SoCal Teardrops Krawler 459 - Enhancements

[SOCALFJ]

As some of you guys know, we've owned a Sportsmobile, AT Horizon and now are tooling around in a cool Expedition Sprinter built by a good friend of ours. We've also driven the ExpeditionsWest Tacoma, an Earthroamer Jeep and many 4x4 trucks and SWB rigs. But we always come back to our Teardrop and it never fails us for it's simplicity, it's capability and its somewhat sophisticated amenities for an off road trailer. It's like the best of both worlds.

Well, our SoCal Teardrop Krawler 459 just got even better. So i figured i'd start a thread on it covering what we have added, what's newly available to all you guys and what we're going to be working on in the future with it.

UNDER FLOOR STORAGE

For a while now we've oogled the options that SCT has to offer. Being that we snatched up the test unit shortly after falling in love with it, ours did not have this option. After the dust settled and we made some arrangements with the guys over at SCT it was rolled in and accomplished. Now this is the first of their trailers to ever get a Retrofit floor storage option. All the trailers before were built to order with it or without it. So, i have great news, if you have an existing trailer, you now can take your trailer back and order this option.

The install a new split mattress.

It folds up and out of the way so that you can gain access to the floor storage area.

The storage bays are made from crafted birch with tig welded aluminum boxes. They're truly a work of art as with the rest of the trailer. Not just some off the shelf items they welded into the underside.

The under floor storage area makes for a great place to keep blankets, cold weather gear, emergency gear you may not always need or even a place to stow away valuables.

People have asked and i certainly can understand. "But how far do they hang down"
The answer is easy. About the size of your pinky finger.

So if you were to smack them on a rock or a boulder someway or somehow, it wouldn't be much of a problem as the frame is right there. Secondly, you could replace them fairly easily by unscrewing them and ordering a new "tin". If you weren't really picky, you could grab a large rubber mallet and beat it back into shape.

Here's a small animated gif that shows just how simple it is to access the Under Floor Storage.

While SCT was in the area, we had them put in this great tie down lock track. It works great for securing bulky items on top of the mattress in transit like camp chairs or rolled up tables. This way, when the rough gets going you don't knock out a window or worse, damage the beautiful birch wood interior. This is also an option for their trailers and can also be retrofitted at any point after you take delivery.

 

[SOCALFJ]

HANNIBAL USA 1.9MM AWNING AND ROOM EXTENSION

So we love our Fiamma awning, don't get me wrong. But there's something to be said for an area that you can enter to eat, change, do your business or what have you. And the biggest thing for us was the part of waking up in the morning, popping open the door and being on display for the entire world to see. So we decided to pair up with Hannibal and see if we could accomplish the first ever Hannibal USA awning w/room extension on an overland trailer (as far as ive seen in the states at least).

The problem as many of us were seeing it was the way the Hannibal awnings mount. They're kind of their own beast. They use a c-clamp type mount that needs to fit snugly against the same size side rail of a rack or load bar. The other thing is, whatever you mount it to, it better be stout.

Gabe Pari from SCT was up to the task. This had been a long time idea of his to make it work. I personally thinks he gets a kick out of figuring out such things, but thats another subject all together. Anyhow, so with the very generous sponsorship from Chris Dickerson of HannibalUSA to the AdventureDuo family, the awning and room extension made its way down from Nevada to California. Then the fun began.

This is what he came up and im quite pleased. Its stout and lightweight and im telling you, at 250lbs, i'm pretty much certain i could do a couple chin ups on it without it failing.

It's based off their hand fabbed aluminum load bars. Yep, not Thule, not Yakima. They're own.

So the now the awning was mounted, but how well would it work?

The awning deployed at SCT in Upland Ca. Can be deployed even faster than our Fiamma did. The trailer can be turned if need be for shade if so is desired due to not having any legs or guy lines keeping you in a fixed position. Also, the newest versions of the Hannibal awnings seem to have a rake to them so the water run off shouldn't be a problem.

We grabbed at the awning like monkeys, because seriously, thats the first thing people do. The new adapter bar worked amazing. Didn't even flinch. And this was good because we hadn't yet attached the walls and that meant it was only going to get a harsher workout.

So then it came time to attach the walls and experience the part we were waiting for. The room extension. It went on with out a hitch. Everything worked perfectly as designed.

Windows and door open. The canvas is amazingly thick and heavy duty. In clear daylight you step inside and its cool and dark inside. Not like the changing rooms i've owned under my RTT's where people can see my every move.

Here's a short gif animation of how easy it is to deploy. Unstrap the awning material, let it hang and grab the two load bars. Pull them out, roll the awning out onto the bars and insert the pins. Then, the three walls hook under the awning, zip together at the corners and thats it. Stake the ground if need be and open what windows and doors you'd like.

This room extension really makes a nice addition to the teardrop and im happy to announce that it will now be an option for any of the SoCal Teardrop owners out there. Look for the option and pricing on their site in the coming weeks!

 

[SOCALFJ]

Next up to bat was to swap out our old Lock N Roll multi axis hitch for the Newest Max Coupler. Big thanks to Chris at KILBY for getting us one of his very first productions run units. We were happy with our LNR but it's seen a ton of miles, has a small kink from being backed up and generally starting to look weathered.

MAX COUPLER - LATEST VERSION

Out with the old...

In with the new...

Although we've only driven a few hundred miles on this new unit, i can already tell it's quieter than our LockNRoll (which says a lot because you could barely here the LNR) and attaching it is nice as well, as i don't have to lift the hitch point up and over. The bushing just slides right into the coupler mount on the receiver hitch of the vehicle. Equipped with a large push pin, its not any more work or less than hooking up the old hitch.

COMMUNICATIONS AND SUSPENSION DAMPENING COMING NEXT!!!!!! STAY TUNED!!!!

 

[Rubiconcruiser]

Is this room addition an ARB?? Nice rig.

 

[titanpat57]

Wow Dave...that changing room/awning just took a really, really nice trailer to the next level. What a great addition, hats off to Gabe for figuring it out!

Im curious if you fold the mattress for transit, with the gear secured, or do you pile the chairs and such on the mattress? The reason behind the question, is I'm wondering how much gear you really can carry inside (obviously weight is probably a non-issue being it's built like a tank) The inside walls look like they're finished like fine furniture. Also, could share where you found the tie-down track system?

Safe travels and thanks for the updates, the SCT's are second to none.

 

[SOCALFJ]

Is this room addition an ARB?? Nice rig.

It's not an ARB. It's HANNIBAL USA made in Africa. You can check them out at Hannibal Safari USA | Roof Top Tents and Overland Gear. They're distributor is located in Gardnerville, Nevada.

Wow Dave...that changing room/awning just took a really, really nice trailer to the next level. What a great addition, hats off to Gabe for figuring it out!

Im curious if you fold the mattress for transit, with the gear secured, or do you pile the chairs and such on the mattress? The reason behind the question, is I'm wondering how much gear you really can carry inside (obviously weight is probably a non-issue being it's built like a tank) The inside walls look like they're finished like fine furniture. Also, could share where you found the tie-down track system?

Safe travels and thanks for the updates, the SCT's are second to none.

Thank you for the kind words, and yes i believe the quality is top notch. Big difference between crafting something and just bolting boxes together.

We usually leave the mattress down in the sleeping position to transport items. The strap down loops will work perfect still. Yes it holds a ton of gear. As a matter of fact, i just got back from a show where i carried tables, chairs, flat tow drawbar, load level bully dog legs, and all sorts of gear.

The track item is located here: So-Cal Teardrops - Options - Options - Mac's Tie Downs - Options

 

[skersfan]

What is the weight on the awning. Does it come with some sort of backing for attachment. A lot of leverage it appears, and with wind could become a giant sail.
\
The trailer is beautiful inside, some real craftsmanship. The finished walls are great, but how will they look after a few off road uses?

I remember my mother would not let me set at the dining room furniture when I was kid, only at Christmas, because I scratched everything. Most off road enthusiasists are a little out of control at some point. Do they offer something with less shine/scratch resistant.

 

[Brentbba]

Too bad this option on the Hannibal awning wasn't around or probably more accurately thought of before I bought my trailer.
Couldn't be much more effort if any to break down the skirt and awning than a regular RTT.

Very nice. - is the trailer side enclosed on the top surround of the trailer too or open to the wind and peeps from that side?

 

[spressomon]

Its damping.

 

[gabepari]

What is the weight on the awning. Does it come with some sort of backing for attachment. A lot of leverage it appears, and with wind could become a giant sail.
\
The trailer is beautiful inside, some real craftsmanship. The finished walls are great, but how will they look after a few off road uses?

I remember my mother would not let me set at the dining room furniture when I was kid, only at Christmas, because I scratched everything. Most off road enthusiasists are a little out of control at some point. Do they offer something with less shine/scratch resistant.

Thank you. This particular trailer is over two years old and has probably seen more off-road miles than the majority of teardrops out there. This was my personal trailer before Dave acquired it, I have two kids who have spent many a night in the desert playing games, watching movies, and just generally being "kids" inside the trailer. It's been loaned out to a good number of people who put it through its paces as well. And anyone who knows "Bull in a China shop" Dave, knows that he can find the weakness in any design. Ham-fisted as he is, there is no-one better for product testing

While we have constantly been going over the mechanicals and adding upgrades and accessories, we have never "re-finished" anything, it's exactly as it left our factory.

Regarding the finish, we build every trailer to order and each is customized beyond the basic design to meet the new owners needs and wants. If you indeed would like a more utilitarian and durable finish, there are many options that could be explored.

I don't have any personal experience with the Hannibal awnings, but from what I hear they perform very well in the wind. There was a review in Overland Journal I believe, maybe you can dig it up. I'm sure Dave will be testing it as soon it starts to blow...

Gabe Pari
So-Cal Teardrops - Home

 

[SOCALFJ]

HAM-FISTED lol

Anyhow, the Hannibals do great in the wind. Actually better than could be expected. They actually cut through the wind and not lift as for our other awnings they get torn off, not joking

The Awning was attached with a heavy duty attachment in the above photos in post #2. This will be an option, and as ours was made out of steel, the future pieces will be made out of aluminum. Ours was the prototype so to speak.

And yes, im a bull in a china shop. I can break anything. The inside of our tear is still beautiful and smells great (wood smell).

 

[93yotasr5]

that thing is amazing. i want one!!!!

 

[AutoCraft Aus]

I have tried contacting them afew times about getting one. [or more]

The awning fixes the only real down side for use here, I could see.

 

[SOCALFJ]

Hey guys, our trailer will be on display this weekend at the Off Road Expo in Pomona. Stop by SCT's booth in the main building 4 to check it out in person and say hello!

 

[Hannibal Safari]

I have tried contacting them afew times about getting one. [or more]

The awning fixes the only real down side for use here, I could see.

If you can't get a hold of them in South Africa, shoot me a E-mail and I will let them know the problem.

 

[jeremymeehan]

Great work - love seeing these trailers make a comeback as a capable base camp. Plotting to build or buy one someday for wife and me to hit the road in.

 

[ntsqd]

Its damping.

Actually Kritter & I settled this a long time ago on rdc. It's "damperening."

Nice trailer Dave!