Camping season is getting close to being over. Mind you, with the Global Warming, perhaps we’ll be good into November this year.

Got a week off coming up and we are going to spend some of that out camping. Still a fireban in the south, so we’ll prolly go back to . . . → Read More: The time, she does fly…]]> I can’t believe that it’s August already!

Camping season is getting close to being over. Mind you, with the Global Warming, perhaps we’ll be good into November this year.

Got a week off coming up and we are going to spend some of that out camping. Still a fireban in the south, so we’ll prolly go back to Burt/Fallen Timber area. Had a good time there last weekend. Good trails, muskeg, some hills, nice camping spots.

Oh! Some wanker drove their SUV off the bridge up in the camp area. There are 2 single lane bridges with timber guard rails… Timber guard rails are inneffective   So yeah, bridge was closed and to get around it, as we were camping on the other side of it, we would have to drive up to Sundry! But we (someone who was not me) managed to sweet talk the Bridge Watcher into letting us pass. The bridge is shell property, and until they get civil engineers out to inspect, they closed the bridge and posted guards. Can’t argue with that logic, but it would have been a pain in the ass.

“Hey Mike…” you ask, ” What broke by the end of this trip?”. Good question! This trip brought failure in only one thing!! The water pump. The diaphram was already leaky, and now the pump motor runs at 1/2 speed or so… It’s replacement time…. $140 *cough* shit *cough* … but the new pump is in and working… pressure enough for a shower again.

We also ran out of propane, but that was expected… I carry 2 20lb tanks: one for trailers heat and fridge, the other for cooking. I also carry a couple of tiny tanks as spare for cooking when one runs out. Gonna get a 30lb tank for the camper now… it’s getting later in the season and the furnace will be running more. (Damn… hope that doesn’t break!)

So, just need to extend some propane lines, wash and clean the quads… (and perform a little routine maintenance) then we are ready to go again.

I loaded up the truck with firewood while out there… awesome. Fell’n trees is cool! (only standing deadfall) But with the trailer, and a loaded box, the truck is a little under powered… I don’t want to spend a whack of cash supe’n it up, so I think it’s time for an upgrade… (much to Wife’s excitement) I see a 3/4 ton HD diesel in my future. (next year…. next year)

Oh shit. Need to buy a maul. Axes are for chopping, mauls are for splitting! And they make you feel like a hero… wish I would have known about them years ago..

This last weekend, the leak in the sink got to a point where water was just running out the tap… I’ll either just get new washers for it or replace the whole thing. I’ll prolly replace the proprietary trailer taps with a generic small set. Like for a bar sink… . . . → Read More: Camping with an old trailer…]]> …is a lot harder than I thought.

This last weekend, the leak in the sink got to a point where water was just running out the tap… I’ll either just get new washers for it or replace the whole thing. I’ll prolly replace the proprietary trailer taps with a generic small set. Like for a bar sink… But then I’ll have to convert the grey tubing to white tubing.

The shitter water valve is also leaking… It’s leaking into the shower stall area, so it’s not all that bad, but your socks get wet. But I really don’t want to have to make due… so I’ll have to pull out the shitter again and try to find and fix the leak.

And finally…. sunday morning, getting ready for the final ride of the weekend, and we notice the blackwater tank is leaking. Awesome. To get at the tank, I’ll have to pull the camper off the trailer. That’s a day’s work right there… I might be able to cut out the boards of the trailer deck instead… but the camper is anchored to those boards, so who knows it it’s possible and what’s going to happen in the end..

good times. I’ll keep you posted.

I just finished welding up the mount for my spare trailer tire. Tomorrow it gets welded on . . . → Read More: May Long Pictures]]> Well, I guess I should have put these up a while ago, but here are a few pics of us on the May Long weekend quad trip to Dutch Creek. And a flower.

I just finished welding up the mount for my spare trailer tire. Tomorrow it gets welded on the trailer.

Anyhoo, I did get the quads on the trailer and hook it all up just to see how it would look in the end.

I just got the special tank nipple in yesterday, and I . . . → Read More: Getting close]]> I’ve been remiss in my trailer updating duties as of late… too busy working, welding, and quading… that’s a crappy alliteration

Anyhoo, I did get the quads on the trailer and hook it all up just to see how it would look in the end.

I just got the special tank nipple in yesterday, and I connected the two septic tanks together. (Did I mention I finally got the missing tank?!) So now I have to get the tanks under the camper, do the final hookups, a leak test, then weld it all down.
I’m hoping to get it all done saturday so I can take it out to McLean Creek on sunday. We’re going out for a boot on sunday if I’m done enough… may long is not too far away …

Let’s see… Friday, I puttered in the garage and worked on the mounting plate for Rhonda’s quad. Cut some metal, drilled some holes, did a test fitting. I then mangled the stupid control paddle that came with the winch. I pulled . . . → Read More: Weekend Long Gone]]> Another great weekend. I’ve been really lucky lately and had a string of really good weekends.

Let’s see… Friday, I puttered in the garage and worked on the mounting plate for Rhonda’s quad. Cut some metal, drilled some holes, did a test fitting. I then mangled the stupid control paddle that came with the winch. I pulled it apart and put the gooey bits into the hood of the quad. Basically, I mounted the buttons on the quad in an accessible location. Standard promise: I’ll post a pic when it’s done.

Saturday, we took the first quad trip of the year. McLean creek. It was excellent! A lot of puddles had ice bottoms still, and the muskeg was frozen, but we still found a good deal of mud. Nice and easy first run out. Wife did awesome!! I’m so happy about that, and she had a blast.

At the end of the day, we started to load up and Dan couldn’t find the keys to the lock on the trailer (the lock held the ramps in place, and without the ramps, it’s tough to load up ) turns out it’s really easy to snap a lock. I’m really surprised at how easy it was. Also turns out that the keys were not lost on the trail, but lost in the inner depths of the lining from a hole in a pocket. Whew! Minus 1 lock, but still, a good day.

Sunday… Quad check day. Start of the season, it’s always best to spend a bit of time going over kit to check for worn out bits, and etc. So, a good deal of twisting bolts off and on again in order to check things out. I needed new brakes all around, and inner tie rod ends. Wife’s need 1 outer tie rod end. Not bad really. Parts in this week and also going to change out the diff fluid and perhaps tranny fluid… see how ambitious I get. Oh, gotts to bleed the brakes too.

Monday I was going to take off work, but didn’t get the parts I needed for the camper, so I ended up going in and fixing bugs (woo hoo). I did get a ton done after work though… finished the oil change on the pressure washer (motor and pump). It was leaking oil when I was using it last sunday. ( We got home too late saturday to wash the quads, so I cleaned up on sunday) …so I started taking it apart to check things out. All the bolts were tight, so I just changed the oil. The leak could have been from the oil drain plug… we’ll see…

Also finished the mounting plate for Wife’s winch; Welded on the roller fairlead mounting plates, mounted the winch on the mounting plate, and put it all on the quad. Got a coat of paint on it too. Busy monday, that’s for sure. (Wife must have been really happy that I was working on her quad, she switched out my laundry!) I still have to wire the winch up yet, but then Wife’s quad is ready for action.

Now if I can just get all the gear I need for the camper!

Actually, starting from Wednesday last week went out for beers/munchies with Joel and Ronya. Haven’t had the families out together for prolly 5 years… was good to see them again. I think it’s been that long since Rhonda and I have done something social outside of beers in garage at neighbors. Don’t . . . → Read More: Weekend o’Welding]]> Had a really awesome weekend.

Actually, starting from Wednesday last week went out for beers/munchies with Joel and Ronya. Haven’t had the families out together for prolly 5 years… was good to see them again. I think it’s been that long since Rhonda and I have done something social outside of beers in garage at neighbors. Don’t get me wrong… I love weekend beers, but they are almost too easy. Making plans and special trips leads to more anticipation of good times. Anyhoo, it was a great time, much fun.

Friday night I put airbags on my truck. I took some pictures, but again, I forgot to take shots of the crucial steps, so I end up with just before and after shots. The fluid you see is soapy solution checking for leaks. I do have one mid-install shot but it really doesn’t show anything. I was checking the alignment of the supports before I drilled the holes in my frame. Neighbour Jason, who was helping me along with the install, ran home to grab me some chromies to cap the airbag fillers (which I’ve hidden in the gas cap um, …place.)

I was planning of taking snaps of the truck with the bags inflated and empty… It kinda does look like a hot rod. It used to be a lot worse, but I cranked up the torsion bars in the front for a poor mans lift. No pictures the camera is out of battery juice. Perhaps tomorrow.

Saturday got a bit of welding done. Specifically the side supports for the camper. With the help of my lovely wife, I was able to anchor the support to the camper, and all I have to do is weld it in place. But I need to wait for the septic tank to come in first… need to get underneath to install it, and can’t do that if the camper is welded to the trailer

A good bit of garage party on Saturday night meant a late start Sunday (even though I bailed, um, disappeared early in the night, I still slept late).

I was having trouble loading the quads since I added the fender-extender(tm). Couldn’t keep from raming the trailer with the quad. Trick is, I have to put one wheel on a fender, and one on the trailer porch/step/dealie. That’s not really all that much of a trick, but the climb up is a tough (steep) one. I have to gun it to climb up the fender-extender, and then hammer the brakes before I hit the trailer.

Again, not very good at that as witnessed by the holes in the camper. So, I added a short ramp to the fender-extender(tm) from the deck-widener (patent pending). It will all be covered in checker plate that I absconded from my neighbour: “I’m not going to say I told you so” Dan :p. I finished the other side’s ramp tonight, and gave it a healthy coat of Tremclad.

Tomorrow, I shall try to get some checker plate on. mmmmmm Checker plate…. I need a moment alone now.

So we did this last year with a tent…. and as . . . → Read More: The Trailer…]]> Since we moved out into the styx, my neighbours have introduced my wife and me to the joys of quading and camping. Free camping to be precise…. No campsite… you just pick a spot in a pre approved free camping area (like Dutch Creek)

So we did this last year with a tent…. and as much as I enjoyed my morning trek, shovel in hand, to befoul the woods, I’m going to enjoy having 4 walls and a door even more.

With that in mind, we began to search for a trailer… but with 2 quads, we need to have a way to haul them both and have a place to live. Only real option is a truck camper and a trailer or a tow behind camper and a flat deck for the truck.
I wasn’t keen on getting a flat deck, it raises you center of gravity, and it’s always on… can’t haul anything in the bed anymore. So all that left me was a truck camper and small trailer for the quads.

I’m not even going to mention the toy haulers that are more than 50k as I’d need a diesel duelie 1 ton to haul it….

Anyhoo, truck camper and trailer it is… but putting the camper in and out each trip is a lot of work. but good ole neighbour Dan came up with a solution… put the truck camper on a big flat deck with room for the quads… damn if I didn’t like that idea.

Ok, 10′ truck camper and a 20′ flatdeck would fit both quads: camper in the middle of the deck, one quad in front (under the overhang) and one behind. Great part about that, is you have a nice flat deck to set up a table/bbq on after you pull the quad off.

I was telling the father in law this one day, and he says “I got one of those I’m not using anymore… I’ll sell it to ya” wtf?! And here I thought Dan’s idea was the coolest/originalest thing around… as it turns out, there are a few of these contraptions around.

But back to the camper at hand…. it’s on a 16′ trailer, so we’ll have to put one quad in the back of the truck. Now that’s not bad, as weight in the truck is a good thing… especially on the crappier roads…. but the camper/trailer had some other modifications that needed attention (Sorry Dale)

and you know; I hate buying used… I just know i’m going to get screwed… I hate buying from family even more (money and family == bad ) but as it turns out, I’m a lazy, lazy fucker…. and there was a trailer righ there, just beggin to be bought, so we bought it.

Had to clean it up to get the quad under the front and to pull it off the trailer. Have to pull it because on her maiden voyage (Sort of a test flight) we discovered a a leak in the septic system.

So this camper was originally put on the trailer with a forklift or front end loader or something like that… All I had was the camper jacks. But I wouldn’t be able to jack up the camper and pull out the trailer… the front jacks were right in front of the tires… so I flipped the jack mounting bracket from pointing forward to pointing to the side… now the jack was beside the camper instead of right in front of it, but still didn’t clear the trailer tires.

So I added in an extender plate. Thanks to Brad The Welder for his contribution of cut-to-the-right-size 1/4″ x 6″ plate… beers to follow Brad… thanks again.

So here it is, ready to be jacked and the trailer pulled out. Just need to build a couple of saw horses to set it down on, and wait for the weather to break…

It’s snowing again…