Building the AlumEscape

[2012Taco]

Ooops, the last real adds were some stickers!

 

[JLink]

sick trailer! nicely done man!

 

[Curtis in Texas]

That turned out nice! Hoping to start on mine this year. The frame is made with suspension. So I'm just left with the box to build.

I have an idea for mine I'll throw out for your consideration since it looks like you might have the room.
I'm going to build a swing out tire carrier that will allow the spare tire to swing out then raise up to the horizontal position so I can either put a hard tire cover over the tire, or make a round tire size table top to sit on top of the horizontal tire and turn it into a mounted round top table next to the kitchen. With some tall folding stools it should make a nice bar table for BSing around with the guys.

 

[2012Taco]

sick trailer! nicely done man!

Thanks JLink!

 

[2012Taco]

That turned out nice! Hoping to start on mine this year. The frame is made with suspension. So I'm just left with the box to build.

I have an idea for mine I'll throw out for your consideration since it looks like you might have the room.
I'm going to build a swing out tire carrier that will allow the spare tire to swing out then raise up to the horizontal position so I can either put a hard tire cover over the tire, or make a round tire size table top to sit on top of the horizontal tire and turn it into a mounted round top table next to the kitchen. With some tall folding stools it should make a nice bar table for BSing around with the guys.

Awesome, do you have a build thread going yet? I'd be interested to see how it comes together.

So far as the table idea goes it sounds interesting. I'm not sure I'm getting the whole picture though; would you have the tire mounted off the rear like a Jeep or under the chassis like I'm running? Either way, certainly anything is possible with some creative engineering - my biggest concern in design would be the weight of the tire/tabletop and the leverage being imparted on the mount.

 

[Curtis in Texas]

Awesome, do you have a build thread going yet? I'd be interested to see how it comes together.

So far as the table idea goes it sounds interesting. I'm not sure I'm getting the whole picture though; would you have the tire mounted off the rear like a Jeep or under the chassis like I'm running? Either way, certainly anything is possible with some creative engineering - my biggest concern in design would be the weight of the tire/tabletop and the leverage being imparted on the mount.

I'm thinking it can swing out from either, off the side like a step side pickup, or off the rear like on my Isuzu Rodeo if I was to build one across the back of a trailer. The tilt system shouldn't add that much weight to the swing out carrier.

My trailer box will have two spares on it mounted on the sides forward of the fenders. The one on the right side goes in front of the entry door on that side so it will swing out for entry into the box. That's the one I was going to make tilt flat for a table.
My kitchen box will attach to the right side fender like you did yours.

I did a write up on the frame build over on Pirate about 2 years ago.
I made it with an IFS adjustable torsion bar suspension with remote steering and then got off on another project and put it on hold.

It has a lot of promise and will definitely be different because I can steer it around trees and rocks from the Trucks Drivers Seat by remote control.

Rather than Hijack your Thread I'll PM you some pictures.
There's a lot of stuff in that build.

I'll start a build here and bring everyone up to speed on the frame when I get back on it.

 

[2012Taco]

Pretty impressive, get that build thread going so we can admire your work!

I'm thinking it can swing out from either, off the side like a step side pickup, or off the rear like on my Isuzu Rodeo if I was to build one across the back of a trailer. The tilt system shouldn't add that much weight to the swing out carrier.

My trailer box will have two spares on it mounted on the sides forward of the fenders. The one on the right side goes in front of the entry door on that side so it will swing out for entry into the box. That's the one I was going to make tilt flat for a table.
My kitchen box will attach to the right side fender like you did yours.

I did a write up on the frame build over on Pirate about 2 years ago.
I made it with an IFS adjustable torsion bar suspension with remote steering and then got off on another project and put it on hold.

It has a lot of promise and will definitely be different because I can steer it around trees and rocks from the Trucks Drivers Seat by remote control.

Rather than Hijack your Thread I'll PM you some pictures.
There's a lot of stuff in that build.

I'll start a build here and bring everyone up to speed on the frame when I get back on it.

 

[2012Taco]

New Rollers!

Some spring projects! I finally decided to pick up a set of wheels and tires to match my tow rig after being on the fence for a few months. Since I put around 350 miles a week on the Tacoma for work I'll be able to extend the life of the Duratracs by having more to rotate through plus it makes the AlumEscape look much more aggressive.

First step was swapping out the 5x4.5” drums for the 6x5.5” and fitting up the new rollers!

The original ride height was low for my liking and the extra tire ate up most of the suspension travel so some adjustments were needed to get the right stance.

She shows some leg but it looks just right!

Getting prepped to change around my bag and shock mounts to get the required ride height. I ended up making some “spacers” to mount between the bottom of the bags and the wishbone but I guess I didn't take any pictures. With the ride height pretty well set I adjusted the bump stops to carry the trailer weight before bottoming the shocks on the new shock mounts.

The 2” box on the left under the bag is the “spacer” for the new ride height.

Perfect!

 

[matthewp]

Wow! This thing is gorgeous! Awesome work!

 

[elmo_4_vt]

Some spring projects! ....

Perfect!

That looks awesome with the new wheels/tires! So much better than those old steelies! Can't wait to see it next weekend. Of course, I've done nothing to mine.. So much for my winter projects. Spent too much time on the cycles.

Don

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[V5ioV]

Drool

 

[Titanpat57]

I concur!!...new shoes look awesome!

 

[2012Taco]

Wow! This thing is gorgeous! Awesome work!

Drool

I concur!!...new shoes look awesome!

Thanks guys!

:beer:

 

[2012Taco]

That looks awesome with the new wheels/tires! So much better than those old steelies! Can't wait to see it next weekend. Of course, I've done nothing to mine.. So much for my winter projects. Spent too much time on the cycles.

Don

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I hear ya Don, it's been a busy winter for the truck and trailer for me! Definitely looking forward to getting out there this weekend and doing some camping.

And too much time on the cycles? Is that a real problem?? :roost:

 

[2012Taco]

Running behind on the updates again so here's a quick recap since April!

Took a trip down the Skyline Drive in June:

Picked up a new toy and fabbed a way to carry it:

Put on some miles at the Mid Atlantic Overland Festival!

Spotted by an eagle-eyed driver on 76!

Taking in the sights with Elmo_4_vt!

Club Titanpat57

:beer: