ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Converting Cargo Trailers into TTTs

Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Sat Jul 25, 2020 7:40 pm

We haven’t posted but we got back on the road near the end of May. A friend offered us a place in northern Wisconsin on an island. We spent all of June getting up to Wisconsin. We stayed on the island for 12 days before moving on to Copper Harbor Michigan in the UP of Michigan. We had use of a boat to get back and forth to the island.
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Copper Harbor is a great place to ride bicycles and hike but 60 degree water is too cold to swim in. It is on the end of the finger of land that sticks up into the middle of Lake Superior. Temps during the day were around 68 to 78 degrees. We stayed there 8 days and then moved on to the Picture Rocks National Lake Shore. We will be here for 7 nights. In both parks we were only about 100 yards from Superior and it’s 60 degree water. We plan to stay up here exploring until mid September before slowly going back to central Florida. Maybe this COVID stuff will end and we can go west next year.
If you read this Don have a safe trip out to Sturgis. Dave we will try again next year.
Richard
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby flboy » Sat Jul 25, 2020 10:19 pm

Wow... Looks Like an awesome place to be! Good for you! As you know< I am heading out for my first long trip with the CTC. I will be back in Florida early Oct. then head back out after New Years. I am going to go to the desert Southwest and camp and ride my KTM on BLM land. I have always wanted to do that.

Safe Travels!
Don (Flboy)

YouTube Video of Finished 6x12 Trailer:
https://youtu.be/6_-8cVdWUIA
YouTube Video of 7*18 with 2ft V-nose Trailer:
https://youtu.be/MUcMM86LA2g
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby McDave » Mon Jul 27, 2020 11:37 pm

Wow! What an amazing beautiful place. Nice to have friends like that... :D
Glad to hear you are back on the road. Get with us if you get out this way.

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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Wed Aug 12, 2020 7:24 am

Before we left Copper Harbor, we went to see the RedRidge Steel Dam built 1901. One of the few steel dams in the US. Must be steel made in the US to last that long.
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We then proceded to Musining Mi stayed at Bay Furnace National Forest Campground right on Lake Superior. Stayed here about 6 nights spending most of our time in Painted Rocks National Lakeshore Park. Did a little bicycle riding and a lot of hiking to water falls and look out places. Took a boat ride along the lake shore to view the rock formations and this tree and rock was pointed out to us. There was a arch between the land and the tree but it fell about 10 years ago but the tree roots back to the land remained in place.
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Our next stay was Tahquamenon Falls, second largest falls east of the Mississippi. 50,000 gal a second falling 50 ft. Impressive.
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We next went to Monocle Lake also a National Forest Campground near Sault Sainte Marie which sounds like Soo Saint Marie and called Soo. This is where Lake Superior goes into the north west corner of Lake Huron.For the whole month of July we were within 1/2 mile of Lake Superior so the weather was cool. One day it got to 87, the low was 43 one morning in late July. Most days were around 73 to 77. The summer surface water temp in Superior is in July and it might reach 65 for a few days. So it is cool near the lake on most days. This whole area from Northern Wisconsin to Lake Superior is 99% forest. It is beautiful. We are now headed back west staying up in the UP of Michigan and Norther Wisconsin until sometime in sometime in Sept. Camper is still doing great.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby hankaye » Wed Aug 12, 2020 7:50 am

ris, Howdy;

Ma Nature is my favorite artist. You've been seeing only a wee bit of her work.
Thanks for the take-along.

hank
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Every day I beat my own previous record for number of consecutive days I've stayed alive.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Mon Oct 26, 2020 4:27 am

We are back home from our summer trip. We left 28 May and arrived back home 25 Oct. We traveled 10,293 miles, used 875 gal of gas. As always under 67 mph we get 9.5 mpg and over 67 mph we get 6.4 mpg. We stayed a lot with friends or on their property next was National forest land and state parks were last on the list. We went a crazy path. Left central Florida, to Pensacola Florida then across to Aiken South Carolina, then Cleveland Tennessee, then Evansville Indiana, then Boulder Junction Wisconsin. We stayed in Northern Wisconsin and the U P of Michigan for 2 months. Then across to eastern shore of Maryland, up to Adirondack Mountains in northern New York. Down to Cleveland Tennessee, over to Pensacola Florida and then back to Frostproof Fl. A very zig zaggy trip but we stayed in cool weather until we were back in Florida. Cool weather = less than 82 degrees. Because we check trailer over every time before we leave a place we had to replace 2 tires while we were parked some where not while on the highway. Trailer did just fine. will have to adjust brakes now that we are home. I am replacing the tires as they age with 10 ply radials as they are easier to get on the road. The trailer came with 8 ply radials. We plan to go out west next summer and go to some more national parks. Hope you'll are also enjoying your cargo trailers.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby flboy » Mon Oct 26, 2020 5:20 am

Sounds like an amazing trip! Welcome back to the Sunshine State!

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Don (Flboy)

YouTube Video of Finished 6x12 Trailer:
https://youtu.be/6_-8cVdWUIA
YouTube Video of 7*18 with 2ft V-nose Trailer:
https://youtu.be/MUcMM86LA2g
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Wed Nov 11, 2020 7:37 pm

This last week put the trailer up on blocks, pulled the tires, regreased the bearings, and adjusted the brakes while we had the brake drum off. (think that is what you call the part the brakes press against) I have the hardest time adjusting the brakes with the tires on, with one of those brake spoons. How do you'll adjust your brakes? My dexter axle info says to adjust brakes every 3 thousand miles. For me they did ok for 10,000 but I would have adjusted them at 5000 miles if it was easier. Trailer is 5800 lbs with tandem 5000 lb axles and 10 or 12 inch brakes on 10 ply tires. Not sure but they are most likely 10" I think. How often do you regrease your trailer bearings?
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Sun Mar 07, 2021 5:56 pm

We have started our third 8 month trip in our Cargo Conversion Trailer. We are presently in Milton Fl. near Pensacola Fl at our sons house. We will be in Big Bend for 8 days starting 22 March 2021. Then Guadalupe Mountains NP, and Carlsbad Caverns NP, White Sands NP, Joshua Tree NP, Pinnacles NP, Sequoia, Yosemite, Lassen Volcanic, Red Woods, Crater Lake in Oregon, Olympic NP in Washington by last week in June. We build a bit of free time in between the National Parks to see other stuff so if you are along this route or after Olympic NP when we head east and south east and know of somthing we should see just drop me pm or post it. We will post where we are located as we go along. We also post pics on our blog thejillkristy.wordpress.com Also we got to meet several people on our 1st trip out west so hopefully we will get to meet a few more on this trip just let us know if you would like to meet up.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby flboy » Sun Mar 07, 2021 6:34 pm

Safe travels Richard! Sounds like you have an awesome trip planned. My year looks a little different now than it did in early January, but I still hope to get out on the road a few months this year. If I do and within the area, I'll give you a shout. Would like to meet up.

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Don (Flboy)

YouTube Video of Finished 6x12 Trailer:
https://youtu.be/6_-8cVdWUIA
YouTube Video of 7*18 with 2ft V-nose Trailer:
https://youtu.be/MUcMM86LA2g
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Wed Mar 10, 2021 2:56 pm

Don we will be watching your build as we travel. Hope you get to make a trip in your new trailer this year.
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Sun Apr 11, 2021 7:22 pm

Not a lot of cell connection in the places I’ve been in since we left Milton Florida in mid March. We have been to big bend national park, Davis Mountains State Park Texas, Guadalupe Mountains national Park, Carlsbad Caverns national Park, White Sands national Park. We then took four days off from desert life and went up in the Gila national forest to the Cliff Dewellings national monument. Was nice being at 6200 feet in the ponderosa Pines for four days.. For a guy that lived at 68 feet above sea level for most of his life, hiking is a breathing chore instead of a muscle chore above 6000 feet. We arrive at Joshua tree national Park in Southeast California tomorrow. We have eight days in Joshua than five days to get to pinnacles national park in California a 4 Hour Drive from Joshua tree. Might just go up to death Valley for three of those days not sure yet.

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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby flboy » Sun Apr 11, 2021 10:01 pm

Wow.. you have been making some tracks. Sounds just awesome. Best wishes on your travels!
Don (Flboy)

YouTube Video of Finished 6x12 Trailer:
https://youtu.be/6_-8cVdWUIA
YouTube Video of 7*18 with 2ft V-nose Trailer:
https://youtu.be/MUcMM86LA2g
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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby ris » Fri Apr 16, 2021 8:51 am

We bought a Wave 3 Catalytic Heater in 2017 or 2018 but have not used it much until this trip. Didn’t want to comment until we really used the heater. On this trip it has been very nice. My wife will usually wake me between 2 and 5 am on cold nights and ask me to light the heater. Only takes about 90 seconds to get it going. It is propane but it just kind of glows. Two mornings it was down to 24 F and the heater kept the 8’ X 16’ interior of the trailer at 72. You are supposed to open a window to have 24 square inches of ventilation while the heater is on. We have used it over about ten nights and it works. Most of the time it is on low, which is 1600 BTU. High is 3000 BTU. Our trailer does have 2” of insulation in roof and floor and 1.5 inches in the walls. We also have 1 inch pieces of insulation that we put in two of the windows while the 3 rd window is raised 2 inches to achieve the proper ventilation. It has no fan so uses no power and is silent. I have no idea how much propane it uses but on this trip we are still on our first exchangeable 20 lb propane tank. We just really like the heater. As cheap roving says “If this heater wasn’t, safe lawyers would have put it out of business years ago.

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Re: ris 8.5 X 18 new trailer build 11/1/17

Postby featherliteCT1 » Sat Apr 17, 2021 3:35 pm

Glad you are having good luck keeping warm.

By the way, I have not seen McDave post anything for a while. Do you have any idea why?
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