Cheap tricks and solutions - product modifications, DIY, or repurposed items- not on-sale items

[NevetsG]

I needed storage in my 88 in Africa and being so small, it’s not easy. I had an overlength roof rack custom made but had a lofty sh others over amp up there and waterproof bags of clothes.

Inside was packed with four McKesson bins (plastic bins they ship drugs in) that stack. Each labeled and stacked heavy on the bottom. In front of them were three or four British Military water cans. Laying on the floor. Above them was two aluminum angle rails, and I had I think six German Jerry cans across here.

On the left side at the back was the fridge (medium arb) and on the right was the tool bag. Coats etc payed on top of the bins, which were strapped down to u-bolts bolted through the tub floor.

I flattened the ends of 1/2 or 3/4 conduit and drilled holes which used the bolts holding the roof top to the roof sides. I wrapped them in pipe insulation to stop rattles. The folding chairs and small table tops that mounted outside the truck were stored here.

Between the front seats was my camera bag.

Water can on the back door was shower water at the end nd of the day. Being in the sun at 110 ambient all day worked great. I used a boat demand water pump mounted inside the back door that plugged into an outlet when in use. We could get two showers and two shaves out of five gallons turning it on and off.

I still needed two spares so I had the classic/typical Land Rover hood mounted tire but also a raw (unmounted) tire in front of the radiator. No rim to block air flow... locked to the bull bar with flourescent pink chain which was used to lock the brake pedal to the steering wheel in sketchy areas...

Ramsey RE 12 winch with 150’ of cable under the tire. I intended to make some small tool boxes in the front bumper but never got to that.

Manteca sand ladders on one side of the roof rack and the (extended) ladder for the roof tent on the passenger side where the tent opened. At the top of the ladder I had a small aluminum deck (with shower floor grip tape) for a solid footing getting in and out on that side (my rider) I had the ladder side because he was scared the tent floor would fail...

I had a class 3 mount on the front bumper to hold a small vice. It lived in the back and could be installed to use for repairs.

Truck was rebuilt but basically stock. I had arb air locker which I activated with a hi-low range switch mounted on my shifter. The short wheelbase would want to go straight in goopy mud and this way I could pop it on and off instantly without removing my hand from the shifter.

Oh. I had Velcro stiluck to the inside of all the window frames and had fiberglass bug screen cut to size with the mating Velcro to keep the bugs at bay. Also the factory bug screens for the dash vents. Door tops got strapped down on top of the closed tent for travel, but they would fall off and to skidding down the road from time to time.

Looking at your posts, you appear to have done a few DIY builds.

 

[NevetsG]

Not exactly cheap but in the grand scheme of "overlanding" trailers, from this to this less than $3000.00View attachment 504482View attachment 504483

Less than $3K is cheap.

 

[hemifoot]

back when the wife and i were still tenting i made a hot shower out of a 5 gallon bucket,an atv battery,a 500 gph 12 volt bilge pump and a hand held shower head.just filled it with lake water and boiled a big pot to warm it up and we got 2 good showers out of a pail.pail worked double duty as a carryall.

 

[outback97]

just found this thread, great ideas!!

Here is one i saw posted some time ago, i dont remember if it was in this forum or somewhere else.

I use a small Actionpacker to store food and cooking supplies. So, drill some holes in the lid, put some elastic cord, and there you have a space to store bags. cooking utensils, small rags, spice bottles, etc.

View attachment 504476

Nice, we've done that to a couple of ours and it makes them so much more useful.

Posted in this thread a while back:

What are your clever storage systems/mods/tricks (aka not drawers)?

Interested to hear about clever little ways you've modified your vehicle to make quicker and easier access to commonly used items. For me it's all about vertical space utilization. I don't have a garage, I do a lot of work on my rig, and walking between the apt and car is a pain. If I put...

expeditionportal.com

Probably the cheapest and most useful repurposed item we take is a plastic cat litter bucket. Holds a lot of stuff, and with a few accessories and wag bags can serve as a chair or toilet.

We've also used unistrut and basic hardware store items to make functional roof racks / crossbars.

Some great ideas in this thread!

 

[gunsandgearnetwork]

Cheap DIY camp shower.

 

[NevetsG]

Nice, we've done that to a couple of ours and it makes them so much more useful.

Posted in this thread a while back:

What are your clever storage systems/mods/tricks (aka not drawers)?

Interested to hear about clever little ways you've modified your vehicle to make quicker and easier access to commonly used items. For me it's all about vertical space utilization. I don't have a garage, I do a lot of work on my rig, and walking between the apt and car is a pain. If I put...

expeditionportal.com

Probably the cheapest and most useful repurposed item we take is a plastic cat litter bucket. Holds a lot of stuff, and with a few accessories and wag bags can serve as a chair or toilet.

We've also used unistrut and basic hardware store items to make functional roof racks / crossbars.

Some great ideas in this thread!

Aaaa, but do you use the kitty litter too? Helps reduce the stink.

 

[outback97]

Aaaa, but do you use the kitty litter too? Helps reduce the stink.

It gets used for the cats, then we just have the empty bucket. We use wag bags that have the poo powder in them... haven't tried adding more kitty litter to that, but I suppose it could help. Fortunately our Xterra has the handy rooftop cargo bin for smelly stuff!

 

[NevetsG]

Converted a cheap tool box into a chuck box, and posted on another thread:

https://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/tool-box-chuck-box.203800/

 

[ottsville]

This thread needs more love. Somebody has got to be building some stuff out there

 

[Mccaf]

Converted a cheap tool box into a chuck box, and posted on another thread:

https://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/tool-box-chuck-box.203800/


View attachment 507575

Converted a cheap tool box into a chuck box, and posted on another thread:

https://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/tool-box-chuck-box.203800/


View attachment 507575

Nice! What I’d give for that container of Lysol in this Covid 19 era!
Great repurpose and set up!

 

[NevetsG]

Used an old gelato container and some old screws to protect my gas tank fitting.

 

[NevetsG]

Super cheap bicycle saddle basket mounted to the top of my ammo can storage to put my trailer levelers. Ammo can is a surplus 30mm box that houses all of my electrical cords, and it has my campsite plug.

 

[NevetsG]

Used an old cargo net and put it around my spare tire to hold my wheel chocks. When I took this picture the chocks were being used by the trailer.

 

[Victory_Overland]

Awesome ideas...this thread is gonna be good!

 

[Douglas]

Wanting to transport a NATO style gas can flat, and finding no good options, I just made my own inexpensive holder to go atop my roof rack.

*Main body is made of wood, glued & screwed
*Steel cable is used for the strap to hold the can in, with nylon webbing sewed around the cable to keep wear down
*Cam latch with padlock hole secures the strap down
*Opposite end of the cable loops through a bolt that I can adjust to tighten/loosen the cable strap
*I bolt the whole unit to the top of my roof rack

Some may mention that anyone with a wrench could steal it, but I am of the opinion that anyone with a wrench and intent to steal could just pop the window more easily and get better stuff.