Flatlander’s attempt at a RTT trailer build

Darylk

New member
Alright here it goes, I’m building an off road camping trailer. Yeah yeah I know, there’s already about 1000 of these threads but who knows maybe something in here will be even a bit useful for someone. Or at very least someone might be entertained... Probably gonna be a lot of writing and pictures so grab a 12 pack and get comfortable!

Quick background: my girlfriend, our dog and I are planning a few camping trips this summer. One to Manitoba, one to BC, and hopefully more. I hate sleeping on the ground in a tent. Nothing worse then waking up at 3am with a flat air mattress!! After reading what feels like every off-road rtt trailer thread I came up with a plan. We will be pulling it behind our 07 JK Sahara. We will be keeping a bit of a travel blog on instagram @prairieoverlanders. Give us a follow!

4D8B8318-4E50-4CD7-B14C-53B1CD9E652F.jpeg

First step was to find a trailer to start with. I was lucky enough to find this stripped down former light tower trailer locally. Got it really cheap. Solid foundation for this build with a 3000lb axle

7240FD24-BD52-4218-ABA4-B4A3619B0302.jpeg
5990419E-00FD-4364-81C8-1697B9275A54.jpeg

First I opened a beer and I suggest you do the same... Next I flipped the axles to sit under the leafs. This added a bit of clearance. Also pulled out a few leafs to soften the ride. (Might have to put one back in, we will see)
889D2F91-9E00-4C2E-B5D7-11AF1D3C7573.jpeg

At this point, if your bored outta your mind might want to focus less on the build and more on the beers... or completely on the beer. Your call

Anyway after changing my mind multiple times, I settled on a design. Special thanks to a 12 pack for inspiration. Decided to cut the top off and make a lid that opens with a roof top tent mounted to it.
975F7142-7802-4518-A7F2-5C1841A6F980.jpeg
Point of no return.... but that’s all the motivation I have for one night. Next is the lid. More to come

Night everyone!
 
Last edited:

Darylk

New member
Just a quick thought on how to stabilize the trailer. Looking at options to level and stabilize. One option is to mount these on the back corners:
164921B0-4EA4-4B47-8D71-5753A36CBBD7.jpeg
These would work to stabilize but won’t do much for leveling.

Another option that I stole from another thread (hope the guy doesn’t mind):
01CA8AB5-BB09-40F6-9CCA-99642CC32CB3.png
This would allow me to level and stabilize. I already have one hinlift so I’d only need one more. Also provides a mounting spot for a jack that is just laying in the back of the Jeep right now.

What do you guys think?
 

Darylk

New member
Any updates to this? Considering picking up a light trailer for cheap locally and playing with it a bit.
Sorry for the late reply, haven’t had a chance to post since we have been out using the trailer! In short, I’ll say that the light tower trailer was a great base for what I wanted to do.
 

Darylk

New member
alright here we go.... haven’t posted here for a loooong time now. Once we got the trailer to a point where it was useable we got too busy using it.
.........................................
Quick side note: our Instagram account is @prairieoverlanders. If you want go check it out and give us a follow
.........................................


Once I had cut the top off the trailer, i started on a lid. The plan was to fab a lid that we could bolt the tent directly to. After a few hours of welding here’s what I came up with:
B79DFCF1-1661-45F5-A459-6D955919F58E.jpeg

50F88D41-6084-4D97-B498-1E66E242CA1F.jpeg18A51E1E-D5B2-40D1-BC3B-0EC71C3045B9.jpeg

The lid a made up of 1-1/2”angle iron frame, 16 gauge sheet metal, and 1” square crossbars. Don’t look too closely at the welds:ROFLMAO:
 

Darylk

New member
Set the tent on top to see how it will fit!! This was an exciting step for sure. Finally got a bit of a look at what the trailer will look like!
39B7D8C5-6D10-42A8-AFE5-EA282E67A5E1.jpeg
...............................

After aloooooooot of research we decided to go with the smittybilt overlander tent. To put it simply the price was right. We bought it at 4wheelparts in Edmonton Alberta. The warranty they offered was too good to pass up!
....................

Painted, fenders back on

0D74FD9B-6045-4B1D-A145-5D4039C0B4A1.jpeg

More to come!
 

boxcar1

boxcar1
Interesting build. I like the idea of repurposing the commercial trailer. And the use of beer for incentive. Should be a wonderful rig to tow behind your ( nice ) Jeep.
 

Darylk

New member
Interesting build. I like the idea of repurposing the commercial trailer. And the use of beer for incentive. Should be a wonderful rig to tow behind your ( nice ) Jeep.
Yeah I was quite lucky to stumble upon this trailer, already stripped down for a really really good price. Barely could have bought the axle for what I paid for the entire trailer.
 

Darylk

New member
Next thing to do was to find and mount some lid struts. Went to a local junk yard and picked up a set off a dodge caravan hatch. After some precision engineering (??), got them mounted.... and somehow they work....

With the tent closed the lid lifts with a gentle pull and stays open, goes back down the same and stays down. With the tent open, lid opens on its own and needs a light pull to get it back down.

... don’t ask me to explain how I figured out where exactly to mount the struts because I don’t have a good answer to that question...?

98115F80-4455-428F-AA9D-7FDF19CEF93D.jpeg

I do have a video of it opening but can’t get it to upload. Tells me the file is too big...
 

Schwaan

New member
Sort of a resurrection but I saw your trailer for sale locally. I loved the idea. So i found a light tower for $400 and am just about to start my own build, similar to yours. If I could afford the $ I'd save the hassle and pick yours up. Luckily I work at fgi so parts will be where I save some cash. If you've got any tips please let me know. I'm all for ideas
 

Forum statistics

Threads
185,528
Messages
2,875,549
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top