Fifty Miles of Washboard. One Way.
I've wanted to carry an air compressor in the Five Billion Star Hotel for years. Not necessarily a permanently mounted compressor, but something I could use whenever I needed to air my tires back up after exploring rough backroads.
One particular trip convinced me that I really needed to stop thinking about it and actually do something.
Hole-in-the-Rock Road in southern Utah.
For those unfamiliar with this road, it's a long, remote route that stretches into the desert from the Escalante area. Parts of it have since been chip-sealed, believe it or not. But when I traveled it, I had approximately 50 miles of washboard and rough 4x4 road to contend with.
One way!
I don't think I've ever been so physically upset with a road.
The washboard was relentless. Mile after mile of vibration, bouncing, and rattling. The kind of road that makes you wonder whether every nut and bolt on your vehicle is slowly working itself loose.
As it turned out, some of them were!
During that adventure, the Five Billion Star Hotel lost an exhaust tip, a hubcap, and one of the knobs that secures my recovery boards in place.
And because I had to turn around a few times to retrieve missing parts, I ended up driving even more than the already ridiculous 50-mile one-way distance.
Fun times!
I remember thinking how much more tolerable that road might have been if I could have aired down my tires.
Sure, I could have lowered the tire pressures without a compressor, but eventually I'd have to return to pavement. And I wasn't particularly interested in driving all the way back to civilization on severely underinflated tires.
I made myself a promise.
The next time I drove Hole-in-the-Rock Road, I'd have an air compressor.
A Few Years Later...
Well, here we are.
I'm hoping to make another trip down Hole-in-the-Rock Road next April. And, as that trip began creeping closer, the compressor project finally worked its way to the top of my to-do list.
Better late than never, right?
I had recently completed another modification to the Five Billion Star Hotel: installing an external quick-disconnect power port in the front bumper.
That project served two purposes. First, it would allow me to jump-start the Delica without opening the passenger door and lifting the seat to access the battery.
The second purpose?
Powering an external air compressor!
[Read about my external jump-start and power port installation here]
With the power connection already in place, I could turn my attention to the air compressor and tire inflation system.
The Equipment: ARB and Uharbour
After considering my options, I settled on two primary components.
For the compressor, I chose the ARB CKMP12V2 portable air compressor. It's a 12-volt compressor that I can carry in the Delica and connect to the external power port whenever I need it.
For the air hoses, I went with a Uharbour four-tire inflation and deflation system.
The Uharbour system allows me to connect all four tires together, inflate or deflate them simultaneously, and monitor the pressure from a common point.
This was exactly the sort of setup I'd been envisioning.
I particularly liked the idea of not having to move around the Delica, connecting and disconnecting the compressor at each individual tire.
Instead, I could connect everything once, adjust the pressures, and be done with it.
As for the products themselves, it's still early. I haven't had enough time with either to offer much of a long-term opinion.
So far, I'm happy with both.
If something noteworthy develops, good or bad, I'll come back and update this blog. I prefer to actually use equipment for a while before making grand declarations about how wonderful it is.
Four Tires. One Connection.
One of the biggest advantages of the Uharbour system is the ability to inflate and deflate all four tires simultaneously.
Rather than working my way around the Delica, checking and adjusting each tire individually, I can connect the hoses to all four wheels and manage their pressures together.
There are a couple of advantages to this approach.
First, it's convenient. I can connect the hoses, adjust the pressure, and let the system do its thing.
Second, because all four tires are connected through the same air system, their pressures can equalize. This helps ensure that I'm not leaving one tire significantly higher or lower than the others.
That consistency is particularly appealing when transitioning between pavement and rough backroads.
And when you're standing alongside a dusty trail, perhaps with a bit of weather moving in, the less time spent crawling around individual tires, the better!
Connecting All Four Tires
The first video shows the Uharbour hose system connected to all four tires on the Five Billion Star Hotel.
Airing Down Before the Adventure
When I'm traveling rough, rocky trails, I often lower my tire pressures considerably.
On some trails, I've aired my BFGoodrich KO2 tires down to approximately 10–12 PSI.
Airing down allows the tires to flex more easily over rocks and irregular surfaces, helping improve traction and making the ride less punishing for both the vehicle and its occupants.
And, as I learned on Hole-in-the-Rock Road, reducing the punishment delivered to the vehicle is no small consideration!
Of course, tire pressures that low aren't appropriate for every vehicle or situation. Tire construction, wheel design, vehicle weight, speed, and terrain all matter. Running very low pressures, particularly without beadlock wheels, increases the risk of unseating a tire bead or damaging a tire or wheel. It's something that requires care and an understanding of your particular setup.
With all four tires connected, releasing air is straightforward. Instead of moving from wheel to wheel with a tire gauge, I can release pressure through the shared system.
The next video shows the air being released.
Of course, airing down is only half the equation.
Eventually, the dirt ends.
And that's when the compressor earns its keep.
Airing Up: The Five-Minute Test
Once the hoses were connected and everything was ready, it was time to see how well the ARB compressor performed.
I was particularly interested in how long it would take to inflate all four tires.
Would this be a painfully slow process? Would I regret choosing a system that inflated all four tires simultaneously?
There was only one way to find out.
For this test, all four tires started at approximately 10 PSI.
My goal was to bring them back up to 32 PSI, my normal road pressure.
That's a 22 PSI increase across all four tires.
I connected the ARB CKMP12V2 to the external power port, started the compressor, and watched the pressure climb.
The result?
All four tires went from 10 PSI to 32 PSI in just over five minutes!
I was quite pleased with that.
There's a small caveat regarding the timing. I didn't think to start my timer at the exact moment inflation began, so the elapsed time shown in the video is slightly shorter than the actual inflation time.
Nevertheless, the entire process took just over five minutes.
Not bad at all!
And because the Uharbour system connects all four tires, I didn't have to move the compressor or air hose from wheel to wheel during the process.
The final video shows the tire pressure at the end of the test, along with the elapsed time.
Putting That New Power Port to Work
One of the satisfying aspects of this project is that it puts my recently installed external jump-start port to use for something other than an emergency.
The ARB compressor normally connects to a vehicle's battery using alligator-style clamps.
Initially, I considered cutting those clamps off and replacing them with a dedicated quick-disconnect connector that would plug directly into the bumper port.
But after looking things over, I realized the existing clamps could attach directly to the appropriate contacts on my jumper-port adapter.
And they work just fine!
So, for now, I'm leaving the compressor's original wiring alone.
No sense modifying something that already works.
The arrangement also means I can use the compressor without opening the Delica's passenger door and lifting the seat to access the battery.
That was the whole point of installing the port in the first place.
One less inconvenience when I'm out exploring.
A Small Upgrade With a Big Purpose
This project isn't particularly glamorous.
It's an air compressor, some hoses, and a convenient electrical connection.
But for the way I use the Five Billion Star Hotel, it's a meaningful improvement.
The Delica takes me into some fairly remote places. Sometimes those adventures involve rocky trails, rough forest roads, or seemingly endless stretches of washboard.
Being able to lower my tire pressures when appropriate, then reinflate them before returning to pavement, gives me another useful tool for traveling those roads.
It also means I no longer have to choose between enduring a bone-rattling ride and worrying about how I'm going to reinflate my tires afterward.
And perhaps I'll manage to keep a few more parts attached to the Delica!
As for the ARB compressor and Uharbour hose system, my initial impressions are positive. The equipment performed well during this first test, and the inflation time was better than I'd anticipated.
But the real test will come with repeated use on the road.
I'll report back if there's anything worth mentioning.
Hole-in-the-Rock Road: Round Two?
If everything goes according to plan, I'll be returning to southern Utah next April.
And there's a very good chance Hole-in-the-Rock Road will be on the itinerary.
This time, I'll be arriving with an air compressor.
Hopefully, I'll also be leaving with my exhaust tip, hubcaps, and recovery board knobs still attached.
I suppose we'll find out!
This is just one of the many modifications I've made to the Five Billion Star Hotel, my 1994 Mitsubishi Delica L300 4x4. You can follow the rest of the build and our adventures on the Five Billion Star Hotel page.
See you down the trail!
~ Faz 👋
