Off road use of TaB 320s vs boondock or outback

N7SHG_Ham

@Emma62 the axles may be same in most respects, but the BD axle has a different "pitch" or rise from the standard, definitely more ground clearance between the ground and the body on the BD versions.

Emma62

@N7SHG I know the BD has a higher clearance but my car and the 320 have the same clearance and I don't intend to try taking the 320 anywhere that my car doesn't have clearance to go.  I don't know if I will be boondocking on BLM land but definitely interested in national forest roads.  

Luckyj

Emma62 said:

@N7SHG I know the BD has a higher clearance but my car and the 320 have the same clearance and I don't intend to try taking the 320 anywhere that my car doesn't have clearance to go.  I don't know if I will be boondocking on BLM land but definitely interested in national forest roads.  

What is nice with this, is that since you are sitting in the car while driving you will be able to feel the bottom of your car dragging, while if the TV would have been higher than the TD, you could only be seing dammage later to the TD.

we each set our how limits and were we want to drive.  So we each search for what suits us as individual.  This is the reason why we share and surch i fo on a forum like this.  

R2DTab

I chose the boondock (320S) and have been very pleased at all the spots I've gotten it into (and thankfully out of).  I take the boondock into places where 4x4 is required without a trailer.  I like the clearance and recognize that it's not much higher than the regular 320 but I'm super happy with the meatier tires that are on my boondock.  Towed through mud, snow, and miles of gravel roads.  

I really like the feeling of towing my T@B past all the other campers further up the road with people looking at me wondering what I'm doing.

db_cooper

We've been camping in sno-parks last few winters with our Outback.  Weight and clearance is similar to the snowmobile trailers going there.  And it's usually pretty quiet after they all leave.  We have had to leave after new snowfall and the tires and clearance have been nice to have.

GatorEgg

No, the Outback/Boondock are not "offroad" trailers.  We have a Boondock which wanted the extra clearance for just the dirt road preceding our own driveway and fire road exploration.  We don't plan any "overlanding"  though, yet.  I also wanted the front rack.  By the time I added up cost for pitched axle, rack, shipping and install I was better off with this unit.  This was in days prior to the Outback lite.  The capablilities of our Boondock match well with those of our stock Tacoma 4x4.
If/ when I plan to go "real offroad" I'll definitely be in the proper trailer. 

Cherokee

On our way up to the Oregon Coast we tried out the T@B on an off road adventure:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QriSFt25f0&feature=youtu.be

N7SHG_Ham

@Cherokee that looks like a good road!

Cherokee

N7SHG_Ham said:

@Cherokee that looks like a good road!

Thanks - YES it is a fine road !

rkj__

Cherokee said:

On our way up to the Oregon Coast we tried out the T@B on an off road adventure:

Awesome little video.  Thanks for sharing.  This is a great example of where the extra clearance of the Boondock gives some extra piece of mind when navigating uneven terrain. 

Cherokee

rkj__ said:

Cherokee said:

On our way up to the Oregon Coast we tried out the T@B on an off road adventure:

Awesome little video.  Thanks for sharing.  This is a great example of where the extra clearance of the Boondock gives some extra piece of mind when navigating uneven terrain. 

Thanks for the comment! Yes, the extra clearance is why we bought it. 

Cherokee

A link to a great off-road hitch & coupler:

https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/9352/lock-roll-hitch-coupler#latest

Bhastings

ginsbuj said:

We taken Boondock on some rough forest roads a few times already with no problems but keep in mind this is not an overland trailer. I just like the idea that it is far more usable than a standard low profile trailer. We backed into a camp stop over a pretty big rock easily. Just remember to take it slow. 

We recently purchased a 2019 T@B 400 Boondock Lite. When we take it down forest service roads at 15 mph, in very short time, we accumulate excessive dust in the interior of the trailer, mostly around the Alde heating system and battery inverter; but a layer of dust is noticeable on the counter tops, shelves and bedding.  We have inspected every window, door, vent and event duct-taped them shut for experiments and still get dust in our T@B.  Have you experienced this? I have a thread on this issue, most people think we were sold a defective unit. Still working on it with NuCamp, but insist the dealership will fix it instead of a refund or new T@B.  Dealer has not been able to solve the issue either.  Very disappointed.

dCliffhanger

The consensus here is the Boondock is not, technically, an "off-road" trailer. Yet, the additional clearance and canted rear do give much better capability to take on rough terrain and steep dips and drops. For myself, I'm thinking that, if it were towed slowly (1-25mph?) with careful routing it could follow my Trailhawk almost anywhere it could go. T@B's frame base does not look heavy enough to take banging along at speed but it has better clearance. It's all metal upper cage looks much more substantial than most. So, I'm thinking it should be able to roll over most anything with judicious care. Even over the river, rocky terrain and through the woods.  Thoughts?

gspdx

When I lived in Utah I hung around with some locals that would take there 30' trailer with slideouts anywhere they could fit them.  I can remember following them up over 9000 ft on forests roads that were less road and more rock (I had a pop up camper and had a "lift" on it).  I am sure they beat these things up pretty badly!

With that said I will say my impression of the T@B 400 BDL is that I can take it most anywhere I want to go but it is not an off road trailer.  I am sure I would be willing to take it places my wife doesn't want to go though. 

Even with the BDL package on the T@B 400 I would like to have it a little higher to get the hitch mechanism a little higher for rough terrain.  When I popped off the coroplast to do an inspection I saw that the frame actually has a large cut out on each side where the axle goes through.  The axle is welded to plates and the plates are then bolted to the frame and fill the hole where the cut outs are.  So any kind of lift would be quite difficult to achieve it seems unless someone has an idea?  Seems like you need a new axle/plate combo so it seems like an expensive custom job.

dCliffhanger

I think my biggest concern about my T@B doing off-road is the basic integrity of the build. On whatever terrain, I would route myself over and around obstacles based upon the clearances of my Trailhawk and T@B. Except in the black\Grey water dump areas, the T@B has higher clearances than it's TV. Either way one would steer and bridge across and around obstacles taking the location of those into account. What may be somewhat unavoidable even going very slow though is whether the body and cabinets and hardware within will hang together over rough ground. The T@B has little to no shock absorbing suspension. Also I'm thinking about whether there's any damage likely from fording a stream at the 20" capability of the Trailhawk? If it can handle all this, I'd say it qualifies as off-road. I've read where some routinely go around and tighten screws. That sounds like a good idea, maybe even adding a few more.

Cherokee

Warm Springs road in Death Valley NP

Cherokee

dCliffhanger said:

I think my biggest concern about my T@B doing off-road is the basic integrity of the build. On whatever terrain, I would route myself over and around obstacles based upon the clearances of my Trailhawk and T@B. Except in the black\Grey water dump areas, the T@B has higher clearances than it's TV. Either way one would steer and bridge across and around obstacles taking the location of those into account. What may be somewhat unavoidable even going very slow though is whether the body and cabinets and hardware within will hang together over rough ground. The T@B has little to no shock absorbing suspension. Also I'm thinking about whether there's any damage likely from fording a stream at the 20" capability of the Trailhawk? If it can handle all this, I'd say it qualifies as off-road. I've read where some routinely go around and tighten screws. That sounds like a good idea, maybe even adding a few more.

Yes, slow is for sure. The 320 T@B has a torsion bar suspension that only has about 2" of travel but, that can help considerably taking the shock out of the bumps. We welded a Lock-n-Roll coupler to the frame to add articulation and avoid loose bolts.  A Jack-e-up jack connection removes the jack and possible damage from it hanging down as well. T@B's cabinet hardware is NOT up to the wash-board dirt roads and turn-screw latches are a good investment. However, The bottom of the T@B isn't water tight and I wouldn't take into any streem deeper then the 14" clearance. Good Luck!  

Cherokee

Arwen said:

My tow vehicle is a Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk. When I was shopping for a camper trailer last year, one of my main priorities was that the camper would be able to go most places that my Jeep could go (as long as I went slow). 

I looked at a LOT of campers, including many that were more off-road capable than the T@Bs, but most were either too small (T@G size) or way more expensive than what I could afford.  I really liked the TAXA Outdoors Cricket, but there are no dealers anywhere near me (and I really didn't want to be more than a few hours away from my first camper dealer.)

I ended up with a new 2018 T@B 320S Boondock and it has worked very well for us so far. In reality, I didn't really need an off-road capable camper, just one that had enough clearance to handle the rough forest roads now and then.

What I did find is that there are camping sites in some state park campgrounds that I've backed down into (in 4WD-Low) where I'm pretty sure a non-Boondock model would have bottomed out. Very happy with our Boondock!

I am quite interested in the Lock & Roll hitch system that others have posted about in this thread.  How expensive is this upgrade?  I this a bolt on, or cut and weld trailer conversion?

https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/9352/lock-roll-hitch-coupler#latest

jrhamel

@Cherokee, did you make it all the way to the end of Warms Springs Rd. in Death Valley. We will be at Death Valley in February/March. Would my F150 4x4 make it all the way? Looks like fun.

Cherokee

jrhamel said:

@Cherokee, did you make it all the way to the end of Warms Springs Rd. in Death Valley. We will be at Death Valley in February/March. Would my F150 4x4 make it all the way? Looks like fun.

I made it all the way to the hot springs - Check the forecast before you go - an F150 is a tight squeeze but with AT tires it will make it fine. Carry chains

  https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/10248/death-valley-hot-springs-with-our-320-boondock#latest

Cherokee

In Fish Creek Wash, Anza Borrego State Park California

Cherokee

BEST modifications for off road: Croft 10" jack wheel, Lock & Roll coupler, Jack-e-up Jack removal

Jack-e-up:

https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/10557/no-more-bent-jacks-installing-a-jack-e-up-on-a-320-boondock#latest

Croft 10" jack wheel:

https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/9352/lock-roll-hitch-coupler#latest

Lock & Roll:

https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/9352/lock-roll-hitch-coupler#latest

Bayliss

@Cherokee, does the Croft jack wheel rotate 360 degrees, or is it limited.  I just looked at a video online that showed how it does not rotate 360 degrees.  If it does not rotate completely, have you found that to be a problem?

Cherokee

Bayliss said:

@Cherokee, does the Croft jack wheel rotate 360 degrees, or is it limited.  I just looked at a video online that showed how it does not rotate 360 degrees.  If it does not rotate completely, have you found that to be a problem?

Without sidewinder jack I had to modify my jack:

https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/9869/make-your-t-b-easy-to-push-pull-in-gravel-or-dirt-with-a-10-croft-pneumatic-wheel-kit#latest

Denny16

So the NuCamp sidewinder jack rotates?
cheers

Cherokee

Denny16 said:

So the NuCamp sidewinder jack rotates?
cheers

The ones that do are listed here:

https://www.crofttrailer.com/croft-pneumatic-wheel-kit/

And YES, a 320 Boondock will go where a 400 can't - size does matter

Just like wheel base affects break-over angles on a Jeep - CHEERS

Denny16

Yes, a TaB 320 Boondock is going to go where larger trailers dare not...
cheers

gspdx

And YES, a 320 Boondock will go where a 400 can't - size does matter

Just like wheel base affects break-over angles on a Jeep - CHEERS

One of the reasons I think the 400 is called a Boondock Light.  It isn't truly an off road trailer and it is bigger.  But you can go pretty far.  The spare tire and wheel jack are concerning to me.  So I got the Jack-E-Up to remove the jack and will put the spare tire in the truck bed if I need the clearance.

Another limitation is the TV.  I have a 4x4 Ford F-150 and from a ground clearance, approach/departure angle perspective it will never match a lifted Jeep.

My days of the lifted Jeeps is over.  But I do miss my built out CJ7 and my old FJ40 Landcruiser 

Oh, I forgot.  @Cherokee I love all these photos!

MuttonChops

@Cherokee ;  Have you been to Swansea Township Ghost Town, Swansea Copper Mine, east of Parker AZ ?

If so wondering how that road compares to locations you have off-pavement towed.

Swansea Mine Road is about 18-miles one way.  Full road is lots of vibration even at slower speeds.  First 15-miles is rough but only real concerns are several deep gravel filled wash crossing. More than once TV was leaning to right, T@B leaning to left.   Last 3-miles are worse with steep hills (up & down) a couple tight corners and rocks in road.

Sorry, forgot to get pictures of the rougher sections . . . then a camera never seem to capture how rough a dirt road feels . . .

Swansea Mine Road is the roughest I've towed on so far.
While camped two Jeeps stopped by, Class-A toads, and asked "How did you get in here?"
"Same road you drove."

Was only travel trailer there along with two Tent campers and one Pickup camper.

=====
Some Rocking & Rolling
Dash Cam frames referenced to distance mountain range top