How The Hell Did This Build Cost $229,694?
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- Опубликовано: 3 июл 2024
- This is a video we wanted to make and didn't want to make all at the same time. But seeing a few nicely built campers coming up for sale in various groups and forums over the last few weeks along with the ensuing "friendly discussion" about if the price was fair or not, we decided to go ahead and make it. Not because we plan to sell, but to shine a little light onto what actually goes into a build like this. In this video we detail all of the major, and most of the minor expenses that went into building our 2021 RAM 3500 Four Wheel Camper Overland Explorer rig. We cover it end to end from the base vehicle purchase, to all the parts needed like the Norweld flatbed tray, Nitto tires, Method wheels, AEV parts, ARB lockers and compressor, and on and on. If you have ever wondered what the expense was to build this truck, you no longer have to wonder. It is all right here in detail.
Thank you for coming along on this journey with us and if you enjoy what we are doing please give us a like, a subscribe, and share it with others you think might like it as well.
#overland #fourwheelcamper #flatbed #popupcamper #overlander #ramtrucks #cummins #diesel
@FourWheelCampers
@RamTrucks
@NorweldAustralia
@methodracewheels
@NittoChannel
@AmericanExpeditionVehicles
@thecarlisuspension
@OverlandExpo
DISCLAIMER: The content in any of our videos SHALL NOT be construed as advice on tax, legal, insurance, construction, engineering, health & safety, electrical, financial advice, or any other topic & may be outdated or inaccurate; it is your responsibility to verify all information. We are not experts or advisors on any topic discussed in any of our videos. We only express our opinions based on our experiences. Your experience may be different. These videos are for entertainment purposes ONLY.
I appreciate the transparency (and the quality of the build). It’s your money, so spend it how you want!
Appreciate you checking it out! It is a nice build that we haven’t cut many corners on. Now if Nitro would come out with gears for it I think we could call it done. Of course then I will have to update the cost again if that happens, lol.
@@overlandv10 Would definitely appreciate some new gears for the 19+ Ram HDs...it's the only way I'd ever go with 37s on my PW. Still can't figure out why Nitro or Yukon haven't yet!
Not many people do video with built cost like u really appreciated thank for all information
Thanks for checking it out!
Just bought my starter kit. 3500 short box. Step One! Yours is my inspiration and will take about 18 months to complete.
Good stuff! Be sure to loop back and share it once it is done. I’d love to see it!
Having built the truck/trailer system we have, I totally get the cost! I see triples driving out to fishing and boating trips all the time and those “builds” are in 6 figures all the time. Boat, trailer, camper, truck….those of us who have done it, know it. Thanks for the details here, I bookmarked a number of vendors from this video. Thanks again.
By the way, we met at the NWOL Rally in Plain in June 2024. We talked about your Norweld garage. Thanks for the info!
Thank you so much for giving us all this info you didn't have to and so many others intentionally don't.
You're the best.
Appreciate you checking it out!
If you want new hotness, then you pay new hotness prices. Nice build. I'm building a hillbilly special using a nearly 40 year old 1ton. And luckily I can build or repair 99% of it.
Thanks! There are some super cool vintage builds out there and I bet yours will be cool. Unfortunately for me I haven't learned a ton of automotive repair skills in my life but I'm learning a bit more every year.
I’ve been following from the start of the channel and come for this kind of content. This is what things really cost when they’re done well, without sponsorships and side deals.
Thank you Austin. We Appreciate that!
GREAT build! Appreciate the detailed descriptions of add-on's! GREAT job!!!
Thanks for checking it out!
Awesome video, thanks for sharing!
Thank you for checking it out!
It is definitely an impressive vehicle. Very informative.
Awesome video. Nothing extra but the facts. Keep 'em coming! Subscribed!
Thank you! Appreciate that. Yeah tried to get this one to the point as much as possible.
you guys have an excellent sense of humor. Enjoy your project and sushi dinners, you deserve them!
Thank you! Laughter is medicine as they say.
A little beyond my means, but it's what I'd expect to pay. I would build this over a Revel or other 'man bun van' (to quote my favorite Moab recovery shop) any day 😉
Haha, Trailmater for the win. As the sticker says “one less sprinter”, right?
Very good info. Amazing truck!
Thank you!
Well this is a dream crusher :-). But I’m glad to see you all are doing well! Have enjoyed following along on your adventures
Thank you Brian! hope you all are doing well also! If you get out this way let us know and can do some camping.
WOW, what a great build.
Thanks for sharing your price sheet. It's amazing how quickly everything adds up. LOL
Thanks for checking it out, and yes it does!
I told you I would watch and I’m glad I did. Good video sir.
Yes you did. Thank you and for checking it out!
Great Video! Yes People tend not realize how much something of this magnitude will cost. By the way awesome Rig!
Thank you. Appreciate that! We love it for sure.
I did mine on a budget. I already owned the truck from the oilfield. I bought the FWC used. And my son’s company did all the fab work. Your truck is beautiful!!!👍👍👍
Ty! Definitely a fan of the budget build. Just not on this project, lol. Nice to have some fab skills in your family. Always a plus!
Been watching since your first video. Thats the best 4 wheel set up ive seen and I've think I've seen it all. We get out Hawk slide in on a f 250 from the same location as you this month after waiting 16mths. Hope to meet you in real life one day as I feel I know you. I prefer the videos with your wife in them as well as you so I can imagine me camping like you do. We are camping newbies who have never camped in 35 years and that was to say the least rustic. This is 5 star.
Thank you and absolutely look forward to saying hi in person if opportunity presents. We usually try to make Overland West each year so maybe there if you make it out. Congratulations on the Hawk. I'm sure you are excited after the long wait and hope you love it as much as we do! We will be back out camping with both of us again soon. But the next few weeks are focused on the Rebelle Rally Avis is doing. Hopefully you can keep up with her and the rest of the teams during the live streams the Rally is hosting when it starts later this week.
Worth every penny man ☺️👍🍻
Thank you! Not everyone seems to feel the same, but I agree the value for the money is pretty darn good.
Great video!!! The wife and I have gone back and forth and the game we play is, if we cut costs, what do we get and how does that impact us near and long term. Would love a video form you perspective on the parts and build, what drove you to your choices… Keep it up!
Appreciate you checking it out. We do plan to do something like a why we did what we did and what we'd change if we did it again once we get past the Rally. Preparing for the Rally has been taking up a lot of time this past year and especially the last few months. But things should settle a bit in a couple of weeks and we hope to be out camping more again and doing the "longer term review". Thanks again!
Nice truck 🚚 build & well done video. 🏆
Thank you!
Awesome build. It’s really worth the price.
Thank you! We feel the same way. It has brought us lot of enjoyment so far and I'm sure will continue to do so.
Beautiful truck having seen it in person it is worth every cent. Wait till you try to build a 79 series top to tail.
Thank you! And yes I bet those add up quick too!
I am building out an\ F250 Tremor right now and have the feeling that I will not be too far behind you. Anyway, great looking rig. I am not a RAM person, but your truck looks pretty sweet. Congrats and have fun out there.
Thx! I’d love to see your Tremor build when it is done. I’m sure it will be an awesome build too!
Amazing build! Could you do a similar cost comparison of your other rigs? I'm doing a build right now and each step is shockingly expensive even while doing alot of it myself. For the internet experts yapping about value, they've obviously need built a project vehicle with quality parts. So their negative opinions don't matter. Keep putting out the great content! Cheers
Appreciate it! And yeah that is a good idea. I want to be careful that we aren’t just focusing on the rigs all the time, but the more where they can take you. But the rigs are definitely part of it and it is nice for people thinking of building something similar to understand what they are getting into if they take on a quality build. Maybe after we get back from the Rebelle we can tackle the other ones over the next few months. Thanks again!
Nice walk around. When people ask me how much I have spent, I just say a lot. Now I am thinking I spent way more than a lot on my truck!
Ha, yeah when it is piecemeal you certainly don't feel it as much. It was actually a bit of a chore pulling all this data together but I'm glad I did. Now its your turn to share, lol.
Thanks for sharing! That's a great build! As I have always said, a hobby will always cost more money than bare necessities. You don't need to build out a rig like this but if you can manage to do it financially then why the heck not?
Thanks for checking it out! I used to race bikes and thought that was an expensive hobby. Then I found “overlanding” lol.
@@overlandv10 They don't call it an overland tax for nothing lol
you know what, it is what it is, you work hard for your money just as i did, i love my 4runner all decked out for overlanding and i don't regret it, really nice rig,even if it is a Dodge, lol. enjoy it.
Thank you! And even for a Dodge, lol. I like my Toyota too though!
I have built a few rock crawlers and have been an off-road enthusiast since the early 80’s, so I would say I am not naive to what things cost and when I first saw your rig, I estimated it would be about $220k. Turns out I was in the ball park. People, especially on forums don’t have a clue what things cost because a majority of them have never ventured down this road. Never-the-less, nice rig.
Thank you! Yeah if you know about this stuff the costs aren’t that surprising.
...that equates to many, many nights at a Ritz-Carlton, Club Med or a couple years at the Holiday Inn...
For sure! And not nearly as nice as the Ritz. But it does allow us to get to a lot of remote places with some comfort and feels like a fair trade off. But don’t get me wrong, we like a nice resort hotel too lol.
Man I'd give my left ball for that rig very nice!!!
If I was Lance Armstrong I might take you up on that offer, lol.
you had me at lockers....... Is this one of the few non-powerwagons with lockers?? I haven't seen lockers in a single AEV ram as of now. Details? Thanks for the video!
Thanks for checking it out! Yeah was excited we were able to get them in there. Still waiting on someone to make gears for it. Nitro keeps saying they are but have yet to see them materialize. They changed the pinion design in the 5th gens, but the lockers still work thankfully.
Hello. That's a nice rundown. I have a similar build that I've avoided adding up the total outlay as I'd rather not be reminded of that. I also have no intention of selling, pretty much ever, so I'm content to keep my head in the sand.
I have a technical question. I'm thinking about an SPOD because I am not happy with the AEV Switch "pod", such as it is, and I would like to use that space for something else. I did not catch on the video how the SPOD is mounted on the A pillar. Would you mind elaborating on that. Thanks.
lol, yeah adding it all up hurts. And in this video I just discussed what it would cost to build if you wanted to copy it as it sits today. The reality is we did some stuff twice along the way so I actually have more in it than I even shared here. I'd love to see your build. Do you have an IG or something where I can see it? On the SPOD it is just stuck to the windshield on a Ram Ball suction cup mount. I need a better solution because in the southern UT sun I'm going through about two mounts a year because they stop sticking after a while being beat on by the sun/heat.
LOVE IT. Beast of a truck. I'm in the Pacific Northwest, meaning lots of trees. How high is your camper? Does the flatbed raise the height of the bed?
Sorry I didn’t see this comment until now. Closed up the camper is about 9’ 3”. The flatbed does sit a bit higher than the factory bed.
Did you put rear bags on the build? I took my lifted F350 in today to have bags installed and they said my truck was too lifted and the mounting brackets wouldn't reach. If you did put bags on the back can you pass along the brand?
Our had factory bags on it. The Carli kit came with extensions for the bags so we could retain the factory bags. Hope that helps!
Could it be done without a lot of the mods and extras? On a stock truck with only some suspension upgrades?
Absolutely! This was kind of a full build based on how we wanted to use the truck, but you could definitely do a minimal build. People run a stock 3500 with a slide in all the time just fine.
I give you a thumbs up. like your truck, But on my yearly salary no way could I afford it, Like you said I would keep it for a long long long time. thanks for sharing.
Thank you for checking it out! Not that I’m the biggest Tony Robbins fan in the world but he said something that has always stuck with me since I heard it long ago that went something like: You can’t do as much in a year as you think you can, but you can do way more in 5 years than you ever thought possible. Has seemed pretty true to me. I bet if your goal was to do something like this you could make it happen. But then again retirement is also a goal so always spend where it make the most sense to you. Thanks again!
Any problem with water incursion anywhere inside?
None at all so far coming up on 3 years of owning it.
👍👍
Is there a list available so that one doesn't overlook anything? Thanks!
No, I haven't really put an extensive list out. There is a longer video on our channel from last year that talked more about the build in some detail, but it is also a bit outdated as we've changed a few things here and there. But between those two videos it should cover 99% of it. Thank you for checking it out!
I have a questions for you. I'm thinking about selling my Jeep and stepping up my game to what you have. How do you like to 2 door truck vs. 4 door truck with the camper setup? Also, are you able to run technical trails with that setup or are you stuck for easy and fireroads? Can you do the Rubicon Trail with your rig if you wanted too or no way?
We do run some technical trails. Not as technical as we might in a Jeep. The main limiting factor to our camper set up is its height. We are willing to take it just about anywhere it will fit, but it also can’t get too off camber due to how top heavy we are. The wheelbase of the 2 door is way easier to manage in tight spaces and we haven’t for a minute regretted getting the 2 door over the 4 door. If you take a look at some of the other videos on our channel you can get a feel for some of the places we’ve had it. Or our IG account as well. We just ran the Mojave in it a few weeks ago as an example and while that wasn’t super technical it had its spots. Hope that helps somewhat!
I want to apologize for something. Through the whole video breakdown as you were adding things up I thought to myself, this dude definitely ain’t married or at the very least doesn’t have a girlfriend!!!!
And what do ya do at the end? Show us your Prom Date of 30+ years!
Beautiful truck! I think it’s awesome that you two enjoy this vehicle together! Thanks for sharing!
✌🏽🇺🇸🙏
Thanks for checking it out! Yeah she is a good lady. If I told her we should build 2 more of them she'd encourage me to do it, lol.
@@overlandv10 Ah that’s awesome to have someone that has a similar or same love and passion for certain things. My wife loves multi state motorcycle trips and fishing.
Great video sir. ✌🏽
@@Knuckledragnation sounds like you found a great one too! And thanks again!
I’d add in an very expensive alarm system.
Lol, yeah probably not a bad idea.
I believe I helped to convince you of a few of the purchases lol.
Ha maybe just a few!
Curious … off the car lot, did the truck have a bed, and if so, what did you do with it? Or did you configure it with the bed delete? Either way, sweet rig.
Thx! The truck did have a bed. We sold it to a guy for $800 after we took it off.
Cool. I'm looking at a new F350 ... doing remote drone based inspections and your set up looks perfect for that kind of work. A very helpful guide for my budgeting. Appreciate the reply. I may try and do a box delete from the factory, if I can.
Recommendations on forums outside of FB?
Do you keep up with expedition portal at all? There is also Reddit if you aren't already on there.
@@overlandv10 I’ll check it out. Thanks!
Honest.
Beautiful truck sir, how much do you reckon you can tow with the hitch?!
Thank you! We are under GVWR but not by much so I'm not sure how much tongue weight we could add and stay under. For smaller trailers and such there is no issue, I'd just worry about larger trailers assuming you want to stay under GVWR. We do plan to flat tow our jeep behind it, but that won't have any tongue weight to speak of.
@@overlandv10How much does the truck weight? What is the GVWR for this truck?
@@NewWorldAdventures GVWR is 11,800. Fully packed out for a trip, including passengers, full water and fuel we max out at about 11,400 or so.
Very nice build. If u can afford it and it suits your need. Why not, life is short. Can’t take it with you.
Agree, and thank you!
Why does the bed/camper sit so high?
That Norweld tray has that rear drawer that makes it sit as high as it does. Without the drawer it would sit lower. Bowen also makes a tray that sits lower with a drawer, but those weren’t available when I built this one.
One glance and I know that price is decent. People who haven't done this type of build have no clue how much it adds up. Excellent info and glad you put it out there. Heck... you're above 150k with stock truck, "stock" bed upgrade, and "stock" camper. And I haven't watched the video yet.
Thank you. Yeah it adds up quick, especially a quality build.
Let’s not talk about weight or fuel mileage or insurance because that’s going to hurt after spending so much on the build. It’s a cool truck but mostly it’s just an example of excessive spending and a catalog of parts available for overlanding.
The truck is under GVWR. That is the reason we went with the 3500. I absolutely agree it is excessive for what anyone "needs" to be able to spend some time touring the back country, but we all have degrees of comfort and reliability we would prefer, and that is what this truck is for us. Nothing is perfect but I think it is a great balance of comfort, ability, and longevity all things considered. Thanks for checking it out either way!
Dear Santa…..I’ll be good next year
K&N is not an adequate filter. you're not getting the cleanest air possible. you're on your way to a dusted engine if you go offroad at all.
Yeah I meant to say less restricted (what K&N claims) but you’d be surprised at how well that pre-filter works. Not much dust makes it to the filter at all.
*You got more money than Sense!*
Okay. Glad to entertain you either way lol
Labor is a lot lower than I expected. That’s where I would save money.
Yeah I don’t have those skills or tool collection, lol. But yeah it wasn’t bad at all I thought all things considered.
70k into my GX build including purchase price (used) and I did all the labor.
@@michaelblock3998 yeah I had a ton in my GX build too. But when I sold it that money went towards this camper build.
My fear is when I die my wife will sell my jeep for the price I’ve told her I spent on it. Someone is going to get a great deal.
Thats funny
😂
lol. That is funny. Hopefully you aren't leaving us anytime soon, though.
@@overlandv10 I don’t plan on it. Lol
Such an incredible build. You need to add $545 for the chainsaw you’ll need to drive a 16’ tall rig through the forest!
Thank you! LOL on the chainsaw. Yes it is a needed tool that we do carry use sometimes. I included that expense grouped into the recovery gear. The truck is little shy of 16' at about 9' 5" with the top down. :)
Concrete cowboy!
Good God!
Thank you!
Omg 😲 $$$$
You lost me at $60 thousand for that camper
You can get them closer to $40k but they are not that well equipped. Once you option them up it adds up quick. Thanks for checking it out l!
Holy shit batman that is a crazy amount of money to spend on a rig.
The crazy thing is when we go to Overland Expo and I see other larger rigs going for $300k - $750K+ this rig feels like I got a deal lol.
واااو
Now let's see a video on how to finance a rigg like this it is another mortgage.
Yeah it is definitely expensive. I “only” spent $170k on my first house which seems absurd compared to this lol. But times have changed unfortunately. I didn’t personally finance any part of this build but I know people do. Not sure I would have built it if I would have needed to finance it. Seems like a lot of risk owing a bank given what we do with it.
I have a bridge id like to sell ya🤓🤠😎😁
Overlanding is a rich people hobby.
I think it is just a matter of how much comfort you want to drag back how far off the pavement which makes up the cost equation. Can definitely throw a tent in the back of a Jeep and see a lot of stuff. But heat is also nice in the winter, lol. Thanks for checking it out!
@@overlandv10 just discouraging to see these builds are $200,000 - i never see any youtubers overlanding on a true budget. not hating - its a sweet rig. just saying
@@tmacfan16 yeah definitely more pricey builds out there than not. But there are a few exceptions out there. I can’t recall the name right now but there is this guy I watch on RUclips who does super budget camping. Not really “overlanding” as most define it. But he camps in weird places like medians, snow banks in parking lots and so on with minimal gear. I love watching it. Would be nice if we could get some long term economic policies in place to make everything more affordable for more people though for sure.
Following along until you said "cleanest air possible" followed by "K&N filter". Those two statements are mutually exclusive. K&N is quite possibly the worst air filter made. Very porous.
That’s fair. I probably should have said the most flow possible. We’ve had some issues with the precleaner restricting the flow under heavy throttle and throwing an air filter message. The K&N filter allowing more flow mostly corrected that. And even with it being a more porous the precleaner does such a great job hardly any dust at all makes it to the filter.
lol that is a ridiculous amount of money for something that just cost money to keep on road and how do you feel about taking that truck offroad?
I like taking it off road, I just try not to be stupid with it / calculate risk vs reward. I did actually damage the camper in Moab if you saw that video, but that’s the worst I’ve hurt it since we built it. But it definitely sees lots of dirt and rocks and such.