donthompson
Member
Romer suggested that I start a thread about my new T3, so here goes. It’s at David Bates’ shop in Ohio ready for me to pick it up and begin traveling. I will arrive in Bellefountaine on Monday and leave Tuesday for a 6 to 8 week trip with numerous destinations: Marfa, TX, Big Bend National Park, Las Cruces, NM, Patagonia, AZ, Sonoita, AZ, Palm Desert, CA, Death Valley National Park, Hurricane, UT, Canyonlands National Park, Gateway, CO and Fruita, CO. I retired in December, 2015 and owned an Oliver Elite II at the time. I traveled in the Oliver for four years and replaced it with an off-road camper, a Conqueror 490. The Conqueror was not a good choice for me, so I sold it after 6 months of ownership and ordered the Kimberley. Due to Covid-19 and the resulting supply chain issues, the wait has been long. A few weeks ago, I spent three nights in the T3 at David’s shop and enjoyed a lengthy turnover process. I left the camper there with plans to return to start my trip in better weather than I could expect in Iowa. I plan to head straight south and travel through Tennessee and Mississippi, before arriving in Texas. I’ve attached some photos of the T3. I’ll share more after I’ve settled in. The T3 is well-equipped for traveling off-grid. It has two 300 amp hour lithium batteries and 700 watts of Merlin thin solar panels on the roof. I also have a light Merlin portable panel—160 watts. There’s a 2600 watt inverotor in the front pod where the batteries also reside. The pod also contains the air compressor for the air bags that I’ll use to level the T3 side to side and to adjust travel height. Inside the T3, I have a queen bed with an Avocado mattress, a roomy en-suite with a separate shower large enough for me to sit down in, a composting toilet, a kitchen with an induction cooktop, a microwave, a fridge, a separate freezer, way more storage than I need as a solo traveler, two separate diesel heating units, one of which also provides hot water, and a very comfortable lounge and dining area. The T3 has two water tanks, one of which provides filtered drinking water, and two grey water tanks. The outdoor kitchen is large and well-equipped with two powerful “wok” burners (the only things that consume propane in the T3), storage, a 110 outlet, a sink and a stainless steel food prep area. There’s a powered awning that will protect the kitchen area from the sun and I ordered the Bedouin extensions for the awnings. There’s an outdoor shower in the back and a large pass-through storage near the front of the Kruiser.