I was asking David I already have the list of what you are using lol.

 

What guage wire are you using to connect your 110v to the inverter? Where are you mounting the inverter? I am trying to figure out were I am going to put my 1500w. The fact that they recommend 0awg to connect it to the battery makes me think my mounting places are limited due to not wanting to run that much thick wire.

 

This could be a fun project on the ex I just bought.

 

I am using 14 gauge stranded wire on my inverter.. But I am only at 400 watts

 

I used the wires from the harness that originally powered the the stuff in my factory console. I considered getting a big inverter but honestly don't have the need for the power so I just wired the 400 watt inverter I had been running from the power port already. 400w inverter is fairly small and fits under the console frame work.

I have 0awg wire from the battery to behind my 2nd row seats that runs along the frame that powers my audio amps, but I don't recall the exact length of wire it took but I would think for 1500w you would need a 4awg wire.

 

Did the Navigator seats direct fit?

 

Well, I spent yesterday and today wiring up the power ports. I also installed it into the Ex today! It is not a perfect fit by any means, as sits a bit higher than I had planned, and the arm rests on the buckets are rubbing on it...

I may end up reworking how it is mounted in the Ex, but for now it is serving its purpose.

Here are two pics after today's installation.

 

That's why if I do it i'll get a 97-98 console since it's narrower then the 99-02's.

Looks good David, makes me want to get one off craigslist now.

 

Looks great man

 

Thanks for the kind words guys.

What I really found interesting, was how much I liked the look of no console at all. It felt clean and airy. If I did not have all the mints, and tissues and pens with paper to carry in the thing, it is really tempting to completely delete it all together. Shoot with a custom F650 dash, and a little ingenuity, I still might get rid of the centers all together...

 

Well.... It will be a bit before I get mine all built and ready for pictures. After watching the builds and ideas here.... and then adding in a crazy idea for an entertainment/office element... things are underway...

So far... my plan.... and parts are on order... some have arrived...Last year I drove 19,000 miles for business (total 32,000 miles for the year) and slept in my truck 28 nights. Spending that much time in it... I decided to make this good for me and my kids.

I found a Computer tower that is the size of a cell phone. I plan to put a chunk of my DVD's on a 256gig flash drive, as well as a good chunk of music. So being a computer I need a monitor, I found a unit that I can turn on and off with a button on the front. So before I get rolling, I can flip the switch for the CPU and my monitor find a movie for the kids, flip the switch for the headrest monitor and the kids screens come on. Since there is a 3rd row, and 3 kids... I'm going to have a 4th screen on a swinging pivot that I will attach to the pillar behind the 2nd row seats. This will also work for if I'm crashing out back there. Because of all of the travel, I'm looking at Straight talk wireless Wifi hotspots. That will make it so I can do anything from almost anywhere.

I'm also going to... alter a few things. Dome light over ride, Driving lights, flood lights, switchable back up lights, a secondary power source with isolator, a switch to kick on my accessories off the secondary battery and possibly a way to power up the rear HVAC blower motor for ventilation when I'm sleeping back there. So LOTS of switches will be needed.

I wanted a Voltage indicator, the marine style switches, usb, and 12v port. This unit has all that.



Since that isn't enough switches for my needs....




I plan to run 4 screens, one in the front so I can see what I'm doing. 2 in the seats for the kids, and the 4th I talked about above.
Because of that I need to keep a clean signal.



The 2 different screens. These are the smaller units that will go into the back of the seats.



These are the 2 larger units, one will be up by me on a swing mount. The other like I talked about above. They say roofmount, but I found they will spin, swivel and lock back into place screen out, and still be able to mount nicely. When I'm not using them I can spin them around and protect the screens.



Of course with all the added electronics, I'm going to need a fuse panel.



The swing mounts I'm looking at are these. I haven't ordered these yet, but I have tried a smaller mount designed for a 10 tablet, and even in my house it's not strong enough to hold the 10" screens up, let alone when the truck is rolling down the road.



Since the CPU uses HDMI I need to convert the signal back to RCA. There are a bunch of these units that look the same, this one had the best reviews.



Because I don't plan on doing huge Emails with this, so I found this all in one keyboard/mouse that is smaller than my cell phone. It will be perfect for this application.



And I'm sure by now you are wondering more about the CPU, it's not a crazy fast processor, but for some music and movies with maybe some occasional Net surfing, I think this will be more than enough.



I have a battery I plan on adding at about the point where the cupholders will be in the middle. I found this battery isolator I like. This one gives the option of reverse jump starting the vehicle (won't really work with a V10 or Cummins, but would be a help if it's low.


I'm currently researching IR headphones for the back seat passengers. I've found a couple, but there isn't a ton of good info on them.


Im also watching Craigslist for an Iceless cooler to cut apart. I'm shooting to make a small 6-8 can cooler built into the console. I should have enough room for another small "box" to put items in with a lid.


I'm planning on building this out of 1x1 frame with a nice woodgrain smooth paneling. This should allow me the support I need for my CB, the switches, etc, with a nice look to it after I finish it to match the existing wood the best I can.


I don't have my measurements in front of me right now but basically I'm planning on going to the seam above the cell phone cubby, going wide seam by the cubby again, then over to where the seam is for the end of the "dash" before you get to the air bag. It will then narrow to where the seats are. I'm going to go full width under the arm rests, then narrow up to the height of the arm rests. This will give me 2 long narrow cubbies to put the CPU and other entertainment system items.



When I'm done, this should be absolutely kick ***. It's gonna be a **** ton of work.... but I think it's going to be worth it in the end.


Down the road I may add a secondary amp that would power the rear speakers. Put that on a switch so I can make 2 different zones, the rear for the kids, and me up front for just radio music...


When I start the build in a couple weeks, I'll take pictures of everything as I go!


Sorry for the crazy long post! LOL

 

03V10 It sounds like an interesting plan. Be sure to start a new thread with all the pictures and information so we can all follow along.

 

up until right now, i thought i was the only one who thought that. i currently have the console removed in my dually, as i want to either build a custom one to house a subwoofer, or just do something like you did, but i never wanted to say that i felt that no console was kinda cool. thought it was weird! good to know i'm not alone!!!

i too have too much crap, and i love as much interior storage as i can get, so i want the console, but for some ODD reason, i like the spacious feel of no console! haha.

your setup looks great though dude. love it.

 

Thanks for the kind words. I have only been living with it for a few days now, but I am liking the overall feel for it. I still need to figure the fit and finish of it, and I am even leaning towards taking the arm rests off of the seats. I have yet to look, but I am afraid if I do that, there will be a mounting bar left sticking out of the seat... Eventually I will figure it out.

With this project nearing complete, I now find myself looking upward. The factory miniature tv and DVD player do not work, and even if they did, I doubt we would use them. So I am thinking of removing the DVD player and turning that spot into a storage cubby, or something else (what I am not sure) that is actually useful.

 

I like this! So this is the 99-02 Navigator console??