nwgs motorhome addiction and therapy thread

[PirateJohn]

Originally Posted by Icewalker

Couldn't you do exactly the same thing with say a Freightliner FL80 with a 30+ foot box towing a drawbar trailer. Of course you'd need your HGV1 (don't know the equivalent over here).

Absolutely. Although a 30 ft. box isn't quite the same as a demountable 20 ft. ISO container.

In fact Freightshaker (Freightliner) offers a military version of one of their older trucks for container transport:



I think that what you are getting into, however, are issues of mobility and weight distribution. All the modern proposals for trucks that carry a container on their bodies tend to have two front axles (and in the case of the one that Oshkosh sells to the USA often has three driven rear axles).

Plus, there is that element of mobility. I don't think that much is going to stop an 8x8 MAN KAT.

Here's the Oshkosh offering that competes the closest with the MAN product:




That MAN has been in production for so long, in different variants, that the Germans are replacing the original ones with essentially identical but newly manufactured trucks:

[PirateJohn]

Originally Posted by Kubla

you can get international straight trucks in all wheel drive, do not know if you can get them with 2 steering axles in AWD, I know you can get one with 2 normal, non-driven steering axles

110 KPH top speed is just under 70 MPH so it would not be too much of a pain to drive it on the highway to where you were going to wander around off road

I have looked for an 8x8 M2 Freightliner and have never found one, although there are a handful of 8/6's out there.

8x8's in the USA are as rare as hen's teeth!

I like the midsized Freightliner - they were revolutionary when they were introduced because they were lightyears better then the competing Navistar, GM and Ford offerings - but in no way, shape of form do they have the mobility of something like the military 8x8 MANs.

The MANs have tremendous axle articulation, locking differentials, a fancy synchro'd manual transmission with a torque converter inline, and were designed to be largely submersible. They are tough beasts.

[Icewalker]

Originally Posted by PirateJohn

Absolutely. Although a 30 ft. box isn't quite the same as a demountable 20 ft. ISO container.

In fact Freightshaker (Freightliner) offers a military version of one of their older trucks for container transport:



I think that what you are getting into, however, are issues of mobility and weight distribution. All the modern proposals for trucks that carry a container on their bodies tend to have two front axles (and in the case of the one that Oshkosh sells to the USA often has three driven rear axles).

Plus, there is that element of mobility. I don't think that much is going to stop an 8x8 MAN KAT.

Here's the Oshkosh offering that competes the closest with the MAN product:




That MAN has been in production for so long, in different variants, that the Germans are replacing the original ones with essentially identical but newly manufactured trucks:

Yep ... there's a guy on Adventure Portal that is building something based loosely on the HEMMT ....

[PirateJohn]

Originally Posted by Icewalker

Yep ... there's a guy on Adventure Portal that is building something based loosely on the HEMMT ....

There are a handful of the Oshkosh trucks and the MAN trucks in the USA, along with a Tatra or two. A bit rich for my blood unless some serious $$$ comes in, however.

[Twinsteel]

Found a MAN 8x8 for sale in CA with a crane mounted: $45 large.



These guys have a lot of interesting stuff for sale. What about taking one of these, mount a small shipping container on it outfitted as a home, dump off the home at your remote campsite, then drive into town for groceries and beer:



Seems to me the problem with any rig like this would be ride quality. Anytime I see a dude driving one of these on the highway, they're bouncing around in the cab like a pinball machine. Do you really want to drive one of these for recreation?

[PirateJohn]

Originally Posted by Twinsteel

Seems to me the problem with any rig like this would be ride quality. Anytime I see a dude driving one of these on the highway, they're bouncing around in the cab like a pinball machine. Do you really want to drive one of these for recreation?

That has occurred to me - most of the 8x8's that are out there are geared to the construction industry and have leaf springs under them that look like something off of B-52 landing gear.

At the moment I neither have the $$$ nor the facilities to get into a project like I have considered in the past but someday ... we'll see. Every so often I run into some really odd chassis available for a song that makes me go "hmmmm" ...

I was aware of that MAN incidentally. That's an enormous price but it's a pretty unique piece of equipment here in the States.

This isn't an 8x8 but there are a few of these in 6x6 kicking around that can be bought for a small sum. I ran across one in the Greater New Orleans area that was basically abandoned:

http://www.truckpaper.com/listingsde...x?OHID=2044141

And there was an 8x8 (two driven front and three driven rear) Terberg chassis here in Texas at a scrap yard that I saw that had me thinking that it was so over the top that it was worth saving. It had a Volvo cab and had been used as a cement pumper from what I could tell.

Scania used to be a minor truck power in Mexico but they are now concentrating on bus chassis. They still list an 8x4 chassis for Mexico but I am pretty sure that they offer an 8x8 internationally, so with some scrounging ...

[Kubla]

Should have been more specific, I delivered 6 by 6 internationals, dual rear axle, single front.

[PirateJohn]

Originally Posted by Kubla

Should have been more specific, I delivered 6 by 6 internationals, dual rear axle, single front.

What model? And where were they going to, a utility company of something similar?

No offense, but Navistar trucks usually are at the bottom of my list. Most of them are pretty basic IMHO.

I was sitting here, thinking that since the subject of the Ideal Truck Chassis (tm) had come up, I agree with Twinsteel that most of these 6x6 and 8x8 chassis seem like they would be awfully industrial for The Perfect Offroad Motorhome (tm).

Looking at this some time ago I was wondering if, assuming money was no object, that someone couldn't cobble together an 8x8 Mercedes Actros. The Actros is available as a very deluxe and comfortable European over the road truck, and several countries (including Canada) have ordered a military 8x8 version with an armored cab. There are also civilian 8x8 and 8x4 Actros models available out there.

Take some military axles, civilian truck suspension, etc. ... it might not be out of the question, particularly when some of this comes onto the surplus market.








Standard Canadian Actros on the left, armored one on the right:

[PirateJohn]

Unicat motorhome on a 6x6 Mercedes Actros chassis:





More pictures here: http://www.unicat.net/en/pics/EX70HD...tros6x6-2.html

Specs here: http://www.unicat.net/en/info/EX70HDM-MBActros6x6.html

[EvilClown]

Something you might actually be able to park somewhere...

Saw this rig last weekend at the NH Ural Rally held in conjunction with the Merrimack Valley Military Vehicle Collectors Rally.







It doesn't get much cooler than that.

[MookieBlaylock]

Originally Posted by PirateJohn

Unicat motorhome on a 6x6 Mercedes Actros chassis:


l

not a bad looking rig
i've been searching for one of these on ebay, not much luck though

[Mercury264]

Originally Posted by EvilClown

Something you might actually be able to park somewhere...

Saw this rig last weekend at the NH Ural Rally held in conjunction with the Merrimack Valley Military Vehicle Collectors Rally.







It doesn't get much cooler than that.

Cool. Union Flag makes it don't ya think

[Icewalker]

Nice looking Wanderlodge for short money .....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BLUEB...item4aa351c391

[Nailhead]

Originally Posted by Kubla

110 KPH top speed is just under 70 MPH so it would not be too much of a pain to drive it on the highway to where you were going to wander around off road

Yes, but that top speed would take a beating up here where I live.

[Kubla]

I delivered new internationals from 94 till 96, pretty much all models, mostly straight truck chassis out of Springfield Ohio where they are made
I also delivered some new frieghtliner and kenworth and peterbilt trucks as return trips (sort of)

you have probably seen the piggy back sets on the road, one truck pulling 2 or 3 more