Member Introductions *NEW MEMBERS INTRODUCE YOURSELF*

[VDawg1115]

This is my Hummer. It has a few doodads here and there:

From the Factory:

-Front and Rear Locking Differentials
-4:1 Transfer Case
-285 Toyo ATs on 20" Chrome Wheels
-backup camera
-rear seat entertainment


Mods I've done:

-Rough Country Leveling Kit
-315/75/16 BFG AT KO2
-CSF Dualcore Aluminum Radiator
-Bilstein 5100s
-OutfitterDesign Steering Rack Reinforcement
-OutfitterDesign Front Diff Bushing Upgrade
-OutfitterDesign HeavyDuty TieRods
-Shwarttzy Extended Leafspring Shackles
-Shwarttzy AUX input mod
-Thorparts Heavy Duty skid plates
-RockyRoadOutfitters Rock Sliders
-Chassis Unlimited HD Rear Diff Cover

Soon to come:
-Gobi Ranger Rack
-Thorparts Front Winch Bumper
-Smittybilt XRC 9500

 

[Steve]

my 2010 Hummer H3 Alpha with Offroad Package.

tagging @MarkW

 

[Daniel Etter]

Welcome @VDawg1115 ! Nice Alpha! I've been thinking about upgrading to an alpha H3 or an H1 if it is within a reasonable price range! Looking forward to seeing the trailer build and your adventures!

 

[VDawg1115]

Thanks Daniel. Happy to be here. Will definitely share the trailer build as well as pix from the Hummer's outings.

 

[Clint1911]

@VDawg1115 good looking H3. How does it handle out on the trails? I haven't seen too many Hummers on the off road scene

 

[VDawg1115]

@Clint1911 I haven't had too many experiences with other vehicles. My other vehicle is a GMC Sierra 1500. The Hummer handles fine offroad. It flexes pretty amazingly for leaf springs and torsion bars. I haven't been anywhere the H3 couldn't go so far. My friends have a Jeep rubicon and an FJCruiser with long travel suspension, my H3 can go anywhere they can. It also rides nice and smooth on the highway.

 

[Clint1911]

That's awesome!

 

[OverlandHiker]

Greetings - My name is Bennett.

I just joined Overland Bound and received the membership kit last weekend; member #1535! I have been following along on the forums for about a year, just recently started posting a few things. My son (9 years old) and I did our first 4x4 trip last summer in Northern California. We did the Sierra Buttes jeep trail near Sierra City while on a camping trip at Sardine Lake. The trail is listed in the book "Guide to California Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails" on page 38. We had a blast! Up until that point we had been mostly just using our rig for family camping trips. Since then we have been learning all we can and trying to "get out there" whenever possible.

Here's a picture of our 2007 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport on a recent trip on the Kern Plateau.




Since the experience in the Sierra Buttes I have been slowly working on making the truck more suitable for overloading and more trail capable. So far we have added a basic recovery kit, upgraded the front recovery point, added a Hi-Lift jack, an ARB portable compressor and an ARB 50qt fridge! Not shown in the picture is a Baja rack over the cab (sitting in the garage waiting for installation).

Our next plan is a 2" OME lift, rock sliders and a full complement of aluminum skid plates for the underbelly. Once all that is done it will be time to upgrade the tires. The plan right now is to go with BFG All-Terrain KO2. Not sure whether to stick with 265/70R17 or move up to 285/70R17. Our primary use case for the rig is fire roads and I'm not really interested in upgrading the UCA or redoing gear ratios for the bigger tires. Time will tell.

For now I'm just really excited about being part of this community.

Cheers

-- Bennett

 

[cdn_xj]

Greetings fellow overlanders!

My name is Yen-Hsen and although I've been an offroader for a long time, I'm relatively new to overlanding. I started wheeling with an '89 YJ and rock crawled before rock crawling was "in". I ran that vehicle for 11 years and then dropped out of the wheeling world for about 10 years. But now I'm back and looking for something that sates my thirst for adventure and exploration but is somewhat less hard on the body, vehicle, and pocketbook than rock crawling was.

I'm looking forward to learning from everyone here. :)

Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

Rig: '99 Jeep Cherokee (XJ) Sport

Overlanding Experience: Somewhere between Novice and Intermediate. :)

 

[jdubshizzle]

My name is Jake, I have been following Overland Bound for a while now, something like a year or so, I found the video of Michael's sick FZJ and after slobbering over it, I promptly subscribed to the YouTube channel. I wanted another look at it today and so I went over to the channel and I started watching some of the other videos. The hopes and aspirations of what this is and has become and will become really spoke to me. I read the story and watched the videos of how this started and was incredibly impressed. So here I am.

1. Originally from Arizona, currently in central Missouri near Lake of the Ozarks going to school at Westminster College.
2. The rig is a 1998 GMC K2500 extended cab with a 7.4L 454 4x4 (don't hate, it was cheap - remember I am a poor college student LOL)
-Flowmaster exhaust
-Stainless steel headers
-Some random winch bull bumper I got on craigslist (no winch)
-cheap ebay LED bars and pods
-Built the back air tank bumper, still in the process of adding swing away tire gate and jerry can mounts
-No lift, stock rims, BFG TA KO2 tires
-Fully insulated camper made by Mountaineer in Tempe, AZ (not in business anymore) - can support probably around 2k pounds on the rack, it is very stout
-Bedrug in the bed, very comfy with an Airbedz truck bed air mattress
-Deep cycle battery, isolator, solar panel on the roof (Goal Zero) to run Whynter 60qt 12v fridge kept behind the passenger seat in the cab
-Occasionally I roll with either a Honda EU2000i generator to run the A/C in the camper if it is hot, or I have a larger 3500 watt generator that is on a swing away rack that slides into the receiver


She is old but strong and true, got me overlanding around 4k miles all throughout MO, OK, TX, NM, AZ, and CA this summer. She's not much, but has got me to some pretty cool places.

3. I am not sure where I would be as far as overlanding experience goes. I love going off road but I am a little challenged in the places that I can go with such a large rig that is not lifted, but I manage. I am probably more on the experienced side.

 

[Toyotadirtdevil]

I'm Michael
Sacramento, Ca.
1984 Toyota Xtra cab truck
I've put a 3 inch lift and new shocks
I've had to put a new driveshaft in
Im running 31's
I have a camper shell and an lumber rack that I'm turning into a decent roof rack
I've always been an outdoors person used to be and avid mtn biker and climber but a broken back has stopped that. So this was a new direction for me to head.
My first 4x was an 77 3/4t chevy van. I drove it all through high school. Moved on to hot rods then in the late 90s I picked up another toyota pickup but sold it when times got tough.

My 84 that I have now I'm the 3rd owner and is in nice shape. I can't wait to get a RTT. sorry for the rambling.

 

[Crispy]

I'm Michael
Sacramento, Ca.
1984 Toyota Xtra cab truck
I've put a 3 inch lift and new shocks
I've had to put a new driveshaft in
Im running 31's
I have a camper shell and an lumber rack that I'm turning into a decent roof rack
I've always been an outdoors person used to be and avid mtn biker and climber but a broken back has stopped that. So this was a new direction for me to head.
My first 4x was an 77 3/4t chevy van. I drove it all through high school. Moved on to hot rods then in the late 90s I picked up another toyota pickup but sold it when times got tough.
View attachment 6156
My 84 that I have now I'm the 3rd owner and is in nice shape. I can't wait to get a RTT. sorry for the rambling.

Ramble on brother! Nice rig!

 

[Toyotadirtdevil]

My name is Jake, I have been following Overland Bound for a while now, something like a year or so, I found the video of Michael's sick FZJ and after slobbering over it, I promptly subscribed to the YouTube channel. I wanted another look at it today and so I went over to the channel and I started watching some of the other videos. The hopes and aspirations of what this is and has become and will become really spoke to me. I read the story and watched the videos of how this started and was incredibly impressed. So here I am.

1. Originally from Arizona, currently in central Missouri near Lake of the Ozarks going to school at Westminster College.
2. The rig is a 1998 GMC K2500 extended cab with a 7.4L 454 4x4 (don't hate, it was cheap - remember I am a poor college student LOL)
-Flowmaster exhaust
-Stainless steel headers
-Some random winch bull bumper I got on craigslist (no winch)
-cheap ebay LED bars and pods
-Built the back air tank bumper, still in the process of adding swing away tire gate and jerry can mounts
-No lift, stock rims, BFG TA KO2 tires
-Fully insulated camper made by Mountaineer in Tempe, AZ (not in business anymore) - can support probably around 2k pounds on the rack, it is very stout
-Bedrug in the bed, very comfy with an Airbedz truck bed air mattress
-Deep cycle battery, isolator, solar panel on the roof (Goal Zero) to run Whynter 60qt 12v fridge kept behind the passenger seat in the cab
-Occasionally I roll with either a Honda EU2000i generator to run the A/C in the camper if it is hot, or I have a larger 3500 watt generator that is on a swing away rack that slides into the receiver


She is old but strong and true, got me overlanding around 4k miles all throughout MO, OK, TX, NM, AZ, and CA this summer. She's not much, but has got me to some pretty cool places.

3. I am not sure where I would be as far as overlanding experience goes. I love going off road but I am a little challenged in the places that I can go with such a large rig that is not lifted, but I manage. I am probably more on the experienced side.View attachment 6129 View attachment 6130View attachment 6131 View attachment 6132 View attachment 6133

How much air does the bumper hold?

 

[murps]

I'm Michael
Sacramento, Ca.
1984 Toyota Xtra cab truck
I've put a 3 inch lift and new shocks
I've had to put a new driveshaft in
Im running 31's
I have a camper shell and an lumber rack that I'm turning into a decent roof rack
I've always been an outdoors person used to be and avid mtn biker and climber but a broken back has stopped that. So this was a new direction for me to head.
My first 4x was an 77 3/4t chevy van. I drove it all through high school. Moved on to hot rods then in the late 90s I picked up another toyota pickup but sold it when times got tough.
View attachment 6156
My 84 that I have now I'm the 3rd owner and is in nice shape. I can't wait to get a RTT. sorry for the rambling.

welcome!

 

[rmerron]

Welcome all!

 

[Dan Tracy]

My name is Dan. Home is on the Central Coast of California -Watsonville. My vehicle is a 2016 4x4 Sprinter. Some interior mods for Camping but the suspension and tires are still stock. I have a lot of experience car camping and "road tripping".
Love reading the forums, but it seems that the majority of members are serious off-roader/rockclimber types. Ive done a few fire roads, steep dirt roads and snow. The sprinter handled all of these well with the stock street tires. I think it will be a little tall for serious trails. We'll see.

 

[Crispy]

My name is Dan. Home is on the Central Coast of California -Watsonville. My vehicle is a 2016 4x4 Sprinter. Some interior mods for Camping but the suspension and tires are still stock. I have a lot of experience car camping and "road tripping".
Love reading the forums, but it seems that the majority of members are serious off-roader/rockclimber types. Ive done a few fire roads, steep dirt roads and snow. The sprinter handled all of these well with the stock street tires. I think it will be a little tall for serious trails. We'll see.

Welcome! I don't think the "majority of members are serious off-roaders". That's what makes this forum unique. It doesn't matter what you drive. As long as your vehicle gets you to your destination safely, you're an Overlander. I personally don't do any rock crawling or serious hard core trails. There's a lot of trails rated 5 and under that I enjoy.

 

[Brock]

Hello All,

looking forward to getting to know my fellow OB members!

Location: Orange, CA
Rig: 2005 Land Rover LR3 G4 Challenge
Experience: Experienced Camper, Experienced off roader but have not done much with both together.

Always looking to meet fellow off road/overland/adventure enthusiasts in So Cal area.

 

[Steve]

but it seems that the majority of members are serious off-roader/rockclimber types.

As @NorCalCrisp started, there are a lot of us here who are adventurers similar to you rather than rock climbers and serious off-roaders. A lot of us would fit into the "softroader" category. We've got Kia Soul's with mild lifts and racks, my old Subaru was nearly stock, and we have a mildly modified Volvo wagon. There are a lot of adventures to be found down gravel roads that almost any vehicle could traverse. @Michael's #1 rule here is that it doesn't matter what you drive, as long as you are out there exploring. You'll fit in perfect here!

BTW, a 4WD Sprinter is on my wish list, and if we end up at OTG2 together, I'm gonna follow you around like a puppy, asking questions. :)

 

[Michael]

As @NorCalCrisp started, there are a lot of us here who are adventurers similar to you rather than rock climbers and serious off-roaders. A lot of us would fit into the "softroader" category. We've got Kia Soul's with mild lifts and racks, my old Subaru was nearly stock, and we have a mildly modified Volvo wagon. There are a lot of adventures to be found down gravel roads that almost any vehicle could traverse. @Michael's #1 rule here is that it doesn't matter what you drive, as long as you are out there exploring. You'll fit in perfect here!

BTW, a 4WD Sprinter is on my wish list, and if we end up at OTG2 together, I'm gonna follow you around like a puppy, asking questions. :)

Exactly what @Steve said. To us, "overlanding" is vehicle dependent travel. Nothing more. Now, if @Luis Merlo wanted to take his Kia up the Rubicon, OB members would have plenty to say about it, for good reasons. That's because we help each other! For us, the trip defines the requirements. You are absolutely welcome!