Who’s Overlanding the Ranger?

[ChiptheRescueRanger]

WhAT SIZE HC do you have? I really like the adventure series I picked up, but I’m wanting to upgrade next year to a larger 63 or 80 high country so I can fit the whole fam.

It

WhAT SIZE HC do you have? I really like the adventure series I picked up, but I’m wanting to upgrade next year to a larger 63 or 80 high country so I can fit the whole fam.

Hey There,

Sorry for the late reply here. It's 63 and don't think I could go any smaller now. Had a Wildland( Odissey 55) before and it totally transformed the sleeping experience.

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[randomXY]

Currently working on the camper interior build out. I’ve installed BuiltRight paneks and a cougar organization bags. Will have the HiLift and a few other essentials mounted shortly.


Next up, we’re going to build a raised floor which will accommodate our camping essentials under the floor. We’re using Radius outfitters soft-side cases to organize everything.


As we build out tge floor, we’ll be wiring up 175 watts of Renogy solar and a 100ah lithium battery along with an MPPT/DC-2-DC charger are in the garage to power my National Luna fridge. A 10 gallon water tank and pump will give us pressurized water. LED lighting courtesy of madCap will have us well lit up at night.

Nice - this answers my unasked question about using Builtright panels with a GFC v2. Looking forward to seeing your solar setup.

 

[cburson]

From Cali, we went straight to Montana to pickup our GFC v2.

Great build. Once my '22 comes in I will be headed to GFC for my camper and I was considering the APG mid-runner kit. How much weight do you have in your bed and do you get any sag with the HD deaver/apg springs?

I was pretty sold on it but another user here looked like he had pretty bad sag in the rear with the mid-runner and a vagabond wedge camper. I would expect to have 600 lbs constant in my Supercab bed and more for trips.

 

[XL_Ranger_Danger]

So I was recently at "Overlandswap" hosted in Long Beach, CA (west side industrial park). Met a dude named Leif who owns a company called Enduro Campers. They are in the same market space as GFC for wedge campers. Slightly more expensive, but based on the specs, much better insulation properties for the camper.

Again, I'm not a partner or anything, these are just my impressions from their demo rig (006), but it's basically a GFC but built out of composite materials used in marine applications instead of extruded aluminium base that GFC uses.

They are based in San Luis Obispo, so for those who don't want to make the trek out to Montanna, this might fit your bill.

For me I like the classic version that mimics the style of the 4Wheel Camper set up, I like the larger head space over the wedge design.

 

[Yama_Ranger]

Great build. Once my '22 comes in I will be headed to GFC for my camper and I was considering the APG mid-runner kit. How much weight do you have in your bed and do you get any sag with the HD deaver/apg springs?

I was pretty sold on it but another user here looked like he had pretty bad sag in the rear with the mid-runner and a vagabond wedge camper. I would expect to have 600 lbs constant in my Supercab bed and more for trips.

Getting springs right is so tricky if you don’t get your truck loaded and weighed and then have custom springs done to that spec.

For sake of being thorough, my setup includes weight reduction through APG carbon fiber bedsides and fenders along with alloy bumpers and AWE exhaust. So, my start point of sprung weight, particularly in the rear of the truck is a little lighter than stock.

Rear is sprung on APG HD springs (deaver built) rated for approx an extra 500lbs continuous in bed.

Up front, I’m runng 700 lb springs with minimum required preload.

Truck sits level with:
GFC (255 lbs)
Rigd Ultraswing (~150 lbs)
Camping and random gear (~200-300 lbs)

Trucks is nose high when I add 1up 2-bike rack and 2 MTB’s. Approx 100 lbs but way off the back.

Right now, I’m focusing on weight distribution as that hugely influences squat and handling. Hopefully I’ll have that done in the spring in preparation for a big Baja trip.

So, it’s close but not perfect. I may need to swap to 650lb springs up front and/or add a little more steel to the rear springs.

Just goes to show, you can blow a lot of money on fancy suspension and still not get it right. I always recommend custom springs for best results.

Lastly, I believe the Vagabond is a bit heavier than GFCv2

 

[cburson]

Getting springs right is so tricky if you don’t get your truck loaded and weighed and then have custom springs done to that spec.

For sake of being thorough, my setup includes weight reduction through APG carbon fiber bedsides and fenders along with alloy bumpers and AWE exhaust. So, my start point of sprung weight, particularly in the rear of the truck is a little lighter than stock.

Rear is sprung on APG HD springs (deaver built) rated for approx an extra 500lbs continuous in bed.

Up front, I’m runng 700 lb springs with minimum required preload.

Truck sits level with:
GFC (255 lbs)
Rigd Ultraswing (~150 lbs)
Camping and random gear (~200-300 lbs)

Trucks is nose high when I add 1up 2-bike rack and 2 MTB’s. Approx 100 lbs but way off the back.

Right now, I’m focusing on weight distribution as that hugely influences squat and handling. Hopefully I’ll have that done in the spring in preparation for a big Baja trip.

So, it’s close but not perfect. I may need to swap to 650lb springs up front and/or add a little more steel to the rear springs.

Just goes to show, you can blow a lot of money on fancy suspension and still not get it right. I always recommend custom springs for best results.

Lastly, I believe the Vagabond is a bit heavier than GFCv2

Great information and well thought out. Thanks. Old Man Emu is the other spring I was interested in, but I wish they had an option between 650 lbs and 1300 lbs. It's difficult to estimate your weight because it seems to be ever evolving. Thanks again.

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