Sentinelist
Adventurer
Finally, two months after I purchased my truck, I'm starting my build thread. And the build is practically complete! Only fine details and suggestions from here on out- I have a working rig now. First, a couple bits about myself- I'm an Eagle Scout with two Philmont expeditions under my belt from long ago, and am now a happily married father of two young toddler boys. My wife's idea of camping is a cabin with full HVAC and running water. As a car enthusiast, guess what I came up with as a compromise to get her (and me back) out there? I came across ExPo late last summer after stumbling upon the EarthRoamer for the first time and started looking into more details. I fell in love with the thing, but didn't want to sell the house to get one. Then I discovered you guys here and saw what you were doing with big domestic trucks, and realized I could get pretty close to the concept on our budget. After justifying all the pros and cons, getting the wife's approval (luckily she loves big trucks), and sleeping on it for a few months (and combing many threads here), I set off in earnest to find my truck first. And first truck.
I'm not a truck guy at heart (though I may be now). My stable is more old Audi/Jaguar/Porsche stuff than 'pickup'. But I wanted a rig that would accommodate my whole family for better or worse. A weekend camping, or having to go off-grid for weeks. Something large, simple, reliable, self-contained and easy/cheap to work on. I decided I was going for a long-bed SWR quad-cab turbo diesel 4x4 of some sort, approaching this brand-agnostic. I seriously considered an old 4x4 Suburban (too small, ha!), then a 92-94 F-350 with the IDI and called about a couple, when the truck I was intended to have came across very locally- others were half the continent away. Three days with a test drive later and I had it in my driveway. A 1993 Chevrolet Silverado SRW quad-cab long-bed 4x4 with 277k miles and the awesome 6.5L turbo diesel, the same mill that powered the first-gen HUMVEE (military Hummer H1). That is an undersold competitive advantage in this arena. The 1993 model year also ticked one of my preferred checkboxes of being mechanically-injected with very few electronics (yes, CME/EMP resistant to boot). Starting in 1994, the 6.5L went electronically-injected, and as the seller of this truck put it, 'were total crap- this is the one you want'. It was a helluva rare package that I was just not going to find again overall, looked good, was a great price for what it is with local history and recent maintenance, so done deal. I enjoyed the next couple months of getting it sorted to my vision (didn't need much), with a professionally detailed and steamed interior, new BFG tires, powder coating the wheels and bumpers, finding a brush guard on Craigslist, and adding a dozen or three tools and gear of various needs behind and under the backseat to handle most weather conditions and adverse situations. To help and inspire others, I'll share the costs: $5500. Count another grand and a half for the new tires, powder coating, Craigslist brush guard, and tool stuffs.
Then came the camper, the other half of the project. I initially wanted to find a utility bed, and still may at some point, but decided against it for now. As you know, it's very difficult to fit something like this with a camper of one's liking. I ended up going through the pop-up and hard-side forums getting folks' takes and combing many threads over there, initially thinking a pop-up would be best, but ultimately decided to go hard-side. After seeing too many rigs out there that were just not well thought out, and/or looked terrible as well, I decided to take advantage of the huge truck I had and... not put a massive camper on it. Big truck, lightweight camper, as long as it was still self-contained. I just didn't want something that hung out the back by ten feet, and another two feet on each side. Something tidy that would look good, and more importantly, still be built well too. I decided on the Lance 815 after a tip here, and I found a 2001 up in Denver at Camping World that had hail damage on the outside but was otherwise immaculate inside with little use and all features operational. No leaks. Sight unseen besides a dozen photos on their site, sold. I drove up last Friday after Christmas, coincidentally blew the turbo as I made my exit for the dealer (seriously), had it installed, and ended up nursing it home over the Raton Pass at 45mph and most other places in CO at 50-60mph (lower elevations beyond Amarillo, TX allowed me to get up to 70mph). This cost? Also $5500. If you don't count the turbocharger I'm now shopping for... Figure another grand for tie-down hardware (I went with Torklifts and FastGuns), professional installation with walk-thru (Camping World of Longmont is awesome- top notch staff), diesel, and a good steak dinner to celebrate (prematurely, right before the turbo blew).
So truck and camper with some goodies ready to roll, and I'm in with a pretty capable, solid quality, and loaded first-time rig for under $14k. It's EarthRoamer close-enough for now!
There are so many benefits to having a TC setup like this that it became hard to not build one up. Space isn't issue- the truck's existing footprint on my driveway extension remains all I needed. The insurance coverage is hardly more than a footnote on the existing truck's coverage. There's no title or licensing necessary, nor miles to really keep up with. There are no towing considerations (only GWVR) or more tires to worry about blowing out- it leaves the tow hitch available so you can still tow a boat. Maybe a yacht. In severe weather (tornado emergency, iced in for days), I can get a family member to a hospital if necessary or meet an ambulance somewhere. It's first-responder ready-to-go. It can be used as a guest room, and driven to family's homes and used as a guest room there. It also doubles as a quarantine sick room for a family member with a cold or worse. There's plenty of space inside the truck and camper to accommodate my family of 4, plus my mother-in-law if she comes along (even moreso if my oldest son and I sleep in a tent outside it). Unlike any other type of RV, if I want to turn around on the interstate, I can on demand- right into the median through mud. I had to do this recently. Curbs aren't a problem either, nor are logging roads, train tracks, and small streams. I don't intend on doing any heavy off-roading, so it only needs to meet those basic challenges we may encounter. Prepared for the worst, ready for the best! Maybe that should be the cheesy script motto I should have painted on the back. Just kidding.
We're very excited to now get this thing out to a state park nearby this spring to give it a test run before trying anything interesting (exploring off-road trails, boondocking). Though if my oldest son has his way, we'll be 'camping' in the driveway with it every weekend until then! We couldn't pull them out of the thing when I got home. This is going to make a great family and scouting truck to get out into God's country for the first time in a long time, and for my boys, ever. Can't wait! And also glad to be here with a quality group of folks into the same thing. Looking forward to chatting with you guys more. Cheers and happy new year! :wings:
Before:
Then:
Now:
I'm not a truck guy at heart (though I may be now). My stable is more old Audi/Jaguar/Porsche stuff than 'pickup'. But I wanted a rig that would accommodate my whole family for better or worse. A weekend camping, or having to go off-grid for weeks. Something large, simple, reliable, self-contained and easy/cheap to work on. I decided I was going for a long-bed SWR quad-cab turbo diesel 4x4 of some sort, approaching this brand-agnostic. I seriously considered an old 4x4 Suburban (too small, ha!), then a 92-94 F-350 with the IDI and called about a couple, when the truck I was intended to have came across very locally- others were half the continent away. Three days with a test drive later and I had it in my driveway. A 1993 Chevrolet Silverado SRW quad-cab long-bed 4x4 with 277k miles and the awesome 6.5L turbo diesel, the same mill that powered the first-gen HUMVEE (military Hummer H1). That is an undersold competitive advantage in this arena. The 1993 model year also ticked one of my preferred checkboxes of being mechanically-injected with very few electronics (yes, CME/EMP resistant to boot). Starting in 1994, the 6.5L went electronically-injected, and as the seller of this truck put it, 'were total crap- this is the one you want'. It was a helluva rare package that I was just not going to find again overall, looked good, was a great price for what it is with local history and recent maintenance, so done deal. I enjoyed the next couple months of getting it sorted to my vision (didn't need much), with a professionally detailed and steamed interior, new BFG tires, powder coating the wheels and bumpers, finding a brush guard on Craigslist, and adding a dozen or three tools and gear of various needs behind and under the backseat to handle most weather conditions and adverse situations. To help and inspire others, I'll share the costs: $5500. Count another grand and a half for the new tires, powder coating, Craigslist brush guard, and tool stuffs.
Then came the camper, the other half of the project. I initially wanted to find a utility bed, and still may at some point, but decided against it for now. As you know, it's very difficult to fit something like this with a camper of one's liking. I ended up going through the pop-up and hard-side forums getting folks' takes and combing many threads over there, initially thinking a pop-up would be best, but ultimately decided to go hard-side. After seeing too many rigs out there that were just not well thought out, and/or looked terrible as well, I decided to take advantage of the huge truck I had and... not put a massive camper on it. Big truck, lightweight camper, as long as it was still self-contained. I just didn't want something that hung out the back by ten feet, and another two feet on each side. Something tidy that would look good, and more importantly, still be built well too. I decided on the Lance 815 after a tip here, and I found a 2001 up in Denver at Camping World that had hail damage on the outside but was otherwise immaculate inside with little use and all features operational. No leaks. Sight unseen besides a dozen photos on their site, sold. I drove up last Friday after Christmas, coincidentally blew the turbo as I made my exit for the dealer (seriously), had it installed, and ended up nursing it home over the Raton Pass at 45mph and most other places in CO at 50-60mph (lower elevations beyond Amarillo, TX allowed me to get up to 70mph). This cost? Also $5500. If you don't count the turbocharger I'm now shopping for... Figure another grand for tie-down hardware (I went with Torklifts and FastGuns), professional installation with walk-thru (Camping World of Longmont is awesome- top notch staff), diesel, and a good steak dinner to celebrate (prematurely, right before the turbo blew).
So truck and camper with some goodies ready to roll, and I'm in with a pretty capable, solid quality, and loaded first-time rig for under $14k. It's EarthRoamer close-enough for now!
There are so many benefits to having a TC setup like this that it became hard to not build one up. Space isn't issue- the truck's existing footprint on my driveway extension remains all I needed. The insurance coverage is hardly more than a footnote on the existing truck's coverage. There's no title or licensing necessary, nor miles to really keep up with. There are no towing considerations (only GWVR) or more tires to worry about blowing out- it leaves the tow hitch available so you can still tow a boat. Maybe a yacht. In severe weather (tornado emergency, iced in for days), I can get a family member to a hospital if necessary or meet an ambulance somewhere. It's first-responder ready-to-go. It can be used as a guest room, and driven to family's homes and used as a guest room there. It also doubles as a quarantine sick room for a family member with a cold or worse. There's plenty of space inside the truck and camper to accommodate my family of 4, plus my mother-in-law if she comes along (even moreso if my oldest son and I sleep in a tent outside it). Unlike any other type of RV, if I want to turn around on the interstate, I can on demand- right into the median through mud. I had to do this recently. Curbs aren't a problem either, nor are logging roads, train tracks, and small streams. I don't intend on doing any heavy off-roading, so it only needs to meet those basic challenges we may encounter. Prepared for the worst, ready for the best! Maybe that should be the cheesy script motto I should have painted on the back. Just kidding.
We're very excited to now get this thing out to a state park nearby this spring to give it a test run before trying anything interesting (exploring off-road trails, boondocking). Though if my oldest son has his way, we'll be 'camping' in the driveway with it every weekend until then! We couldn't pull them out of the thing when I got home. This is going to make a great family and scouting truck to get out into God's country for the first time in a long time, and for my boys, ever. Can't wait! And also glad to be here with a quality group of folks into the same thing. Looking forward to chatting with you guys more. Cheers and happy new year! :wings:
Before:
Then:
Now:
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