BlkWgn

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Well some of you may know, but we have been lucky enough to sucker Garrett out of his teardrop trailer. A lot of work has already been done, but there is more to do. It does not "need" anything, it is just some cosmetics and personalization. This will be the start of my "build thread" for the trailer, but you can see Garretts at http://americanadventurist.com/Forum/showthread.php?550-Adventure-Brigade-s-Offroad-Teardrop-Trailer and some of his exploits with it here http://americanadventurist.com/Forum/showthread.php?703-Nomadic-in-CA

Here are a few photos stolen from Garrett

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Johnoson valley.jpg



Kitchen remodel.jpg


Me picking it up on Saturday evening

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and the first sunrise on Sunday morning in Wheeler Gorge Ca

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as a side note, worst cup of coffee I have ever made, not sure what went wrong, but it was still a great morning with the trailer listening to the creek
 
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So, what are your plans for it? Loving it. You already know how I feel about it though ;)
 
since I have only gotten to spend a few hours with the trailer, it is hard to say what the plans are, I should know more in 2 weeks, I will have 3 nights in it this weekend and 3 nights the weekend after. I will changes some of the wiring in it, everything works, but I am kind of picky about the wiring, and add an awning. It is fully ready to go right now, so it probably will not have anything major done to it right away. I want ot feel it out first, see what works for us, and what might suit our needs better. I dont want to do things twice I would rather think it out and spend the cash once.
 
Nice trailer, I remember it from the Toys for Tots in Gorman when we froze our buts off.
 
Can't wait to see you put some good use in it! At least it went to a good home!

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That reminds me. I owe you the utensils and plates! They're in my kitchen box!
 
Can't wait to see you put some good use in it! At least it went to a good home!

- - - Updated - - -

That reminds me. I owe you the utensils and plates! They're in my kitchen box!

Well, in the next 11 days we will have 6 nights in it, and another 10 nights in July so it is gonna see some use. We will have to camp with Frankie some time soon, since we have one of his toys in there. You can come along as well
 
Cute little trailer! You need to come over here for a campout, I know how to make GREAT camping coffee....My trailer is coming along nicely. I just returned from a week of camping in the hills above Cherry Valley, CA. We used about 1 1/2 lbs. of Starbucks for two people!

Check out my trailer in this section.
 
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Cute little trailer! You need to come over here for a campout, I know how to make GREAT camping coffee....My trailer is coming along nicely. I just returned from a week of camping in the hills above Cherry Valley, CA. We used about 1 1/2 lbs. of Starbucks for tow people!

Check out my trailer in this section.


I have been watching you trailer build, interesting idea, kind of a rolling cabin. As for Flagstaff, it will probably be towards the end of the year before we get out there, our trips are taking us different directions this year.
 
MORT

Just a bit of an update, and a surprise. First the Update

We took the trailer on its first big trip with us. 2,435 miles from SoCal to Oregon and back. It did great. The rims that were on it were not the right ones, and it started to get a slight wobble on the passenger side. It probably would have been fine, but I could not stop thinking about it so we stopped in at the Americas Tire in Eugene Oregon and they happened to have rims with the proper backspacing in stock. Ended up with some new rims, and since I was there put a bit larger tire on as well. It now has 31" BFG AT tires.



Here it is in Morro Bay on the way back



Now, for the surprise. The original builder wanted to see if the trailer was still around and did a google image search. He found Garretts build thread on here, and tracked me down. Here is his original sketches for MORT (My Off Road Teardrop) So from here on out, it has a name Mort













I have been chatting with Ben via facebook, he has a gallery of about 70 photos from the build. It has been fun talking to him and answered some questions about the trailer.
 
I guess the question is, does it do what you want it to do for you/meet your needs?
 
I guess the question is, does it do what you want it to do for you/meet your needs?


There are some little cosmetic things that I want to do, and a couple of upgrades, but it works perfect as is. It is comfortable, and dry. Tows great, and takes nothing to set up or tear down. Very happy with it.
 
Ok, I have been using the trailer as much as I can, trying to find it's strengths and weaknesses. From what I can see, it biggest issue is the springs, they are short and stiff, which translates into a very bouncy trailer offroad. I am looking into options to improve this, and so far am leaning towards this kit from Dinoot Trailer http://dinoot.com/components-pricing/frame-parts.html

Harbor Freight Frame
Smooth Riding Spring Retrofit
Replaces your existing spring hangers and springs with longer, smoother riding springs. Simply unbolt your existing Harbor Freight ones, clamp the new ones in place, drill a few holes, bolt them on and no more shaking your trailer to death. Springs provide a GVWR of 1150 lbs and are tunable for reducing the capacity.
Kit Includes:

  • Pair of bolt on replacement spring hangers
  • Pair of 4-leaf premium trailer springs
  • Shackles and spring bolt kit
Coming Soon, Install Guide
Drilling required
Grinding down of spring center pin or using Replacement Spring Seat required
Kit Price: $139

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I dont really know much about trailer suspension, so I was hoping to get a bit of advice. Does anyone know of any other similar kits? I have looked at a few places like trailer supply, and can get springs and mounting brackets separately, and it is a bit cheaper (assuming there is no trial and error and I order everything right the first time) So, any suggestions?
 
I think that is a good kit for a light trailer. The springs are 29" long with a low weight capacity which will soften up the ride considerably. Is your trailer over 1150 lbs fully loaded? If it is close to that you will need a heavier spring.

-Andy
 
I love that window in the front. Most of these little trailers do not have those. No issue with water at highway speed?
 
I think that is a good kit for a light trailer. The springs are 29" long with a low weight capacity which will soften up the ride considerably. Is your trailer over 1150 lbs fully loaded? If it is close to that you will need a heavier spring.

-Andy

I need to go get it weighed, but my guess is that I would be right at the weight limit

I love that window in the front. Most of these little trailers do not have those. No issue with water at highway speed?


The window seals great, no issues
 
Well, I have done a few little things that have not been updated here

Like bungee nets across the cubbies, a wheelbarrow bracket to hold the buddy heater
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An awesome pair of awnings just in time for OVX (about $20 total, more on that later)

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Even got a Skottle to fill the ground under the awning

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Other than a bunch of use, that catches us up to last weeked. All was great, Goosegear said "Big Bear?" and we said "I guess if we have to" we hung out in camp, tried not to be eaten by Dinosaurs
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And talked about the Dinoot spring conversion that I mentioned in an earlier post. Great weekend, unfortunately we had to go home Sunday morning. We made it about a half mile out of camp when I heard a rubbing. Got out and took a look and the driver side tire was rubbing on the fender. Quick peek underneath and it looked like the u-bolts on the axle were loose. No big deal, slide the axle back, snug up the bolts and be on the road. Grabbed the hilift, and started jacking, the trailer went up and the axle sat on the ground. Turns out the leaf snapped in half.

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I took a step back, thought for a min and assesed the situation, and came up with a solution. Ratchet strapped a leveling block to the spring perch and set the trailer down. Height looked good. Ratchet strapped the axle front and rear and it drove home 80 miles with no issues

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Dinoot shipped the conversion kit today.
 
Been there, done that, that's why I put NEW springs on my trailer!
Now I have a couple of spares. Will I carry one with me? I don't think so....
 
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