My Overlander Build. Well, woods build..

[OP827]

And the fly is made/installed! This is set at 6ft deployed and rain/dew slant.



It will roll out as far as 8ft (8'-6" is max). I did stay with the 1" PVC tube to roll it on, the 3/4" drilled holes are working just fine. I Hung those spray bottles on the pole for weight hoping to determine just how much I actually need. 1/3rd full, mild wind w/gusts and works real nice. I think any greater wind I'd stake it out anyway...

This picture got me thinking. If you add two shorter sticks like that then this canopy structure could handle the wind better than weights ... maybe? Plus they could hang a towel or a shirt... just a random thought..

[Terra6]

I've been enjoying reading your posts and pics.
Coming among nicely. Thank you for posting and sharing.
Hopefully your awning lasts longer than mine.
Put mine up on a nice sunny calm day for the first time, and within 30 mins 20+ winds rose up and started to damage the tarp.
Even using awning clamps for attachment came off. Will have to come up with a sturdier design which includes 4 sided frame for the tarp. And switching to shade cloth which is lighter and more wind resistant. Now available at HF.
All part of the fun of design and build.

[RJ Howell]

I've been enjoying reading your posts and pics.
Coming among nicely. Thank you for posting and sharing.
Hopefully your awning lasts longer than mine.
Put mine up on a nice sunny calm day for the first time, and within 30 mins 20+ winds rose up and started to damage the tarp.
Even using awning clamps for attachment came off. Will have to come up with a sturdier design which includes 4 sided frame for the tarp. And switching to shade cloth which is lighter and more wind resistant. Now available at HF.
All part of the fun of design and build.

I know I will need some side stays for this to work well. I'm looking for parts (connections) to make that happen before I resolve to just make some.. Using my Growlers as weight is probably not the best idea I came up with this past run... Easy to find them though!

Thank you for your kind remarks and experience.

[Terra6]

And an unofficial welcome to becoming the latest member of the Overland Lite Brigade.
Official, when you get the interior done.

[RJ Howell]

:thumbsup:
And an unofficial welcome to becoming the latest member of the Overland Lite Brigade.
Official, when you get the interior done.

Step at a time! Like several parts of this and a few modifications to improve., no doubt (list at the end of each run).

Yet we continue!

Can't think of a better way!

New ground found! New experience! Not bad for another day on this planet!

[RJ Howell]

Found a great place for lunch as we scouted dirt routes North from our home.



Nice view from our campsite! White Mountain National Forest!



108 mile run, took 6hrs traveling some tar, more dirt and a couple class 6 roads! Love it!

The new theme: Byways no Highways / Dirt preferred!

[tony.latham]

as we scouted dirt routes...

It's always great to vicariously watch a build –-especially something unique like yours–– come together and then hit the trail.

But I'm still waiting for that photo of stripers (that you hinted at) in front of your new rig or on the grill.



Tony

[RJ Howell]

Surf casting rules are still, shall I say, stupid... May be a bit longer before those pictures happen..

[tony.latham]

Surf casting rules are...

Damn!

T

[RJ Howell]

I pulled the trigger on one of the Alvantor Screen House's. Pricey, oh ya, but available (rare right now for most anything) and space efficient. I do hope it's worth the dollar... Been lucky so far on the bugs, but the season continues and grows.

Working on the gravity feed shower a bit today. I do like the 12v pressurized, yet I may have mentioned the consumption of water. The gravity worked better for me and setup a simple line from the carboy to my shower head. Being gravity, just hooking on theta of the door raises it high enough to shut it off, how convenient!

I have my new grill/cooktop unit and it was just enough bigger to cause a whole new arrangement in the cooking storage side. I also wanted the fire-grill onboard as we wanted it this time time out. I also added the Butane single burner into the mix for morning coffee. Really wanted something small that can be used inside if wanted and it looks like it should do the trick. I had no idea how tough it would be to get the fuel!!! I did, but what a PITA!
The slide shelf for the chest Frig has been a bit of an issue with movement, even though the frig is strapped in. I did get a latch on that slide and hopefully the end of that. My frig slides east/west, so I don't know if you folks have the same issues with a north/south slide. That side to side bounce was causing havoc... well, something I'd rather not deal with..

Being my camper is also my truck, some truck maintenance happened as well after this last run. Same for you folks to keep the TV running smooth. I just caught much too much mud/too many pebbles and caught a death wobble. Side of the road cleaning (DC powered shower is handy!) and clearing the treads of pebbles (wow, a lot!) and much better! I did kick the weights (or a leasts a) off my front tires. My dealer took care of it, of which I'm very pleased with them. I think he just liked the stories of where I went..

More to come as I continue making the required changes. So far, so good!

Safe travels all!

[dbhosttexas]

Holy cheese whiz Batman!

See that is the sort of build I WANT to do, but SWMBO still thinks my now 16 year old F150 should be a shiny street driver. I don't think she quite understands...

Her requirements are actually a HUGE part of why I am needing to do a cap build instead of an overlander.

I'm slowly working on her for that. I think once we get her a nice new(er) SUV, she will relax a bit on the truck...

Should I get the go ahead for an overlander build, here are the big things I want to do design wise.


#1. Complete the base truck build out. This means swapping the Rancho coils for Moog HD springs to get the nose out of the weeds, Getting my body shop BIL to trim the back sides of the fenders so rubbing with the 35x12.50/17 LTs is no longer an issue at full turn / compression. 4:56 gears, LS up front, selectable locker out back, fresh engine, and make sure everything is sealed up blah blah blah. You get the idea... I only have 2.5" of lift. And want to keep it that way. I am overlanding, not rock crawling. Any terrain that will require more lift and tire, will be too risky with a camper on the back, and the length of the rig etc...
#2. The overcab sleeper would be designed, and the width of the whole thing would accomodate a king size bed in the overcab. And it MUST support a lot of weight. Part of the reason behind travel is weight loss. I don't know why, but I lose weight when I travel. But as it is, neither my wife nor I are in a good weight range and need the camper to support us...
#3. The pop up would be thickly insullated. A huge part o the reason for going with foam construction is the insulation value. I camp / travel where it is HOT. I remember my Dad had a Starcraft pop up camper in the 1980s that was a hard side pop up. I am considering a design like that, but need to consider how to insulate the hinges etc...
#4. Dedicated storage, maybe lockable roto packs on the outside, for at least 10 gallons of fuel for the truck, generator and appliances.
#5. 5K BTU window unit AC in the back wall, so the door would be on one side instead of the center. Maybe... If I can source an AC narrow enough maybe?
#6. I am planning on using a Coleman dual fuel stove / appliances. I need to get a cold winter to test my ancient Coleman Catalytic heaters on Regular Unleaded Gas. May gum up the wick, may not. Need to test. It was free anyway so... And I don't necessarily have an issue with using Coleman Fuel / Naptha if I have to. My travels will take me accross the US and Canada (plenty of Coleman Fuel at Walmart, Bass Pro Shops, Cabelas, etc...) and Mexico (most general hardware type stores carry Naptha in 4 liter cans for stove use and paint stripping... I am just not wanting to go with Propane. But I digress...
#7. At least 28 gallon fresh water capacity. My black tank is limited to 5 gallons (port o potty) But I can extend that somewhat I.E. I am not too shy to dig a cat hole and poop in the ground. My wife is a different story...


Mind you, if I were starting off with a Super Duty, Diesel, I would be shopping for Diesel appliances and calling that part done...

So maybe I can just I dunno. Leave a bunch of salty sand in the current bed to convince my wife we need to get rid of it...

[RJ Howell]

Holy cheese whiz Batman!

See that is the sort of build I WANT to do, but SWMBO still thinks my now 16 year old F150 should be a shiny street driver. I don't think she quite understands...

Her requirements are actually a HUGE part of why I am needing to do a cap build instead of an overlander.

I'm slowly working on her for that. I think once we get her a nice new(er) SUV, she will relax a bit on the truck...

Should I get the go ahead for an overlander build, here are the big things I want to do design wise.

So maybe I can just I dunno. Leave a bunch of salty sand in the current bed to convince my wife we need to get rid of it...

I'll answer/talk some over on your thread to keep it in one place for you. Good to see you back!

[RJ Howell]

Out a Playin'...