Midnight LJR Build

[L J]

One of my favorites. It would move up several notches on that list if the owner wasn't such a wiener.

@L J ? The owner part, not the wiener part LOL.

 

[Midnight LJR]

View attachment 177069

How much travel do the front and rear coilovers have on that monster?

Does the belly sit at pretty much the same height as mine with the Currie 4” springs?

We need a few more details on it now that we found the owner.

 

[taylormade73]

How much travel do the front and rear coilovers have on that monster?

Does the belly sit at pretty much the same height as mine with the Currie 4” springs?

We need a few more details on it now that we found the owner.

You'll get none from his profile...secret agent man.

Edit: PM me the password to the secret club if you get it. I want to know more about the build too.

 

[L J]

How much travel do the front and rear coilovers have on that monster?

I believe it's 6" up 7" down front and rear (I may get verbally slapped by mrblaine for inaccuracy). He's has them setup by his shock tuner to allow 13" of travel from the 12" COs.

Does the belly sit at pretty much the same height as mine with the Currie 4” springs?

I'm measuring 17 3/4" to the lowest point (engine/transfer skid interface).

We need a few more details on it now that we found the owner.

No problem. Everything of note has been done by mrblaine so he may be more accurate than I am.

 

[AndrewLJR]

Thanks, I have been enjoying your build thread as well.

In regards to the fenders all Just leave this Jeep Blaine built here to inspire you.

Disclaimer: I don’t remember much about the Jeep or which thread I saved the picture from.

View attachment 177027

WOW. Now you've got me thinking raw aluminum Genrights would look great against Midnight Blue. Damn yall spend my money easily

 

[Midnight LJR]

WOW. Now you've got me thinking raw aluminum Genrights would look great against Midnight Blue. Damn yall spend my money easily

That’s what we are here for.

 

[mrblaine]

I believe it's 6" up 7" down front and rear (I may get verbally slapped by mrblaine for inaccuracy). He's has them setup by his shock tuner to allow 13" of travel from the 12" COs.



I'm measuring 17 3/4" to the lowest point (engine/transfer skid interface).



No problem. Everything of note has been done by mrblaine so he may be more accurate than I am.

We do get the shocks set up that way but not everyone will be able to. Unless your mounts are spot on, you run the risk of ruining the shock if you pull the spacer on the shaft.

Measure behind the front frame control arm mount to the ground and the same in the rear, front of the rear mount to the ground. Those are the numbers we go by.

 

[Midnight LJR]

We do get the shocks set up that way but not everyone will be able to. Unless your mounts are spot on, you run the risk of ruining the shock if you pull the spacer on the shaft.

Measure behind the front frame control arm mount to the ground and the same in the rear, front of the rear mount to the ground. Those are the numbers we go by.

So the High Line fenders allowed for the extra 1.5” of uptravel compared to mine? Then you had you had the Coilovers modified to allow you to get to get the extra down travel?

Not changing mine Just curious on what went into into it to allow the extra travel.

 

[mrblaine]

So the High Line fenders allowed for the extra 1.5” of uptravel compared to mine? Then you had you had the Coilovers modified to allow you to get to get the extra down travel?

Not changing mine Just curious on what went into into it to allow the extra travel.

I'm not limited by the spring travel with the coil overs.

 

[Midnight LJR]

I'm not limited by the spring travel with the coil overs.

I hadn’t thought about the fact that the springs where what was limiting the down travel. As always thanks for the Knowledge.

 

[Midnight LJR]

Ok, so trying to get a rough idea of how I want to do the rack on my trailer. I was going to keep it very simple and use it like a truck bed only. But the wife would like to try another roof top tent because she liked how comfortable the last one was. She in particular wants another one with an annex.

My last trailer had the tent mounted at full annex height all the time, which made it a little tippy feeling and it would not fit in the garage. So probably the most complicated part of the build will be the rack, the rest should basically be following the standard Dinoot plans.

Here are a few YouTube videos showing the basic idea.



Here is one where the guy used electric actuators, which I am not opposed to, I like the gas strut idea because of the simplicity but will do whichever works better.


I would like the rack to be as simple and as light as possible while still doing the job, it will likely also have an awning attached to one side. I would like to build the rack out of 1.5" O.D. tubing to tie everything in with the front bumper on the Jeep but am not sure if this will be way overkill.

I am envisioning something a lot like this red one. I t would be great to have something as low profile as this, that the gas struts or actuators had enough length of travel to raise the tent all the way up to the proper height for the annex. I won't know this height until the main trailer is built an we have decided on a tent. Which my wife wants for her birthday so we will be getting soon.

Here is a non-Dinoot that has a nice simple telescoping rack.

Here are a few more rack designs that don't telescope but are good to put here just for reference.

I also will likely do some matching 1.5" Tubing around the base of the trailer to protect the trailer in case I get in a little over my head.

The only other real design decision I have to make is the trailer is just about 16.5" deep, I have two different Dometic fridges that I bring with me depending on trip length, they are both 18.5" tall. So I will either need to build a hard cover for the trailer that raises that height or possible drop the floor down in a certain area just for the fridge. I am also considering building a custom tongue box for the fridge instead so I can get a simple cover and flat floor.

One other "wish" I have for the trailer is to to be able to use the hoist in my garage to lift the whole rack and tent off so I can reasonable quickly convert it back tot just a "truck bed" that might be dreaming though, we will see. On top of all this I need to keep it as light as possible.

 

[mrblaine]

Ok, so trying to get a rough idea of how I want to do the rack on my trailer. I was going to keep it very simple and use it like a truck bed only. But the wife would like to try another roof top tent because she liked how comfortable the last one was. She in particular wants another one with an annex.

My last trailer had the tent mounted at full annex height all the time, which made it a little tippy feeling and it would not fit in the garage. So probably the most complicated part of the build will be the rack, the rest should basically be following the standard Dinoot plans.

Here are a few YouTube videos showing the basic idea.



Here is one where the guy used electric actuators, which I am not opposed to, I like the gas strut idea because of the simplicity but will do whichever works better.


I would like the rack to be as simple and as light as possible while still doing the job, it will likely also have an awning attached to one side. I would like to build the rack out of 1.5" O.D. tubing to tie everything in with the front bumper on the Jeep but am not sure if this will be way overkill.

I am envisioning something a lot like this red one. I t would be great to have something as low profile as this, that the gas struts or actuators had enough length of travel to raise the tent all the way up to the proper height for the annex. I won't know this height until the main trailer is built an we have decided on a tent. Which my wife wants for her birthday so we will be getting soon.
View attachment 177207


Here is a non-Dinoot that has a nice simple telescoping rack.
View attachment 177208


Here are a few more rack designs that don't telescope but are good to put here just for reference.
View attachment 177209
View attachment 177210

View attachment 177211


I also will likely do some matching 1.5" Tubing around the base of the trailer to protect the trailer in case I get in a little over my head.
View attachment 177212
View attachment 177214

The only other real design decision I have to make is the trailer is just about 16.5" deep, I have two different Dometic fridges that I bring with me depending on trip length, they are both 18.5" tall. So I will either need to build a hard cover for the trailer that raises that height or possible drop the floor down in a certain area just for the fridge. I am also considering building a custom tongue box for the fridge instead so I can get a simple cover and flat floor.

One other "wish" I have for the trailer is to to be able to use the hoist in my garage to lift the whole rack and tent off so I can reasonable quickly convert it back tot just a "truck bed" that might be dreaming though, we will see. On top of all this I need to keep it as light as possible.

Not that it matters right now, but the trailer with the gas springs on each leg has them mounted upside down. The shaft always points down to keep the seals lubricated.

One thing that will help is to keep the telescoping tubes a fairly sloppy fit. If you get them really tight and precise, aligning all four legs so they won't bind when they move is next to impossible.

You also want the large tube on top and drains at the base. If you put the small one on top like the pics show most of them, water and dirt will get in there and make a mess. Small tube on the bottom really slows that down.

 

[bobthetj03]

Putting the fridge on the tongue is a good idea. You need some tongue weight up front as the axle tends to be in the center of the trailer and likes to wag at higher speeds if you don't have some weight up front. Shifting the axle to the rear of the tub would help also, but throws off the proportions of the trailer IMO.

 

[Midnight LJR]

I was able to get the trailer frame nearly finished today. I ran out of welding wire before I could do the final welds on the spring hangers and weld on the body mounts. After that all I have to do is drill the the holes for the body mounts, and for the receiver in the front. The axle will be here next week and I will have a roller!

For anyone curious it is built our of 2"x2" .120 Wall Square tubing, 2.5" Receiver Tube, and 2"x2"- 3/16" Angle Iron.

Side Note: Can anyone recommend good drill bits? I don't mind paying for them but every time I have to drill though thick metal like the receiver tube it is miserable and just seems to destroy the bits I get at Home Depot. I would like to order some good ones before I drill them.

The most exciting news today was I had a phone conversation with Blaine and he walked me through a way to do the tent rack with linear actuators that I think is just going to be incredible and work so well. I can't thank him enough. its really going to make this thing amazing.

 

[Daryl]

I was able to get the trailer frame nearly finished today. I ran out of welding wire before I could do the final welds on the spring hangers and weld on the body mounts. After that all I have to do is drill the the holes for the body mounts, and for the receiver in the front. The axle will be here next week and I will have a roller!

For anyone curious it is built our of 2"x2" .120 Wall Square tubing, 2.5" Receiver Tube, and 2"x2"- 3/16" Angle Iron.

Side Note: Can anyone recommend good drill bits? I don't mind paying for them but every time I have to drill though thick metal like the receiver tube it is miserable and just seems to destroy the bits I get at Home Depot. I would like to order some good ones before I drill them.

The most exciting news today was I had a phone conversation with Blaine and he walked me through a way to do the tent rack with linear actuators that I think is just going to be incredible and work so well. I can't thank him enough. its really going to make this thing amazing.

View attachment 177386
View attachment 177385

Nice work! As far as drill bits, Viking brand is a good value, that’s what I’ve always used.

Viking Drill and Tool by Norseman 66480 SPM-29 Type 250-UB 135 Degree Split Point Magnum Sup Premium Mechanical Drill Set (29 Piece) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001C92C04/?tag=wranglerorg-20

 

[BuildBreakRepeat]

I was able to get the trailer frame nearly finished today. I ran out of welding wire before I could do the final welds on the spring hangers and weld on the body mounts. After that all I have to do is drill the the holes for the body mounts, and for the receiver in the front. The axle will be here next week and I will have a roller!

For anyone curious it is built our of 2"x2" .120 Wall Square tubing, 2.5" Receiver Tube, and 2"x2"- 3/16" Angle Iron.

Side Note: Can anyone recommend good drill bits? I don't mind paying for them but every time I have to drill though thick metal like the receiver tube it is miserable and just seems to destroy the bits I get at Home Depot. I would like to order some good ones before I drill them.

The most exciting news today was I had a phone conversation with Blaine and he walked me through a way to do the tent rack with linear actuators that I think is just going to be incredible and work so well. I can't thank him enough. its really going to make this thing amazing.

View attachment 177386
View attachment 177385

Are you drilling slow and using lots of oil?

 

[Alex01]

I was able to get the trailer frame nearly finished today. I ran out of welding wire before I could do the final welds on the spring hangers and weld on the body mounts. After that all I have to do is drill the the holes for the body mounts, and for the receiver in the front. The axle will be here next week and I will have a roller!

For anyone curious it is built our of 2"x2" .120 Wall Square tubing, 2.5" Receiver Tube, and 2"x2"- 3/16" Angle Iron.

Side Note: Can anyone recommend good drill bits? I don't mind paying for them but every time I have to drill though thick metal like the receiver tube it is miserable and just seems to destroy the bits I get at Home Depot. I would like to order some good ones before I drill them.

The most exciting news today was I had a phone conversation with Blaine and he walked me through a way to do the tent rack with linear actuators that I think is just going to be incredible and work so well. I can't thank him enough. its really going to make this thing amazing.

View attachment 177386
View attachment 177385

At this rate you may have it ready for this weekend. It looks great!!

 

[Midnight LJR]

Are you drilling slow and using lots of oil?

I feel like I was drilling slow but might need to focus on that more. I do try to use whatever oils I have around the garage to keep it cool. Is there a certain kind I should use? Honestly, I drill through thick metal so infrequently I always just kind of wing it, but I have nine holes to drill through some thick metal so figure its time to learn to do it right.

 

[bobthetj03]

Put a receiver out the back for accessories, or additional stabilizer.
Drill bits, Tifco or Rockmount if you can order via their websites.

 

[Daryl]

I feel like I was drilling slow but might need to focus on that more. I do try to use whatever oils I have around the garage to keep it cool. Is there a certain kind I should use? Honestly, I drill through thick metal so infrequently I always just kind of wing it, but I have nine holes to drill through some thick metal so figure its time to learn to do it right.

Drill & tap fluid works best. It has a consistency of STP. I’ve been happy with rapid tap.

Rapid Tap Heavy Duty Cutting Fluid 4 Ounce https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00065V026/?tag=wranglerorg-20