Rotating Ram Bar Project

BuffaloBill · Aug 28, 2023

I thought more about routing wires through the bearing and went ahead with that idea. I had made a slip-fit for the inner race to the axle stub, so ran a knurling tool over it to obtain a tighter fit. Then fixed it on there with bearing retainer adhesive. A 1/2” hole through the center leaves an 1/8” wall. I’m thinking that will be tough enough for the application. Two 10ga and one 18ga wire will be passing through the 1/2” hole.

The lighting isn’t good on this pic, but if you look closely you’ll see the 3/4” hole I made in the Rambar for wire passage. As it turns out, the factory already had a hole in the horizontal portion of this tube, underneath where the upper curved tube is welded on. After cutting the outer 3/4” hole (using a hole saw), I could see the inner hole (about 3/8”) and drilled it out to 5/8”. This 3/4” hole will be hidden by the Rambar’s side grill.

BuffaloBill · Sep 11, 2023

I’d gotten the SS5 pods mounted last week and have rotated the mechanism by simply holding the motor wires to the battery. I’d ordered this current-sensing relay motor-reversing board from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BQ61FLQP?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

It arrived today and it seems to work as I’d hoped it would. The control inputs to this board require a switch-closure, rather than the 12v output of the AUX switches. So I’m reluctantly wiring in additional relays to obtain that function:

Lots 12V 30/40 Amp 5-Pin SPDT Automotive Relay with Wires & Harness Socket Set | eBay

Heavy-duty impact molded relay socket with 5 WIRES. 12V 5 Prong Relays with 5 Prong Sockets wires. Wire Specifications: Black(Ground) PIN 85; Blue(Positive)PIN 30; RED PIN 87a; White (To Switch) PIN 86; Yellow (To Light/Accessory) PIN 87.

www.ebay.com

These are high current relays; hopefully the small dry circuit currents required of the control inputs will not pose a long term oxidation problem at the relay contacts. I believe these standard automotive relays do have some wiping action, so probably won’t be an issue(?).

I ordered a plastic enclosure just now to house the board and relays. It’s supposed to arrive Wednesday.

I’m using AUX3 and 4, configured to momentary, to power relays that switch the forward and reverse inputs to the board.

I understand the two smaller wires in the AUX bundle are low-current Batt and ignition-switched functions? I have yet to strip and measure those. I assume they are fused? Anyone know what current they are fused at? I’ll need only 3A capability.

Eighty · Thursday at 9:31 PM

BuffaloBill said:
I’d gotten the SS5 pods mounted last week and have rotated the mechanism by simply holding the motor wires to the battery. I’d ordered this current-sensing relay motor-reversing board from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BQ61FLQP?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

It arrived today and it seems to work as I’d hoped it would. The control inputs to this board require a switch-closure, rather than the 12v output of the AUX switches. So I’m reluctantly wiring in additional relays to obtain that function:

Lots 12V 30/40 Amp 5-Pin SPDT Automotive Relay with Wires & Harness Socket Set | eBay

Heavy-duty impact molded relay socket with 5 WIRES. 12V 5 Prong Relays with 5 Prong Sockets wires. Wire Specifications: Black(Ground) PIN 85; Blue(Positive)PIN 30; RED PIN 87a; White (To Switch) PIN 86; Yellow (To Light/Accessory) PIN 87.

www.ebay.com

These are high current relays; hopefully the small dry circuit currents required of the control inputs will not pose a long term oxidation problem at the relay contacts. I believe these standard automotive relays do have some wiping action, so probably won’t be an issue(?).

I ordered a plastic enclosure just now to house the board and relays. It’s supposed to arrive Wednesday.

I’m using AUX3 and 4, configured to momentary, to power relays that switch the forward and reverse inputs to the board.

I understand the two smaller wires in the AUX bundle are low-current Batt and ignition-switched functions? I have yet to strip and measure those. I assume they are fused? Anyone know what current they are fused at? I’ll need only 3A capability.

@BuffaloBill - did you ever finish this project?

BuffaloBill · Thursday at 10:21 PM

Eighty said:
@BuffaloBill - did you ever finish this project?

Thanks for asking. Yes I did, shortly after my last post about the project. It worked out pretty well although I admit I have not used the lights more than a couple times. I parked the truck for the winter so didn’t find out how well it’d have worked in the snow and cold. I’ve yet to make a video of it in motion. Will try to do that soon…

I wound up adding some counterweights opposite the lights, to better balance the weight around the rotational axis. It seemed to work ok w/o them, but with them, the current draw of the motor is much more consistent throughout the approx 270 degree rotation. This is useful because the relay board current sensing circuitry opens the relay when current reaches a potentiometer-set limit. This achieves a greater delta between normal run current and locked rotor current.

BuffaloBill · Thursday at 10:26 PM

Video clip of lights rotating:

Eighty · Thursday at 10:29 PM

BuffaloBill said:
Thanks for asking. Yes I did, shortly after my last post about the project. It worked out pretty well although I admit I have not used the lights more than a couple times. I parked the truck for the winter so didn’t find out how well it’d have worked in the snow and cold. I’ve yet to make a video of it in motion. Will try to do that soon…

I wound up adding some counterweights opposite the lights, to better balance the weight around the rotational axis. It seemed to work ok w/o them, but with them, the current draw of the motor is much more consistent throughout the approx 270 degree rotation. This is useful because the relay board current sensing circuitry opens the relay when current reaches a potentiometer-set limit. This achieves a greater delta between normal run current and locked rotor current.View attachment 128984 View attachment 128985 View attachment 128986

Tell your wife thanks for sitting in the cab and helping while you took pictures.
I love this. Let me know when you start selling kits!!!

BuffaloBill · Thursday at 11:00 PM

She was nice enough to press the AUX buttons while I ran the iPad…..

I’m not really planning on producing kits, but thought perhaps someone wishing to do so might run with this idea. Last August a forum member owning a machine shop (@GP4L) expressed possible interest in taking it to production, but I just got busy and kind of dropped that potential ball.

The toothed timing belt & pulleys seem to work ok, but I threw out the idea of using a worm gear drive as it might be more inherently weather-proof. Having built-in limit switches (like a garage door opener) might be more reliable than using current sensing, etc.

I like the fact that it could be a kit, that simply replaces the rear/top Rambar bar, requiring no modification to the Rambar itself, aside from an additional wiring hole (if you choose to best hide the wiring). I like the 270 degree rotation. I like this light’s built-in color selectable backlighting. I like not having the lights sticking up above the cab when not in use (wind drag, noise, insect splatter, police attention).

Quietpeen · 2024-05-03T07:58:31-0400

if you only rotated them down 180(without counter weights to keep clearance) you could have same great back up lighting ......or blind the a-hole tailgate you lighting.

BuffaloBill · 2024-05-03T11:31:59-0400

Quietpeen said:
if you only rotated them down 180(without counter weights to keep clearance) you could have same great back up lighting ......or blind the a-hole tailgate you lighting.

Yes, and the backlighting could be set to red to possibly be used as extra brake lighting. The method of “programming” the color however may not be reliable enough, as it’s performed by cycling power in a defined manner. I had run that idea by Diode Dynamics and they replied (paraphrasing here) that there could be instances where it might change inadvertently to a color other than red.