Going to use this to track the progress on my new 1981 FWC pop-up for my 87 K5 with 5.3/4L65E/NP208. Working on rebuilding and swapping in an NP241 with SYE.
My Wife and I drove from OKC, OK to Goldbar, WA to pick up the camper. Unfortunately, it was quite a bit more rough than we had thought / hoped. Ideally we would camp in it for a couple years, but it needs a full tear down.
The front wall was getting damaged from the wind and camper flexing with all the rotted wood on our trip back. The ceiling took a beating too from the wind. We are hoping the frame is still good and the issue is just cosmetic.
The whole trip was over 4,000 miles and unfortunately U-haul refused to do a one way rental on their 6x12 trailers (which were the only ones that would fit a standard topper). So I had to drag the 2200 lb trailer the whole way there and back. This was our first big trip with the truck after replacing the transmission with a 4L65E and re-doing the LS swap harness. I had put a couple hundred miles and 2 tank fulls through the truck driving it on shorter trips and giving it a shake down, but this was definitely a whole different thing. Over all I was really impressed with the truck. Our only real issue was the T-case still has a pretty good leak and the radiator cap failed in Limon, CO. Luckily we still had most of the coolant in the system, so topped if off and wasted a bunch of time to make sure there wasn't any air in the system. Then we drove to the nearest auto store which was in Aurora, CO.
I honestly lost track of how long it took us to get there and back. I know our first day was supposed to be ~ 14 hours and it took a little over 17 hours with very quick pit stops for fuel other than the radiator cap incident. I think the whole trip was pretty close to 71 - 75 hours of just drive time. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to hook up and test the cruise prior to leaving. We also don't have AC at the moment.
On the way back, as soon as we left I realized we were really going to have to slow down with the camper. We went through a construction zone and there was a couple of bumps that were like rounded off ramps that sent us into orbit. I am pretty positive both axles left the ground as we bounced over the worst section. Any time there was a double "whoop" section I really had to slow down and keep the front axle loaded to reduce the extreme rebound. I definitely need to move the front and rear bump stops. The truck didn't do too badly if the road was smooth and mostly straight, or if the wind was steady. However, it was straight up scary going through some of the twisty mountain roads, storms, and heavy winds. We actually had to run 40-60 MPH most of the way from WA to CO due to body roll, sway, and the truck getting into a bobble back and forth that just couldn't be corrected. We hit a big storm outside of Ogden, UT that was blowing over the construction signs and I was actually scared at that time, it took every thing I had to keep the truck under control at 40 MPH. I was so stressed out from driving the truck in bad conditions. Luckily the guys at ORD (Off-Road Design) saved us with their aftermarket front swaybar. The sway bar made all the difference in the world. Driving through the rest of CO, NM, TX and into OK we hit some major wind and dust devils and the truck was easily controlled. It still has some body roll and drives like a lifted truck, but it doesn't feel unstable or unsafe at all now. I also plan to move the upper shock mounts for the front to a better location because I know they are not ideal at the moment.
Day 1 we left Bethany (OKC), OK to head for a buddies house in Saratoga, WY.
Day 2 we drove from Saratoga to Pendelton, OR
Day 3 Pendelton to Goldbar, WA to pick up the camper. Then drove from Goldbar to Ellensburg. We hoped to make it to the top of Stevens Pass Hwy in time to watch the sunset over the mountains, but it was pitch black by the time we got even half way up the mountain.
Day 4 Ellensburg, WA to Ogden, UT.
Day 5 Ogden UT, to ORD in Carbondale, CO. We took Independence Pass through Aspen to Twin lakes and stopped for the night in Buena Vista, CO. Stopped off at Eddieline Brewing for some great pizza and beers to go.
Day 6 Buena Vista to Guthrie, OK to pick up the topper I plan to use for a front seal on the FWC. Then home to Bethany, OK.
Not sure why Google wont cooperate, it keeps freaking out about an intermittent road closure on Independence Pass, but its open to vehicles less than 35+ feet. Our truck and trailer measured in at 34 feet so we took the route. Had no issues and drove slow to be safe. It was absolutely beautiful up on the mountain and it was the best day of our trip by far. We knew from UT to OK was going to take 2 days and the stop at ORD was so quick we were able to spend a little time enjoying the drive and stopping off for something other than fast food for the first time all week lol.
I am still getting used to the upload tools and attaching photos here. It's kind of painful lol. I have a link to the album below with the routes we took and other pics of the camper installed on the truck before full tear down and rebuild.
https://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/gallery/image/21963-img-20200828-144130/
My Wife and I drove from OKC, OK to Goldbar, WA to pick up the camper. Unfortunately, it was quite a bit more rough than we had thought / hoped. Ideally we would camp in it for a couple years, but it needs a full tear down.
The front wall was getting damaged from the wind and camper flexing with all the rotted wood on our trip back. The ceiling took a beating too from the wind. We are hoping the frame is still good and the issue is just cosmetic.
The whole trip was over 4,000 miles and unfortunately U-haul refused to do a one way rental on their 6x12 trailers (which were the only ones that would fit a standard topper). So I had to drag the 2200 lb trailer the whole way there and back. This was our first big trip with the truck after replacing the transmission with a 4L65E and re-doing the LS swap harness. I had put a couple hundred miles and 2 tank fulls through the truck driving it on shorter trips and giving it a shake down, but this was definitely a whole different thing. Over all I was really impressed with the truck. Our only real issue was the T-case still has a pretty good leak and the radiator cap failed in Limon, CO. Luckily we still had most of the coolant in the system, so topped if off and wasted a bunch of time to make sure there wasn't any air in the system. Then we drove to the nearest auto store which was in Aurora, CO.
I honestly lost track of how long it took us to get there and back. I know our first day was supposed to be ~ 14 hours and it took a little over 17 hours with very quick pit stops for fuel other than the radiator cap incident. I think the whole trip was pretty close to 71 - 75 hours of just drive time. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to hook up and test the cruise prior to leaving. We also don't have AC at the moment.
On the way back, as soon as we left I realized we were really going to have to slow down with the camper. We went through a construction zone and there was a couple of bumps that were like rounded off ramps that sent us into orbit. I am pretty positive both axles left the ground as we bounced over the worst section. Any time there was a double "whoop" section I really had to slow down and keep the front axle loaded to reduce the extreme rebound. I definitely need to move the front and rear bump stops. The truck didn't do too badly if the road was smooth and mostly straight, or if the wind was steady. However, it was straight up scary going through some of the twisty mountain roads, storms, and heavy winds. We actually had to run 40-60 MPH most of the way from WA to CO due to body roll, sway, and the truck getting into a bobble back and forth that just couldn't be corrected. We hit a big storm outside of Ogden, UT that was blowing over the construction signs and I was actually scared at that time, it took every thing I had to keep the truck under control at 40 MPH. I was so stressed out from driving the truck in bad conditions. Luckily the guys at ORD (Off-Road Design) saved us with their aftermarket front swaybar. The sway bar made all the difference in the world. Driving through the rest of CO, NM, TX and into OK we hit some major wind and dust devils and the truck was easily controlled. It still has some body roll and drives like a lifted truck, but it doesn't feel unstable or unsafe at all now. I also plan to move the upper shock mounts for the front to a better location because I know they are not ideal at the moment.
Day 1 we left Bethany (OKC), OK to head for a buddies house in Saratoga, WY.
Day 2 we drove from Saratoga to Pendelton, OR
Day 3 Pendelton to Goldbar, WA to pick up the camper. Then drove from Goldbar to Ellensburg. We hoped to make it to the top of Stevens Pass Hwy in time to watch the sunset over the mountains, but it was pitch black by the time we got even half way up the mountain.
Day 4 Ellensburg, WA to Ogden, UT.
Day 5 Ogden UT, to ORD in Carbondale, CO. We took Independence Pass through Aspen to Twin lakes and stopped for the night in Buena Vista, CO. Stopped off at Eddieline Brewing for some great pizza and beers to go.
Day 6 Buena Vista to Guthrie, OK to pick up the topper I plan to use for a front seal on the FWC. Then home to Bethany, OK.
Not sure why Google wont cooperate, it keeps freaking out about an intermittent road closure on Independence Pass, but its open to vehicles less than 35+ feet. Our truck and trailer measured in at 34 feet so we took the route. Had no issues and drove slow to be safe. It was absolutely beautiful up on the mountain and it was the best day of our trip by far. We knew from UT to OK was going to take 2 days and the stop at ORD was so quick we were able to spend a little time enjoying the drive and stopping off for something other than fast food for the first time all week lol.
I am still getting used to the upload tools and attaching photos here. It's kind of painful lol. I have a link to the album below with the routes we took and other pics of the camper installed on the truck before full tear down and rebuild.
https://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/gallery/image/21963-img-20200828-144130/
