Off-Road Worthy 5x8 Conversion

[McDave]

Nice! I rode one of those RT's a couple hundred miles, damn nice scoot although it wasn't in that kind shape. I got invited to ride with the Bandito's local club the Hermano's as their Sgt.at Arms was my neighbour. I'm a Lone Wolf, never needed that kind of trouble. I can find my own just fine. Anyways, I rode about 120 miles with them to Medicine Rocks on my 99 Chief, and we stopped for refreshments and I told my neighbour I was gonna freestyle and sneak out. I bought the boy's a drink on my way out and headed back to this little town to gas up about 65miles of dirt county road. I got some gas and when I walked in the bar the waitress came running up and said there was an accident at Medicine Rocks. So we got in her car and went back there and the Meat Wagon was already there. Seems the guy who rode the RT decided to do the Indian Larry seat surfing thing and blew the dismount. His foot missed the peg and he put his foot down to the dirt and it sucked him right off the bike at about 50mph. Liked to tore his foot off. The bike just kept on trucking straight down the road till it got slow and fell over, so I picked it up and rode it back to his place, about 150mls. He is a single Dad and has twin girls about 15yrs old so I got them squared away and we drove to Rapid City hospital. He was already out of surgery when we got there. 2 weeks later he was walking just fine. Lucky Dude.
That's one of the best re make overs I've seen on that Buell. That reminds of the old Café racers from late 70s. I ride a Street Glide screamin eagle and its got the WillyG. pkg that has skulls on the chrome. I'm not sure that they are bad luck, but I can get enough of them, a little goes a long way. But hey, nice stable of ponies there. Maybe we'll cross paths someday. Here's a shot of my rig.

No wait, that's not it. This is mine in the spring.

and in the summer.


McDave

[jmanscotch]

Scary, but that's why I don't like to ride with crowds, inspires too much shenanigans! I borrowed a buddies ZX10R (210 HP crotch rocket) and a week of riding that thing, cruising around with friends, I realized I need slow bikes or else I'd definitely kill myself. A couple accidental wheelies, some highway speeds that I never thought I'd see (nor feel that comfortable at) and I quickly made the decision to enjoy sub 1000 cc bikes or at least not speed oriented 1000 cc bikes.

Nice setup sir, what's that awning you're running? We're looking for a support-less awning setup. I keep coming back to some of these 270* awnings, like the FoxWing, but the $500-900 price tags are a bit much for us right now.

[McDave]

The brand is Aleko, It is a patio awning that has a hand crank to roll it open and closed. Not really an RV unit but I paid 146.00 SHIPPED!! It is 10' x 8' and you can roll out a little or all the way, and change the pitch. It is very light 40lbs. I had to fab some mounts and supports to hold the arms secure when closed and in transit. I also made a cover to keep the fabric out of the sun and bird poop when stored. I just used some vinyl rain gutter and end caps. Works perfect and will hopefully extend the fabric life. I have used it several times now and just love it
Here is the manual to give an idea what we are talking about.
http://www.alekoproducts.com/v/vspfiles ... ION_US.pdf
And a couple pics.




McDave

[MrBo]

Very cool and a great price! Should work out well.

[jmanscotch]

Very nice, thanks for the info McDave, I'll look into those!

Small suspension update that'll be in progress soon; CJ-7 leaf springs.

The setup I bought for my offroad trailer is all Jeep CJ-7 rear suspension stuff. The GVWR for a entry level, or "light duty" rear leaf spring suspension, is roughly 4150 lbs with ~2,100 of that being for the rear suspension, so I choose to go with the setup assuming they're appropriate for my predicted 1,200-1400 lb trailer without being too overrated for weight. I'm adding shocks to the setup to help dampen the suspension (I'm using the CJ-7 leaf springs perches with a built in lower shock mount to attach the shock at the bottom and running a custom top mount that'll weld to the trailer frame).

To complete the conversion from my stock crap suspension to the CJ-7 suspension, I bought:

- 3 used leaf springs from local recycling yard (2 to use and one for spare)
- leaf spring hangers, shackles, bolts, bushings and bump stops from 4 wheel parts
- custom top shock mount
- my old Tacoma factory rear shocks

Here's the CJ-7 leaf springs I bought, cleaned up and painted:




Here's the link for the CJ-7 suspension diagram to help see what all you need if you choose this route: https://www.4wheelparts.com/hardpart...aspx?hpDID=134

From that diagram, I bought:

2 - #44 Front leaf spring hangers
2 - #37 Front hanger bushings
2 - #39 Spring perches w/ lower shock mounts (they is specific drivers/passenger side part numbers)
2 - #51 Bump stops
2 - #38 Rear shackle kits (includes bushings and bolts needed)
2 - #46 Rear lead spring hangers
2 - ???? U-bolts that fit my 2.38" diameter trailer axle and yet fit the CJ-7 spring perches (forget the part numbers I found)

Hopefully my order from 4wheelparts will be in this week and I'll start fabbing it all up this weekend and update then.

[Iconfabul8]

Are there unicorns in Colorado? Are you a unicorn? I am so confused.

[jmanscotch]

You spotted the easter egg in the pic!

Just the lady friend being goofy. She had just had hip surgery and was a bit blue from being cooped up for recovery so I had bought some mask to be a bit goofy and we wore them while sitting around the fire to confuse the passersby...good fun.

[dirtsailor2003]

Looks like a nice build. Following along. I just ordered a 5x8 and plan on using it in similar conditions. I was looking at switching out to the Timbren axleless set up. That would be a few years down the road.


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[jmanscotch]

Hung the Jeep CJ-7 leaf springs, they're going to be so much better than the stock trailer springs.

Factory CJ-7 front and rear spring hangers:




The factory CJ-7 u-bolt perch with built in lower shock mount (I still need to figure out a top shock mount):




Old trailer leads compared to new setup:



Treated the wood floor with some roof patch to help it last a minute longer hopefully.




Also, tore the trailer down to studs. Needed to do this for a few reasons. I'm cutting the trailer down 8 inches shorter, so this will help with the process. Some of the metal inside the trailer was poorly painted, so once I shorten the top I'm going to prep and paint everything as well. It'll also give me a chance to redo some of the horrible sealant plastered on the trailer from the factory.



If the weather cooperates tomorrow, we'll get the top done and then be able to get going on the next few steps.

Jake

[jmanscotch]

Nothing quite like cutting the top off your brand new trailer!




Just set it back on for today. I'll finish welding it this week and make some other changes in the process.




Jake

[McDave]

Oh yeah, I like it. There is a man committed to excellence. Outstanding, Sir.
Watching and learning,

McDave

[L3TT3RS]

I came here and found you again. Small world

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[jmanscotch]

I came here and found you again. Small world

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Haha yeah I joined here specifically for the CTC knowledge but am trying to keep both this and EP thread on the same page.

When are you starting your build thread on that gem you got?!


Only updates are I ordered two doors from Challenger Doors. Both are all black units, 32" tall x 26" wide with vertical windows and screens. Some change of heart from the lady meant we're going this route now versus the single existing door curb side. Their ship date is about two weeks out so that'll be a later development.

Also, I went ahead and framed for the doors, based on specs given from Challenger. Didn't want to cut the aluminum until I have the doors on site to verify some dimensions...you know, lack of trust on accuracy from some folks.

Cutting the existing vertical Z supports and melting some 1" square tube in place of it for the door supports:




Skins trimmed down 8" and screwed back on for now. I'm going to replace the screws with bolts, padded washers and nylon nuts...just need to source 100 or so of them for a fair price.




The next few weeks will be finish welding in cross braces for lower frame, new extended 2" receiver tongue and strip and paint the frame with bedliner.

Jake

[L3TT3RS]

I've still yet to take delivery. Should be two to three more weeks. 6-8 turned into 10. All I need to take it camping when I get it is two steelies and some spacers.

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[jmanscotch]

I've still yet to take delivery. Should be two to three more weeks. 6-8 turned into 10. All I need to take it camping when I get it is two steelies and some spacers.

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Always fun how that happens. I know you had it setup with most the basics like wiring, vents and all but there's not going to be any build out of the inside or anything else? Ugh...if so, you're a smarter man than I haha