I guess I didn't realise they were that big.
CK5
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Camping Trailer Build
- Thread starter r3dd0g
- Start date
Vombrown
Mountain Man
It's the most common size (dimensionally) for most off-road trailers I am seeing.
Vombrown
Mountain Man
On your trailer, how does that hitch you made travel down the highway at speed? I'm deciding between pintle and doing something similar to your setup but I need it to track well at 70.
It tracks way better than a pintle or a regular hitch. There's no side to side movement.
Vombrown
Mountain Man
Cool man thanks. My driveway is essentially an extreme off-road trial this time of year. Two miles up 12 percent grade with switchback on ice and snowy logging road "Driveway".... Even coming up it I hear the 2" hitch squeaking and creaking.
I love it for trail running like I do. When I built my first trailer I put a pintle on it and it sucked. It was noisy and the trailer would bang around especially when descending a steep rutted hill, it would push the truck around.
The 3 axis hitch is silent and moves exactly like you want it to. The only movement is on the hitch pin itself. I've considered figuring out a way to eliminate that as well because it tends to oval out the hitch pin holes and get the trailer stuck in the receiver.
The 3 axis hitch is silent and moves exactly like you want it to. The only movement is on the hitch pin itself. I've considered figuring out a way to eliminate that as well because it tends to oval out the hitch pin holes and get the trailer stuck in the receiver.
Great build, thanks for all the detail, especially when you were slamming to get out on a trip. Great ideas and design considerations from the experience of having built others. I'm starting to plan my own build and you've got a bunch of ideas I would love to "shamelessly borrow" from you... 
Any updates/modifications over the time you've had it? Have a good one.
Any updates/modifications over the time you've had it? Have a good one.
I added side covers and improved the seals at the front of the trailer to keep some of the dust and rocks out. I also put bedliner inside the trailer, on top of the trailer lids and coated the area where the NATO cans sit.
You can see some of that detail in the four wheeler article.
You can see some of that detail in the four wheeler article.
I started on the Silverado thread, read the whole thing then seeing the S-10 in your avatar I just had to read that one and after finishing those two I just couldn't leave things unfinished so I had to check this one out. I have a motorhome, access to a 5th wheel and with an infant those are the way to travel for us. for now... Wife doesn't love roughing it but I could totally see trying to do something like this when the boy gets old enough to go camping with dad. Your builds though, the quality and speed you get things done amaze me. I'd love to check some of your stuff out next time I'm down there (I have an uncle in Gilbert that I'm overdue to visit) I can't wait to see what comes next!
Thanks for the kind words! I've also got a motorhome, but my wife and I spend way more time camping in the trailer than we do in the RV.
I'm bringing this thread back from the dead!
We're prepping for a week long overland trip in Colorado in July. I decided to address some issues with the trailer before we go. Overall the trailer kicks butt, but there are a few issues.
We normally store our toilet on a rack I built that sits on the spare tire. Over the years this mounting spot has resulted in the loss of 3 toilets due to ratchet straps falling off and the toilet getting run over by the trailer, thankfully 2 were empty and we only had to deal with a huge mess once (that was enough).
The back corner of the trailer is where I usually strap down 4 NATO cans for long trips, I decided to move those to the bed of the truck and repurpose that corner for additional storage.
Obviously the toilet isn't going to take up all the space, so I need to divide it up. The plan is to have additional storage for whatever as well as a dedicated compartment just for the toilet.
I started by framing out the toilet compartment and welding up the drain holes that were back there.
Then I added some sheet metal to fully seal it off from the rest of the trailer.
Unfortunately I ran out of sheet metal for the last panel on the drivers side and for the door. It's Memorial Day weekend so that will have to wait until tomorrow. The remainder of the compartment will be open on the top for storing whatever in there, it will seal against the top of the trailer when it closes to keep the dust/elements out, but the toilet will still be accessible with the top shut.
We're prepping for a week long overland trip in Colorado in July. I decided to address some issues with the trailer before we go. Overall the trailer kicks butt, but there are a few issues.
We normally store our toilet on a rack I built that sits on the spare tire. Over the years this mounting spot has resulted in the loss of 3 toilets due to ratchet straps falling off and the toilet getting run over by the trailer, thankfully 2 were empty and we only had to deal with a huge mess once (that was enough).
The back corner of the trailer is where I usually strap down 4 NATO cans for long trips, I decided to move those to the bed of the truck and repurpose that corner for additional storage.
Obviously the toilet isn't going to take up all the space, so I need to divide it up. The plan is to have additional storage for whatever as well as a dedicated compartment just for the toilet.
I started by framing out the toilet compartment and welding up the drain holes that were back there.
Then I added some sheet metal to fully seal it off from the rest of the trailer.
Unfortunately I ran out of sheet metal for the last panel on the drivers side and for the door. It's Memorial Day weekend so that will have to wait until tomorrow. The remainder of the compartment will be open on the top for storing whatever in there, it will seal against the top of the trailer when it closes to keep the dust/elements out, but the toilet will still be accessible with the top shut.
Approved
I picked up some more steel today so I could finish the mods to the trailer. I welded in the top panel then I made the door and welded it on.
I made the door open vertically as we set up a privacy tarp around the trailer and this will block off an area that generally gets left open.
After I was done fabricating I cleaned up the metal, roughed it up and painted it (spray in bedliner inside).
I still need to finish up a few things before it's "done", but it's 90% done.
I made the door open vertically as we set up a privacy tarp around the trailer and this will block off an area that generally gets left open.
After I was done fabricating I cleaned up the metal, roughed it up and painted it (spray in bedliner inside).
I still need to finish up a few things before it's "done", but it's 90% done.
Can’t believe this trailer is 6 years old doesn’t seem that long ago.
6 years and well over 100 nights spent in the trailer!
It's mostly done now, I'm just waiting on some weather stripping and some foam pads to keep the toilet from bouncing around in its cubby.
Now, on to the next project...
It's mostly done now, I'm just waiting on some weather stripping and some foam pads to keep the toilet from bouncing around in its cubby.
Now, on to the next project...
More trailer updates!
After 7 years, the Optima batteries were finally starting to give up the ghost. I'm sure the half dozen or so times I accidentally let them die completely had nothing to do with it. I got a little surprise when I pulled the old batteries out though.
Apparently mice have been stealing my dogs food and stashing it in various nooks and crannies of the trailer for some time. Since I had to do new batteries and since the price of LiFePO4 batteries have dropped drastically recently I upgraded to these.
I'll be going from 75Ah usable (when the Optimas were new) to 200Ah usable, plus I'll have a higher charge rate when charging from the Silverado. The new batteries are actually cheaper than if I had gone with the Optima's again, unfortunately since they are shaped differently I had to modify the area they were mounted in.
I ended up removing the shelf and while I had everything apart I cleaned up the wiring and made a cover for the battery compartment. I apparently didn't take any progress pictures, only the finished picture.
The device inline with the ground is a shunt for my battery monitor so I can keep an eye on power in/out. The new batteries actually have Bluetooth monitors on them as well, however I don't think they're going to work well inside a metal box. Here's a shot with the trailer all back together.
Since we had the front of the trailer entirely ripped apart for the battery compartment redesign we decided to modify the water pump mounting and pickup configuration we had gone with due to time constraints when we were originally building the trailer. Prior to this, the pump was mounted under the propane tank with a hose coming off the bottom of the tank, this left everything out in the open and would freeze up any time the temperatures dropped. When I had originally built the tank I put 3/8 NPT bungs on two corners of the top of the tank for vents, only one was in use so I made a siphon tube for the other one by brazing a stainless tube into a brass fitting.
The tank was then reinstalled and we relocated the pump to the top of the battery compartment behind the faucet. I plan on making an insulated box around this at a later date, but I want to use it for a bit to make sure we don't have any leaks. We also replaced the plastic vent line from the opposite corner with a copper tube so it wouldn't get damaged by stuff moving around inside the top of the trailer.
We're pretty happy with how everything turned out, I can't wait to take it out camping again. The new batteries keep the voltage above 12V even when pulling max power with the 2000W inverter while raising the tent. This makes the inverter much happier as the old batteries would drop way down below 10V and sometimes would cause the controller for the legs to error out if you weren't careful.
After 7 years, the Optima batteries were finally starting to give up the ghost. I'm sure the half dozen or so times I accidentally let them die completely had nothing to do with it. I got a little surprise when I pulled the old batteries out though.
Apparently mice have been stealing my dogs food and stashing it in various nooks and crannies of the trailer for some time. Since I had to do new batteries and since the price of LiFePO4 batteries have dropped drastically recently I upgraded to these.
I'll be going from 75Ah usable (when the Optimas were new) to 200Ah usable, plus I'll have a higher charge rate when charging from the Silverado. The new batteries are actually cheaper than if I had gone with the Optima's again, unfortunately since they are shaped differently I had to modify the area they were mounted in.
I ended up removing the shelf and while I had everything apart I cleaned up the wiring and made a cover for the battery compartment. I apparently didn't take any progress pictures, only the finished picture.
The device inline with the ground is a shunt for my battery monitor so I can keep an eye on power in/out. The new batteries actually have Bluetooth monitors on them as well, however I don't think they're going to work well inside a metal box. Here's a shot with the trailer all back together.
Since we had the front of the trailer entirely ripped apart for the battery compartment redesign we decided to modify the water pump mounting and pickup configuration we had gone with due to time constraints when we were originally building the trailer. Prior to this, the pump was mounted under the propane tank with a hose coming off the bottom of the tank, this left everything out in the open and would freeze up any time the temperatures dropped. When I had originally built the tank I put 3/8 NPT bungs on two corners of the top of the tank for vents, only one was in use so I made a siphon tube for the other one by brazing a stainless tube into a brass fitting.
The tank was then reinstalled and we relocated the pump to the top of the battery compartment behind the faucet. I plan on making an insulated box around this at a later date, but I want to use it for a bit to make sure we don't have any leaks. We also replaced the plastic vent line from the opposite corner with a copper tube so it wouldn't get damaged by stuff moving around inside the top of the trailer.
We're pretty happy with how everything turned out, I can't wait to take it out camping again. The new batteries keep the voltage above 12V even when pulling max power with the 2000W inverter while raising the tent. This makes the inverter much happier as the old batteries would drop way down below 10V and sometimes would cause the controller for the legs to error out if you weren't careful.
Very cool.More trailer updates!
After 7 years, the Optima batteries were finally starting to give up the ghost. I'm sure the half dozen or so times I accidentally let them die completely had nothing to do with it. I got a little surprise when I pulled the old batteries out though.
Apparently mice have been stealing my dogs food and stashing it in various nooks and crannies of the trailer for some time. Since I had to do new batteries and since the price of LiFePO4 batteries have dropped drastically recently I upgraded to these.
I'll be going from 75Ah usable (when the Optimas were new) to 200Ah usable, plus I'll have a higher charge rate when charging from the Silverado. The new batteries are actually cheaper than if I had gone with the Optima's again, unfortunately since they are shaped differently I had to modify the area they were mounted in.
I ended up removing the shelf and while I had everything apart I cleaned up the wiring and made a cover for the battery compartment. I apparently didn't take any progress pictures, only the finished picture.
The device inline with the ground is a shunt for my battery monitor so I can keep an eye on power in/out. The new batteries actually have Bluetooth monitors on them as well, however I don't think they're going to work well inside a metal box. Here's a shot with the trailer all back together.
Since we had the front of the trailer entirely ripped apart for the battery compartment redesign we decided to modify the water pump mounting and pickup configuration we had gone with due to time constraints when we were originally building the trailer. Prior to this, the pump was mounted under the propane tank with a hose coming off the bottom of the tank, this left everything out in the open and would freeze up any time the temperatures dropped. When I had originally built the tank I put 3/8 NPT bungs on two corners of the top of the tank for vents, only one was in use so I made a siphon tube for the other one by brazing a stainless tube into a brass fitting.
The tank was then reinstalled and we relocated the pump to the top of the battery compartment behind the faucet. I plan on making an insulated box around this at a later date, but I want to use it for a bit to make sure we don't have any leaks. We also replaced the plastic vent line from the opposite corner with a copper tube so it wouldn't get damaged by stuff moving around inside the top of the trailer.
We're pretty happy with how everything turned out, I can't wait to take it out camping again. The new batteries keep the voltage above 12V even when pulling max power with the 2000W inverter while raising the tent. This makes the inverter much happier as the old batteries would drop way down below 10V and sometimes would cause the controller for the legs to error out if you weren't careful.
Very cool. If you're in the area you guys are welcome to swing by!
We don't have a CO trip planned for this year, but maybe next year.
Time to dust off this thread again. After 10 years and a couple hundred nights in the tent, it's time to replace it.
I just picked up an Overland Vehicle Systems Everest XD 4 person tent.
It's a hard shell tent with blackout fabric, quite an upgrade from the old worn out CVT. It should be easier to set up/tear down as well which will be nice. I am a bit worried about the additional weight (it's about 100lbs heavier than the old tent), but it's still within the specifications of the 9 year old desk legs...
I just picked up an Overland Vehicle Systems Everest XD 4 person tent.
It's a hard shell tent with blackout fabric, quite an upgrade from the old worn out CVT. It should be easier to set up/tear down as well which will be nice. I am a bit worried about the additional weight (it's about 100lbs heavier than the old tent), but it's still within the specifications of the 9 year old desk legs...
