Hiker Trailer 5x9 Off-Road Build

[danasince1979]

I got a lot of questions and photo/video requests after chiming in on another thread so I figured I'd start my own thread on our Hiker Trailer build.

Up until last year we had a 4x8 Deluxe (non-Off-Road) model. We were able to take that little trailer quite a few places. For the most part, it did surprisingly well on forest roads and some light off-roading. We had originally planned on installing our own cabinetry, electrical system, and water tank/outdoor shower. But, there were just a few things we weren't totally stoked on. Those being: no shocks (leaf springs only), no multi-axis coupler (we could've retro-fitted), and the size. It was big enough but w/the two of us and the two dogs, we weren't left with a whole lot of room.

So, we had a change of plans. Instead of putting a whole lot of money and time into building out the 4x9, we decided to sell it, and have Rob build us another trailer. I have to say, Rob and his crew in Denver nailed it on the build. We had a lot of very specific request and they did a great job accommodating those for us. Everything was exactly what we asked for and looked great too.

This time around, we went with the 5x9 Off-Road model with the following options and customizations:

-Lock N Roll hitch
-Eelectric bakes
-Roof rack
-Spare tire carrier w/additional 2" receiver hitch for bike rack and driver's side hinge so bikes and tire are in between the two awnings and not taking up space under the Foxwing
-Propane tank mount
-2 gallon RotaPax water cans (x2)
-Under frame 20 gallon water tank
-Screen doors w/windows
-Wheels/tires to match the Jeep
-Full electrical and solar package
-Custom interior & exterior lights
-Fantastic Fan w/light ring
-In-floor storage
-Folding shelf in front
-Deeper+taller front cabinet
-Split top shelf in rear galley (normally this shelf is open from sleeper to rear galley door)
-Cabinet doors w/latches

We already had the Rhino Rack Foxwing, Sunseeker 2.5, and Sunseeker Base Tent from our previous trailer.

We still need to do the following:
-Curtains (getting those sewn up now)
-Plumb the built in water tank and add pump
-Add Pelican case w/on-demand water heater-outdoor shower setup
-Build out drawers and slider for stove in the bottom section of the galley
-Rhino Rack roof basket from my Jeep is getting moved to the trailer. I'll be adding a Pioneer Platform to the Jeep to hold spare, gas, tools, etc.
-You tell me????

Feel free to ask any questions, I'll try my best to answer.

Here's a few shots from when we picked up the trailer in Denver:

Here's a walk around in the driveway. I'll get some photos of it in the wild soon:

 

[ratled]

Thanks for this thread!

ratled

 

[danasince1979]

Thanks for this thread!

ratled

For sure!

 

[colorado matt]

what is the final weight please .... thanks ..Matt

 

[danasince1979]

Have not found that out yet. I believe it was less than 1000lbs before we put on the awnings and loaded w/our gear. Can't be much more that that now. There's only one scale anywhere near here and that road isn't open to trailer traffic until April so I probably won't know for sure until then.

Also, weight isn't much of an issue w/my TV so I haven't been too concerned TBH.

 

[paddlequest]

Thanks so much for starting this thread. I am seriously considering the same size and style as you guys have. Seeing what you have done and hearing your opinions will be very helpful to me. Couple questions if thats okay:

1) Do you feel the screen doors are good value or would the windows in the doors you ordered be enough for ventilation and cross breezes? (I have a quote for adding the doors with windows because I wanted more ventilation as the plan is to drag this through Mexico, Central and South America in time hopefully)

2) Did you add interior lighting beyond the ring on the fantastic fan?

3) What is the brand name of the small/ slim 3 led lights you have on the side of the trailer for porch lights? They look like the perfect size.

4) The reverse lights on the trailer are a great idea....can never have too much light backing a trailer up at night in a campsite. I have thought about a reverse camera there as well.

My wish-list/ order sheet looks very much like your final product. I have been asking about them installing the entire water system and pump, hot water on demand, etc. Not my forte but something I would really like having been traveling in just my pick up truck with cap for almost a year now in Central America. The possibilities and comfort the trailer offers is EXTREMELY appealing right now! Haha.

All the best with your new trailer. I hope it takes you many amazing adventures.

Dave

 

[paddlequest]

Sorry...1 more quick question.

I have been thinking about the rear tire carrier on my trailer as well. How does it effect your tongue weight and towing characteristics?

Thanks so much.
Dave

 

[Space Wrangler]

Very nice set up

 

[danasince1979]

Thanks so much for starting this thread. I am seriously considering the same size and style as you guys have. Seeing what you have done and hearing your opinions will be very helpful to me. Couple questions if thats okay:

1) Do you feel the screen doors are good value or would the windows in the doors you ordered be enough for ventilation and cross breezes? (I have a quote for adding the doors with windows because I wanted more ventilation as the plan is to drag this through Mexico, Central and South America in time hopefully)

2) Did you add interior lighting beyond the ring on the fantastic fan?

3) What is the brand name of the small/ slim 3 led lights you have on the side of the trailer for porch lights? They look like the perfect size.

4) The reverse lights on the trailer are a great idea....can never have too much light backing a trailer up at night in a campsite. I have thought about a reverse camera there as well.

My wish-list/ order sheet looks very much like your final product. I have been asking about them installing the entire water system and pump, hot water on demand, etc. Not my forte but something I would really like having been traveling in just my pick up truck with cap for almost a year now in Central America. The possibilities and comfort the trailer offers is EXTREMELY appealing right now! Haha.

All the best with your new trailer. I hope it takes you many amazing adventures.

Dave

You're welcome!

1) Personally, I only wanted the windows w/screens in the doors and not the extra screen doors. When we had ours built we were told they only had those doors or no windows in the doors at all. They buy them in bulk and shipping on a pair of special orders was going to be expensive. We don't get too hot around here, not enough to justify AC at least, so wanted to have as much ventilation as possible and went with the screen doors. That being said, I do like them now that we have them. They do have one drawback, the frame is really thick and protrudes into the camper about an inch or so. It's not that big of a deal, but we had to trim a little extra off the mattress to make clear the door frame when folding it up.

2) Yes, we do have a few other lights besides the fan light ring. Under the front cabinet there's a two-stage, push button light:

We have another longer one for under the top shelf (middle bay) in the galley that I need to install still. Those were from Amazon: www.amazon.com/Dream-Lighting-Cabinet-Switch-Motorhome/dp/B00ODSANHU/

We also put recessed lights in the ceiling near the rear, sort of reading lights (we sleep w/our heads towards the rear, the shelf we had installed in the front is perfect for watching movies on the laptop):

3) I bought those porch lights from the for sale section on this forum. Here's the thread:

http://forum.expeditionportal.com/threads/167938-Exterior-Scene-Camping-LED-Lights-Labcraft-Si7-from-Europe

They are bright! Even if you roll in after dark, you can flip those on and set up camp like the sun is still up hahaha. Probably a bit much but we aren't camping in CGs very often and will usually turn them off and run some battery lanterns once we're all set up. That seller had some slightly smaller/lower lumen lights for sale at the time too.

4) The rear spot is great for backing in and for seeing what you're cooking back there. Pretty cheap on Amazon but seems to work well so far. Also, very bright hahaha. A camera would probably be pretty sweet too though. I've definitely had some frustrating moments trying to get backed in or turned around at night in the woods.

5) The 5x9s have the axles pushed back a bit further than the 5x8's. We'll have a couple of Plano cases w/gear stacked on the front deck, or the cooler, + firewood which should help to weigh it down. Overall, seems pretty balanced and tows straight. Even when we drove it home from CO empty, it felt totally fine.

Good luck w/your build. Definitely post some pics when you get her.

 

[danasince1979]

Very nice set up

Thanks man!

 

[paddlequest]

Thanks so much for your responses. I felt stupid as I looked at your photos again and saw the answer to additional interior lighting immediately after posting my questions! DOH!!....thanks tho.

You have a great thing going on with your build and I am seeing so many people making positive comments on theirs too. Gives me more confidence.

Now to figure out how to make it a reality!

I look forward to following this thread!

Dave

 

[ratled]

Oh yea, feel free to share a few "before" shots of the mid range too :elkgrin:

 

[danasince1979]

Oh yea, feel free to share a few "before" shots of the mid range too :elkgrin:

Good call! Here you go:

 

[Kmrtnsn]

I got a lot of questions and photo/video requests after chiming in on another thread so I figured I'd start my own thread on our Hiker Trailer build.

Up until last year we had a 4x8 Deluxe (non-Off-Road) model. We were able to take that little trailer quite a few places. For the most part, it did surprisingly well on forest roads and some light off-roading. We had originally planned on installing our own cabinetry, electrical system, and water tank/outdoor shower. But, there were just a few things we weren't totally stoked on. Those being: no shocks (leaf springs only), no multi-axis coupler (we could've retro-fitted), and the size. It was big enough but w/the two of us and the two dogs, we weren't left with a whole lot of room.

So, we had a change of plans. Instead of putting a whole lot of money and time into building out the 4x9, we decided to sell it, and have Rob build us another trailer. I have to say, Rob and his crew in Denver nailed it on the build. We had a lot of very specific request and they did a great job accommodating those for us. Everything was exactly what we asked for and looked great too.

This time around, we went with the 5x9 Off-Road model with the following options and customizations:

-Lock N Roll hitch
-Eelectric bakes
-Roof rack
-Spare tire carrier w/additional 2" receiver hitch for bike rack and driver's side hinge so bikes and tire are in between the two awnings and not taking up space under the Foxwing
-Propane tank mount
-2 gallon RotaPax water cans (x2)
-Under frame 20 gallon water tank
-Screen doors w/windows
-Wheels/tires to match the Jeep
-Full electrical and solar package
-Custom interior & exterior lights
-Fantastic Fan w/light ring
-In-floor storage
-Folding shelf in front
-Deeper+taller front cabinet
-Split top shelf in rear galley (normally this shelf is open from sleeper to rear galley door)
-Cabinet doors w/latches

We already had the Rhino Rack Foxwing, Sunseeker 2.5, and Sunseeker Base Tent from our previous trailer.

We still need to do the following:
-Curtains (getting those sewn up now)
-Plumb the built in water tank and add pump
-Add Pelican case w/on-demand water heater-outdoor shower setup
-Build out drawers and slider for stove in the bottom section of the galley
-Rhino Rack roof basket from my Jeep is getting moved to the trailer. I'll be adding a Pioneer Platform to the Jeep to hold spare, gas, tools, etc.
-You tell me????

Feel free to ask any questions, I'll try my best to answer.

Starting this off w/some driveway pics but will be taking it out on a trip around western MT & eastern ID real soon. Will definitely get more photos and video of it then.

I just realized that I didn't take any photos of the under-frame water tank. I'll add those later.

When you spec'd your 5X9 how deep did you set your cabinet depth at the rear? What did you end up with for a cabin floor size? And lastly, what is yourmax cabin height inside?

Thanks! Your setup looks awesome!

 

[danasince1979]

Thanks!

80L x 59W x 44H on the cabin floor. Just long enough for a queen mattress, not quite wide enough though. I had to cut the mattress down 3" off the side.

24 deep on the galley, top shelf is 11 deep from either side.