Simpleman74
New member
um... better tires
Overland Suspension
- Thread starter ade678
- Start date
Vinsil
New member
Overland fuel. Some call it clear fuel...
BUT! Overland fuel (patent pending) is stable beyond the normal everyday fuel that posers use. Stable for months, often still good over a year! Put it in your rotopax now! Use it next year in your lawn mower!
:mullet:
Joking aside. Agree with above, better tires.
Swede71
New member
In the same boat myself have been pouring over this forum learning as I go, figuring out what will work for a similar set up. All depends on needs/budget and trial and error. This forum is great being it offers a lot of other peoples trial and error we can all learn from. Have ordered most of my gear and hoping it will all arrive and be installed within the next 4-6 weeks. So that I am ready for towing an off-road camping trailer from S Africa exploring and just enjoying life. 
Hey Swede71,
I'm glad to hear that someone else is looking for the same sort of setup. Any thoughts about spacers vs. suspension?
Perhaps because I spend a lot of time up Canada way?? (We used to live in Squamish, BC...drive to Bella Coola, Dawon City, and Alaska pretty regularly...this year we're on our way out to St. John's NL!)
I'm glad to hear that someone else is looking for the same sort of setup. Any thoughts about spacers vs. suspension?
Perhaps because I spend a lot of time up Canada way?? (We used to live in Squamish, BC...drive to Bella Coola, Dawon City, and Alaska pretty regularly...this year we're on our way out to St. John's NL!)
Swede71
New member
I want adjustability for when on/off-road with and without a load, plus did all the math with everything I am adding currently so this was the best set up for my needs. I am going aluminum where I can being we have so much salt on the roads in the winter and I figure I would pay more now however would not have to replace as quick so it would be cheaper in the long run. Spacers never crossed my mind for my specific needs. I drove up to Whitehorse 2 summers ago, canoed the Yukon River with a friend and my 2 Akitas then went to Haines Alaska,to catch salmon, awesome awesome country up there. If my business was not here, I would live up there in a heartbeat.
Follow up
Hi All,
I’m back from my summer trip — 16,992 miles in 105 days — and figured I revisit this post to follow up on some of the suggested mods that kept me happy and out of trouble. Many MANY thanks once again to forum members taking time to help me out.
(I’ve included below some pics of campsites in Utah, British Columbia, and Newfoundland.)
I’d love to hear from other member’s about essential overlanding mods.
Anyhow, my top three:
1. Airbags!!! I don’t know what I would have done without these! Thank you everyone (esp. antman) for insisting that I get them! They’re helpful even without the teardrop when the truck is moderately loaded.
2. Under armor (I went with RCI). Essential, both for protection and peace of mind. My trip up to Bella Coola, BC, was a full 800 miles of gravel road, often badly potholed since the graders hadn’t yet come through for the season, and the scrape of the underbody at speed became a familiar sound. Would have been nerve wracking and probably damaging without the protection.
3. Toytec Boss Coilovers for the front suspension (HUGE thanks to Jetboy for walking me through many of the options). Briefly, the airbags lifted the rear a bit, while the under armor & winch lowered the front. I wanted to restore the factory rake, as well as strengthen the front some (since I know I had thousands of miles of rough road). The toytec coilover (which uses the bilstein shock) was PERFECT. The extra $$$ for full adjustibility turned out to be well worth it.
My one fail…tires! I suppose everyone’s got to learn this one for themselves, especially the necessity of running C or E rated tires when towing in the backcountry. I punctured 3 of the OEM Dunlops irreparably (I travel with 2 spares, and the trailer’s wheels can be swapped with the trucks when) I’ll buy a new set before next summer’s adventure — either the Cooper AT/3’s or the BFG A/T KO2 — but am currently getting lost in forum research. Anyone have a preference (or suggestion for C or E)?
Thanks again!
ade678
Hi All,
I’m back from my summer trip — 16,992 miles in 105 days — and figured I revisit this post to follow up on some of the suggested mods that kept me happy and out of trouble. Many MANY thanks once again to forum members taking time to help me out.
(I’ve included below some pics of campsites in Utah, British Columbia, and Newfoundland.)
I’d love to hear from other member’s about essential overlanding mods.
Anyhow, my top three:
1. Airbags!!! I don’t know what I would have done without these! Thank you everyone (esp. antman) for insisting that I get them! They’re helpful even without the teardrop when the truck is moderately loaded.
2. Under armor (I went with RCI). Essential, both for protection and peace of mind. My trip up to Bella Coola, BC, was a full 800 miles of gravel road, often badly potholed since the graders hadn’t yet come through for the season, and the scrape of the underbody at speed became a familiar sound. Would have been nerve wracking and probably damaging without the protection.
3. Toytec Boss Coilovers for the front suspension (HUGE thanks to Jetboy for walking me through many of the options). Briefly, the airbags lifted the rear a bit, while the under armor & winch lowered the front. I wanted to restore the factory rake, as well as strengthen the front some (since I know I had thousands of miles of rough road). The toytec coilover (which uses the bilstein shock) was PERFECT. The extra $$$ for full adjustibility turned out to be well worth it.
My one fail…tires! I suppose everyone’s got to learn this one for themselves, especially the necessity of running C or E rated tires when towing in the backcountry. I punctured 3 of the OEM Dunlops irreparably (I travel with 2 spares, and the trailer’s wheels can be swapped with the trucks when) I’ll buy a new set before next summer’s adventure — either the Cooper AT/3’s or the BFG A/T KO2 — but am currently getting lost in forum research. Anyone have a preference (or suggestion for C or E)?
Thanks again!
ade678
Attachments
randomguy
New member
I would go E rated. I only lost 1 mpg over the stock dungflops when I switched to E rated KO2's in the stock 265/70R17 size. I drive a lot forest road with loose, sharp rocks and haven't sliced one yet. The KO2's work great, and aired down to 15 PSI they ride nice in rough stuff and grip.
2012sr5
New member
Hey [MENTION=153812]ade678[/MENTION], which airbags did you go with?
Regarding tires, I will add that I swapped out my stock tires for Terra Grappler G2s in LT265/70R17 (stock size, load range E). They seem to be among the lighter (45 lbs) load range E tires out there. No discernable change in fuel economy. Very happy with the change so far.
Regarding tires, I will add that I swapped out my stock tires for Terra Grappler G2s in LT265/70R17 (stock size, load range E). They seem to be among the lighter (45 lbs) load range E tires out there. No discernable change in fuel economy. Very happy with the change so far.
ShermanOlsen
Member
Great photos, OP. Jealous! You don't say where you live, but I went with the Coopers as I live in the PNW. They have a silica based compound and are grippier in the wet than the KO2s. Essential. C rated since I don't have a hefty set up but there is an E option in the stock size too. Stable at high speeds on road and still look new after 7000 miles.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Ron4RNevada
New member
Back in the days when I used to tow a tent trailer I carried an old bathroom scale with me -> When packing the trailer I had the hitch jack sitting on the scale and would load the trailer until the scale read exactly 200 pounds.
That gave me very little sag on the rear springs of the truck - also made for perfect trailer tracking. NO FISHTAILING!
I usually also did not load anything in the truck except people. KEEP ALL THE HEAVY STUFF IN THE TRAILER - AND BALANCE AT THE 200 POUND TONGUE/HITCH WEIGHT.
That gave me very little sag on the rear springs of the truck - also made for perfect trailer tracking. NO FISHTAILING!
I usually also did not load anything in the truck except people. KEEP ALL THE HEAVY STUFF IN THE TRAILER - AND BALANCE AT THE 200 POUND TONGUE/HITCH WEIGHT.
Swede71
New member
Awesome Awesome pictures, went with E rated tires myself being I live near the Rockies and want the extra protection they offer over rocky terrain, and with all the places I have explored in the mountains so far this summer have not had any issues. Drives nice on and off-road, loaded, unloaded and pulling a trailer.
Thanks for the reply! [MENTION=165476]2012sr5[/MENTION] I installed the standard Firestone airbags from etrailer (~$100)
Titanpat57
Senior Member
I would recommend E tires for the towing reason alone...also better sidewall.
Nice trip report!
Nice trip report!
Thanks for the compliment! We do have an additional tent if we want to expand our base, but usually we slept in the trailer (there's a small bunk for the baby). Occasionally -- maybe once or twice a month -- we'd crash in a hotel for a good shower and internet service.
My security strategy is pretty simple: park in a well-lit place and create a sufficient *illusion* of security...make it look like too much of a hassle to tamper with the rig. To that end, I use six 6-foot master lock cables that lash everything together and look like a pain in the ass to untangle, but in fact are threaded quite easily. I could easily slice through them with my bolt cutters (or grinder), but it would still be a bear to sort everything out if I didn't know how it went together... I suppose the operative deterrent principle is to make it look unappealing!
A more detailed trip report IYI...
Hi All,
I've gotten a few requests for further trip report details....my wife began a blog for friends and family, The Tot and the Teardrop, but fell behind just one month in! She intends to finish it (I think) but we've got to finish unpacking first.
So far it's pretty good!
Hi All,
I've gotten a few requests for further trip report details....my wife began a blog for friends and family, The Tot and the Teardrop, but fell behind just one month in! She intends to finish it (I think) but we've got to finish unpacking first.
So far it's pretty good!
Thanks for the reply! Any reason why C wouldn't do?
