical SBC without oil noises, I gave it some thought, and decided to roll on it until I could get a new sender. about an hour or two later I was able to get a new sender at the parts store, and decided I would change it after camping for the night so I didn't burn myself on the exhaust. little did I know, the fitting is metric, and my metric wrenched somehow didn't make it into the truck with us... DOH! of course an adjustable doesn't fit, and the sender is not wanting to come free at all for some reason. after an hour or two of laying under the truck on gravel, I decided to just deal with it when I had all the right tools to fix it if my attempts broke it worse.

on the road north that's all smoke, no rain...
















Campsite:

[ericjon262]

our campsite was somewhere north of Cooper Landing, and south of Anchorage, there was really only one way to go from there, and that was to continue north. we blasted through anchorage, and headed towards Palmer. anytime I plan a trip like this, I like to use paper road maps instead of google maps, they tend to show you things you wouldn't otherwise see, like Willow-Fishhook rd through hatcher pass.




























Eventually, we found ourselves back on pavement near Willow, AK.



we continued north, and could see Mount Denali in the distance.

[ericjon262]

continuing, still north, we headed towards Fairbanks.

both of us (Dad and I) were getting hungry and looking for a good spot to pull over and make lunch, while crossing over a river, I could see cars, trucks, and RV's on the bank and though it would be as good a place as any, so we pulled in.

Fire Department is well funded...





Continuing north, drove through fairbanks(yawn...) and kept going north, we had out sights set on a grand adventure!















finally, crossing the Yukon River.



but we weren't done yet! onward Pig!







and then we made our goal!









we took some times to stretch our legs before climbing back into the truck, there were several people there, bunches of guys on dual sport motorcycles, one of whom claimed it was his first trip on a bike and would have about 9000 miles in the seat at the conclusion! that's commitment!

There was also a very nice lady from Alaska Department of Natural Resources there, she gave us some "certificates" to prove we made it, it was pretty cool! If I end up back in Alaska I'll do it again for sure!

[ericjon262]

We left the Arctic Circle and headed back south towards Fairbanks, and ended up camping southeast of Fairbanks.





we got up early, and continued east. and saw our first bull moose



and then a Cow with a calf.



we kept on, and took in the scenery.



we found a cool truss bridge, with a gravel bank alongside.









after a while, we ended up in Chicken, AK, a tiny little spot in the middle of nowhere! not much here, here's the rig in front of the "post office"!



next we continued onto the "Top of the World hwy"









we ended up camping along the hwy in a spot that looked like an old mining camp.

[ericjon262]

we left there and continued on the top of the world hwy towards Canada.



The Hwy was mostly dirt, and we saw this off the woods, it was hard to see exactly what it was, some kind of old wagon.





crossing into Canada, and there was still a bit of snow left up there even in early July!



around the corner, we found a herd of caribou.







the Pig also got a chance to hit some snow! Lol...



we came across a gravel pit, and had to do a little "hill climb". I didn't want to go to crazy, because I was hundreds of miles from anything, and didn't have many spare parts if I broke something. didn't want to be totally screwed.







then we continued on.








we crossed the Yukon River into Dawson City another ferry.











Canadian beer... just say's "Pilsner" no brand, nothing, just " Pilsner". it wasn't bad, I've had way worse.

[ericjon262]

leaving Dawson city, I spotted this cool old bread truck, I wish it was closer to home so I could try and pick it up...



then, heading south, we came up on a gnarly forest fire.







they were fighting it with helicopters, it was pretty cool to watch.



we ended up comping a south of Pelly Crossing



next morning, we headed towards Watson Lake, YT.





We came across these old log cabins, pretty cool sight.







we stopped for fuel, and the pump was super old school, with reels!

[ericjon262]

we rolled into Watson Lake, home of the world famous "Signpost Forest" I new about the place before the trip, but completely forgot to add it to a list of destinations.


























The closest I could find to home was a Santa Rosa County License plate



Of course, because I forgot to put it on the list of destinations, I didn't have anything to make a sign with... I looked for a while for something, anything to make a sign with, I came up with 2 things to make a sign. I looked at the side of the truck and saw the "Silverado" badge, I then remembered the driver's side badge had been damaged in the wreck, so I got my hatchet, and scrapped the damaged emblem off, and then cut the side out of an old water jug, add a paint pen, and wala! sign for the forest! I used a screw from the dash to hold it onto a post.

[ericjon262]

well, today made for quite a bit of progress on the Pig Rig.

I fixed both battery trays, the passenger side tray had a mounting ear break off, so I welded it back on and it's now much tighter. the driver's side is another story, and had I known the problem existed before I left to go to Alaska, I wouldn't have had to do anything to it. what I didn't know before, is that it was only held in by two of the four bolts the factory used. which cause the metal to tear at the bolt holes in the fender and let the battery flop around in the engine bay, thankfully, I noticed the change in noise and was able to strap it down with a ratchet strap to prevent further problems. my fix was kinda ghetto, but it should be fine, I through bolted the top two bolts with large fender washers and high strength bolts, then I drilled the holes required in the inner fender and put bolts in to hold the lower portions, it's strong enough now to shake the entire truck by the mount!

I also fixed the leaky oil pressure sending unit, all that's left to investigate is a small trans fluid leak, I think it's coming from the fittings on the transmission.

in other news I fixed the back window, which decided it only wanted to go down and not up, unfortunately, I did a ton of work to fix things that weren't actually the problem...

I never gave this wire much thought



today, I pulled it out and found one of my favorite things to find on an old truck, a wire with a ball of tape on the end...



Remove the tape to find the plug for the switch that prevents the window motor from operating with the door open... and previous owner hackery...







If I had a line on a new switch, I'd put it in, but I don't, and I plan to replace this body anyways, so I used a butt connector to bypass the non existant switch permanently,

then I moved on to replacing the window tracks that allow the regulator to move the window, one of mine had been bent, so I ordered a pair from LMC truck, they're about $20 each not including shipping.

see a problem here???





For parts that could easily be measured with the simplest of hand tools, they somehow made not one, but both of them over 1/8" off! I'm pretty irritated I'm not going to use them, but I am contacting them about it. I ended up taking a hammer to the bent slide, and then welding in a new nut so that it would work.

I also decided that I wanted curtains for a bit of added privacy on camping trips, so I found some fabric. and am going to fire up the sewing machine!

[1976gmc20]

I need to get an 84" computer screen!

[ericjon262]

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

I need to get an 84" computer screen!

this is the only site I post on that doesn't auto resize pictures, otherwise I'd post them more reasonably. I just zoom out for here.