Mule Expedition Equipment prototype aluminum roof rack
In a word this rack is AWESOME. I know Mule is trying to get the fabrication online. I have a prototype and now have permission to take some more detailed photos of the rack. The tent had to come off to fit in the container so I'll take some pics tomorrow when I pick it up. The design is very simple and to me simple is best. it works, it is lightweight and so far has been bulletproof. His fabricator has done work on Walker Evans' race trucks and the quality of the work shines through. the deck is aluminum and the feet are steel and are designed with security in mind. the whole thing is powder coated and yet in a pinch i could put in on the truck myself if I had to. With a second person it is a piece of cake. pics tomorrow will say a lot more than my words. most importantly I have been providing feedback to Mule on way I think the rack can be 'perfected.' IE I wish we had made it about 4 inches longer. real world feedback to meet the needs of future buyers. I've had experience with ARB, Con-ferr and a JMoose rack and this exceeds all of them.
Eezi Awn 1400 Rooftop Tent
I'll be very honest. This was a challenge. I have camped hundreds of nights in my life and I never owned/used a tent until March of this year in Baja due to the hundreds of spiders on the beach. that was a borrowed backpacking tent. to go from a blue tarp and a sleeping bag to the luxury of the Eezi-Awn was quite the transition. Honestly it is one I'm still getting used to. The comfort, (i roll with sheets, 2 pillows and a down comforter) the security of not being away from the vehicle and the nice dry place to escape the element during the week long rain in Costa Rica is something I could easily grow to love. I have not camped as much as I would have liked but the deserts of Chile, Arg and Bolivia await and the tent will get far more use. one of the largest benefits has been protection from the bugs. to be frank there are some nights it's been so damn hot I've basically slept stripped to the skivvies on top of all my bedding and still managed to sweat all night long. I added a second layer of permethrin treated netting to the tent and so far the bugs have been a non-issue at night. a pic...
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so rooftop tents may be a fetish for the expedition crowd but I have become a believer. I just wish I was about 4 inches taller. It would be far easier to open and close if I wasn't 5'7' with a 8'6" tall truck. But I'll blame that on my genetics not the tent.
Scepter Fuel/Water cans
Now this one may seem like an interesting choice to include in my write up however there is a reason for it. one of the needs for true overland travel is fluid storage. water and fuel. Tom Sheppard, the God of expeditions (wow I just had a very bad Pirate4x4 flash back) Okay Tom Sheppard who literally and figuratively wrote the book on expedition travel advises against and almost mocks the (mis)use of roof racks for water/fuel storage. So I debated for most of the summer about a long range aux tank and trying to build some onboard water storage. what it came down to was I have a tiny little personal bank account and Tom Sheppard has the British Royal Geographic Society funding his travels. So $1k for a tank set up or cans donated from a friend. A no-brainer. $1k is almost enough to pay for my fuel for Chile. When I get home. or if i figure out a way to keep going a long range tank may be an option but for now the two spares were more important than a tank. It also speaks to the mindset I've taken with this trip. I'm alone in the middle of a country (go ahead and pick one) that is not my own and is completely new to me. The situation alone mandates I take the more conservative approach in my choices. I will not be venturing far enough off the beaten path during the trip to necessitate more than 35gallons of fuel. when I return home and get back to 1k miles dirt treks through Utah and Nevada I'll worry about it. for now the roof rack will suffice. And the Scepter cans are well worth the money. they don't leak a drop and funnel alone is worth the investment. wow that was a long paragraph about gas cans. tomorrow I'll get my truck. take some more pics and type up the strategy behind the build.
dmc