2 Door JK Overland Build with Trailer

WR_Outlander

WR_Outlander

New member
Finally decided to start participating a little bit more on the forum. What better way to do that than start posting about the progress and plans for my JK?

So at this point I've had my JK for a little over 2 years. I came from driving a 1966 Mustang so the world of off-roading was completely new to me. The more I learn the more I want to do and the larger my plans got.

One day, after thinking I was satisfied for a little while I suddenly started day dreaming of an overland build. Now from what I've seen most of these are Unlimited's. I've always been interested in a military trailer fixed up for storage and a tent on top so that's the way I figure I'll compensate for the lack of space.

So to start it all off here's the earliest picture I have of my rig and what it is currently at. I hope some of you find this interesting and follow until I'm done. Can't wait to share my ideas.


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As far as trailers go, I'm assuming you're probably interested in acquiring an old military trailer and then restoring it? Do a search for M416 trailers. These are my personal favorite because they're much more friendly to tow than an M101 which are wider, longer and heavier.

There are auction sites out there that you can scour, but it's hit or miss whether you can find one in your state and one that's not beaten up too bad. Now's the time to brush up on your welding because you'll likely have to do some sheet metal replacement, but you can get creative here and think about how you want to store your gear inside.

Some upgrades you'll likely want to make are converting over to a 5x5 bolt pattern and losing the military tires. You'll also want to lose the pintile-style hitch and look at a 3-axis hitch instead. Same articulation, but far less noisy. Some of them are wired up as 24V so you'll likely want to convert that to a 12V so you can use your Jeep's stock trailer wiring.

I've been researching these forever, but haven't gotten as far as buying one. There are also some great companies out there you can purchase a new trailer from and get it fully customized. It really just depends on your wallet size and needs.
 
JK_Dave said:
Some upgrades you'll likely want to make are converting over to 5x5 bolt pattern and lose the military tires.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I had looked into the 101's before but it's good to know I may want to look in another direction. My plan is to swap out the axles and run the same wheels and tires as the Jeep is. And if I'd be happy to have to weld anything. That's a skill I rarely get to use and I'll most likely end up over-building it. At least it won't fall apart!

Here's a few pictures I'm using to get a basis of what I want to do.

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I can't decide weather to go the camper route or fold out tent on top. The camper style would be good as a base camp type trailer. I would like to get where I'm going and unhook and explore a little bit. The tent, however, would let me use more storage, and I usually carry a lot of stuff I don't actually need.


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I have picked up a cheap 3x5 lowes trailer off Craig's list, flipped it to sprung over axel and add a bar around the top so that I can carry my Yakima attachments . I started with this, with intention to move on to military trailer.

But who knows, we are only limited by our budget.

I'll try and post a pic from home later. But yeah you have to have a trailer with a 2 door.


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Here is a pic. I know you are going for a nicer look, all in due time.


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WR_Outlander said:
Thanks! I had looked into the 101's before but it's good to know I may want to look in another direction. My plan is to swap out the axles and run the same wheels and tires as the Jeep is. And if I'd be happy to have to weld anything. That's a skill I rarely get to use and I'll most likely end up over-building it. At least it won't fall apart!

I can't decide weather to go the camper route or fold out tent on top. The camper style would be good as a base camp type trailer. I would like to get where I'm going and unhook and explore a little bit. The tent, however, would let me use more storage, and I usually carry a lot of stuff I don't actually need.


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Click to expand...

Sure thing! For what it's worth, I'd stick with the RTT rather than a camper. Unless of course you're trying to convince your significant other to join you. The trailer with RTT is more versatile and you can always ditch the RTT if you want to cut weight or use it for other purposes. A camper doesn't leave much room for your gear and is kind of clunky if you're trying to get the trailer through tighter/more technical trails.
 
I saw that you posted a pic of the Schutte Xdventure trailer...I own one and absolutely love it...they are very pricey, but you could definitely get some great ideas from them when you build your own. A couple great features you might want to consider for your build...a moveable upper rack for a roof top tent and awning; belly water tank and a small propane powered on demand water heater for a hand held shower; folding aluminum counter that stores inside and attaches to the side of the trailer that houses a stove & sink. I'd be happy to take pics of anything on my trailer if you want any ideas for yours


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Brute said:
I saw that you posted a pic of the Schutte Xdventure trailer...I own one and absolutely love it...they are very pricey, but you could definitely get some great ideas from them when you build your own. A couple great features you might want to consider for your build...a moveable upper rack for a roof top tent and awning; belly water tank and a small propane powered on demand water heater for a hand held shower; folding aluminum counter that stores inside and attaches to the side of the trailer that houses a stove & sink. I'd be happy to take pics of anything on my trailer if you want any ideas for yours


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Click to expand...

I love the Schutt trailers too. Do you have the X2 or X3? I prefer the overall size of the X3 better since it's smaller, but the battery box on the X2.

How hard is it to fill and empty that water tank?
 
Subscribed! I'd love to see where this goes.

I really like a lot of the offroad trailers out there, but they're just not in the budget right now. I run a 4x6 utility trailer for now, it gets the job done.
 
JK_Dave said:
I love the Schutt trailers too. Do you have the X2 or X3? I prefer the overall size of the X3 better since it's smaller, but the battery box on the X2.

How hard is it to fill and empty that water tank?
Click to expand...

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Here are a couple pics of my trailer...it is the larger one with twin battery system and large front storage box.

The fill inlet for the water tank is inside the trailer in the front...the cover is hinged in two places fore & aft; flip the front section back & stick o hose into the fill inlet; if you want to refill on the trail with spare water cans, I use a shaker siphon...I'm contemplating fabricating a neck extension to be able to fill it from outside the trailer



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JK_Dave said:
I love the Schutt trailers too. Do you have the X2 or X3? I prefer the overall size of the X3 better since it's smaller, but the battery box on the X2.

How hard is it to fill and empty that water tank?
Click to expand...

To empty the tank, you either use the hand held shower or the sink to pump out the water...since the bottom is f the trailer is protected by a skid plate, it's not easy to access the water tank...but it could be modified to put a drain plug I would think


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Brute said:
To empty the tank, you either use the hand held shower or the sink to pump out the water...since the bottom is f the trailer is protected by a skid plate, it's not easy to access the water tank...but it could be modified to put a drain plug I would think


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Click to expand...

You could cut a hole in the skid maybe, like RH does on their oil pan skid.

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Thanks for the input Brute! I liked the Schutte trailer because of how the pop up tent is up on its own frame. Would give me kind of a work space or an area to stack stuff on top.

What I planned was to have a hinged top that I could open as well as having one side acting as like a tailgate so I can have 2 ways to get into the storage area. If I go with the M416 I'll already have a tailgate so that'll work well.

My only issue is having a top strong enough to be open and support the weight of the folded up tent on top.

Also I was trying to figure out what to do about a water tank so mounting it underneath would be great! Might put that and a small fuel tank on the front to keep a little weight on the tongue no matter how I pack it.


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