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What’s your camping setups for DIY hunts

"Redneck Wagon".
Ain't sophisticated like that Ssnyper.
Keeps us dry and warm though.

Looking forward to this season!
Ready for that cooking FO SHO !!

@swampsnyper @denots @Squirrel79USAVet
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Just welded my stabilizer feet on today then went inside and the pvc waterline had busted and the filter that went to the water pump. I had drained all the lines but had a trap area that held water and I don’t know how to keep water out of the filter in the pump. I sure hope that all that broke. Guess I’ll find out once I fix it and pressure back up. Going back with pex.
 
I have my camper rigged to run on 12v. I have a plug in if I want to plug into shore power and it will power my battery charger and an electric heater. Same plug can plug into a genny. Everything in my cargo trailer runs on 12v. So if I have no power, 2 12v batteries this year never drained down for 2 weeks powering only led lights & water pump. I crack a window and use a buddy heater connected to a propane tank outside. That same propane port heats my on demand water heater. Alway crack a window if you are using a gas heater. And install a CO alarm. I installed a bathroom sink, toilet and shower, 60gal water holding tank, full size bunk beds, exhaust fan in the bathroom and a super exhaust fan in the general area that will suck air through the open windows and feel like AC at night, but the fans draw a lot of watts and I don’t use them unless I can charge my batteries.
Some pics are older. I’ve been updating through the years.

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Did you end up taking the shower and toilet out of the trailer?
 
I'm hoping to film my setup this weekend. Its taken a few years but I feel I've really dialed in a good balance of comfort, easy setup, and affordability. I spent probably 8 nights in it last year and slept like a baby. Was warm in the cold and cool in the hot, and could stand up and get dressed and have a cup of coffee while it was pouring rain. Beat the heck out of the old sleep-in-the-back trick i usually pull.
Video out yet??
 
I love my setup.

There are pros and cons to every camp/tent/truck setup.

I think a truck bed setup like mine is unbeatable for quick 1-3 day hunts.

For longer 5-10 day hunts, I think a tent is better. But it also depends on how much you're moving around. If you have a 10 day hunt, but you expect to change camp sites every few days, I'd give the edge to a truck bed camper.

Either way works.

The flip side is that I absolutely LOVE the camper shell for everyday life. Like many of you guys, I've driven a truck for over 20 years. I've had open beds, and several different tonneau covers on mid-size and full-size trucks. This is my first camper shell and I don't think I'll be going back. Other than cost, there are very few downsides.

I also found a pretty cool pop-up style tent (think pop-up weather proof ground blind) called the gazelle. I'll be using it the next time I go on a longer hunt. I'll do a review on it soon. Been meaning to do that for awhile.

Post pics whenever you decide on something. I'm sure it'll be awesome.

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Have you changed anything about your truck bed camper setup? And I would love to go this route but sleeping in a 5’4” bed with a rigid job box in it for someone who is 6’1 doesn’t work well. But I really like your setup and think you’re right on giving the edge to the truck camper for those short hunts I’ve looked into adding a swing out tarp canopy on a set of poles that mounts to the sides of a truck shell or a enclosed trailer to give you that much more cover for those rainy days. I’ve pondered many hours after seeing your video and trading my truck in for a longer bed to do the same thing you did.
 
I've spent 30 or so nights in this over the last 3 years:

It's a 6 x 10 x 7 foot high trailer. I pulled out the walls and ceiling and put some hard board insulation in it (floor and back door are not insulated).

For Power: I put in a 15a input and wired 3 outlets. I also bought a 100ah deep cycle battery to run lights and a fan when I'm not plugged in. I ran two power stips: one to to the inverter and one to the outlet in the nose. I mounted those and makred one AC and one DC. So, that way I can just move the fan and lights over from DC to AC depending if I'm plugged in. I hooked a charger up to the battery so whenever I'm plugged in (genny or house power) it re-charges. Finally, I added one solar panel to the roof and ran to the battery to help it recharge when not plugged in. This last step was probably overkill. I could just use the genny to recharge the battery and I think that would have worked fine. But, having the solar is nice. I was out 4 days in one stretch and the battery held up fine running fan, lights, and re-charging my phone. I also added a trickle charger for the ATV so when I'm home I just plug the trailer in and the 100ah battery recharges and the ATV is on trickle charge.

For Heat: I ended out mounting two LP tanks on the tongue and using the MR. Buddy heater at night. The MR Buddy worked great. I could raise the temperature 50 degrees even on low in there. This is one of the advantages of having a small space to heat I guess.

For Cooling: Again, I had planned to use my heat/ac unit here. But, I found I didn't need AC. I was only in the trailer during the night and even in September it didn't get THAT hot at night. I bought a shop fan and that can run all night on the battery. That was enough to keep things bearable even during hot evenings.

Shelving I did a redneck special for shelving. I mounted 3 milk crates on a board and then mounted the board into the frame of the trailer. One one side, I use bungees to keep things in place. On the other side, I just mounted wood 1x6's on the front to keep things. I have utensils, bug spray, extension cords, toothbrush, toothpaste, electric bug swatter, etc. etc. in there. It's held up well.

Cooking/Eating: I found a small microwave that runs fine on my honda genny (2k watts). So, when I cook something I just have to run the genny. This is really the only reason I ever have to run the genny. I just bring easily microwaveable stuff in the yeti cooler. I keep some water / bottled drinks on ice in the cooler. I have the genny converted to run on propane.

Bathroom: You can see on the left side of the nose I have small portable toilet. You just put this bag in there (like a double bag) and do your business. It's kind of a zip-loc thing and it easily gets thrown away when you get back home. No mess.

Safety: I have a CO detector and a low O2 detector you'll see on the right up near the nose. I also have a small fire extinguisher mounted on the wall and one in one of those buckets up front.

Shower: Nothing. I just go home when I can't stand my smell anymore.

Organization: I use the etrack system on both walls to hang and secure all my gear. When I put the propane tanks on the tongue, I had to find a place for my spare. So, I mounted that on the wall inside. I also have a table that flips up off the wall. I would say having 7 feet really helped. I think if I had gotten a 6 foot high trailer I would not have been able to cram as much stuff inside. The buckets up front hold jack stands, some bungees, other misc crap. The red bucket is mainly just a trash can.

Sleeping; Just a fold way cot stored on one wall. I have a camping sleeping bag and 2 pillows in the milk crate / shelves.

ATV: ATV is tied down to the floor mounts. I found that so long as I run it dry when i load (keep it running, shut off fuel valve and let it die), the trailer doesn't smell of gas when I get there.

Here are a bunch of pics loaded, unloaded, set up to sleep etc.
This is almost to perfect this will probably be my template when I get a trailer to do this. For strapping the wheeler down I’ve never seen floor mounts like that how does those work what are they anchored too?
 
This is almost to perfect this will probably be my template when I get a trailer to do this. For strapping the wheeler down I’ve never seen floor mounts like that how does those work what are they anchored too?
Just screwed through the floor. Then a locknut on the other side. I think the floor is 3/4 inch....has held up well. Thx.
 
No, why would you say that?
Is one of the pictures with the bunk bed it doesn’t look like it’s there. But how does that 8x20 pull on the highway do you find it to really pull your mileage down? I’m looking for a 7x16 or 8x16 I can’t decide yet.
 
Is one of the pictures with the bunk bed it doesn’t look like it’s there. But how does that 8x20 pull on the highway do you find it to really pull your mileage down? I’m looking for a 7x16 or 8x16 I can’t decide yet.

Pulls fine with my tundra. Stopping is when you know it’s there. A break controller makes all the difference.
Yes mpg suffers. But I see about the same difference in mileage from my 18ft open trailer compared to the enclosed trailer. It’s wind resistance of a trailer. I don’t think you will see a difference between a 7x16 vs a 8x16 in mpg. But you will notice the difference living in it.
 
I agree with the comments about picking the right tool for the job.

A camper or trailer would be amazing for most of my hunts. But they add complexity to the trip.

A camper shell or tent is a lot easier (and cheaper) but you sacrifice comfort and space.

What's a boy to do?

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