Better off over-hauling FR NOBO or Black Series HQ17?

[rdrop]

Not yet - it's in proto stages at the moment. I believe the Pause crew is wanting to take it to Overland Expo in Oregon if they can get everything lined out in time. Shooting for lighter weight and a more aggressive price point to make it more appealing to families (spending wise)

All of those sound perfect. Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Obsessed2findARuggedHybid]

I believe that is wise. Going over that 140k price point with a rig that is so heavy and only sleeps two or three is going to limit sales. There are only so many retired baby boomers out there.

 

[SpeedAddict502]

Great discussion here, I am having some of the same thoughts.

 

[Raspy]

We currently have a teardrop by Colorado Teardrops. The two bunkbeds + queen are perfect for sleeping, but the four of us are maybe looking for a bit more space when the weather isn't cooperating. I'd love to do something like the High Altitude Trailers XT105 (or ROA Roamer X), or the Imperial Outdoors X195, or one of the new Pause trailers, but the lack of bunkbeds and their super high price tag has me looking at other options (I really just want a ZoneRV Sojourn — the floor plan is perfect for us).

I fully recognize that everything about the above trailers is a huge step above something like the NOBO 19.3 or a Black Series HQ17. But, I'm wondering if I were to get a decent price on one of those two options used what it would take to modify it into a somewhat serviceable place. What I really want is the ability to do forest service roads without feeling like I'm beating everything to hell. It seems like upgrades would need to be (at least):
- Replace factory suspension with Cruisemaster
- Electrical upgrades for Black Series (it looks like they're a hot mess)
- Replace/reinforce interior cabinets/appliances to better handle trail abuse

Has anyone done this, or seriously evaluated it?

I don't know why you think you would need to replace the BS suspension with Cruisemaster. Why? Yes, the stock shocks are junk, and the brakes are too, but that's it. The swing arm system is good for rough roads. And they use standard 5200/6000 lb bearings, seals, drums and backing plates. All off the shelf stuff. The main electrical problems are the poor inverters and poor batteries, with a few other weak points like the main power relays, some of the electric steps and cheap solar controllers. I had no problems with the cabinetry or appliances braking under off-road conditions. The problem was poor wall veneers that cracked and peeled from heat. The earlier BS trailers, with the black interiors, will need lithium batteries and likely an inverter upgrade to Victron. The later white interior trailers have no name equipment and all bets are off on reliability or replacement parts. But the suspension remains the same and is basically good. Some have had a lot of tire wear, but that is because of alignment problems, as the factory did not do wheel alignments before shipping them out. I wrote an alignment procedure that fixed them.

 

[rdrop]

@Raspy thank you — that is all super helpful, particularly the call out about which components of the BS suspension would need replacing. The electrical system issues don't intimidate me too much. From your viewpoint, what does the fix for the poor wall veneers entail?

 

[Raspy]

@Raspy thank you — that is all super helpful, particularly the call out about which components of the BS suspension would need replacing. The electrical system issues don't intimidate me too much. From your viewpoint, what does the fix for the poor wall veneers entail?

The poor wall veneers crack. Many thought this was a structural problem, but is is a cosmetic problem. One fix is to use stick-on tiles to cover the poor looking cracks. Mine barey had any of this problem, but i kept it under cover as much as possible and cool inside as much as possible. In my opinion, you should be much more worried about mechanical and electrical problems, than cosmetic problems.

 

[Raspy]

@Raspy thank you — that is all super helpful, particularly the call out about which components of the BS suspension would need replacing. The electrical system issues don't intimidate me too much. From your viewpoint, what does the fix for the poor wall veneers entail?

If you ever get to the point of working on a Black Series, get ahold of me and I'll help you zero in on a number of electrical trouble spots.

These include the mysterious blinking tail light problem, the breakaway battery charging problem, the power relay problem, the intermittent electric step problem, the parasitic load problem, the amp meter false readings and the fake tank level readings.

 

[rdrop]

If you ever get to the point of working on a Black Series, get ahold of me and I'll help you zero in on a number of electrical trouble spots.

These include the mysterious blinking tail light problem, the breakaway battery charging problem, the power relay problem, the intermittent electric step problem, the parasitic load problem, the amp meter false readings and the fake tank level readings.

Amazing — thank you!