Expedition trailer made from FJ40 tub (1 Viewer)

[Volcanic Iceberg]

Wow! Looks great.

Any estimates on weight?

No Idea on weight. A whole FJ40 body is 350-400#. Im guessing this will be close to that, maybe a little less. The frame will be scratch build and will not be as stout as the original vehicle frame. Lift mechanism will add, so will all the accessories: batteries furnace, water tank, Propane, kitchen Etc. Im hoping to salvage a lot of that from the donor pop up tent trailer. Added all up i think its going to be around 1000 lbs.

Id like to have an electric brake axle so as not to comprimise stopping power on descents. Plus, id prefer to have a tube axle rather than one with differential intact for clearance reasons.

 

[cruzzer]

great plans!! cant wait to see what you end up with! but I have to ask,, what program doid you use to make those drawings,, and is it easy to use?

 

[Volcanic Iceberg]

great plans!! cant wait to see what you end up with! but I have to ask,, what program doid you use to make those drawings,, and is it easy to use?

It is called Archicad. Its an architect specific design program. I worked for an architect that used it. Its pretty complex and expensive (like $10,000). Those 2D drawings dont take advantage of the 3D capabilities of the program. The reason I did it in 2D was that the program is desined to model buildings more than objects like cars.

 

[sseaman]

very cool drawings, i like both the 40 and the trailer

 

[cruiseroutfit]

I really like these picture of Kurts. seeing his contributed to my initial inspiration. Hope he doesn't mind me posting them.

Not at all, I'm sure you've seen this:
Cruiser Outfitters

Excited to see what you come up with

 

[titanpat57]

Hi!

I think it's an awesome concept. Do you plan on sleeping inside the "pullout" areas of the trailer? What are the dimensions of the tub? The scale seems a bit off for bunks. The pullout kitchen is great way to do something with the tongue area. Keep the updates coming please.

 

[Volcanic Iceberg]

Hi!

I think it's an awesome concept. Do you plan on sleeping inside the "pullout" areas of the trailer? What are the dimensions of the tub? The scale seems a bit off for bunks. The pullout kitchen is great way to do something with the tongue area. Keep the updates coming please.

There will be a bed in the center section above the pull out kitchen as well as the two side beds. Sleeping for 4 total. The tub will be standard width since it is already the exact width of a queen size bed which is 60" - on the inside. Length on a queen is 6'-6". The tub length will have to be longer to accomodate the pull out beds on each side inbetween the radius corners. The radius is 6" so the length with the 2 halves put together will be 7'-6". That should be enough room for a single 6'-6" X 30" single bed off each side without going beyond the corner radiuses of the tub.

The tongue will support the weight of the kitchen when extended.

 

[Volcanic Iceberg]

Kurt are you still planning to build another expedition trailer?

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Kurt are you still planning to build another expedition trailer?

I'm not sure if I'm going to build a completely new trailer or just rebuild my current one. Its had some hard miles and there are things I want to change after all these years. I would build a new one in a heartbeat if I could find another fiberglass tub, since I can't that will likely force my hand in rebuilding my current one. I really like the fiberglass tub, light and impervious to rust, a major bonus.

Can't wait to see yours in the works, sounds like you've really been brainstorming some practical needs.

 

[BionicCruiser]

i was just told about this thread at our cruiser meeting the other night. sorry i never got your message. i see it when i look at sirenmoses' link, but never got a notification that it was there. i'll post some pics of mine when i get home today.
i haven't seen those pics of Kurts. we were building ours at about the same time. way cool!

 

[BionicCruiser]

OK, here's the first few of the build. i made my own tailgate and ties so it become a table in camp.

 

[BionicCruiser]

next a few shots in action. i made a tonnue type cover myself. the only thing i will change now is the storage is too small. i will either make more body up front like Kurt's, or make bars that raise the ability to stack things higher. mine has the cruiser frame with the inside channel removed, and a trailer axle.

 

[BionicCruiser]

oh, and ignore the torn off fender flare on the driver side. Rubicon trail damage.

 

[smileyfish]

that came out realy good, nice work.

 

[BionicCruiser]

thanks, i'm curious to see how Volcanic's comes out. you still working on this VI? let's see some pics of the progress!

 

[woytovich]

Here's a photoshop idea I played with...

 

[Volcanic Iceberg]

Here are some more pictures I got from a trailer currently being listed on Ebay eBay Motors: Toyota FJ40 Landcruiser Trailer in Excellent Condition (item 260374357482 end time Mar-18-09 18:00:00 PDT)=

 

[Volcanic Iceberg]

Work begins!

Weather was nice today so after a little wheeling with the family in the 80, I started cutting one of the tubs today. I started with the 65 tub at the seam directly behind the door. First I took out all of the bolts. Then I cut the welds at the top with a cutting disk. Passenger side came apart easy. The drivers side apparently got hit at some point so It had more welds at the bottom by the tool box. I borrowed a plasma cutter and will attack that area next as it was too tight to get the recipricating saw or cutting wheel in there.

Im trying to be carefull how I cut because I want to save the door frames for my 4 door 40 project. I also want to sell unused body sections to help fund the project.

I got some practice installing an axle this week end on my utility trailer. It had old bent 2000# 4 bolt hubs and I upgraded to a 3500# axle with 5 on 4.5 hubs that gave me the chance to upgrade wheels and tires to a larger size. The trailer has a dump to the added hight should help with the dump angle

So my goal with the expedition trailer is to have a rolling trailer tub by mid May when I am going on a grand canyon expedition. I live in southern Utah 60 miles from the north rim. It wont have a top or any built in kitchen equipment but it will be a place to haul gear and a flat place to sleep.

 

[Volcanic Iceberg]

Here are some pics

 

[Box Rocket]

Very cool. Anxiously awaiting more progress. I always wanted to build a trailer to match my old 40 but since I don't have my 40 anymore it didn't mean as much to me. But I still love the look of the 40 tub style trailers.