Jeep-Chinook

[MartinoMJ]

The dream build.  So allow me to introduce myself.  I'm Nick, 25, based out of Baton Rouge, LA.  I've owned a YJ for almost 3 years and decided to sell it for an 1988 4x4 auto MJ with the long bed and the 4.0l I6. I learned everything about jeeps while owning and restoring the YJ (and that brief period I had a JK).  Now I move on to learn more with the Manche (seen below). 

Now back to the dream.  I want a 4x4 camper truck/overland vehicle. I've seen very few(practically none), but a few exist.  I have about $6-$8k budget for this project. 
Jeep purist, bear with me for this next part.

This is a Toyota Chinook.   It sits on a Toyota Hilux frame with a 112" wheelbase.  Similar to the Comanche's 110" wheel base.   

 

Option A: Buy a prebuilt Chinook attached to a Toyota like the one seen above.

Pros:  Work is already done, manual transmission, 20r engine good on MPG, pop up cabin, walk through cab, toyota tough, move-in ready. 

Cons: 2wd (Conversions sound tough), weak engine, old @$$ frame and drivetrain, fixing someone's mistakes. 

 

Option B: Buy a Chinook shell, attach to my Jeep Comanche.

Pros: 4x4, 4.0l strong engine, strong frame and drivetrain for camper weight, newer car in general, JEEP.

Cons: TONS of work ahead of me, cutting through the cab of a Jeep comanche (Scariest idea ever),  Auto transmission (This swap might be easier and cheaper than a 4x4 swap in a toyota).

 

Option C: Custom Fabricate a camper shell for the Comanche and build the entire thing from scratch. 

Pros: All the pros of "Option B", completely customized to my needs and comforts, stronger and more modern designs than a 70s era fiberglass shell.

Cons: I can't weld (Fabrication to be outsourced), Cut through the cab of the manche (I really want a walk-through camper), TONS more work than option A or B.  

 

I'm looking to get plenty of feedback and brainstorm these ideas around the internet, so If anyone has any helpful links or advice or knowledge,  Comment here, or find me on Facebook (Nick Martino).

Thanks in advance, Jeep on! 

[Dzimm]

This is going to be an awesome build and can't wait to see it unfold.  

 

I think your best bet would be to custom build something.  Yes it is more work but it will be harder to make the Chinook shell work for what you want and will be harder to modify to meet your needs.  You also have the opportunity to make the whole thing lighter.  Some pvc board or even thin aluminum will be way lighter and easier to use than the fiberglass used on the old shell, and I'm sure given it's age, it has a lot of fiberglass in it.  Design wise, something custom that matches the Comanche body lines would look absolutely awesome. 

[krustyballer16]

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[Minuit]

Didn't I make that? That's a trip down memory lane 

[krustyballer16]

Didn't I make that? That's a trip down memory lane 

Probably. 3 years ago or so when I bought my Chinook.

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[johnj92131]

So what happened to your Chinook??

[krustyballer16]

So what happened to your Chinook??

Mine? I sold it to a guy in Florida and he's putting it on a 2008 Tacoma I believe. He plans to tour south America and Australia running drugs or something...

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[MartinoMJ]

On 11/9/2017 at 8:35 PM, krustyballer16 said:

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GETTING MY GEARS GOING!

[Jtrux]

Expensive, but thought I'd share it anyways for some motivation.

 

http://www.fourwh.com/product/fleet-flat-bed-popup-truck-camper-tray-tacoma/

[yellaheep]

This one runs around the Denver area..... been for sale off and on for around $11K, dunno if it ever found a new owner.  It's associated with a custom camper builder.

 

http://phoenixpopup.com/building-the-camper-of-your-dreams/

 

 

 

Then there's this amazing build:

 

 

[RustInMyEye]

If you want an RV buy an RV...

There are a thousand other vehicles that would be a better start for this. 

I basically hate your idea of cutting the cab of the Comanche to make it a walk through. 

 

If anything, the last posted camper is the way to go. You could sell your bed for probably a grand.  

 

[yellaheep]

4 hours ago, RustInMyEye said:

If you want an RV buy an RV...

There are a thousand other vehicles that would be a better start for this. 

I basically hate your idea of cutting the cab of the Comanche to make it a walk through. 

 

If anything, the last posted camper is the way to go. You could sell your bed for probably a grand.  

 

 

I think you're missing the point.  The OP wants to take an RV where RV's can't go.  So he's gotta make one that will.  He doesn't want to park an RV in a campground and trailer his rig around to various places, he wants to head out into places that will take him days to get to on primitive roads and remote areas.

 

Cutting an MJ cab?  Yeah, I hate it from the lost of structure part of it, but for the build and it's utility, I think if it can be built to be rigid....... why not?

 

A grand for an MJ bed?  Not likely.  Those that need to replace their rusted out beds still tend to live hundreds if not thousands of miles from where the rust free beds are...... and VERY few are willing to pay for the trip to get it, being road trip or shipping.  Of the 20 or so MJ's I've parted out with nice beds, all but 3 went to scrap.  One sold locally, the other two were on whole trucks that I sold to buyers in Iowa and Ohio.  Those two paid $400-$600 to ship the trucks.  Shipping an MJ bed will undoubtedly cost more than the purchase price in most cases.

 

He'd be better off making the bed into a trailer to tow behind his "Comanchinook" for those incidents where he needs a truck rather than a camper.

[RustInMyEye]

18 hours ago, yellaheep said:

 

I think you're missing the point.  The OP wants to take an RV where RV's can't go.  So he's gotta make one that will.  He doesn't want to park an RV in a campground and trailer his rig around to various places, he wants to head out into places that will take him days to get to on primitive roads and remote areas.

 

Cutting an MJ cab?  Yeah, I hate it from the lost of structure part of it, but for the build and it's utility, I think if it can be built to be rigid....... why not?

 

A grand for an MJ bed?  Not likely.  Those that need to replace their rusted out beds still tend to live hundreds if not thousands of miles from where the rust free beds are...... and VERY few are willing to pay for the trip to get it, being road trip or shipping.  Of the 20 or so MJ's I've parted out with nice beds, all but 3 went to scrap.  One sold locally, the other two were on whole trucks that I sold to buyers in Iowa and Ohio.  Those two paid $400-$600 to ship the trucks.  Shipping an MJ bed will undoubtedly cost more than the purchase price in most cases.

 

He'd be better off making the bed into a trailer to tow behind his "Comanchinook" for those incidents where he needs a truck rather than a camper.

 

I know very well the point. My RV comment was mostly to add affect to my distaste of the walk through Idea. 

 

[Dzimm]

I can't stop coming back to look at the XJ camper.  It would be a perfect candidate since you can seat 4 comfortably and fold down the back seats to create more sleeping areas or a larger storage area when parked.  

[Crash]

Off-Road RVs and Camper Trailers For Outdoor Adventure - RoverPass

Number 9

[MartinoMJ]

Soooooo, I'm long overdue for an update on this build.
I'll try to include as many pictures as possible.  The build took a turn for the better the other day, and I scored a popup camper designed specifically for small trucks. It's 7ft, and I can close my tailgate still.  It's 1050lbs and definitely causing some rear end sag, but I'm debating a few different upgrades to solve all that.  

To catch you up:  
I swapped a JY 96 dana 30 into the front and upgraded to Rusty's Offroad 4.5" spring under axle full suspension. 

 

I also got Rusty's steering conversion to remove the y link.  It's smooth without the camper, but creeks and cracks a bunch with the weight.  I think it might be frame flexing.  Considering frame stiffeners since I'll have the camper all the time.    

This is probably the worst decision I made for this build so far.  The leaf packs are NOT rated for heavy hauling and sag a bunch,  the LCA seem too short and were way to expensive when I could have just got adjustable.  The shocks suck.  The track bar is adjustable, but you have to pry it out and bust the bushing every time you want to adjust it.  The only thing I kinda like about this lift.... the look.  I'm not even that crazy about that.  So, thinking of rebuilding the suspension and making it way more suitable for camper hauling. 

Also, lack of knowledge lead me to pick the wrong dana 30 from the JY.  

I had to knock out the pinion and gear set because the bearings were shot. and everything was grinding upon first drive.  

I since acquired all the pieces from my old dana 30 and was going to reinstall it all myself, but I'm really scared I'm going to mess up the backlash or pinion depth.  Not sure I can do it myself.  Any advice is welcome.  (currently it's empty and I took the front drive shaft out).  

 

This leads me to my next topic.  THE REAR! 

The camper is 1k lbs dry weight.  It's heavy, but not impossible.  I'm currently running a dana 35 in the rear with 3.55 gears on 31x10.5 A/T and rusty's 4.5" spring pack under axle. 

Possible upgrades:
1.  Ford 8.8 with 3.73 or 4.10 gears and fill the front diff to match.  Lock the front.  SOA with stock spring pack and rancho adjustable shocks 9000 RS.

[this will cost a lot and require that I weld the perches and shock mounts, but I'll have disk brakes and a stronger rear axle supporting the camper. not sure about the stock leafs]

2. stock dana 35(3.55) with rancho 9000 adjustables, full length AAL and maybe air bags or the rubber stoppers made for camper hauling.  

3. Stock dana 35(3.55) OME HD spring packs, adjustable shocks and maybe a sway bar in the rear.  

 

My questions for you: What gears should I be using for camper hauling?  

Is SOA better or worse for heavy hauling in the rear?

Suggestions on rear 4.5" setup for smooth ride, with AND without the camper. 

 

Camper interior: (BEFORE)

[Skorpyo]

I'm a fan of the 8.8 swap, but it's a bit of a job...

 

As for a smoother ride I can't make any hugely insightful recommendations, but have you considered adding an airbag setup for when you have the camper loaded? Just a thought and love the setup, definitely following this thread.

[HOrnbrod]

Junk the Crustys junk in the back and get some metric tonne MJ 5-leaf springs and  Monroe 58497 or similar coil/overload shocks like the below to start. If still sagging consider an air bag system. Any rear axle upgrade (D44, Ford 8.8, Chrysler 8.25) will be much better than the D35.

 

Gearing is dependent on tire size. The bigger your tires, the lower the gears should be. Ideal for 31" tires is 4.10 gearing to keep it reasonably close the factory final drive specs.  I think you should stay SUA to keep the center of gravity as low as possible. A rear sway bar is super for keeping things flat, but you will have to fab your own like I did. ADDCO does make one for the MJ SWB truck, but it's poorly designed and doesn't work well. It's attached to the upper shock bolts w "L" brackets. 

 

After you get the back end fairly stable, you'll probably need to get rid of the Crusty's front coils for stiffer ones, and upgrade your brakes to stop that heavy mass by converting to rear disks at minimum.

 

 

[MartinoMJ]

1 hour ago, Skorpyo said:

I'm a fan of the 8.8 swap, but it's a bit of a job...

 

As for a smoother ride I can't make any hugely insightful recommendations, but have you considered adding an airbag setup for when you have the camper loaded? Just a thought and love the setup, definitely following this thread.

Absolutely considered bags, but I don't know the first thing about airbags. 

 

[MartinoMJ]

16 minutes ago, HOrnbrod said:

Junk the Crustys junk in the back and get some metric tonne MJ 5-leaf springs and  Monroe 58497 or similar coil/overload shocks like the below to start. If still sagging consider an air bag system. Any rear axle upgrade (D44, Ford 8.8, Chrysler 8.25) will be much better than the D35.

 

Gearing is dependent on tire size. The bigger your tires, the lower the gears should be. Ideal for 31" tires is 4.10 gearing to keep it reasonably close the factory final drive specs.  I think you should stay SUA to keep the center of gravity as low as possible. A rear sway bar is super for keeping things flat, but you will have to fab your own like I did.

 

After you get the back end fairly stable, you'll probably need to get rid of the Crusty's front coils for stiffer ones, and upgrade your brakes to stop that heavy mass by converting to rear disks at minimum.

 

 

Will the 5 leaf MT leafs yield a 4.5" lift,  or is there a block/shackle riser requirement to lift the MT springs to proper height? I keep leaning toward 4.10, but always hear that 3.55s are better on gas mileage, and if that's true, why do I have $#!& gas mileage currently (without hauling any weight).  regardless a limited slip 3.73 or 4.10 would be a world of a difference for this camper.  You also got me thinking about a completely new setup for my suspension with those coilovers.  Any reason you suggest coilovers vs. adjustables?  I've been getting a few recommendations for the adj. Rancho 9000. OME HD front end coils are what I was looking at. Right now I would need to worry about a power steering upgrade, and frame stiffening in the front, because the cracking worries me.  I have already upgraded my brake booster and MC.  next would be disk via the 8.8. 

 

[HOrnbrod]

Looking at your side view, it sure doesn't look like you have a 4.5" lift now if you have 31's mounted. Don't know why you would want to be that high with the camper anyhow - induces severe wallow city. I got about a 3" lift when I first installed the MT springs; they settled down about an inch over the first year. You can add longer shackles like the Teraflex's to bring it back up. I have a Leer shell on, but it's only about 1/5 the weight of your camper.

 

31's w. 4.10's gears the truck a bit lower than factory stock stock gearing. You'll be turning about 250-300 RPM higher than stock for the same equivalent speeds. Gear any lower than that and you will hurt mileage, especially on the freeway. And yes, a Track-lok LSD would definitely help with that extra weight. I think the coil-over shocks will be better than adjustables for side-to-side body roll control as they will adapt quicker. Reducing the side-to-side will also reduce the frame stressing. 

 

These are just starting mandatory recommendations IMHO. Maybe it won't cure all the probs you are having, but it just might. Start with these or similar, then worry about frame gusseting, airbags, etc. later if you have to.

[DeWManche]

Is any body still talking about this? I have the exact same plan as the OP and will be starting my custom pop top camper build in June or July of 2019. 

[Pete M]

rear sway bar, rear sway bar, rear sway bar.   

[FabIt]

I’m picking up the same chinook for $500 with the intentions of scrapping the yota cab & chassis & mount camper on a Comanche or J10. Anybody know the cab width difference between the Comanche, J10 & the yota?