87Warrior

Wow that thing is cleeeean! And I bet its a blast to drive. Have you tackled and of the detailing yet? I am looking forward to watching your process.

Am I doing this squat thing right? ...wait, those other trucks don't even have a load in the bed! I generally support anyone's choice of modifications done to their vehicle, despite how gaudy, distasteful or worthless it is in my eye. This squat craze is an exception. Lets make the vehicle impossible to see out of while creating so much positive castor the truck drives unpredictable on the road.

Overland Vehicle Systems (OVS) Nomadic 270. This awning replaced a basic Smittybuilt pull out awning. The 270 is waaaay easier to setup.

There seems to be a trend of feel good moments for CC members. It took about a year and a half for this rescued dude to settle into our home routine. Totally worth it.

The Christmas tree on top is hysterically awesome Nice work on the Eagle! I have always wanted one, but my other half hasn't been receptive to the idea.

Homeownership is such a money pit! It always amazes me how much cash a house can consume. You did well on your first home, especially with a pool!

Earlier this year I decided to buy a trailer to modify it for off-road/camping use. I started out with this 60's era (guesstimate) ex-welder trailer I found on craigslist. I formulated a plan so the trailer would work for my use. Small camping cargo trailer that gear can be permanently stored in Water resistant construction Haul two kayaks Hold a RTT high enough so that I can walk under without ducking Tongue that allows for 90° jackknife Run dedicated trailer 30/31" tires and spare Run a 3500lb brake axle Allow for switched lights on the trailer powered by the tow vehicle Allow for permanent mount water tank First I took it apart and added a heavy duty backbone/tongue. I then integrated a rack around the body and worked on replacing the front and rear vent panels with doors. Here you can also spot my favorite MJ wheels being test fitted to the trailer, new axle and new suspension. The whole thing was media blasted and then painted or Raptor lined. Also a rare sighting of the 92. Maybe I'll start working on it again...someday... Testing out the electrical system. All of the lights on the trailer are powered from the tow vehicle and individually switched, even the clearance and tail lights, thanks to some diodes. After getting it put back together I took it for an inaugural trip to a local lake. ... and the kayaks actually fit as I hoped they would! The trailer is still a work in progress. The brakes need wired, water needs to be installed and I need the design a bracket to hold an 11lb propane tank.

A T7 would compliment my WRR nicely. Finding one is still like finding a rust free MJ or a needle in a haystack.

Ah dang. They were (and still are) showing for me. I tried the upload again. Maybe it will work

I did manage get the truck back on the road in October of 2020. [Another] new 23 gallon Spectra fuel tank installed and a new Wix fuel filter. I did not bother painting this one. I also patched up the brake line that blew out above the driver rear shock with some 3/16" Copper-Nickle tubing. My patch and flare hasn't started to leak yet The speedometer doesn't work more than it does work. I have the two styles of cables sitting on the work bench, I just haven't had the time to get it replaced! A malfunctioning speedometer hasn't stopped me from loving this truck. It has been 9 years since I bought this MJ and I still absolutely love it! The rust has grown exponentially over the years, but I continue to rinse out the frame every year. This year I will treat the inside of the frame with Woolwax. Hopefully I can get a few more years out of it.

I think in the last 2 weeks, my wife has made 13 loaves of zucchini bread and 20 dozen batches of squash muffins We also got 59 ears of sweet corn that we stripped and froze. From the tomatoes we've picked so far, we have made 16 pints of pasta/pizza sauce, 2 quarts of salsa, and 9 quarts of tomato soup. The cukes have been slow this year, but I have made 17 quarts of dill pickles and have about 60 cukes in the fridge. Green beans are finally slowing down, but we have been picking 4-5 servings a night. We are still harvesting 5-10 okra a night and now need a stool to reach the top since the plants are 7-8' tall. The deep freeze is about full. This cool wet late summer weather is wild and making the veggies go bananas

@Pete M The first portable seat I hauled on a week long trip with the MJ was a Luggable Loo seat on an old 5 gallon hydraulic fluid bucket with the bottom cut out. Heck, I may still have it in the attic! It's one of those things that takes up a lot of space that you can't really make have two uses. It is less of a problem in a pickup than an SUV.

The answer is yes.... Part of my planning involved pinpointing the location of all latrines along or near the route. This proved useful for the gals. Now, this didn't always provide enough relief. The next most used option was a tree squat for urinating, followed by bagging the TP in a Ziplock bag and putting it in the trasharoo. On a few instances we did resort to relief over the rear of a log for log dropping. Luckily everywhere that occurred the ground could be dug so it could be buried. The TP was collected in a Ziplock and put into the trasharoo for disposal. Bio bags in a bucket or stool on tripod will be the next addition for twosies. Once used they would go in the trasharoo. I did have a pop-up shower tent along that could have been used as a porta-john, but we never had a privacy problem outside of our detour to the Ouray, CO area. @derf I have a makeshift bumper dumper here at home. It has been used locally, but to be honest I much prefer to isolate in the woods either using natural resources like a log, or finding a stable spot for a bucket/support. Maybe it bugs me to prepare my dinner over the spot a bumper dumper would be used, my tailgate.

@gogmorgo You are absolutely right! Most of the gear in there is clothing. One wife and two pre-teen girls require A LOT of clothing. Two small tubs hidden under the bags contain 1 week of food and a complete camp kitchen. It was maddening to me to bury the gear, but it helped them stay comfortable on the 2 week trip w/o laundry which was totally worth it...and since it wasn't a regular trip for those 3, we used the big/old sleeping bags vs. buying new synthetic gear. I still cannot believe we unpacked and repacked that load nearly every single day for 2 weeks. Personally, I have found a hammock to be the most versatile piece of camping gear you can have. Perfect for hot weather, cold weather and quick breaks. With down quilts it takes up 1/4 of the space of that green Coleman sleeping bag.

Depending on you end goal, it is important to remember that less IS more when living out of your vehicle. I find that a lot of enthusiasts buy a ton of stuff for their vehicles, never use it to its full potential and realize the vehicle is now useless for what they really wanted. Just something to keep in mind as you build. Last year I spent 2 weeks driving the New Mexico and Colorado portions of the Continental Divide Trail. Four of us total (3 female) in a 100 series Land Cruiser. Organization and accessibility were the biggest problems we had. Here we are fully loaded out. The fridge would slide out easily when the duffle was put on the tailgate. To solve this problem, I started looking at storage solutions and came up with this storage idea...That I need to build. But in the end, remember you don't have to have all the extra stuff to go out and have a good time. Don't get caught up in the gear. A reliable vehicle is all you need.

You always share the Ouray area beautifully. Thanks for sharing. Someday I'll muster up the energy to hike to the Corkscrew Turntable...Someday.

Pete, my only concern with your cucumber trellis is I imagine you will end up with several cukes growing on top of the netting. Our garden is being pretty productive this year. Sweet corn is about 8' tall, Okra is about 6' tall and the Cherry and Roma Tomatoes are about 5' tall. Squash, Cucumber, hot peppers, miscellaneous herbs and green beans are also going crazy. This should be a link to a 360 version of the above pic: https://photos.app.goo.gl/JpD2kHW493og5yiw7 I grow cucumbers on a couple of pieces of hog panel and some old T posts. Works well. I'm sure we will make another 50-100 jars of dill pickles this year since I still can't stand the taste of a plain cuke.

3...and a 1/4. A good friend of the painter I use has about 5-10 MJ's (it's been awhile since I driveway shopped his place). I understand he only buys rust free 2.5's.

I was going to say it sounds like you have a Beach Boys song!

That kind of reminds me of this... lots of interesting things going on here:

Yup, Pete is right. Same mounting scheme as the MJ 4.0 :)

@strictlyxjs Thanks for sharing that video. While slightly bizarre, I do appreciate Chrysler's Tread Lightly! Campaign For some reason I literally laughed out loud when I saw this:

Whoah, this looks sooo much easier than trying to draw out circuits in Adobe Illustrator or Microsoft Excel Thanks for sharing. Excel is isn't too bad if it is all you have access too at work This is some of my 'office' time sketching out a cheap dual battery idea in Excel:

You laugh, but that might be the only course of action for some of the "only known remaining NOS" parts you have!

I like the rear bumper and wings. Plus the graphic on the side looks appropriate on that truck!