4biker's Jeep Trailer thread - I hope I do this right

[4biker]

nice.

Thanks Steve!

Great to hear, I like how it's come along. Does the S/C really make it feel like you've got all the power you need or could you stand to have more power for cruising? Are you planning on extending the tongue on it? I'm no expert so I dont know if a longer or shorter tongue will aid you offroad to navigate.

The supercharger is actually pretty great for cruising. I don't really feel like I'm downshifting all the time and I can hold any speed I want on the freeway. It's certainly not a "fast" truck but it gets up pretty well. It's much better to drive now than it used to be. Just come take a ride sometime to see what you think

The tongue on most off-road trailers is longer so you can back up in tight spaces and get to 90 degrees before you jack knife. Mine will only give me about 60-70 degrees as it is now. Short trailers are much more twitchy to back up so it would help with that too. It also helps with the trailer bobbing up and down as the hitch cycles up and down on a rough road. A long tongue will keep the trailer more level under those conditions.

I'm looking at plans to swap a new tongue on but that's a project for next year. I just need to get it rolling and stylish this year.
I'll have to think about that when it comes time to install the lights so I leave myself some extra wire.

 

[4biker]

Finally got out in the RTT up American Fork Canyon. Ran into a bunch of guys from Desert Runners on the way out - nice guys and some nice rigs! It was a cold night, so a good test. The size is ok, but the wife was uncomfortable and cold (mostly cold), so it wasn't the best camping experience for her. camping with a 16-month-old is worse for her than it was for me. We'll have to take it somewhere warm, and less noisy. It's unfortunate that AF canyon is so well known for the constant drone of UTV's and ATV's. Nothing against them, but I get a little tired of it. Anyway, it was beautiful and clear, and our poor old dog is about worn out from chasing critters. I thought the tent warmed up fast with 3 bodies in it, but it just seemed like camping to me. I guess there's really nothing magical about a rooftop tent after all. I think the pad is a great base, and it seems like a pretty good quality build overall. Here are some pics.





One thing to note is that with a baby and a dog, getting everything into the 4Runner is a bit of a humongous pain. It's easy without one of those, but with both, it takes some serious packing skills, but mostly it's just annoying. I can't wait to get the trailer done so we can just hook up the trailer, throw in some food, and go camping with no fuss.

 

[4biker]

Fabrication is coming along as well. Instead of riveting, I've JB welded the panels on the boxes, and then run spot welds down the edges. Next week I'll make the doors and get everything ready for paint.

 

[4biker]

and on a personal note...

 

[sLcREX]

That is coming along great. I really like how you've got your 4Runner set up and the RTT looks nice. Do you have any pictures of the inside of the tent? How's the material of the tent? Looking forward to seeing your finished trailer.

I'd like to check out your rig sometime if that's ok. And also if you ever need a camping buddy let me know, I need more people to go camping with, don't really have many people for that.

 

[4biker]

Hey MX, I don't have any pics of the interior. The material is pretty robust-looking and it's a coated cotton-poly blend. It doesn't breathe really well, but it's waterproof. I'm looking forward to seeing it finished myself! (so is my wife)

Making progress sure and steady now. I got the boxes finished as far as metal work this morning and applied primer and paint - decided to weld in tie-downs that I found at Home Depot. I should hopefully get them mounted by tomorrow night since I leave for the elk hunt on Friday! Plenty to do, but still very do-able. If my last T-handle latches come in the RTT will start living on the trailer now, which will be a big day.











And then with paint...

 

[sLcREX]

Any updates on this?

 

[4biker]

Yes, but no pics yet. I got the boxes mounted and it's finally sitting outside in the weather. I didn't get my hardware (T-handle latches, door holdbacks) until yesterday, but it's all sealed up now. I have so many other things to catch up on that this thing is going to sit for a while. One unfortunate thing I discovered is that the LH side springs appear to be sagging worse than the RH side. It looks like the leaning trailer of Pisa. If anyone has springs chime in so I don't have to buy a new set quite yet.

I do have some RTT pics from the elk hunt though. It was cold.



This is a guy that I think got run off the road by a logging truck:

 

[4biker]

Ok, here's a shot of the trailer in its current state. It's not finished, but I can pull it around and it's basically put together. It still looks lopsided, but not as bad as it did while in the garage. I'll have do some research on springs before I dive in, but I think it's coming together pretty well (finally).

Here's a not-so-great pic


I CAN NOT wait to pull this thing around and especially get my RTT on the trailer so I can park out of the cold again, and bump my MPG's back up.

 

[sLcREX]

It's looking great so far! Glad to see you've had a chance to get things put together mostly. What kind of mileage are you getting out of the tank on the 4runner?

 

[4biker]

Yeah, I'll get some better shots soon when I take it for a spin. My mileage is actually about the same with the supercharger. It's still terrible around town and ok on the freeway. It's disproportionately more fun to drive so it's worth it, even if I take a hit on gas for ~1mpg. With the parachute (RTT) on the roof I didn't do that great going to the Uintas, but I got about 260 miles out of that tank. That was over mountain passes with a 4Runner FULL of people and stuff and a heck of a long dirt (mud) road. I just remember that I'm driving a pig and it seems better somehow. If I were stock weight, stock height, and stock tires I'd expect a lot better, but I've created the monster, so I get to live with its thirsty tendencies.

 

[sLcREX]

Oh I see. That's pretty good, which makes me wonder why mine is bad. But that's for another thread. When is your next trip planned for?

 

[4biker]

around town mine has gotten worse with every modification. I used to pull 21+mpg out of every tank six years ago but now around town I'm at 14-15mpg. I've done fuel system treatments, seafoam, new plugs & wires, new O2 sensor, new fuel filter, and a few other things to improve it, but there's no escaping the weight and brick-ness of it now.

I may take a quick solo trip to Moab in a couple of weeks if I can pull it off for one last harrah on the mountain bike for the season, but we'll see if I pull the trailer or put the RTT back on the roof (not that I've pulled it off yet). If the Enchilada trail is snowed in, I may reconsider, so we'll see how the weather treats us.

 

[sLcREX]

I get a random o2 sensor code on mine but it comes on and off by itself. It doesn't specify if it's the primary or secondary so I haven't replaced it. Those numbers seem decent for the loads you seem to carry in there.

 

[4biker]

Yours has the newer electrical and fuel management system so it'd be different than mine. I know that the O2 sensor can definitely affect MPG's though.

 

[sLcREX]

How's this trailer coming along? Did the boxes get mounted up?

 

[4biker]

It's come along ok - it's under a tarp right now, but it's nearing completion. Let me find a pic - Looks like this is the best pic (posted on last page). it's hard to see the boxes with the crummy picture, but they're on and surprisingly sturdy. I need to add mudflaps and lights, and I'm weighing pros and cons of registering it, but I can load it and pull it right now.



Your 4Runner looks great by the way!

 

[4biker]

Also, I don't think I updated the new look of the 4Runner. I picked up some 80-series LC wheels, and I'm pretty much in love with them. (sorry but this is my unofficial build thread). I also got a 2.1" pulley and 7th injector kit for the supercharger. It's faster now.

 

[sLcREX]

That's cool, that's looking pretty good. Any ideas what the trailer weights now? Those LC wheels do look good on it, are they 16's?

Thanks, I'm pretty happy with where my 4Runner is at, just a couple things that I would like to do to prepare it for longer journeys but otherwise it's pretty capable.

 

[Tonkaman]

I've read about several people having tuning issues with the 7th injector. What's your impression with it? Was it worth it?