Dirtbox Overland

Vst

Active member
Anybody running the Dirtbox overland camper and have any feedback? They seem to be really good quality and a good price point they include most options in their price. I’m thinking of switching from GFC to one maybe. I like that bed can raise up out of the way and has a two piece bed so you can leave the rear smaller part open to let some heat up from running a heater from down below.
 

TXLX

Observer
They are in Denver, I haven’t made it by there yet. I know couple people with toppers ordered that are pretty impressed with quality. I priced a GFC with all the dirtbox options and it was very close on price and I think the build is more robust.
 

sn_85

Observer
From what I understand Dirtbox is another product and line from Couch Engineering in Denver. I think they build LMTV's and Unimogs. They definitely have the production capability to build a good product.
 

DirtWhiskey

Western Dirt Rat
Made in China, it’s the same one OVS and several other overland shops are selling as their own now, all manufactured in china and then relabeled here for whoever wants to sell it.

Can't speak from experience. But my suspicion is a bunch of these companies are doing just that. They all look the same. Engineering something like this is a huge endeavor. Somebody like Lone Peak, who has been fully transparent in their development process, is a different story. Makes me wonder how 50 different companies selling the same thing will fare. Is the market really that big?
 

sn_85

Observer
Made in China, it’s the same one OVS and several other overland shops are selling as their own now, all manufactured in china and then relabeled here for whoever wants to sell it.

Wow, didn’t know that and I expected more. They priced their stuff nearly the same as American and Aussie made products which is a joke. They’ve done really well with their marketing and have a lot of shops selling their junk. It makes sense why they have such good lead times and why everything they sell is bolted and extruded aluminum. Much easier to flat pack ship in containers from China and then have some monkey here in the state bolt it all together.
 

fourfa

Observer
I would not be enthusiastic about this high-stress corner being held together with rivets, with no triangulation I can see
 

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nopeoffroad

New member
Wow, didn’t know that and I expected more. They priced their stuff nearly the same as American and Aussie made products which is a joke. They’ve done really well with their marketing and have a lot of shops selling their junk. It makes sense why they have such good lead times and why everything they sell is bolted and extruded aluminum. Much easier to flat pack ship in containers from China and then have some monkey here in the state bolt it all together.

Add Tune Outdoors to that list. The main meat of their camper is imported from Asia and they assemble in Denver. So it goes, there will always be business folks that don't care if they're selling slop as long as they make their money. Why support your neighbors when that costs more money! I just love reading the about pages of all these camper companies, and how they are into camping, when its super apparent they are just successful businessmen that see a market they can tap.
 

TwinStick

Explorer
Ok,the elephant in the room I guess ? What isn't made somewhere else today ? Business has been being done that way since the 80's. You get the prototype to your quality satisfaction and have it mass produced. Bicycles, motorcycles and automobile manufacturers have been doing that for decades.

And, truth be told, I haven't seen or heard of any failures yet, and I have never, ever seen any RTT hinges that are even in the same category as their optional $2400 billet cnc machined hinge/grab handle package.

I probably wouldn't be able to afford one that actually is made here anyway.
 

fourfa

Observer
GoFast's camper looks to be entirely manufactured in-house in Montana (if one were to believe all their videos showing off their CNC lines) at a similar price as this OVS/Dirtbox camper?

My Alu-Cab is made in South Africa for what it's worth. Nothing wrong with outsourcing necessarily (to me anyway), if design and quality is high. (Or if it's cheap as ******** with matching expectations, lol.) And I haven't seen one of these in person, at all. But what I see (very very little detail or real specifications, very cursory product pages, riveted joints) concerns me. And when the price is in the neighborhood of known-quality items (GFC) I'd say there's cause for skepticism

Skepticism is a good thing. Hopefully someone can get a good look at one of these in person. Hopefully detailed hands-on reviews come out. Hopefully the vendors for this camper update with real specs, details about constructions, tons of photos inside and out, hell just list the size of the bed...

OVS says release in May 2024, so maybe I'm just overreacting to lack of info about a product that's not really for sale yet
 

MR E30

Well-known member
I would not be enthusiastic about this high-stress corner being held together with rivets, with no triangulation I can see

As a practicing Structural Engineer, this is a glaring issue I see on almost every single new camper design that is hitting the market. Even more open and honest manufacturers like Lonepeak still have absolute dogshit structures for the main frame of their campers. Folks with no technical knowledge see a booming industry and then dive into it with a subpar product, while putting a lot of effort into hyping up one or two features that make it 'unique' and 'revolutionary'.

SP, GFC, and Alu-Cab are the only campers I have seen that make me feel good about their ability to last a long time and to take a serious beating.
 

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