2007 Jumping Jack Build

[Semi-Hex]

They are attached to the frame at three points. Once the wheels are nearly off the ground the entire thing is very stable so you don't have that rocking motion at all. For us it's nice.

Two week in Mojave? Now that sounds like fun. We go there all the time as our first stop to Utah and other states. We just spent a day north of 15 and it was very peaceful.

We are going through a very long training process to volunteer at a State park. Only 4 weekends to go!

 

[tlin]

Gents - great setups!

dnellas - thx for the continuous updates as you make little tweaks.

Semi-Hex - if you have more details/pics of your 32-gallon setup and larger wheel/tire setup, please share. For the matching wheels you're running, what did you do to get that done?

If I ever wind up with a trailer, it'll be a used JJ. Seems like a fairly small community of owners out there, keep up the good work and updates .

 

[Kev O]

Just wanted to drop a message and say THANKS to dnellans for the Jumping Jack updates! My wife and I enjoy backpacking and car camping out in the remote areas of Oregon. We are expecting our first child this winter, and we still want to continue our outdoor lifestyle. I'm thinking the JJ will make camping next spring/summer enjoyable for the wife and I if we have room for a small crib and the luxury of propane heat. Also think the JJ is a great match for me since I own a dirtbike and will be hauling that along. I'm waiting for the Portland,OR sportsman show in February to see if JJ has a deal I can not pass on. I'm thinking this small trailer will pull great behind my short bed Tacoma, am I right?

Semi-Hex, I would love to see pics of the lift and undercarriage of your trailer. It sounds awesome!

 

[dnellans]

Just got back from two week mohave riding trip with 2500 miles to and from super secret location. 13 night in the JJ and happy as a clam. didn't cough up for any new toys this year but didn't feel like anything was lacking either. the rubber strips definitely made it clank less which i liked while on the road.

weather was generally good so no heater required this year and worst wind was 25 with gusts into the high 40's two nights. the JJ def starts rocking and rolling above 40 a bit but no problems and no worse than friends using large ground tents in terms of comfort. rain just one night and nothing to think twice about.

new solar setup of a 100watt panel plus 3x34ah batteries via the goalzero yeti 400 and i didn't think about leaving laptop on all day and getting go pro downloaded and minorly edited each day. very happy with that setup.

obligitory pics

 

[dnellans]

in terms of putting a bike up top - it's a minor hassle just because it's such a high trailer but doable. sort of like putting the bike into a pickup bed with a ramp and stool. here is what i've done to trailer to support using it as bike trailer. race cans up front and foldable ramp that attaches to back.

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since someone asked about bigger tires/lift above. no lift required to fit bigger tires but you probably want to go to bigger/wider rims. i prob could have gone one size bigger than these but it's already got better clearance than my f-150 so doesn't matter much unless you're really trying to crawl with it.



and a pack and play fits across the middle of the JJ no problem for the expecting dad above

 

[Kev O]

Finally got a Jumping Jack of my own! Thanks for the recommendation. It's a spendy tent but WOW! It's so comfortable and down right easy to set up and take down. Went on our first campout with our Labrador and 2 month old daughter and it was a blast! I want to keep this thread alive. Not very much info on Jumping Jack trailers lately. I know people love them, so let's see more of them!

 

[Semi-Hex]

Some nice shots. We'll be in Oregon next week doing some cave and waterfall hikes around Bend and along the Umpqua river.

 

[dnellans]

Awesome - KevO did you find one used or buy new? Porta-crib set up in the middle without issue for you? I know they've made a few minor changes each year on them as time has gone on, did you pick up any of the accessory stuff? How was camping with the 2month old? We just had our 3rd (whoops) 2.5 weeks ago so I'm scratching my head how we're going to fit 5 in the JJ in a few years

 

[Space Wrangler]

Finally got a Jumping Jack of my own! Thanks for the recommendation. It's a spendy tent but WOW! It's so comfortable and down right easy to set up and take down. Went on our first campout with our Labrador and 2 month old daughter and it was a blast! I want to keep this thread alive. Not very much info on Jumping Jack trailers lately. I know people love them, so let's see more of them!

What lake is that ? Nice trailer

 

[Kev O]

What lake is that ? Nice trailer

Thank you! That is Little Cultus Lake off of the cascade lakes highway in Central Oregon.

 

[Kev O]

Awesome - KevO did you find one used or buy new? Porta-crib set up in the middle without issue for you? I know they've made a few minor changes each year on them as time has gone on, did you pick up any of the accessory stuff? How was camping with the 2month old? We just had our 3rd (whoops) 2.5 weeks ago so I'm scratching my head how we're going to fit 5 in the JJ in a few years

Camping with my new daughter was awesome! We stayed for two nights and my wife's exact words were "I would have made you drive us home the first night if we were in a ground tent".(cold,mosquitoes, newborn) Accessories so far are one extra bed extender to make the full bed for the wife and I. Picked up the propane rack and regular buddy heater. And have the small awning on order. I can definitely fit the crib, but we chose to set a portable bassinet on the opposite bunk and it worked just fine.
After cruising Craigslist for the last 6 months trying to score one of these used, I had zero luck. So not wanting the camping season to pass us by, I begged and pleaded to my wife who finally agreed and let me order a new one through sportsmans warehouse. (Someone has to buy them new so guys can score great used deals later)
The jumping jack was not a normal item at my local store and had to be special ordered. When I went to pick the trailer up, they told me to meet them out back. I pulled the truck around to find 5 employees drooling over it, telling me "we really wanted to open it up and play in it". I've taken the trailer camping 3 times now and everywhere I go I get complimented. At the camp spot in the photo above we had only had 3 people drive by us in 2 days and when one of the cars stopped, I was greeted by a really nice guy who preceded to show me great picks of his jumping jack with mods.
Cool little JJ community we got here.

Congrats on the new addition to the family! If you continue camping and overlanding, I think you have an advantage with the JJ. I would think it's a lot easier to fit a family of 5 in there, over a roof top tent!

 

[Kev O]

Another shot somewhere else in my great state.

 

[Kev O]

Does anybody have opinions on using the buddy heater in the Jumping Jack. Having the baby in the tent made me too nervous to leave the heater running all night with fear of suffocation. Are people venting with the jumping jack windows? And how much? Was only my second time using the heater so I'm not very familiar with them.
I was venting the corner flap of a window, but felt that it was letting most the heat out

 

[dnellans]

my wife and i were very nervous about it too at first - you're not alone!

now our biggest concern is actually that one of the kids would burn themselves, not the carbon monoxide or O2. when the kids are with us we usually just put it on full blast before or during initial bed time which really warms up all the foam/sleeping bags/everything in the tent before the entertainment of naked jumping around in the tent while putting on PJ's. then we generally turn it off for the night one after stories or whatever bedtime routine we've got, and then only turn it back on if/when someone gets up because it's really too cold.

we've definitely left on a few nights by putting it on the table and the cracking one of the windows above it at the top just across the top and then cracking the door on the bottom. carbon monoxide is heavier than air so a little gap in the door (stick a shoe in it to hold it sorta open if you're really nervous) would allow CO out and crack in window allows a little fresh air in

when i'm alone i dont think twice about doing this but wife is more nervous than me... when it's just me i also usually don't need it all night. leaving it on all night definitely chews through propane so plan on a big bottle adaptor if you end up doing a lot of really cold weather camping and running it all night.

we've found 30 minutes on full blast can turn tent into a sauna, leaving it anything besides minimum is too hot for us even in the 40's. if it's getting below freezing at night my wife nixes camping with the kids at this point

 

[Waygoner]

I put a battery powered CO detector in my camper.