Otis24's Otisbound Outdoors Bodonkadonk Supercharged Twin Locked Micro Camper Build (OOBSTLMC)

the front and mid skid is exactly why I didn't even try to change the front diff gear oil. I would have but if they said I'm good for now, ill leave it.

 

bad ass rig man love it

 

Thanks!

 

Update on the CVJ axles from June 2016 about 55,000 miles ago.
The high angle boots lasted about 15,000 miles.
I rebooted with OEM boots and the boot slide mod.
The reboot with the boot slide lasted the next 25,000 miles before needing another reboot.
So far the boot slide mod wins.

 

Nice to know, thank you.

 

My spare CV that I carry is an O'rielly's spare.
Those seem to last about 10,000 miles before they tear and I don't replace them or fix them right away. I run them torn for 5-10,000 miles and replace them with the original CVJ that I'll reboot. I can then take the torn O'rielly's one and get it replaced under their lifetime warranty.

Rather than spending the time and money on rebooting my own CVJ's I might just replace my CVJ's with O'rielly's CV's.

 

What a fantastic build! I have been looking for inspiration for a few years and came across your post.. thank you! I am looking at building my fourth camper on a 2000 tundra. I have a tacoma but its just to near and dear to me to experiment on.
I am located in the north bay.

Where were you sourcing your aluminum sheets from? Know any in the east bay or north bay?
AND how has the pop top been for weather any leaks, drafts?

Thanks again!

 

Huh...I just posted this earlier today about using a 1st Tundra in this thread. It’s the 2nd or third paragraphs.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/educate-me-on-camper-shells.697254/page-3#post-24680420

I got the sheets from Campbell Metal Supply in San Jose.
The tube came from Tube Service in Milipitas (they delivered to where I live).
Odds and ends came from all over. Smaller bits of tube here and there were from Allen Steel & Metal Supply in Redwood City...I love that place.
Not too sure about other suppliers.

The camper is totally water and dust proof when it’s closed up.

It has no tent yet so when it’s open you’re pretty much outside.

I’d be down to meet up at some point.

Also, check out @realsystem’s thread.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/daily-driver-to-overlander.570701/

He’s also on the Bay Area.

 

Little late to the dive conversation, but I have dove La Jolla, and Catalina a lot. It's where I got certified. Some of my favorite diving is in San Carlos, Mexico. There was a Club Med there, when they were huge. The entrance to the harbor is an area called "The Aquarium" Some of the best night diving I have ever done. I do have Caymens, Hawaii, and Jamaica dives under my belt.

The drive to San Carlos is all in a "No Hassle" zone for Americans. Two lane divided highway, it's about 8 hours drive from Phoenix and that's adding time for the boarders. It's a small fishing town with a hotel and a few houses to rent for CHEAP! That part of Mexico is so happy to see American dollars that everyone is so nice and goes out of their way to help.

My parents leave their boat in San Carlos during the summer, I make the drive down there every once an a while. Although I haven't had a chance to dive in longer than I would like to admit.

 

Catalina is also on my list. It's not all that far from me. I'm not really sure why I haven't gone diving down there.

Another place on my list is mainland Mexico. I've been to Baja a bunch, but not anywhere else in MX. I was supposed to go to Mexico City next month and then to Pico de Orizaba after that. But covid...and I'm in no shape to climb an 18,500 foot mountain.
San Carlos looks like a super nice spot. I've driven to Loreta...also on the Sea of Cortez, south of San Carlos but in Baja. I've heard the diving there is very good as well.

 

My parents retired on a sailboat in Mexico. They store it in San Carlos for Hurricane season, but split most of their time in La Paz or Porta Vallarta. Mexico as a whole is a beautiful country, great diving everywhere. I did Mexico City for two weeks 15 + years ago, so much fun and I could of easily spent another week and still not seen it all. Hammerhead Island in the Sea of Cortez is a fun experience you should try and do.

Catalina is great diving, but its cold water. Once you dive warm, its always hard to go back to cold. I would do a two or three day dive on a boat out of Long Beach. Thats where I was snorkeling and saw a 18ft Blue Shark.

 

I bought my truck 8 years ago today.
December 12, 2012.
It had 130,000 miles on it.
Now it’s at 253,450 miles.

 

Halpy birthday Bodankadonk

 

Mexico also sounds good.. I was supposed to be down in Oaxaca for a few months starting now.. but there seems to be some bug going around..

Thanks so much for the information and the response. Last week I had dental surgery (really is as fun as it sounds!) but I had time to really narrow down what it is I am ultimately looking for.. Currently I drive a 2000 tundra with 200k miles.. I picked it up in Santa Cruz about 1 1/2 years ago. I went up to Oregon and picked up a pop top camper which has worked beautifully and has given me some excellent memories on the coast and into the SW. But, like my campers before, it made me realize its limitations... it is a little wide and at times boat like and there are a few things that are missing.

I should add the reasons why I want a more customized build and the reasoning behind such absurd fantasies:

1. Sending it to South America. My main reason is that I would like to live out of it full time for a year or more. I would like to send it down to Chile and drive back to California.. or maybe not. That being said, it won't just be a wilderness camper and I will probably be stuck in a few cities from time to time. I must be able to sleep in it with the top down or somehow create a hardshell top w/ hard sides or detachable sides that I can put up from the inside. Think about pulling into some industrialized town at 1am and you are tired- not really in the mood to sleep in a tent.. that kinda thought.

I would also like the ability to cook inside with the top down.. everything will be mainly based inside the truck. I have tried cooking outside in the rain and ice.. not my thing. Also thinking one door maybe in the back. Although there was a really good point about a bike rack being on the back.. a door in the back gives me a full bed on one side and a sink, stove, heater and fridge on the other. I would also like direct access to the cab of the truck so I would be cutting a hole directly into the cab.. why not?

And Having space. Obviously between the camper side and the bed and the bed and exterior of the truck there is a bunch of wasted space in my current camper/truck bed.

2. The idea of having just enough modifications without being completely in debt to the truck is also important. I would never do such a thing but the philosophy of "if things get really bad, take the plates and buy a plane ticket, hope its there when I get back" appeals to me more than the philosophy of "oh crap my entire life savings is sitting in the middle of some Argentine wilderness and I can't leave it so I guess I will start a new life here, become a rancher and use the old tundra shell as a cabin until I get set up" *Actually that philosophy doesn't sound too bad either!* The point being that I have met some people and looked at their rigs and don't get me wrong they are truly amazing (the rigs that is), but they have like $189k sunken into them and they are trapped, forever destined to share the paved roads of canyonlands with a billion buses full of retired or foreign tourists...


3. The third reason to build is.. well.. I like building things. Well actually it's a mixed bag and generally I have about 5,921 projects going at the same time from building a house to sculpting wood, so why not add on another? Besides the occasional rough weld, I have very limited knowledge of working with metal, it shouldn't be that steep of a learning curve (insert gulp here).

Also any thoughts on having a detachable winch that could be used in the front and rear hitches of the truck?

So with all that said.. feel free to shake me from my dreams and question some of my logic. Also as a side note anyone ever thought of building out of wood? What upgrades have really saved anyone and which ones just made the truck look better? What would anyone do differently?

I can be found making my neighbors grumble about all my projects on the foothills of mount tamalpais in northern california let me know if you are out this way.

Thanks again!

Justin

 

Yeah, I was supposed to go to Mexico City and then south to climb Pico de Orizaba but the same bug cancelled that.

I pretty much agree with everything you said. Keeping the budget within reason...I’ve spent $40k on my truck including buying it. To me that’s a lot.
I can’t imagine $100k or $189k.

Have you considered a van? The big draw back is they they typically aren’t as capable as a 4x4 truck. But, it’s mostly ready to go. And a plain cargo van is pretty inconspicuous.

Wood isn’t bad. But, it’s got pros and cons and building with materials you know well is a good thing.

It seems that detachable winched are pretty good. The upside me are versatility. Downsides are you’ll need a place to store it and run cables all the way to the back. just don’t get stuck in such a way that your hitch receiver is in a position where you can’t attach the hitch. Like the front or rear end being buried in mud or snow.

Personally I avoid mods that are for looks. I try to make everything about function and I try to have everything have more than 1 purpose.


I would do lots different if I were to do it again.
I’d have bought a 1st gen tundra rather than a Taco. Although the small size of the taco is nice.

I would have made the cab overhang longer and the rear end shorter.

I would make it narrower.
It’s 1” per side wider than the cab. I would make it same width as the cab.

I would make the wheel wells bigger. They’re bigger than stock but they appear small from a distance. That’s why I painted the bottom trim with black bed liner. It makes the wheel well look larger.

I’d reconfigure the inside a little hear and there.

Sometimes I do miss having a light nimble truck. But the camper is nice too.

 

I got my truck back from Rear End Specialties in Santa Clara yesterday and just completed break in drive #2.

I think can feel a difference but having to be so gentle with the gears makes it hard to tell.

 

Time to get the 7th injector AND meth AND a new ECU that you can tune…

 

I have a 40 mile commute to work, so I took advantage of that to do my gear break-in. I'm sure the other drivers on the highway didn't like my slow driving though.

 

7th injector yes...the rest maybe...if yes not for a while.

I’m moving this weekend so I parked my truck at the new place. I’ll drive my car to the truck and take the truck the rest of the way to work. It’s 15 miles but I’ll take a scenic route.
Otherwise my current place is at the top
of a 7 mile 1800 foot tall hill. With the weight of my truck there was concern I could damage the new gears so it’s staying in the valley until the gears are broken in

 

Building a camper on a Tundra. Sub’d for research.

nice build!