Hemtt use
Ok everyone. I thought i would join the site to answer some questions. Thanks for both positive and negative comments. First of all, above the cab and motor is just a aluminum rack for my second spare and other gear. The diamond plate on the sides is only temporary and is being replaced with more aluminum tubing. The rack is fully removable for access to the motor and trans in case we ever need to pull them. The tread plate in the front above the windshield will stay however because it deflects wind up over the body.
Second, let me give you some insight into the build. I admit it is plan b as we were hoping to have a body custom built by GXV, but $ restraints made me think of plan b. The build is only 3/4 done and sorry that the final paint etc has not come together yet- again these things take some $!The truck it self is a 1983 with 10k miles on it that i got from a collector in Kentucky. I chose that as a platform because of it's load capacity and offroad capability because it is goiing to be used as a base for adventure sports. Don't worry it won't be a "waste of the hemtt's talents" because it will either be in deep snow accessing lower snowfields where we can base for skiing/ climbing excursions, remote beach access for surf in areas like Baja, or in the western deserts for river approaches, dirtbike riding etc. The trailer was a roadmaster predator which are known to be based on cargo and stronger then regular rv type toyhaulers. It has a full steel cage and a rear ramp that holds 4000lbs. The back 11 feet is garage and the front 14 is living area/kitchen/bath. The conversion required the removal of the grey and black water which i now have in a steel heated and insulated box on the passenger side. When complete the garage will hold a mountain snowmobile, a motocross bike and a street legal grocery getter enduro. Also it will have a inflateable river boat with motor also for lake crossings, accessing waves fro surf and of course fish. Interior racks will also hold all the skis, snowboards, kite boards, windsurf gear etc.
Ok so why a Hemtt? After having a few lesser vehicles, i wanted something that could handle the payload comfortably and was long enough so i could have the garage. I did not want a trailer behind the rig for obvious offroad reasons and wanted all the gear to be out of sight. Also Detroit diesel and allison trans are easily worked on and parts readily available and US made. Sure it only gets 3-4 miles per gallon and tops out at 60, but look at where i can go and what i am bringing with me. The vehicle fully loaded with all the gear, fluids etc will weigh close to 50,000 lbs, but that is well below the gvwr of 68 k. Right now it is at about 44,000 lbs, but eventually we will add another fuel tank and all the other mentioned above to approach the 50. And yes, i did check the fuel consumption on my 1000 mile trip to colorado and it ended up at 3.8 miles to the gallon. Specs say 2-3 miles to the gallon but that is averaged over all sorts of terrain mostly off road. It still hurts at the pump, but you have to remember where it can go and what you are hauling.
The rig is restricted to where it can go with it's turning radius, height13'3", and length(38 ft) so no real tight switchbacks and low canopies, but normally accessing alpine environments are on logging roads which were built for fairly large trucks, most of our surf will be in remote areas of baja, and the hemtt is at home in the western desert areas.
So all in all it will be a base to live out of for my wife and I in areas that most people only dream of. We will also use it for support for Best of Both Adventures which is our adventure company. If we are not at our home in the Andes of Patagonia, we hope to be in the rig. Sure we wanted the full blown expedition vehicle, but compromises had to be made to be able to pull it off. The chasis is the most important which gets you there and back and the living quarters/garage has proven to be pretty comfortable.
Cheers and keep rolling.
