Stormchaser

02suburbanZ71 · December 29, 2014

Do you know what happened to "turbine cowboys"? They had 2 episodes and took it off lol

StormChaser · December 29, 2014

Lol no idea, seems like it was aired for too short of a time for it to be taken off because of viewer ratings, so probably some kind of contract dispute

StormChaser · December 29, 2014

I'm sure most of you know how strong Bed liner can be, but if any of you're still questioning why I would spend the money to coat the body in Rhino Liner, this video should help with that.

The hail guards will also be steel framed Lexan. For those of you who want to see the power of lexan, check this video out!

kstruckcountry · December 29, 2014

Really like the truck, should make a good chase vehicle! Those tires are really tough, definitely a must-have when you might end up running and don't have time to change a flat!

One thing I though of, is with the bumpers it definitely wouldn't hurt to get something with a grate in front of the radiator, and bars in front of the lights so they don't get busted. It makes me happy, and mine goes in the shed if there's ANY chance of hail, lol.

This bad boy was near me a couple years ago. Local photographer took this shot, then ran as soon as the hail wall started advancing. It sat in the same place for 20 minutes and destroyed a bunch of cattle and equipment.

StormChaser · December 29, 2014

Really like the truck, should make a good chase vehicle! Those tires are really tough, definitely a must-have when you might end up running and don't have time to change a flat!

One thing I though of, is with the bumpers it definitely wouldn't hurt to get something with a grate in front of the radiator, and bars in front of the lights so they don't get busted. It makes me happy, and mine goes in the shed if there's ANY chance of hail, lol.

This bad boy was near me a couple years ago. Local photographer took this shot, then ran as soon as the hail wall started advancing. It sat in the same place for 20 minutes and destroyed a bunch of cattle and equipment.

I'm thinkin about welding up some bars off the bumper to protect the lights, I just gotta make sure it's aight with Iron Cross since they're sponsoring the bumpers. I'll look into the grate for the radiator though. The front windshield hail guard is going to be made from expanded metal, so we should have some extra left over to use for that. That picture is amazing though. That's the kind of shot chasers like I strive for

kstruckcountry · December 29, 2014

Here is a little more info:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/05/30/how-a-violent-tornado-stood-still-bennington-kansas/

The article says an hour but I remember it spending about 20 minutes at full strength at one particular location, the rest of the time it moved very slowly. Threw cattle in a pond, wrapped em in wire, smashed a combine, bent a semi trailer. Cleaning up the cattle took days.

StormChaser · December 29, 2014

Here is a little more info:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/05/30/how-a-violent-tornado-stood-still-bennington-kansas/

The article says an hour but I remember it spending about 20 minutes at full strength at one particular location, the rest of the time it moved very slowly. Threw cattle in a pond, wrapped em in wire, smashed a combine, bent a semi trailer. Cleaning up the cattle took days.

No.... I hate this tornado! We were set up 20-25 miles ahead of where it touched down, in absolutely perfect position waiting for the storm to come to us, hours before the storm even formed. We finally saw the storm go tornado warned on radar, and waited for it to come to us, but it never came. It headed north-west (toward us) for a short while, then stalled out and reversed. The entire day ended up being a bust for us. Bad memories of Bennington haha. But at least it stayed away from residential areas and no one was harmed.

kstruckcountry · December 29, 2014

Yeah a lot of people just drove up to it, since it was basically stationary. Y'all were close to where that photo was taken, he was on a mud road southwest of you I believe.

StormChaser · December 29, 2014

Yeah a lot of people just drove up to it, since it was basically stationary. Y'all were close to where that photo was taken, he was on a mud road southwest of you I believe.

If I were in charge of that trip and had the vehicle that I have now, there's no doubt we would have been right on it. We were with a school trip, in rented minivans, so our safest option was to wait where we were

StormChaser · December 31, 2014

If anyone else has any suggestions on modifications or gear to bring alone, please feel free to share!

StormChaser · January 6, 2015

Bolt on Tie Rod Sleeves added!

StormChaser · January 8, 2015

LED Lights came in! Huge thanks to Speed Demon Lights for helping sponsor us with 13 LED Lights!

The 20" Bar and 2 circle lights will be mounted in the aftermarket IronCross Bumper. THe 8, 3x3 lights will be mounted on the roof, and the 2 flush lights will be mounted into the rear IronCross bumper.

StormChaser · January 10, 2015

Basic Roof Rack Sketches

Crude cardboard and duct tape base model of the first layer of the roof rack starting to come together.. Hoping to finish the rest tomorrow so we can start cutting the steel for real

StormChaser · January 12, 2015

Roof rack cardboard model is finished, as well as cardboard frames for side hail guards! The front, non rectangular hail guard will be permanently mounted to the door while chasing. It will only have 3 sides of steel tubing, the back will be held together just with the lexan covering, to prevent vision from being impaired. The guards that hinge down from the rack will be locked into a lock we will mount right below the window, using a simple pull pin. I have a few ideas in mind, but still currently trying to think of the optimal way to lower the guards down fully (since they cannot be lowered fully with the door open). So until I come up with the design, they will slide up and down the top of the doors as they open and close. Good thing I have rhino lining!