Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2018. Camping is one of the most enjoyable aspects of overland travel—nothing beats pulling up to a remote lake with no other vehicles or buildings in sight. Certainly, sleeping in the wild can be a simple affair, using a bedroll unfurled beneath the stars….
MaxTrax Extreme :: First Field Test
“Expedition Portal gets a first look at the newest, and most durable MaxTrax yet.” I remember the first time we really, really, really needed Maxtrax. The Expeditions 7 team was deep into the Canning Stock Route in Australia and encountered a half-mile long, water-logged track. We had already been stuck many times that day, but…
2018 Holiday Gift Guide $300+
It’s hard to believe that December is already halfway gone, meaning there is precious little time left before the holidays. Of course, by this time you’ve probably got most of your gifts for friends and family sorted out, but if you haven’t, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered with two lists of great outdoor ideas….
Last Minute Holiday Gifts For Your Overlander
You’re sitting in your office, counting down the days until the holiday break when all of a sudden it hits you, you’re almost out of time for gifts! Frantically, you try to figure out what to buy. Well, fret not, as we have two giant lists of last-minute products for the outdoor enthusiast in your…
Letting the Air Out
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2017. There’s no debating the advantages of matching tire pressure to terrain. Decreasing psi is the most effective way to extract that last measure of traction from your tires. Doing so not only increases deformation and flotation, but also improves comfort over rough surfaces…
Field Tested: Eezi-Awn Stealth
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2017. Everyone loves the idea of a tree house, and for the overlander, few things resonate as much with this concept as the rooftop tent (RTT), a comfortable and elevated retreat from the creepy crawlies and uneven terrain below. I ordered my very first…
Home on the Range – The Overland Journal Trailer Test
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Winter 2018. Photography by Chris Cordes The trailer listed hard to the side, the 44-inch tire deep into the crevasse, the Hilux’s frame broken, and a tire peeled from the bead. The Expeditions 7 team had just crossed Greenland and was now fighting for every…
Dual Battery Systems For Overlanding
Overland Journal explores the latest battery separator technology.
Gear Scout: Brake Light Antenna Mount
We’re always fans of simple products developed with a little ingenuity, especially when they solve rather annoying problems. Case in point, this flush mount antenna bracket for your rear brake light. It was originally designed by Neal Technologies for the new Ford trucks, as the magnetic mounts wouldn’t stick to their aluminum body panels, and drilling…
Old Dogs, New Tricks: Testing Cummins R2.8 Turbo Diesel Crate Engine
I settle into the driver’s seat of a clean 1996 Toyota FZJ80 and ask Stephen Sanders, program leader for the Cummins Repower Crate Engine Program if I should keep the RPMs below a certain mark, stick to predetermined highway speeds, or mind some shift points on the hills. A heavy black data wire exits from…
Get a Grip
We test the latest traction devices and bridging ladders.
Shovels 101
Our resident archaeologist digs into the best shovels for overland vehicles.
Life in a Go Fast Camper
I think in order to understand where we are going, it is best to know where we have been. With that in mind, I want to start by addressing a question I’ve been getting a lot lately, “Why the switch?” For those of you that don’t know, I had a Flippac for quite a while before getting…
Warn Elite Series Bumper for Jeep JL
There have been mountains of new products being developed for the Jeep JL lately, and last week, Warn Industries threw their hat into the ring with a new line of bumpers for the platform. They’re a part of their Elite Series, and each has been designed to match the JL’s modern styling cues while retaining…
The New Lower Priced LP9 Sport
I’d say more than a few of us were excited when Baja Designs released the LP9. We fell in love with their modern looks, high output, ducted cooling, and of course that 200-degree beam spread, but then there was the price. At full retail, a set of two would cost over $1,200 USD, and that’s…
Ruffwear Products for Your Roverlander
By Ruby the Adventure Dog Hi, I am Ruby, and I love adventure. That scar by my left eye was from a tussle with a rattlesnake! Read to the end to find out more about our first annual Roverlander of the Year contest and win some cool swag for your pup! If you’re going to…
The Best Seat in the House: Scheel-Mann Vario F XXL
We evaluate a lot of gear here at Expedition Portal and Overland Journal. Tents, trucks, bags, fridges, and recovery equipment are regularly used and reviewed by our team, and normally the write-ups are pretty straightforward. We cover their specifications, talk about our expectations, and determine how well the product ended up meeting them. But today…
Field Tested: KLIM Badlands
KLIM updates their classic adventure suit with new armor and a more refined style.
BFGoodrich KM3 Review
In 1980, BFGoodrich introduced an unconventional tire that would forever change the way we thought about off-road traction. They called it the T/A Mud-Terrain, “T/A” borrowed from their successful line of street-performance offerings, and the latter for the type of terrain it would call home. It was the first such tire with an aggressive tread…
The Traveler’s Tree House
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Gear Guide 2016. The mere mention of the word overlanding is often enough to evoke images of sunsets on the Serengeti, the silhouette of a truck marked for adventure by the outline of a roof top tent. Although roof sleeping is not commensurate with overlanding,…