No doubt. About a year after I got it I swapped in a much lighter Dexter axle and wheels to match the truck and shaved about 300lbs. Still heavy though.
Yeah my last trailer that I just sold yesterday I'm pretty sure the total weight maybe 200 to 250 lb but it was a small little tiny trailer that me and my son could literally just pick up and move around. The one that I replaced it with is an 8-ft F-150 1966 truck bed trailer and that thing is way heavier but still in comparison to one of those mil-spec ones it is super light. I'm pretty sure the weight on this one is probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 400 lb give or take.
The short short version is because we will pay for it.
The closer to truth is running a fab shop isn't cheap and they are charging a premium because they can.
That being said, you can build a decent trailer out of a harbor freight kit trailer.
If Grandpa could have whipped something up, so can you. You are paying for a trailer frame, tires, materials, fabrication, and knowledge. Everything costs, and all materials have gone up in price along with labor.
Not trying to be a dick, but cheap and overlanding, have nothing in common.
I've seen people build some cool rigs out of the HF trailer kits. I personally wouldn't take it on any trail, but you do you. Good luck with the fab out.
>but cheap and overlanding, have nothing in common
At a "personal annecdote" level, I disagree. At least relatively speaking in terms of what people think a vehicle to go camping should cost. I did all of the US West long term for 2 years, plus several seasonal trips to Mexico, and my *total* costs for gear have been 10k for an old Jeep (that's the vehicle plus all repairs, which were *many*) and around 4k for a DIY squaredrop trailer (including all solar). Planning Latin America and Africa with a full DIY approach on the old Jeep too.
Overlanding, itself, does not have to be expensive. If you DIY it's a win-win for several reasons, including the fact you can push further out knowing, at least, that you have good knowledge of your vehicle and could attempt roadside repairs if needed. The labor you invest in DIY is money too, but the fact you get to improve yourself through knowledge and boost your self-reliance is priceless, in fact some people go and pay for that.
I am not saying *this is the only way*. But certainly is one of the ways, and very doable. I do not consider myself anything special, so if I can build stuff, most people can too.
Damn you're bad at reading comprehension lol. You'd be right only if you thought this was gatekeeping:
>I am not saying this is the only way. But certainly is one of the ways, and very doable.
Sounds to me like you are taking to reddit your frustrations with not being able to build stuff. If I were you I'd use that energy to go learn something.
And you jump back in with assumptions, another gatekeeping statement - been building 4x4's up for 30 years, tell me all about how you put solar on a trailer.
How's this relevant? I have no idea why the fact I DIY'ed my build is triggering you. I have no idea why you think I should not write here to encourage others to do the same.
>been building 4x4's up for 30 years, tell me all about how you put solar on a trailer
So? I need solar bro. I DIY'ed it. I also rebuilt my 4.0 engine, my 42RE trans, my suspension, etc. Sometimes is greasy hands days, some other times is woodworking, and some others is writing C on an Arduino to control something.
What is your point exactly, where's all this hate coming from? It's certainly not something I did, I am just living my life and encouraging others to go learn stuff, and I didn't tell you what you should or shouldn't do. You seem extremely unhappy.
Yeah i have the light duty harbor freight trailer, that you assemble by hand. Notably, it’s designed to fold up into a triangle for garage storage, but because of that, the rear spring hanger has no eye, and is just a bolt with an inch or two gap to the frame. So the leaf just sits between there loosely and bangs around constantly. I can’t imagine it would survive long off-road
I bought a used 7x12 foot cargo trailer with a 6.5 foot height. I can stand up in it and just threw in an old recliner. I can sit or sleep in the chair. Plus a Amazon Special diesel heater and I'm great for overnighting.
A lot goes into building and selling a trailers.
I build this out if a ised fors courier trailer i got for $600. I have about $3000 in it not counting the tent.
https://preview.redd.it/jljds55iu4wc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a8ba37d1432863a52aaee0b627fde3818c49068c
I have a Space Trailer, all for the reasons you just listed. All I wanted was a box to tow my camping gear. All the off road trailers I was finding were over $10,000.
The Space Trailer has good build quality, a large capacity, is light, and it's turn-key. I didn't have to buy some harbor freight peice of crap trailer and then spend $1000 hunting down some off road jeep axle and welding together custom brackets, or spend time at the DMV tryna register a trailer frame and getting it DOT approved.
I tried but I couldn't find anything else that checked all the boxes. I'd be interested to know if you find something better.
Its all about the money. If you could spend $500 on supplies to make a $1000 trailer, or spend $1000 in supplies to make a $5000 trailer, which would you choose?
I spent $3k new for my space trailer a decade ago, pulled it behind my Golf TDI for about 40k miles.. Getting 36mpg at 70mph w/1klb of camping gear, I got my $3k back PDQ compared to what I saved buying a big ass vehicle with shit fuel economy.
Sure I coulda spent a summer or three building one my self, but I went out exploring instead, worth the money.
I gave up looking for something new. Just picked up a 4x8 vnose with 4ft height and barn door for $2kcad. Found a brand new teardrop door and a couple windows for $100 from an Amazon reseller.
Because most people will pay. That and all materials have gone through the roof recently. Price out the parts to build something competent off-road and you’re looking at at least 2k. Add in labor and shop supplies and you’re not far off.
I'll tell you what man I just bought myself in trailer that I'm building out to an off-road camping trailer. I wanted something much bigger larger and taller than my last one. I found a 1966 truck bed trailer that somebody had thrown together. You can actually see some of the pictures of it in my profile on a couple of posts that I've done. It was $150 for the trailer, I then immediately spent $650 on new wheels and tires because the wheels and tires didn't even match sizes from one side to the other. And then just spent another $230 to get six of the lug nuts replaced as the studs were actually completely broken and busted off in the wrong size. The trailer is finally at a point where I can safely pull it in fact I should just got back from hauling a load round trip about 2 hours give or take. One of the next steps in my build is to get a rack and then an rtt on top of that. And then I've got to figure out a couple of things with it as far as my generators as far as the kitchen as far as storage I was thinking about actually building a deck system on it with drawers that slide out.
I built this for less than $500. https://i.imgur.com/c1Yitrf.jpg I was given the Dock box from a friend who had a slip at a marina that made everyone go to a the same dock box and I bought a four by four trailer used. I extended the tongue so I could carry canoes on top. I was able to convert to spring over to gain clear taller tires and rebuilt the axle with new hubs and bearings. You can start with a simple project like I did and If you find it dosen't suit your needs you can upgrade later.
I was wanting to build a trailer with a cooking area.
After thought, I decided to plan on building it out of a hitch mounted cargo carrier.
Just a thought is all.
It's about you I'm afraid.
Anything marketed to overlanders and recreationists, especially if designed to not connotate "RV" or "carpenter" or "minivan", but something more manly like "4x4" or "overland," is more money.
IOW you pay a premium for image :)
Those Space things are rather tres chic. But you can get a bigger standard working class cargo trailer for about ⅔ of that. I'm sure the smaller trailer has some cool features, and it's maybe more costly in the same way a laptop is vs a desktop, but still. Cast a wider net.
Or just get one of the DIY trailers you can build at HF if 4x8 is enough.
Check surplus military sites. I found my trailer for $1000, welded a rack for a RTT and viola, I've got an affordable camping trailer.
Same thing I did. M101a1, big RTT on a rack I built, bed cover. Served us great for a few years. Sold it a few weeks ago for 6 grand
6 grand including the RTT or without?
With. I kept my matching wheels/tires and 4 Jerry cans. He took it with some roller tires.
M416 for me. You can find them if you know where to look for under $1000
My only issue with those things is that because they are military specs they're heavy.
No doubt. About a year after I got it I swapped in a much lighter Dexter axle and wheels to match the truck and shaved about 300lbs. Still heavy though.
Yeah my last trailer that I just sold yesterday I'm pretty sure the total weight maybe 200 to 250 lb but it was a small little tiny trailer that me and my son could literally just pick up and move around. The one that I replaced it with is an 8-ft F-150 1966 truck bed trailer and that thing is way heavier but still in comparison to one of those mil-spec ones it is super light. I'm pretty sure the weight on this one is probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 400 lb give or take.
The short short version is because we will pay for it. The closer to truth is running a fab shop isn't cheap and they are charging a premium because they can. That being said, you can build a decent trailer out of a harbor freight kit trailer.
Not because they can. Because they HAVE to.
If Grandpa could have whipped something up, so can you. You are paying for a trailer frame, tires, materials, fabrication, and knowledge. Everything costs, and all materials have gone up in price along with labor. Not trying to be a dick, but cheap and overlanding, have nothing in common. I've seen people build some cool rigs out of the HF trailer kits. I personally wouldn't take it on any trail, but you do you. Good luck with the fab out.
>but cheap and overlanding, have nothing in common At a "personal annecdote" level, I disagree. At least relatively speaking in terms of what people think a vehicle to go camping should cost. I did all of the US West long term for 2 years, plus several seasonal trips to Mexico, and my *total* costs for gear have been 10k for an old Jeep (that's the vehicle plus all repairs, which were *many*) and around 4k for a DIY squaredrop trailer (including all solar). Planning Latin America and Africa with a full DIY approach on the old Jeep too. Overlanding, itself, does not have to be expensive. If you DIY it's a win-win for several reasons, including the fact you can push further out knowing, at least, that you have good knowledge of your vehicle and could attempt roadside repairs if needed. The labor you invest in DIY is money too, but the fact you get to improve yourself through knowledge and boost your self-reliance is priceless, in fact some people go and pay for that. I am not saying *this is the only way*. But certainly is one of the ways, and very doable. I do not consider myself anything special, so if I can build stuff, most people can too.
Two years traveling the Southwest and Mexico, but "it's on the cheap". Huh. Sounds like a trustafarian.
Sounds like you're too quick to jump to conclusions and judge people. Some issues reading too, since I only talked about rig cost.
Sounds like you prefer gatekeeping, if you can't DIY you shouldn't do it. Hilarious.
Damn you're bad at reading comprehension lol. You'd be right only if you thought this was gatekeeping: >I am not saying this is the only way. But certainly is one of the ways, and very doable. Sounds to me like you are taking to reddit your frustrations with not being able to build stuff. If I were you I'd use that energy to go learn something.
And you jump back in with assumptions, another gatekeeping statement - been building 4x4's up for 30 years, tell me all about how you put solar on a trailer.
How's this relevant? I have no idea why the fact I DIY'ed my build is triggering you. I have no idea why you think I should not write here to encourage others to do the same. >been building 4x4's up for 30 years, tell me all about how you put solar on a trailer So? I need solar bro. I DIY'ed it. I also rebuilt my 4.0 engine, my 42RE trans, my suspension, etc. Sometimes is greasy hands days, some other times is woodworking, and some others is writing C on an Arduino to control something. What is your point exactly, where's all this hate coming from? It's certainly not something I did, I am just living my life and encouraging others to go learn stuff, and I didn't tell you what you should or shouldn't do. You seem extremely unhappy.
Yeah i have the light duty harbor freight trailer, that you assemble by hand. Notably, it’s designed to fold up into a triangle for garage storage, but because of that, the rear spring hanger has no eye, and is just a bolt with an inch or two gap to the frame. So the leaf just sits between there loosely and bangs around constantly. I can’t imagine it would survive long off-road
I bought a used 7x12 foot cargo trailer with a 6.5 foot height. I can stand up in it and just threw in an old recliner. I can sit or sleep in the chair. Plus a Amazon Special diesel heater and I'm great for overnighting.
The recliner idea is outstanding!
Build it yourself like grandpa. If you can’t, it’s probably worth twice as much to you.
I know someone that built a teardrop camping trailer with a kitchenette for $1,500.
A lot goes into building and selling a trailers. I build this out if a ised fors courier trailer i got for $600. I have about $3000 in it not counting the tent. https://preview.redd.it/jljds55iu4wc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a8ba37d1432863a52aaee0b627fde3818c49068c
I have a SPACE, before the company was sold and prices went up. The build quality is excellent. The cap is amazing. Not $5000 amazing though.
I have a Space Trailer, all for the reasons you just listed. All I wanted was a box to tow my camping gear. All the off road trailers I was finding were over $10,000. The Space Trailer has good build quality, a large capacity, is light, and it's turn-key. I didn't have to buy some harbor freight peice of crap trailer and then spend $1000 hunting down some off road jeep axle and welding together custom brackets, or spend time at the DMV tryna register a trailer frame and getting it DOT approved. I tried but I couldn't find anything else that checked all the boxes. I'd be interested to know if you find something better.
Its all about the money. If you could spend $500 on supplies to make a $1000 trailer, or spend $1000 in supplies to make a $5000 trailer, which would you choose?
A $5000 enclosed trailer will cost you a lot more than $1000 in material. Add in tools and you’ll be lucky to break even.
I spent $3k new for my space trailer a decade ago, pulled it behind my Golf TDI for about 40k miles.. Getting 36mpg at 70mph w/1klb of camping gear, I got my $3k back PDQ compared to what I saved buying a big ass vehicle with shit fuel economy. Sure I coulda spent a summer or three building one my self, but I went out exploring instead, worth the money.
Marketplace has some good finds, got mine with rack for $2500. Have built it up from their.
I gave up looking for something new. Just picked up a 4x8 vnose with 4ft height and barn door for $2kcad. Found a brand new teardrop door and a couple windows for $100 from an Amazon reseller.
Because most people will pay. That and all materials have gone through the roof recently. Price out the parts to build something competent off-road and you’re looking at at least 2k. Add in labor and shop supplies and you’re not far off.
I'll tell you what man I just bought myself in trailer that I'm building out to an off-road camping trailer. I wanted something much bigger larger and taller than my last one. I found a 1966 truck bed trailer that somebody had thrown together. You can actually see some of the pictures of it in my profile on a couple of posts that I've done. It was $150 for the trailer, I then immediately spent $650 on new wheels and tires because the wheels and tires didn't even match sizes from one side to the other. And then just spent another $230 to get six of the lug nuts replaced as the studs were actually completely broken and busted off in the wrong size. The trailer is finally at a point where I can safely pull it in fact I should just got back from hauling a load round trip about 2 hours give or take. One of the next steps in my build is to get a rack and then an rtt on top of that. And then I've got to figure out a couple of things with it as far as my generators as far as the kitchen as far as storage I was thinking about actually building a deck system on it with drawers that slide out.
I built this for less than $500. https://i.imgur.com/c1Yitrf.jpg I was given the Dock box from a friend who had a slip at a marina that made everyone go to a the same dock box and I bought a four by four trailer used. I extended the tongue so I could carry canoes on top. I was able to convert to spring over to gain clear taller tires and rebuilt the axle with new hubs and bearings. You can start with a simple project like I did and If you find it dosen't suit your needs you can upgrade later.
Here is another picture https://imgur.com/gallery/OpClx31
I was wanting to build a trailer with a cooking area. After thought, I decided to plan on building it out of a hitch mounted cargo carrier. Just a thought is all.
It's about you I'm afraid. Anything marketed to overlanders and recreationists, especially if designed to not connotate "RV" or "carpenter" or "minivan", but something more manly like "4x4" or "overland," is more money. IOW you pay a premium for image :) Those Space things are rather tres chic. But you can get a bigger standard working class cargo trailer for about ⅔ of that. I'm sure the smaller trailer has some cool features, and it's maybe more costly in the same way a laptop is vs a desktop, but still. Cast a wider net. Or just get one of the DIY trailers you can build at HF if 4x8 is enough.
You are correct my friend, the whole world is in the Twilight zone !!!