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Vagabond Drifter Camper Buildout and Mods

Discussion in 'Bay Area Metal Fabrication' started by MTNHABITOVERLAND, Mar 27, 2018.

  1. Aug 9, 2019 at 1:17 PM
    #2241
    alldownhill

    alldownhill Well-Known Member

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    I'm not a huge fan of the Goal Zero Yetis. However, with a discount, they can make some sense. The charging options out of the box are fairly limited. You can't connect directly to the starter batter to charge. For the Yeti 1000, you can get a "car charging" module but thats another $400.

    I have a small "traditional" awning on the rear. It's pretty easy to setup with one person but I pretty much only set it up if it is raining. I think I would use a free standing 270* a lot more but at this point, I don't think it's worth the money. Also, I would rather spend 5-10min setting up a tarp awning that I can leave up at camp than setup a vehicle awning that I have to break down to drive away.

    I bought a Waterport portable shower but was unimpressed with how long it stayed pressurized. I'm not sure what I expected. I ended up building/installing a simple 12v pressurized water system. I put in a 6gal water jerry can with a quick disconnect for refilling. A 12v pump connects to a kitchen sprayer with a 5 foot hose. It is mounted in the rear of the drifter. I can use it to fill water bottles, clean dishes, shower etc. All the parts ended up around $80. I didn't have that installed when you looked at my Drifter.
     
    georginclay04[QUOTED] likes this.
  2. Aug 9, 2019 at 5:53 PM
    #2242
    White Mountains

    White Mountains Well-Known Member

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    Where did you see bed extenders at the Vagabond site?
     
  3. Aug 9, 2019 at 7:47 PM
    #2243
    monteredondo

    monteredondo Member

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    coquitlam British Columbia Canada
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    the top sleeping platform
     
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  4. Aug 9, 2019 at 10:05 PM
    #2244
    jayemeh

    jayemeh Member

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    Fucking right they are. If you take your trick off road they're even necessary. You'll make your money back saving on a 4x4 tow truck or a cold miserable night, or dying on a trail. I got popped out 3 or 4 times with no issues during snowpocalypse (5' in 2 days) on mt. Hood. Cheap trax will break. You can even use MTs as bridges & ramps. Check youtube.
     
  5. Aug 10, 2019 at 1:06 AM
    #2245
    thogan831

    thogan831 Well-Known Member

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    @wackyacky - thank you for posting the link to the camper-shootout. made for a good read.
     
    Wackyhacky likes this.
  6. Aug 10, 2019 at 12:01 PM
    #2246
    huruta

    huruta Well-Known Member

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    Christy
    Seattle
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    2015 DCLB TRD Sport
    Drifter....ARRIVED!
    Welcome to the Drifter club! Here's what we've done thus far (had Drifter since March). As you'll see, a lot of this is a moving target and reflects just our experience. We don't want to get more than we reasonably need and are buying stuff as we go. We did, for example, put in an air compressor which was not something we anticipated before, but we are on forest roads a lot and this is super nice. I realize on a deeper level now that we have the Drifter that what people needs are is so tailored to their own use cases that it's hard to broadly generalize. What works for us, may be terrible for others. Anyway, here are responses to your questions.

    1. No, but maybe someday. Husband is 6'3" and his legs get a bit achy with the regular bed. Dogs were supposed to sleep below us in the truck bed, but prefer the seats in our double-cab (cushier and warmer). Bottom of bed will likely be narrow with the tent coming down so I'd be skeptical about your plan working. Dogs seem contented and know we are around. We leave the slider window in truck and drifter open so we can hear each other.

    2. No. We looked at it and considered it but decided to put in an auxiliary battery - very glad we did. It's in our engine bay and out of the way and everything just works when we turn it on. It powers all the lights, the fan, our luminoodle that we hang on the awning, chargers for phones and our Dometic fridge (another item we initially thought no to, but now absolutely LOVE). Having a battery systems that doesn't take up space in the bed and powers everything reliably is awesome.

    3. We have the 270 alu-cab and IT IS awesome. Super easy to deploy and set up. Super nice to have the extra covered real estate here in the PNW where it rains alot. If we had to do it over, I would definitely get it, but we would probably get it on the drivers side since swing outs appear to go to the right and if we put a swing out it, it'll be in the middle of the covered awning (swing out TBD)

    4. We mounted max trax on our roof bars. We very quickly realized that not having any recovery gear was kind of stupid (!). We thought we'd just be forest road campers and we are, but we are having fun pushing the limits of what forest roads we'll go on and found ourselves rapidly in a nerve wracking situation with no recovery gear at all. Max trax were deemed essential. Have not used them yet.

    5. We've toyed with the idea of a hilift jack, but in the end decided no for now. They are dangerous if you don't know what you are doing (like us), are large and heavy. We could change are mind but that's where we are right now. We did get a kinetic rope for now (this is evolving and probably should be) to facilitate recovery, but we probably don't yet have everything - trying to be as minimalist as we feel comfortable.

    6. I'm not convinced about a portable shower for us. I lived without a shower for two years in Africa and was fine without one. Having enough water for a shower may be an issue. We take 10gal of water, which lasts about 3 days (drinking, cleaning, coffee, etc).

    7. No re: armor bottom of rig and while we could, we aren't yet sure it's worth it. Some discussion of a skid plate, but no action.

    Hope this helps.
     
    georginclay04[QUOTED] likes this.
  7. Aug 10, 2019 at 4:16 PM
    #2247
    leibbrand

    leibbrand Well-Known Member

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    3rd gen 4runner, 1st gen tundra
    3rd gen runner: ICONs, Light Racing, Camburg, TRD SC, URD, ARB, Thorley, etc . 1st gen tundra: LT, Solo/MCM Canti , King, ARBs, etc
    Pretty much finished my build and got it out into the wild. I got a few changes to make yet to refine a couple things further, but pretty happy with how it all turned out.

    I might hit up Phil for a stronger strut recommendation. Even when its warm, it takes a lot to raise the roof.

    I would also probably opt for a sleeping platform extension.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B0wyf68gg83/

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B0p38LdA_qh/

    https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzhqd3egdNf/

    good luck on your build outs...
     
    Last edited: Aug 10, 2019
  8. Aug 10, 2019 at 6:21 PM
    #2248
    SenatorBlutarsky

    SenatorBlutarsky Well-Known Member

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    @georginclay04 as someone with similar hobbies to yours, I will mostly concur with what @huruta said. A few additional thoughts from the multiple vehicles I've built out...

    A hilift jack, or some other off-road jack, can be super useful if you get a flat in a bad spot where a regular jack doesn't reach high enough.

    If you can afford it, the alucab awning is one of the greatest camper additions you can make in my opinion. I've never seen another one that is so easy to deploy, literally takes ten seconds, which means you'll use it more often. We used my buddies all the time at trail heads in the desert when our arb awning was a bit too annoying to deploy.

    If you're not going rock crawling, the armor is probably unnecessary weight. I had full armor on my old Cherokee and Xterra, but nothing on the astro van. We drove that van down some serious forest roads in Alaska, northern Canada, and Utah without ever coming close to having an issue. I bet what comes stock on the TRD pro will be more than enough for your described uses.
     
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  9. Aug 10, 2019 at 10:27 PM
    #2249
    xplorn

    xplorn Well-Known Member

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    Ken
    Oregon, USA
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    Any opinions on electrical connectors? I am finding a few things I want a disconnect for. These seem like a good experiment to try...

    https://www.amazon.com/KINYOOO-Connector-Waterproof-Electrical-Motorcycle/dp/B07NY1R6L2

    Some of the stuff on easternbeaver.com looks nice and more for OEM but substantially more expensive too.
     
  10. Aug 10, 2019 at 11:13 PM
    #2250
    leibbrand

    leibbrand Well-Known Member

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    3rd gen runner: ICONs, Light Racing, Camburg, TRD SC, URD, ARB, Thorley, etc . 1st gen tundra: LT, Solo/MCM Canti , King, ARBs, etc
    deutsch connectors, avoid the barrel inserts unless you have a barrel crimper
     
    xplorn[QUOTED] likes this.
  11. Aug 11, 2019 at 11:54 AM
    #2251
    xplorn

    xplorn Well-Known Member

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    Yeah that looks the ticket. Kind of spendy to get into with the tools for solid pins but then it's not too bad for a quality connector.
     
  12. Aug 11, 2019 at 1:01 PM
    #2252
    leibbrand

    leibbrand Well-Known Member

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    3rd gen runner: ICONs, Light Racing, Camburg, TRD SC, URD, ARB, Thorley, etc . 1st gen tundra: LT, Solo/MCM Canti , King, ARBs, etc
    You can buy the more typical tab bend over type inserts and use a standard W anvil crimper. There are a lot of deutsch look-a-like connectors can be had for cheaper. $25 bucks gets you a barrel crimper on Amazon. i have both but tend to use the W anvil crimper and tab style inserts.
     
  13. Aug 11, 2019 at 3:39 PM
    #2253
    snwbrdr852

    snwbrdr852 Well-Known Member

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    Some answers for you in red, inside the quoted section.
    Good luck!
     
    georginclay04[QUOTED] likes this.
  14. Aug 11, 2019 at 7:26 PM
    #2254
    xplorn

    xplorn Well-Known Member

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    I generally don't stay more than a couple days in one spot, so my main battery works just fine. Fridge has a low voltage cutoff and it is the largest off engine consumer of energy. If I were to add a battery it would probably be a LiFePo4 unit, like the one at GoWesty https://www.gowesty.com/product/electrical/25082/lifepo_aux_battery These batteries have some nice benefits and aren't at a massive premium over traditional batteries. In the land cruiser I have a dual system controlled by a heavy duty marine VSR that works perfectly fine- I just don't find myself needing to dip into the extra capacity. I carry a small jumpstart battery in the Tacoma but haven't used it more than for charging devices.

    For shade, I've had a Hannibal awning for years and it has been great. Lately I've been experimenting with ~$30 sail shades. They are pretty minimal to pack around and setup, and with a couple adjustable tent poles you have a lot of options. Shade cloth comes in different shapes and sizes. Down side is they don't stop rain.

    Depending on the type of environment you're usually in, especially snow or sand with minimal anchors to winch from, traction planks are nice to have. I guess sensibility and turnaround threshold play in too. I've been in two situations that would have made extraction pretty easy- 1) winter in Utah, when you don't realize until it's too late that some groundwater is saline with mud lurking under the snow and 2) I veered from an old track I couldn't see in tall grass and dropped into a soft creek. I called in local club troops for the first and cut/stacked old juniper fenceposts under the rear tires (and used brake/gas for weak locker effect and crawling) for the second. I used a hi-lift on my sliders to move the truck up and down onto the posts, and ended up with a nice scar as I was getting exhausted and let the truck down too fast on a lifting session. I've used hi-lifts as painfully slow winches and normally for many years. I think an exhaust jack would be safer to deal with but hi-lifts are pretty versatile. The Tacoma has a bottle jack and a couple blocks of wood in it.

    Pressurized water is luxury to have on trips, heated even more, but you can get by easily with cold water. If heated water is a line in the sand for the wife, I'd make it my highest priority and probably do a heat exchanger with engine coolant. It's nice to have fixed permanent solutions that don't rely on external sources of energy or other futzing to be working. The goal should be to make the experience enjoyable for her so that she continues to go. ;)
     
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  15. Aug 12, 2019 at 8:00 AM
    #2255
    georginclay04

    georginclay04 Well-Known Member

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    Wow, All thank you for the great responses. I’m not going to call out everyone but.. just know I’ve read each response at least twice so thanks!

    Solidified the 270 awning, wiboost and maxtrax. Still toying with Goal Zero idea and Shower.. I suppose I have time to ponder. I will not be getting extra armor for the bottom though.

    AllDownHill- first off thanks again for letting my check out your rig! I’m stealing your framing idea for sure. Sounds like I’ll have to take a look at the shower at one point. Will certainly be reaching out as things get closer.

    Anyway- thanks again all. When I get it I’ll be posting but... dang, some of the build outs.... may have to step up my “just throw bins in it” idea...
     
    snwbrdr852 likes this.
  16. Aug 12, 2019 at 8:10 AM
    #2256
    Anderson

    Anderson Dudemanbro

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    Stuff
    Please trust me on this. Just throw bins in it for the first season. That way you’ll know what you really need and what you don’t also, it will help you plan your interior build should you decide to actually go that route.
     
  17. Aug 13, 2019 at 5:02 PM
    #2257
    tdubd

    tdubd Well-Known Member

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    Welcome to the Drifter fam! Just get in your truck and camp.....Stand in your camper and figure out what makes sense for you. I have slowly built my camper out over the last year. I only built out one side with my fridge because I still use my truck as a "truck" and don't feel the need to always have Everything in my truck. Maxtrax are not a must, a winch is haha. Get out there and enjoy it!
     
    Eazy.E and georginclay04[QUOTED] like this.
  18. Aug 13, 2019 at 5:06 PM
    #2258
    tacomgee

    tacomgee just ain't care....

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    Mostly whatever sweet stuff I can find at Vatozone
    This board is also a must :thumbsup:
    :drunk:E0BB69E9-D801-48C0-BC83-73F852C2D495.jpg
     
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  19. Aug 13, 2019 at 5:07 PM
    #2259
    tdubd

    tdubd Well-Known Member

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    :headbang:
     
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  20. Aug 13, 2019 at 8:55 PM
    #2260
    georginclay04

    georginclay04 Well-Known Member

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    That’s the luxury camping I can get use to!
     
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