A big offroad(ish) benroy (B.O.B.)

[randomabstract]

Thanks for all the details. Great build.

 

[SCwood]

Well, looks like I'm another victim of Photobucket. If I get some time I'll go through and put the images back up. So annoying.

We'll be going 100+ degree camping soon so I pulled BOB out to make sure the a/c works, and it did! I ran it for a few hours in 95+ heat and everything seemed fine. The inside got cold the exhaust fans seemed to work (shame there's not a picture of them...). I'm not sure the fans are even needed with a setup like mine. At one point I turned them off and the a/c exhaust fan keep them moving almost as fast as when they were powered. I bet the heat would work its way out naturally.

I also finished the last of the welding- I made some water jug holders and bolted them to the fender. Some nylon straps that the wife sewed up should keep the jugs from bouncing out.

I also added a bungee cord in the galley to keep spices, etc. in their place. The wooden divider works to keep things back there, but they still tend to fall over. Hopefully this keeps things upright.

And finally, a towel rack! My mom embroidered some towels so they needed a home.

 

[Dirtclod-TNT]

We'll be going 100+ degree camping soon so I pulled BOB out to make sure the a/c works, and it did! I ran it for a few hours in 95+ heat and everything seemed fine. The inside got cold the exhaust fans seemed to work (shame there's not a picture of them...). I'm not sure the fans are even needed with a setup like mine. At one point I turned them off and the a/c exhaust fan keep them moving almost as fast as when they were powered. I bet the heat would work its way out naturally.

Thanks for the follow up on the AC. I am feeling a bit better on my untested setup now. ;

 

[KCStudly]

Love the towels! Go mom!

 

[SCwood]

Small BOB update!

BOB’s been out and about but it turns out I’m terrible at taking pictures while camping. This is all I have:

BOB also got a small update recently. I found we liked leaving the galley leds on at night but not really the porch lights cause they’re so bright, so I expanded the leds to BOB’s undercarriage:

Also- we ran the A/C for 3 days straight in 100 degree heat and didn’t have any issues. I’d say the side hatch venting is a success. And pictures are back up!

 

[SCwood]

2018 BOBupdate: BOB took a little trip to the Grand Canyon over the holidays

It wound up being an uncommonly warm weekend for the end of December and the first come first serve campground that stays open during the winter wound up being completely full by the time we got there. But not to fear! We tried our hand at off the grid camping in the national forest. It turned out to be great- we drove a few miles off the highway and there wasn’t anyone to be seen. We’ll probably look to do more national forest camping in the future even if campsites are available.

On the trip to the canyon I noticed BOB was riding lower and lower. I used the timbren 2,000 lb springs and with BOB weighing in at 2,500+ I figured I needed to upgrade the springs. A quick check of the fenders confirmed the tires were bouncing off the fenders since the paint was rubbed off:

I ordered 3,500 springs and went about installing them. The 2,000 lb springs were easy to remove since they were so compressed, but the 3,500 springs were a beast to install. I wound up getting them close, then using a clamp to get them almost all the way in, and finally prying them into place with a screwdriver:

3,500 spring on the left (part # A00101-5500D - sold individually by timbren retailers) and the 2,000 spring on the right

In the end I wound up with about 2 extra inches over the old springs:

I also mounted the final items I’ve been planning on- an axe and shovel secured by a few quick fist clamps. I think that means BOB is finally done! Probably...

 

[KCStudly]

Nice!

 

[bc toys]

I have seen a ton of builds on her and I can say I enjoyed reading your at the top of the list You did a really great job and glad you are enjoying it BOB looks great

 

[clamlamp]

Beautiful build!

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk

 

[SCwood]

Time for another BOB update!

We were heading out to a campground just a few hours away around February and catastrophe struck! After adding the larger springs apparently I forgot to torque the lug nuts on one of BOB’s wheels. It came off in the pitch black night going about 70mph. Losing the wheel sheared off 3 studs and we also couldn’t find the tire. I took 3 lug nuts off the other wheel and we used the spare from the 4Runner to get BOB back on the road. Luckily my parent’s house was close to where we lost the wheel and we stayed there for the night. The next day we found the wheel about 75 yards off the road in a field. It had some gouging from riding on the studs after the lug nuts let loose, but otherwise it was in pretty good shape.

The brake drum cracked from riding on the pavement and the dust shield bent, but that was the extent of the damage. I was expecting to find The side of BOB all torn up but apparently he doesn’t really care if he has wheels or not.

With BOB back in action we headed out to visit my grandparents in St. Marys GA. Since it was a long drive we decided to split it up by stopping in Pensacola first.

Pensacola:

Turns out that’s where the blue angels practice and we got a front row show on the beach:

Campsite at St. Marys:

During the summer we took a trip out to lake texoma and had a blast there:

We also finally took a trip to Padre Island National Seashore and camped about 30 miles down the beach. BOB did great on the beach!

And finally, we just got back from a trip to the Ozarks. During the trip I did a video tour of BOB and will have it ready soon.

 

[Tony Latham]

Great post. (Except for the midnight issue....)

How's Bob ride with the heavier rubbers?



T

 

[ssuuki19]

Great post. (Except for the midnight issue....)

How's Bob ride with the heavier rubbers?



T

I second that notion - glad the situation worked out ok (i have done the same thing). Also curious about the new rubbers and any chance you were able to monitor the fender clearance since they were installed.

 

[SCwood]

Great post. (Except for the midnight issue....)

How's Bob ride with the heavier rubbers?



T

I second that notion - glad the situation worked out ok (i have done the same thing). Also curious about the new rubbers and any chance you were able to monitor the fender clearance since they were installed.

I think they’re working out pretty well. I know some people downgrade to the 2k lb rubber because of excessive bouncing, but I think BOB is heavy enough that it’s not a problem. It’s probably settled 1/4 inch or so since the rubber was installed, but there’s still plenty of clearance in the wheel wells.

Also- the BOB tour is up!
https://youtu.be/dWFQykH4PH8

 

[KTM_Guy]

I like seeing these posts of the campers in use. Really makes me want to get mine done.

Todd

 

[AStinkyBumb]

Totally love the build, I found this thread while looking for ideas for this exact size. I am going to use a lot of your ideas when I build mine.

Being as long as it is have you had any issues dragging the hitch or tongue of the trailer? Do you find the rear end of the trailer drags a lot over hills/bumps or have your trips been fairly flat?

 

[SCwood]

Totally love the build, I found this thread while looking for ideas for this exact size. I am going to use a lot of your ideas when I build mine.

Being as long as it is have you had any issues dragging the hitch or tongue of the trailer? Do you find the rear end of the trailer drags a lot over hills/bumps or have your trips been fairly flat?

Thanks! BOB hasn’t been on any true off-road trails, but it hasn’t been all flat either and I haven’t had any trouble. The pictures may be deceptive because the 4Runner we tow with is lifted- BOB is about 17 inches off the ground. I also got a tongue jack with removable wheel and always take it off when towing. Timbren makes 4 inch lift spindles that could be swapped in if you had any trouble.

 

[AStinkyBumb]

Totally love the build, I found this thread while looking for ideas for this exact size. I am going to use a lot of your ideas when I build mine.

Being as long as it is have you had any issues dragging the hitch or tongue of the trailer? Do you find the rear end of the trailer drags a lot over hills/bumps or have your trips been fairly flat?

Thanks! BOB hasn’t been on any true off-road trails, but it hasn’t been all flat either and I haven’t had any trouble. The pictures may be deceptive because the 4Runner we tow with is lifted- BOB is about 17 inches off the ground. I also got a tongue jack with removable wheel and always take it off when towing. Timbren makes 4 inch lift spindles that could be swapped in if you had any trouble.

That was going to be my next question on whether your 4runner was lifted at all. How much of a lift do you have on your 4runner? I have been debating biting the bullet and spending the money for Timbren (or like) axles or just going with a straight axle with brakes to put extra money elsewhere in the build. I have a 2nd gen Tacoma 4x4 so my tow vehicle would be fairly close to what you are towing with minus the lift and my planned terrain would probably be similar. Not anything crazy.

Thanks for the information, your build log is one of the best I have read and I have been doing research for about a year now.

 

[SCwood]

That was going to be my next question on whether your 4runner was lifted at all. How much of a lift do you have on your 4runner? I have been debating biting the bullet and spending the money for Timbren (or like) axles or just going with a straight axle with brakes to put extra money elsewhere in the build. I have a 2nd gen Tacoma 4x4 so my tow vehicle would be fairly close to what you are towing with minus the lift and my planned terrain would probably be similar. Not anything crazy.

Thanks for the information, your build log is one of the best I have read and I have been doing research for about a year now.

It’s a 3 inch lift with 33” tires. I think you could easily skip the timbren and go with a traditional axle. The timbren is nice for a little less bouncing than a solid axle, but unless you’re going to go on some serious trails and don’t want an axle hanging you up it’s probably not necessary.

 

[mp43sniper]

Great build, great camper, and great video on YouTube! Funny thing is that's how I found this awesome camper, not on tnttt haha.

Glad your breakdown wasn't any worse. We've all been there.

Please keep the updates coming. A lot of us can't go camping or even work on our rigs for several months due to weather so southern updates keep us entertained during the long winter.

 

[SCwood]

Great build, great camper, and great video on YouTube! Funny thing is that's how I found this awesome camper, not on tnttt haha.

Glad your breakdown wasn't any worse. We've all been there.

Please keep the updates coming. A lot of us can't go camping or even work on our rigs for several months due to weather so southern updates keep us entertained during the long winter.

Thanks! We're about to have a baby so BOB needs a crib, as well as a few other upgrades. I should have another update soon.