More deliveries

Yesterday Postman Gary delivered a small package which turned out to be the $2.52 ‘selfie stick’ I’d ordered from China.  Neither of us are ‘selfie’ people so the stick was a new addition to our every expanding list of ‘possessions’.  My idea was the base of the new 4K action camera gimbal would be attached to the end of the selfie stick and I’d be able to walk around taking footage with me in the photo.  Well that’s been delayed because when I attempted to attached the head of the selfie stick to the gimbal I managed to damage the very small threaded holes that secures the head on the stick.

Here it is in pieces

 

Looks like I’ll have to mix up some Araldite and see if I can repair it and perhaps make the component stronger.

At 7pm the same day there was a knock at the front door.  Mohammed the courier driver was making the last of his daily deliveries.  He had a large package for us which rather puzzled Jan and me as neither of us had ordered anything large.  In the dim light of the moon Jan could read “collapsible mattress” on the side of the cardboard box.  It took us a good 30 seconds to convince Mohammed the package wasn’t for us. 

He took the package back to the van returning with something much smaller on a sack trolley.  After struggling to get it into the house he departed to find a bed in need of a collapsible mattress.

The package turned out to be the slimline 150ah AGM deep cycle battery I’d ordered for the trailer.

It’s too heavy for me to lift so I asked Jan to move it into the spare bedroom. 

Why a slimline battery?  I’m thinking of having a steel carry frame made for it so the battery can be mounted flat under the trailer.  The battery would fit underneath the floor immediately in front of the suspension.  Being sealed AGM it can be mounted either vertically or horizontally and I’m think horizontal.  It’s sealed, so I don’t have to consider access for maintenance and being under the trailer will assist in lowing the trailer centre of gravity.  However I do need to ensure it’s protected from stones and other objects.

Of course since deciding on a slimline battery I’ve realised I have a second spare wheel which will need a home.  Actually I have a second spare wheel for both the 4x4 and the trailer.  Maybe the second spare wheel should go where I was thinking of locating the battery?

Having now raised the subject of tyres I should mention we are now poorer after I purchased six Kumho 265/75R16 MT51 tyres for the 4x4.  If my memory is correct, I’ve earlier described how I intended to reduce the standard wheel rim size from 18” to 16” but also increase the overall diameter of the tyre.  Having a tyre with a higher sidewall means I can deflate it further thus increasing the tyre ‘footprint’ and traction on soft or rough ground.

Trailer tyre on the left and one of the new 4x4 tyres on the right.   I opted for a MT rather than an AT tread.  AT is “All Terrain” and is predominantly a road tyre (bitumen) with the ability to go off-road.  MT usually means Mud Terrain and has an open tread which is supposed to provide more gripe in wet (muddy) conditions.  However Kumho classify their MT as ‘Mixed Terrain’ and rate it 50/50 on and off road.

These tyres are heavy and I want to avoid having to carry a spare on top of the trailer.  Not only would this raise the trailer centre of gravity but I’d struggle to load and unload it.  There is a disadvantage to opting for a heavy and larger diameter tyre.  Larger tyres create more rolling resistance and fuel consumption will increase accordingly. 

Finally, I’d like to thank blog reader Alan for his advice regarding the Xiaomi 4K Action Camera.  He has suggested I try 1080p resolution rather than 4K.  This will increase the storage capacity of the micro SD card with little appreciable loss in image quality.