- Location
- Sandy, Ut
Well your the poster child for owning up to reality to, you decided it didn't work for you and sold, can't disagree with that logic
I know there are more of you with trailers... post your pics!
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Official Will An Off-Road Trailer Work For Me? The Off-Road Trailer Conundrum
- Thread starter cruiseroutfit
- Start date
Well your the poster child for owning up to reality to, you decided it didn't work for you and sold, can't disagree with that logic
I know there are more of you with trailers... post your pics!
Box Rocket
bored
- Location
- Syracuse, Utah
Kurt, I saw your link to this thread over on ExPo. Actually a really good idea for a thread. Little background on my outlook on trailers.....I had plans to build one starting back in about 1999. At the time I just had my FJ40 and was having a similar experience to your own, just needing a little more room that what I could stuff in the 40 for a few days on the trail. But I was absolutely "guilty as charged" in that there was a large portion of my desire for an off-road trailer purely because I thought it would be cool. Obviously I didn't NEED one back then because I went another ten years before I ended up with a trailer. And now that I have one I can say with confidence that I really NEEDED the trailer at this point.
Back in 1999 it was just me and my wife. Now we have 4 kids and dog and even with my FZJ80 we're filling up the space inside the truck with just us and the meagre necessities you want inside the truck with you. It's really kinda ridiculous. Even going to visit my parents in Idaho for the weekend means hooking up the trailer even with no plans to get off-road. Some of that is due to the fact that there is A TON OF CRAP you have to take with you with infants/toddlers. Our two youngest are twins and they're currently almost 17 months old and I'm continually amazed at how much stuff we have to bring for them even on short little jaunts in the afternoon.
So now that I've established an actual need for a trailer, I'll say that I would LOVE having any of the models available from Adventure Trailers, but sadly there is no way I could afford or justify the cost of one. So that meant building my own trailer on a shoestring budget and slowly add the accessories to make off-road trips more enjoyable as money allows and as the need becomes greater. Right now the trailer is about as basic as it gets. It's a simple box, oversize tires, unrestricted hitch, non-braked trailer axle, but is setup to carry extra fuel/water, CO2 and a cooler on the tongue. Eventually I will add a RTT (or two so we can all fit), and I have plans to swap the water cans that I currently carry to a watertank with pump mounted under the trailer. I also want to add power and develop a more extensive camp "kitchen".
I have left it "un-modded" for the most part because I also use it for utility hauling around the house. Trips to the hardware store, garden center etc for things that won't fit in the Cruiser. But recently I picked up my DoubleCab Tacoma so I have the bed of the truck that can take on some of those utility duties now. This opens the door for me to make some more "permanent" mods to the trailer and have it be more of a "hook up and go" sort of setup. I'm looking forward to that.
I am still a novice when it comes to pulling the trailer off-road. It's been on a handful of trails up to this point and it's performed far better than I could have hoped, but I'm learning my limits along with the challenges of pulling a trailer. But some of that it really fun for me. I like a good challenge, but that challenge can turn into a real PITA if my wife and all the kids are along so I have to pick my battles carefully. The trailer has also made several trips of several hundred miles around Utah, and into Idaho and Wyoming and has been a dream to pull on the highway so I'm comfortable with it being used in an "Overland" fashion. Overall, it really has been a successful experience for me, and a very enjoyable project to build it. I can't think of anything in your assessment that I disagree with in regards to what constitutes a NEED for a trailer as well as the PROS and CONS. So nice work.
Here is a link to my trailer buildup for anyone interested.
http://forum.ih8mud.com/trailer-tech/264952-box-rocket-homemade-trailer-build.html
And here are a few pictures from one of our family outings.
Back in 1999 it was just me and my wife. Now we have 4 kids and dog and even with my FZJ80 we're filling up the space inside the truck with just us and the meagre necessities you want inside the truck with you. It's really kinda ridiculous. Even going to visit my parents in Idaho for the weekend means hooking up the trailer even with no plans to get off-road. Some of that is due to the fact that there is A TON OF CRAP you have to take with you with infants/toddlers. Our two youngest are twins and they're currently almost 17 months old and I'm continually amazed at how much stuff we have to bring for them even on short little jaunts in the afternoon.
So now that I've established an actual need for a trailer, I'll say that I would LOVE having any of the models available from Adventure Trailers, but sadly there is no way I could afford or justify the cost of one. So that meant building my own trailer on a shoestring budget and slowly add the accessories to make off-road trips more enjoyable as money allows and as the need becomes greater. Right now the trailer is about as basic as it gets. It's a simple box, oversize tires, unrestricted hitch, non-braked trailer axle, but is setup to carry extra fuel/water, CO2 and a cooler on the tongue. Eventually I will add a RTT (or two so we can all fit), and I have plans to swap the water cans that I currently carry to a watertank with pump mounted under the trailer. I also want to add power and develop a more extensive camp "kitchen".
I have left it "un-modded" for the most part because I also use it for utility hauling around the house. Trips to the hardware store, garden center etc for things that won't fit in the Cruiser. But recently I picked up my DoubleCab Tacoma so I have the bed of the truck that can take on some of those utility duties now. This opens the door for me to make some more "permanent" mods to the trailer and have it be more of a "hook up and go" sort of setup. I'm looking forward to that.
I am still a novice when it comes to pulling the trailer off-road. It's been on a handful of trails up to this point and it's performed far better than I could have hoped, but I'm learning my limits along with the challenges of pulling a trailer. But some of that it really fun for me. I like a good challenge, but that challenge can turn into a real PITA if my wife and all the kids are along so I have to pick my battles carefully. The trailer has also made several trips of several hundred miles around Utah, and into Idaho and Wyoming and has been a dream to pull on the highway so I'm comfortable with it being used in an "Overland" fashion. Overall, it really has been a successful experience for me, and a very enjoyable project to build it. I can't think of anything in your assessment that I disagree with in regards to what constitutes a NEED for a trailer as well as the PROS and CONS. So nice work.
Here is a link to my trailer buildup for anyone interested.
http://forum.ih8mud.com/trailer-tech/264952-box-rocket-homemade-trailer-build.html
And here are a few pictures from one of our family outings.
- Location
- Sandy, Ut
Thanks for chiming in Adam. I seem to recall having a conversation about trailers with you down at the old shop back when when that tub was leaning up against the fence. Fast forward almost 10 years and its quite ironic to see us not only talking about it again but enjoying our trailers.
Your build is one of the cleanest 'dual-purpose' setups I've seen to date, I can definitely appreciate the need to be able haul around a sheet of plywood or a lawnmower without having a completely separate utility trailer. Now that you've got the truck I'm interested to see how your trailer build progresses
Your build is one of the cleanest 'dual-purpose' setups I've seen to date, I can definitely appreciate the need to be able haul around a sheet of plywood or a lawnmower without having a completely separate utility trailer. Now that you've got the truck I'm interested to see how your trailer build progresses
Box Rocket
bored
- Location
- Syracuse, Utah
Thanks for chiming in Adam. I seem to recall having a conversation about trailers with you down at the old shop back when when that tub was leaning up against the fence. Fast forward almost 10 years and its quite ironic to see us not only talking about it again but enjoying our trailers.
Your build is one of the cleanest 'dual-purpose' setups I've seen to date, I can definitely appreciate the need to be able haul around a sheet of plywood or a lawnmower without having a completely separate utility trailer. Now that you've got the truck I'm interested to see how your trailer build progresses
Thanks for the compliment! As a shade-tree hack fabricator, anytime someone considers my projects "clean" that's a real compliment.
Dave's 70 CJ6
New Member
Dave's 70 CJ6
New Member
Dave's 70 CJ6
New Member
BlackDog
one small mod at a time
- Location
- Proudly Deported to ID
Habe a pickup bed trailer, and this has been on my mind for the last month, mod it to the point a RTT could be attached to its sidewalls, and then I would have a 4.5' or so high area below the RTT in the bed for storage, hell, double decker sleeping arrangements, whatever, tailgate could be the "kitchen Counter", Cooler belwo the gate, for added shade....
Gonna have to figure this out, and If I mod the axles to the same lug pattern as the truck, the trailer can carry two spares on the tongue 1 for it, and 1 for the Centurion.
And if i used its tanks for transfer/storage tanks, I would have 70 gallons of fuel capacity.
Another thought is instead of a RT, a bottomless army tent, 10x10 or so. and have the side racks fold out to make metal platforms for mattresses, and then a bed on the floor... Sort of Jumping Jack trailer style.
The ideas are kicking, we just need to get it reconfigured...and then go from there.
Gonna have to figure this out, and If I mod the axles to the same lug pattern as the truck, the trailer can carry two spares on the tongue 1 for it, and 1 for the Centurion.
And if i used its tanks for transfer/storage tanks, I would have 70 gallons of fuel capacity.
Another thought is instead of a RT, a bottomless army tent, 10x10 or so. and have the side racks fold out to make metal platforms for mattresses, and then a bed on the floor... Sort of Jumping Jack trailer style.
The ideas are kicking, we just need to get it reconfigured...and then go from there.
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- Location
- Sandy, Ut
Dave's 70 CJ6
New Member
Really cool setup Dave... you need to bring that to the Relic Run!
That looks like a great run! Next on our list is a truck and trailer so we can haul to events like the Relic Run. There are three of us here that all have older 'long' Jeeps and trailers: L-R, CJ-8 Marty, CJ-6 Dave & Barbara, CJ-8 Mark & Jody
In addition to trail runs and camping, we also do recovery for CalROCs and WE Rock rock crawling, and we are working with Hammerking on a King of the Hammers qualifier here in northern Nevada. If any of you are ever headed this way to the Rubicon, or coming out for events like Octanefest, be sure to let us know.
Brian P
Misanthropic Fuel
- Location
- Taylorsville
I've pined over Kurts trailer for years, I wont have one like his anytime soon, But I hope to have a expedition trailer soon
Here is what I have built so far.
I built the ladder frame first, Then I cut out boxed sections so I could weld in a 10' piece of receiver hitch for the back bone.
I stopped by a trailer supply store on the way home, MAN this could get expensive, They have all sorts of goodies there!
This is what I have cut ready to be welded on, Corners and sides of the bed as well as a cooler spot on the tongue.
Not too terribly exciting, But I hope its functional.
Here is what I have built so far.
I built the ladder frame first, Then I cut out boxed sections so I could weld in a 10' piece of receiver hitch for the back bone.
I stopped by a trailer supply store on the way home, MAN this could get expensive, They have all sorts of goodies there!
This is what I have cut ready to be welded on, Corners and sides of the bed as well as a cooler spot on the tongue.
Not too terribly exciting, But I hope its functional.
- Location
- Sandy, Ut
Very cool Brian, keep us posted!
- Location
- Never Far From Nowhere
Looks like the beginning of something cool.
4x4_Welder
Well-Known Member
- Location
- Twin Falls, ID
I did not know that they made an off-road teardrop. Seems it would get torn up pretty easily.
I've seen dieselcruiserhead's trailer before, it's the one that has really gotten me thinking about expedition trailers.
Has anyone built one with a Torflex-style axle? That extra bit of clearance might make all the difference dragging a trailer down a trail.
I've seen dieselcruiserhead's trailer before, it's the one that has really gotten me thinking about expedition trailers.
Has anyone built one with a Torflex-style axle? That extra bit of clearance might make all the difference dragging a trailer down a trail.
Brian P
Misanthropic Fuel
- Location
- Taylorsville
The teardrop's are pretty sweet!
I thought about a torsion axle, But the guy at the trailer supply said with the solid axle it help distribute the weight through uneven terrain and if you think about a trailer with similar wheel size, It should have a similar clearance as the tow vehicle.
I just recently made the change to an 'in-between' type off-road trailer, a Kamparoo. I don't expect to ever tow it through Hell's Revenge or over Elephant Hill, but it should allow us to go further than a traditional tent trailer ever could. We plan on modifying it some to work for our family and hopefully make it even more reliable.
- Location
- Sandy, Ut
I did a trip with Ali and his Kamparoo Cub through E-Hill. It was tight in a few spots but he made it through completely unscathed.
Post some pics of your new trailer!