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Storm Chasing/RV 5 Ton Conversion Questions

StormCruzzer

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Not sure who built this, but it's extremely similar to shape I've designed. Want to know how they deal with articulation tho. Maybe they just don't take it off road lol.

Edit: It's a 14-ton caiman mine resistant ambush protected vehicle by BAE

923 built 2.jpg923 built.jpg
 
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Swamp Donkey

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Not sure who built this, but it's extremely similar to shape I've designed. Want to know how they deal with articulation tho. Maybe they just don't take it off road lol.

Edit: It's a 14-ton caiman mine resistant ambush protected vehicle by BAE

View attachment 697646View attachment 697647
The body is one rigid unit so the frame flexes very little now on that truck. Everything is strong enough to handle the stresses. If you tie a box into the factory cab you'll be pulling things apart because the cab is not very strong. The frame will flex and something must give. This problem has been a major part of design for the folks making RVs, which Is why I bring it up. This part is best figured out in the beginning of your design since other things will hinge around it.

That is a BAE Caiman body mounted on an M939 chassis.
 

StormCruzzer

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The body is one rigid unit so the frame flexes very little now on that truck. Everything is strong enough to handle the stresses. If you tie a box into the factory cab you'll be pulling things apart because the cab is not very strong. The frame will flex and something must give. This problem has been a major part of design for the folks making RVs, which Is why I bring it up. This part is best figured out in the beginning of your design since other things will hinge around it.

That is a BAE Caiman body mounted on an M939 chassis.
Gotcha! Thanks for the info. And yeah, it looks like we're going to have the cab and box built completely separate from each other to help with flex. Lockable doors and a crawl through compartment between the two
 

Tinstar

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Here in Oklahoma, storm speed can range from <25mph all the way to 60+ across the ground.
Not sure how much "chaseing" you can actually do.
Will be more likely storms passing you.

As dynamic as T Boomers are, you need to be able to react accordingly. Sometimes that means lots of speed to get into position and I just don't see a 5 ton doing that. Even pushing it hard, your only looking at 65 max on flat ground.
As already mentioned, it's just not nimble.
Even the multi-ton commercial rigs with the mobile Doppler radar on the back can turn circles around a 5 ton speed wise.
5 ton would preform much better on the muddy, unimproved roads. We have lots of them.

Tornado path is a completely different animal and I'm not talking about that.
Those will, and have, blow over a train locomotive. A 5 ton would be nothing.

Overland vehicle/RV? Yes. It's been done many times.
Storm chaser? I don't see it. Your current truck is WAY better.

I've use my M925A2 as a wind block when needed.
It's been hit with a 90+ mph gust front, full broadside with cargo cover on.
Did just fine. Cover also held with no damage.
Routinely takes 60-70+ Hits during peak storm season.


For the $$$ and time your talking about investing, I think there are much better options out there.
 

StormCruzzer

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Here in Oklahoma, storm speed can range from <25mph all the way to 60+ across the ground.
Not sure how much "chaseing" you can actually do.
Will be more likely storms passing you.

As dynamic as T Boomers are, you need to be able to react accordingly. Sometimes that means lots of speed to get into position and I just don't see a 5 ton doing that. Even pushing it hard, your only looking at 65 max on flat ground.
As already mentioned, it's just not nimble.
Even the multi-ton commercial rigs with the mobile Doppler radar on the back can turn circles around a 5 ton speed wise.
5 ton would preform much better on the muddy, unimproved roads. We have lots of them.

Tornado path is a completely different animal and I'm not talking about that.
Those will, and have, blow over a train locomotive. A 5 ton would be nothing.

Overland vehicle/RV? Yes. It's been done many times.
Storm chaser? I don't see it. Your current truck is WAY better.

I've use my M925A2 as a wind block when needed.
It's been hit with a 90+ mph gust front, full broadside with cargo cover on.
Did just fine. Cover also held with no damage.
Routinely takes 60-70+ Hits during peak storm season.


For the $$$ and time your talking about investing, I think there are much better options out there.
I've been chasing out west (From the Mexican Border all the way up to ND) for a while now so I understand how the storm paths and speeds work :) Most of the supercells we chase move at 20-30mph; 60 is relatively rare as most happen with warm fronts. Early season storms do tend to move much faster - Jan 22nd last year we were chasing a tornado in Albany, GA that was moving near 70mph which was impossible to keep up with in any vehicle there. Bow echos do routinely move 50-80mpg but those aren't really anything that we chase; more of something to park in front of, sit back, and enjoy getting swallowed by the whales mouth.

Muddy farm roads have been our best friend in the StormCruzzer in the past. We'll have two other vehicles out as part of our caravan so the 5 ton is may be more of a command center to chase in but also to help the others with navigation. With relatively good road networks, it's easy to stay in front of most storms driving 40-50mph even with pulling over to stop every 10-20 minutes.
 

Jbulach

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Also look into the M916s. Maybe convert to full air ride and dump to drop your profile when in the thick of it.
 

Jbulach

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Or the longer wheelbase M939a2s, if you need more room. OK, think I'm all out of random thoughts now...
 

StormCruzzer

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Too slow, stick with the M923A2 and crank the governor up. Should be able to get higher speed rated tires...
Yupp back to the m923a2 again haha. Just kinda posting my thoughts out loud to get people's opinions. Thanks!

(couldn't resist)
Fast forward to 1:17:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5iKf65xWhk
Yesssss. Although we don't drive over the actual corn like they do there, a lot of the roads are very similar to the dirt roads/paths in that segment there, sometimes filled with thick mud. We have no problem with them in the StormCruzzer but 95% of other chasers can't take them and have to go the long way round.

Here's an example of some of the roads we traverse. We just happened to have the GoPro on at the time, the storm we were on was behind us. This was taken in the Kansas/Colorado border.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPubeYOZ738

And this was the very first year we were out there in the NM desert. Puddle at the end would be no problem for the M923.. But didn't want to risk it in the StormCruzzer since we were just breaking it in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfbQRXNO7kA
 
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StormCruzzer

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Bit lower profile and less surface area for the wind to catch, but this is the Doppler on Wheels. They have 8+ of them that they chase severe storms with yearly, and intercepted the eye wall of Harvey a little over a week ago. 28,000lbs. They deploy their hydraulics to level the truck out to less than 0.1 degrees flat and stay deployed that way through the eye of the storm. They were deployed in Harvey and were in sustained 75mph+ winds for over an hour, 120mph winds for a few minutes sustained and reached gusts of 130-135 without a problem. I have a Met friend from school that works with them and was in the vehicle working the entire time who said he never really got worried and would feel comfortable in Cat 5 winds (155mph+).
Dow.jpg
 

StormCruzzer

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Does that truck have any armor or ballistic glass?


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Nope none whatsoever. They do find more remote locations so they don'y really have to worry about debris. The Instruments on the back range from $250-1000K so they do everything they can to avoid debris.
 

Jbulach

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I hope remote like the moon, Ill bet even Dorthy's little dog wold make a mess of the windshield at 155mph!
 

StormCruzzer

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I hope remote like the moon, Ill bet even Dorthy's little dog wold make a mess of the windshield at 155mph!
Hahaha I agree. I'm extremely surprised not only that the truck can withstand that but they feel comfortable in there as well. I would have thought they would at least have ballistic glass but was shocked when he told me it was regular automotive glass.
 

Jbulach

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Another random thought for your new big rig. If you get a chance check out the hydraulic screw anchors that they use on the front of directional drill rigs.


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StormCruzzer

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Another random thought for your new big rig. If you get a chance check out the hydraulic screw anchors that they use on the front of directional drill rigs.


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Yes! Planning to have two in the front and two in the back angled out 22.5 degrees from the truck. Similar to the TIV2's hydraulic spikes. Drawing up a crude design in paint of the hydraulic stabilizing arms that will swing out so I'll post that when I finish.

TIV deploy.jpg
 

StormCruzzer

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Extremely crude mock up of the stabilizing arms design that I made in MS Paint (Soon to be RIP). Not scaled an angles aren't correct, but you get the picture. Actual angles of arms will be a bit skinnier so we don't need as much space on the sides to deploy. The design has them at 45 degree angles but they'll likely be closer to 37.5

SIV Design.jpg
 
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