blueberry.taco build

[blueberry.taco]

I hate the idea of a spare tire under the truck but for it’s current mall crawler status it makes sense to have one. Took some exhaust rework, tire winch relocation, and some bracket bending but managed to fit a full size 34” tire up there.

 

[blueberry.taco]

well, it took a while to get to here, but after 392 days of waiting from when i placed the order, I finally have the camper!

Took the weekend to enjoy cool weather ground tent car camping for the last time (we'll still continue to tent when backpacking).
got some nice dispersed spots in the Adirondacks and an okay one in the White Mountains, then woke up at 5am on monday, packed up camp and drove down to Bow, NH to visit Mainline Overland to receive our camper.
a week or 2 early for best fall colors but it was good enough for a quick weekender.

Drone vids on our instagram, since im not sure how to post vids here

aaand what we've been waiting for for so so long.

suspension handled it beautifully, with no air in the airsprings it sits just about level and rides fine.
add about 50psi to the springs to get it back to original ride height (pictured).
So looks like i can pull a leaf out of the 3 leaf pack and be fine.
I'm looking forwards to being able to set ride height lower!

Bonus: my dog found a new chin pillow. He loves this position and slept like this for a while multiple times.
weirdo.

 

[Todd780]

Looks like a great spot and congrats on your camper. I'm sure it will be a game changer.

 

[blueberry.taco]

pic of the inside "as-purchased"

since then made some changes: some visible, some not so much.

took out the heavy and unnecessary bed slideout and extra cushions. Oh and the entire bed mattress too.
We've had an Exped Megamat that we love for both insulation and comfort that we've been using in the previous rig and ground tenting when using our half dome tent.
perfect fit in the cab over area, better R value and comfier and lighter. win win win!

added a cork yoga mat (cut to size/shape) over the linoleum stock floor for better barefoot comfort and potentially insulation

updated the old fashioned heavy fire extinguisher with a lightweight and compact "Element" extinguisher.

shortened the stock awning handle for a little more comfort and weight/space savings (see a trend here?)

made a quick and dirty hitch step. big hole underneath is so we can clip a carabiner to the dog leash on it at a convenient location

and since i hated the idea of screwing into the camper directly, made an intermediate aluminum bracket to 3M VHB double sided tape onto the camper.
I can see this level from the driver's seat, so leveling at camp should be super easy (especially with the individually controllable from in the cab - rear air springs)

Had a "practice" night camping in the driveway through a rainstorm, no leaks, dog was comfy, we were comfy. a successful trial

 

[blueberry.taco]

Followed this thread on how to wire up a non-stock backup cam to 2020+ trucks.

super easy, just ordered a $15 pigtail for the tailgate connector and a $40 camera off amazon and hooked up 3 wires and that's it!
Not sure why aftermarket companies are charging $200+ for this, but maybe I need to get into the business.

anyways, super happy with the ease and results.

 

[blueberry.taco]

Made a quick weekender trip out to Overland Expo East in VA.

Headed out after a full workday so did a late night park and sleep at a rest area.
Was super easy to set up "camp" in the parking lot, definitely not something I've ever considered with only ground tenting or sleeping the back of a 2dr Blazer (which required unloading a bunch of stuff).
Was sleeping comfortably until a straight piped semi truck decided to park right behind us and keep his engine on.
I was measuring near 65 dB (on my phone app) at my pillow so after 30 minutes of misery i decided to just drive down to the other end of the parking lot and fell asleep to a much more bearable 50ish dB.

Other nights were at a quiet dispersed campground in WV where our dog was a verygoodboi after all the excitement and stimulation at Expo

at expo itself i didnt take any pictures partially due to having a hold on the dog's leash the whole time, plus the weather was not particularly photo friendly.

but, parking lot guy told us to park in the back with all the other camping rigs.... we sure look tiny