fubar
Adventurer
I haven't been very active on the forum for the last few years as there has been little to report and few issues to address. After spending most of the long weekend addressing maintenance and wear-and-tear stuff, I thought I'd post up with an update.
I was one of the folks to get the $5K deal in Feb '09. I had decided to go AT and was going back and forth between the Chaser and the Horizon. This deal came up and , knowing the risks, I decided to take the leap (more on that later).
Transport from ATL to NorCal was only mild drama and the trailer arrived as advertised except for a trashed tent cover. It was improperly secured for the cross country trip and took it tough. After ZERO support from the seller (shocking) I repaired it myself with patches and silicone.
First Mods:
Replaced tires - The originals we OK, but old. Decided to be safe.
Service Convertor/PDU - Messy rats nest. Did the best I could to clean it up without a manual (more on that later)
Moved Wolf-Pacs to the other side. Just made sense to me
Replaced hatch struts - Lots of drama there. Finally found something that worked.
Replaced battery - Died after first outing. Likely related to converter.
Found propane tanks.
Used it well for the first year without any issues. Towed great behind my FJ Cruiser, but you could tell it was there.
Second Mods:
Replaced the axle with 3500 lbs local piece. I could not find replacement bearings for the original and was considering getting electric brakes. Ended up not getting the brakes because I changed my tow vehicle to a Ford F150. That little thing is not pushing my truck around.
I ended up taking the trailer all over the western US with no issues. Some places I never should have...
This year did a Overland Expo and associated pre-trip. The trailer was great until it smoked the power converter and melted the DC line to the fridge (without blowing the breaker). All other systems we unaffected and I replaced the converter and wiring this weekend. I also followed XJBankers approach on Perma-Dri'ing my tent cover.
All in all, I have to say this has been an interesting project and has had had pretty good return on investment. The *complete* lack of dealer/manufacturer support have added delays and frustration to my experience. If I had it to do again, I would have spent the money at Adventure Trailers on the Horizon.
That said...it is, after all, just a box on wheels. It does all I ask of it and more. After drooling my way through all the options at OEX, I intend to keep this little guy. I shall attempt to embrace the "project" aspects and just enjoy.
Cheers. I'll check in NLT another 5 years.
I was one of the folks to get the $5K deal in Feb '09. I had decided to go AT and was going back and forth between the Chaser and the Horizon. This deal came up and , knowing the risks, I decided to take the leap (more on that later).
Transport from ATL to NorCal was only mild drama and the trailer arrived as advertised except for a trashed tent cover. It was improperly secured for the cross country trip and took it tough. After ZERO support from the seller (shocking) I repaired it myself with patches and silicone.
First Mods:
Replaced tires - The originals we OK, but old. Decided to be safe.
Service Convertor/PDU - Messy rats nest. Did the best I could to clean it up without a manual (more on that later)
Moved Wolf-Pacs to the other side. Just made sense to me
Replaced hatch struts - Lots of drama there. Finally found something that worked.
Replaced battery - Died after first outing. Likely related to converter.
Found propane tanks.
Used it well for the first year without any issues. Towed great behind my FJ Cruiser, but you could tell it was there.
Second Mods:
Replaced the axle with 3500 lbs local piece. I could not find replacement bearings for the original and was considering getting electric brakes. Ended up not getting the brakes because I changed my tow vehicle to a Ford F150. That little thing is not pushing my truck around.
I ended up taking the trailer all over the western US with no issues. Some places I never should have...
This year did a Overland Expo and associated pre-trip. The trailer was great until it smoked the power converter and melted the DC line to the fridge (without blowing the breaker). All other systems we unaffected and I replaced the converter and wiring this weekend. I also followed XJBankers approach on Perma-Dri'ing my tent cover.
All in all, I have to say this has been an interesting project and has had had pretty good return on investment. The *complete* lack of dealer/manufacturer support have added delays and frustration to my experience. If I had it to do again, I would have spent the money at Adventure Trailers on the Horizon.
That said...it is, after all, just a box on wheels. It does all I ask of it and more. After drooling my way through all the options at OEX, I intend to keep this little guy. I shall attempt to embrace the "project" aspects and just enjoy.
Cheers. I'll check in NLT another 5 years.