New wanderer starting build
Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2023 1:26 pmHello there, I'm a new member and I thought I would stop in and introduce myself. I am an emergency room nurse and avid outdoorsman in south-central North Carolina. Last year I bought a 20-ft Kaufman car hauler from the factory with the intention of building a camper. My goal is to drag it across this incredible country with some combination of the spousal unit, our adult children, our grandson, and the dog. We will mostly boondock and camp while fishing, hunting, rafting kayaking, sightseeing, and camping just be camping wherever the crew wants to go. That will include everything from Yellowstone NP, MT and ID forest service roads, Utah canyonlands, MN and WI smallmouth bass rivers, the NC beaches and probably the FL Keys.
The trailer is Kauffman's top end 20-ft V-nose. It is 8 ft wide with a 7 ft interior height. It is framed with 1" x 1-1/4" rectangular steel tubing on 16" centers. I added a walk-on roof, the thickest screwless aluminum skin they offered, a 3-ft side door with RV latch, an inverted beaver tail for added ground clearance, 1 ft steel rollers on the bottom of the beavertail, an extended tongue, and two roof vents. I also upgraded to 5200lb axels and had a 1" lift put in at the factory. Tow vehicle is an 06' F250 Diesel.
Thus far I have spent about 60 nights in it over the last year with cots water jugs and folding chairs. It is currently parked next to the garage cleaned out and rigged up with shop lights to get this build rolling. I have also spent the last 2 years acquiring woodworking tools and shop equipment to do as much of the build myself as possible.
Since then I have purchased:
6- 405W residential solar panels
6-100a hour LiFePo batteries
1-3000w inverter
3- solar charge controlers
1- battery monitor
12,000 btu mini split a/c
Diesel heater
Sink
12v water pump and an accumulator
Indoor/outdoor Propane stove
2 maxxair push-pull fans
Drive on leveler kit
Design criteria..
-Requires no external services.
-Power and fresh water hookups when services are available.
-Rugged enough for eastern Forest Service roads an western gravel/dirt secondary roads.
-Sleep 4 adults
-cargo capacity to haul 1 Quad, or a pair of kayaks, or deflated ww raft and frame.
-Aft lift bed that is useable while trailer is fully loaded. (Rest area stop and snooze)
-storage for outdoor gear and fly rods
-multipurpose work bench for gear repair/maint, and hobbies. (Fly tying, leatherwork, woodcarving)
-Indoor hot shower
-hot/cold sink
-lots of bright interior lighting
Many thanks in advance for your experience, ideas, direction, and fellowship. Hope to meet up with some of you in the wild.
The trailer is Kauffman's top end 20-ft V-nose. It is 8 ft wide with a 7 ft interior height. It is framed with 1" x 1-1/4" rectangular steel tubing on 16" centers. I added a walk-on roof, the thickest screwless aluminum skin they offered, a 3-ft side door with RV latch, an inverted beaver tail for added ground clearance, 1 ft steel rollers on the bottom of the beavertail, an extended tongue, and two roof vents. I also upgraded to 5200lb axels and had a 1" lift put in at the factory. Tow vehicle is an 06' F250 Diesel.
Thus far I have spent about 60 nights in it over the last year with cots water jugs and folding chairs. It is currently parked next to the garage cleaned out and rigged up with shop lights to get this build rolling. I have also spent the last 2 years acquiring woodworking tools and shop equipment to do as much of the build myself as possible.
Since then I have purchased:
6- 405W residential solar panels
6-100a hour LiFePo batteries
1-3000w inverter
3- solar charge controlers
1- battery monitor
12,000 btu mini split a/c
Diesel heater
Sink
12v water pump and an accumulator
Indoor/outdoor Propane stove
2 maxxair push-pull fans
Drive on leveler kit
Design criteria..
-Requires no external services.
-Power and fresh water hookups when services are available.
-Rugged enough for eastern Forest Service roads an western gravel/dirt secondary roads.
-Sleep 4 adults
-cargo capacity to haul 1 Quad, or a pair of kayaks, or deflated ww raft and frame.
-Aft lift bed that is useable while trailer is fully loaded. (Rest area stop and snooze)
-storage for outdoor gear and fly rods
-multipurpose work bench for gear repair/maint, and hobbies. (Fly tying, leatherwork, woodcarving)
-Indoor hot shower
-hot/cold sink
-lots of bright interior lighting
Many thanks in advance for your experience, ideas, direction, and fellowship. Hope to meet up with some of you in the wild.
