ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Converting Cargo Trailers into TTTs

Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Sun Sep 16, 2018 3:48 pm

We are leaving South Dakotah heading toward Rocky Mountain national Park on Tuesday
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Tue Sep 25, 2018 10:39 pm

We are currently in Blanding Utah. Spent 3 days around Moab, stayed in arches National Park also checked out Canyon Lands National Park. Don I will post a few more picks in the next day or two. Crossing the Rocky Mountains from Denver to Utah on interstate 70 really put that 2008 Silverado 5.3 liter to the test. Really glad we put that large transmission cooler on before leaving Florida. That Chevy and the driver operate a little differently at 8000 to 10000 ft. Up in the mountains. It’s a whole lot easier to catch your breath at 80 ft above sea level than 8 or 10 thousand.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby McDave » Wed Sep 26, 2018 2:21 am

Hey Richard,
That is some of God's country you are seeing now. Moab is one of those places that just feels kinda ... special, hallowed maybe. I loved the southwest 30 years ago. Things moved a lot slower then, kinda like Montana now.
We sure enjoyed your visit, and I wanted to thank you for coming over. I know the girls were nervous about the whole thing, but they were thick as thieves by the time you guys left. Jewels cried when we left the restaurant, and again the next night after we cooked dinner. That's some kind of special woman you got ridin' shotgun. You are a rich man, Richard. ... ;) ...
So winter is here, 33f tonight. I love the brisk mornings as long as it warms up to the 50s by noon. I can still get things done without wearing a coat, but the daylight is short. Big pig roast this Saturday, should be awesome. The weather should hold and I've had some friends call to say they were coming down from Red Lodge to stay with us. We'll probably try to do a poker run Sunday down to Broadus, Alzada, Ashland, Jim Town, Coalstrip, Forsyth and then home. Might be the last ride this year,... unless I load up the trailer and head south. ... :thinking: .. I hear the green bean salad is dynamite at Thanksgiving in Florida, hmmmm... Wishful thinking probably.
Anyways, enjoy your travels and be safe. I'll hold down the fort up here till you get back.

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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby flboy » Wed Sep 26, 2018 4:53 am

Sounds like you are having the best time. So happy for you guys. I am looking forward to Moab next year when I ride the TAT out that way on the KTM.

Have a great time. I suppose you will have to start migrating south soon to stay ahead of the frost?

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YouTube Video of 7*18 with 2ft V-nose Trailer:
https://youtu.be/MUcMM86LA2g
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Sun Oct 07, 2018 11:17 pm

Don we were trying to stay ahead of the cold but it caught us just south of Snowflake AZ. We were in the rain and topped a hill and all of a sudden we were in the snow. We stopped in Show Low and got a rv site at 11 in the morning. People from Florida don't drive when the snow is falling. We are heading for Tucson AZ and hopefully by Monday morning it will clear up.
Image

Here are a couple of images from Arches National Park which is right outside of Moab. This is our campsite in the park.
Image

This is one of the rock formations in the park. The spire to the left reminds me of something but I am not sure what it reminds me of.
Image

This is a pic from Canyonlands National Park. You can see the start of the trail on the left and down in the bottom is another part of the same trail. You might be on trails like that on your trip out west as this is near Moab.
Image

We will be around Tucson until the 11th of Oct. so if you live near give us a shout and we can meet up. After that we are headed for Carlsbad NM and then west Texas. We are nearing 6 months in the trailer and still loving it.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby flboy » Mon Oct 08, 2018 6:41 am

Wow... getting cold up in the northern latitudes already. Time to start migrating south!

The area you are in looks awesome. I am sure I will be through there late June next year on my KTM-690R. Riding it across the country mostly off pavement and Moab is on the TAT route for sure.

I will get out there in my CTC next year also about this time. When I get back from TAT in July sometime.. I am loading up the CTC and my goal is to hit Sturgis on the way up through the States into the Canadian Rockies and head west and eventually back down through Idaho and etc. as weather turns.

My dilemma is that I will have the KTM-690R on board for that trip and I want my Victory Kingpin for Sturgis.. hopefully my brother is going and he will bring it for me in his rig, or I can rent a Harley while I am there? Alot of planning to do.

Thanks for sharing the pics. Glad to hear the CTC is working well for you. You did a great job on it! Safe travels.

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https://youtu.be/6_-8cVdWUIA
YouTube Video of 7*18 with 2ft V-nose Trailer:
https://youtu.be/MUcMM86LA2g
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby McDave » Mon Oct 08, 2018 1:24 pm

Heh heh heh,
The irony isn't lost on me. The folks from Frostbite get stranded in Snowflake, ARIZONA! Meanwhile in Montana, I'm mowing the lawn and cutting fresh roses for Jewels. Still picking the tomatoes and herbs that the cottontails didn't get. Well, it's all part of the adventure. Strange things can happen when you are north of the Mason Dixon. just sayin....
So, you are heading into my old stomping grounds next, eh? Again, you picked the right time of year to be crossing the desert. I grew up and lived in Tijeras, NM. and spent a lot of time southern NM, for various reasons, but mostly just having fun. Since you'll going through Las Cruses @ I-25 you won't be but a few miles from Hatch, the chile capital of the world! Similar to Vidalia for onions. I think the harvest is probably over, but I would still have to get some if I was that close. And maybe buy ol' Hank, (Hankaye) some lunch, he is just up the road at Arrey. Also, White Sands Natl Monument is on the must see list. The pure white dunes are amazing and of course Alamagordo and Trinity Site where the first atomic bomb was tested are very interesting historical places. Cloudcroft, Ruidoso, and Sacramento are just beautiful places in the Sacramento mountains. That would be a great place to camp for a night. There is really a lot to see in that area. And you might need a few days to spend in Carlsbad. The caverns are huge and just too amazing to describe. Can you tell how much I miss New Mexico? I gotta take Jewels down there. She was born an Okie, but her parents and Grand parents were from Clayton, NM. before moving to Montana.
Well, that is probably plenty of rambling from me. Oh yeah, that spire in Arches Utah always reminded me of something too.... just sayin'...
Happy Trails, Amigo!

McDave

PS. if you are lucky you might get to see these guys at White Sands.
Ibex
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and Oryx
156390
You get the strangest looks when you roll into town with one of these tied to the hood of your truck!
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby hankaye » Mon Oct 08, 2018 6:12 pm

ris, Howdy;

Yup, Chili harvest is finished, festival was Labor Day weekend, good news is
a lot less tourists to get in your way. They are still sun drying the chilies on
the rooftops and the smell of'em roasting will never leave ya. (A good thing!).
If you go East on 40 to 25 and turn South you'll hit Albuquerque but if you want
to avoid the City (?), then you can turn South/East on State route 6 at Exit 126
and you'll skirt the "City" and pop onto I-25 at Los Lunas and 154 miles later is
my exit (59). This RV Park where I live has some Dry camp spots and Bathroom/
shower, Laundry and is 20 miles to Hatch. PM me and I can see about getting you
a space or give ya the phone number so you can do it yourself if you'd rather.
It's the bestest time of the year here weather wise. Balloon Fest is going on in
Albuquerque so it's a madhouse of activity. The elevators at Carlsbad have been
mostly non functional most of the year, but you can walk down (a mile), then
back up after the tour if ya feel up to it. new elevators for next year NPS sez so. :NC

McD, wasn't joking about the Ibex or the Oryx, they also have Himalayan Tahr there
somewhere ... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan ... ted_States

Maybe even see a camel, left over from an Army experiment in the late 1800's
It's kinda weird here in N.M. enjoyable, just weird.

hank
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Every day I beat my own previous record for number of consecutive days I've stayed alive.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Sun Oct 21, 2018 5:45 pm

Over 12,000 Miles and we are in North Florida. Hankaye we never called but after a number of days rain in Tucson and the weather forcasting 40's in New Mexico and Texas along with rain. We took off for Florida. We will catch you on the next trip. Even tho we are in Milton Florida we are still 487 miles from home, which is in Frostproof Fl. Only problems we had on the trip were one trailer tire went flat overnight because of a nail. Truck front tire started separating in Benson AZ so put 2 new tires on front of truck. Had a small leak, 1/4 cup of water after 8 hours of rain on the roof edge. The 2.5 inch metal around the vertical edge of the roof top had a small gap were 2 of the pieces met. We caulked and have had no further problems. The rear facing wireless camera, large transmission cooler, and propane/electric water heater were very much appreciated. We only used the electric on the water heater once the rest of the time we used propane. We only ran the heater for 12 minutes for both of us to take showers. We have only replaced one blue rhino propane tank and we are still using the 2nd one. Not bad for 6 months on the road. We also have used 4 of the green propane canisters for our grill and outside coleman stove. We also used about 80 disposable wash cloths for bathing when we were saving water.( like baby wipes but 8" x 10") We did not boondock as much as we thought we would out west. We stayed in state parks, national parks and rv parks when we traveling between parks. Things we are thinking of upgrading or buying. Better cell phone booster, and maybe a wifi booster. Might just upgrade our data plan and just buy a really good cell phone signal booster and just forget the wifi booster. Depends on Don's results with the vortex generators but we might install them.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby hankaye » Sun Oct 21, 2018 6:16 pm

ris, Howdy;

That's ok, don't know where I'll be next week or next year, maybe still
here, I dunno. Mood hits, I put it all in one sock and roll . :lol:
Who knows, might even sell the 5th wheel and move into a modern
day cliff dwelling (apartment), and make excursions in the CTC.
Push come to shove, I can sell the 5th wheel, pack everything I've got
into the CTC, move then whatever, ...
Right now I've been in one address longer then I've been anywhere 8 years,
go figure. My feet are beginning to itch, perhaps it's an allergy :thinking: , :roll:

hank
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Sun Nov 04, 2018 9:35 pm

We are back in Frostproof Fl. I have a few numbers for you. We were gone about 6 months and 7 days. We traveled 13,944 miles. Our total expenses for the whole trip, $14,616. That is just over $2,400 per month. This includes, one trailer tire, and 4 truck tires. Our fuel which is included in the total also was $3,600. Our trailer fully loaded weighed 5,800 lbs. Our truck was a Silverado 1500 with a 5.3 liter motor. With tow/haul on we consistently got 9.5 mpg at 65 mph or under. If we went over 68 mph it would drop down a gear and we would get 6.5 mpg. Running interstate 10 at 75 mph we would burn around $150 per day of gas. That is for a 6 or 7 hour day of driving. We normally drove only 4 hrs per day but heading home from Tucson AZ we put in some long days. My wife drove almost half the time. She did not have a problem with the 18' X 8'6" trailer. We could have built the same trailer but had it 16' long and we would have been OK by losing 2' of kitchen cabinet. Our cabinet is 8' long. So we could have reduced the pantry portion of the cabinets by 2 ft making them only 6' long without sacrificing much. The rest of the 2 ft reduction would have been open floor space. Glad we went with the 18 but a 16 would have worked. We really enjoyed ourselves and we are planning to do some more trips.

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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby McDave » Mon Nov 05, 2018 8:41 am

:applause: :thumbsup: :applause:
6 months at a dollar per mile sounds pretty darn good to me. You got to see a lot of this country and I'm not sure it could be done much cheaper. Maybe with a motorcycle and a tent but I doubt it. Well if all that went wrong was a few tires and a tooth that is a major success. Way to go you guys. Thanks for the write up. Glad you are home in one piece. Enjoy your Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Love ya,

Dave and Jewels
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Tue Nov 06, 2018 8:21 pm

Thanks Dave we will be back someday. We did have a good time with you'll. Thanks again for the great time.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby aggie79 » Wed Nov 07, 2018 9:13 am

ris wrote:Over 12,000 Miles and...6 months on the road.
Richard


Richard,
Y'all have lived our dream. Maybe one day my wife and I can do something similar.
Take care,
Tom
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Thu Jan 02, 2020 7:54 pm

Just wanted to let you folks know we are headed west again this year 2020. Leaving Florida in late March early April. Going to Big Bend then Guadalupe Mountains, then Carlsbad then headed to Joshua Tree and then the National Parks from Southern California to Oregon, Washington, and Glacier NP. We will then head south. McDave we hope it works that we can come by again, not sure yet, we will keep in contact with you once we start. Jill would like to see your wife again. If you live along this route let us know we love to meet other trailer folks. Will start posting here as we get closer. We spent 2019 traveling 6,100 miles in our small boat doing the Great American Loop for the second time. So we haven't visited this site much as we were on boating sites. I do have one question about tires on the Cargo trailers. We did fine on our radial trailer tires but they are a bit worn. Do any of you use some kind of truck tires on the trailer or do you just use trailer tires? Thanks in advance for the help.
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