Kimbo Camper BS and Mods

Wow! Great work. Loving everything about this. Low tech is the way.

 

Howdy guys! Not brand new to Toyotas or the forum, but brand new to campers

Took me several days to make it though 60 some odd pages, but well worth it! Thanks to @Voltron4x4 for starting this thread and everyone who has contributed- much appreciated!

I've looked at the Scout option, looked at the Swift pop up option, but leaning very heavily now to the Kimbo. The "boss" fell in love with the Kimbo already and she's the boss

If I could entertain a few questions

I have a short box (2012 double cab), obviously not going to get the tailgate up. Not sure if anyone else is running a 5' bed, but do you have to leave the tailgate on (down)? I was looking at a swing hitch for a spare tire (like to run w/ two spares here in Montana), with a tailgate attached and down makes looks like that isn't an option.

I've been running E rated tires (265/70/17) from day one- lesson learned from 24 years as a game warden traveling gravel roads daily!, so have that covered. I will invest in airbags/daystar cradles and as my suspension is still stock and could probably use a freshening, probably upgrade the rear springs for a modest lift and increase in rates. Will probably go with upgraded Bilstein's at the same time.

I saw some pics of folks using the jack stands while camped, is this recommended ie high wind or the like? My thought was if I know I'm going to be camping and they aren't needed I would just take them and save the 100-ish lbs of weight.

For the vent- is Maxxfan recommended over the stock one? Any disadvantages to the Maxxfan vs the standard one?

As I'm not much on fabricating, carpentry, plumbing, etc, am looking at the propane heater; kitchen/sink with their refrigerator (which also nets you their solar setup at the same time); propane tank; storage unit and table; propane tank and all of the optional baskets- basically everything but ac and shower.

I plan on asking to put a t in the propane line to run a small one or two burner stove for cooking (maybe it comes this way already???).

We don't have sales tax in Montana (but crazy high income and property tax!), would picking it up in Oregon dispense of the worry of WA sales tax? A long time ago (70's) we used to go to Spokane to shop and if we showed them out driver's license they wouldn't add sales tax to bigger items- looks like that isn't the case anymore.

@Voltron4x4 did you replace both the front and rear bed tie downs? Mine is a 2nd get as well and probably the same tie downs as you had with the backers of the newer ones.

I'll stop there, I've asked enough questions for one post.

Thanks in advance!

 

CBI classic sliders.

 

Welcome man! Been stoked on all the people that have contributed. Im glad Kimbo popularity is growing.

- As far as the tailgate goes, I would probably take it off incase of any bumps that would make it flop up and down. You don't need it, doesn't take any of the load.

- Good ideas on the suspension. Give everything a good once over while it's up in the air.

- I hear good things about the upgraded fan, but others hopefully will chime in. My original is doing well too.

- They may be able to do some custom work with the propane. Definitely ask.

- You can submit a tax refund form from the WA state website and they will send you a check. Worked for me in CO.

- My original tie downs in the rear did not have the back plates and ended up drilling new holes. I have yet to move those, the ones I took off, to the front bed bolts. It's not a necessary mod but I had already bent them up a little. It was nice they came with the plates. I do think the front ones would be best to replace first. I just need check again and make sure I'll be able to hook them when the Kimbo is loaded.

 

Doing something similar for an awning on my GFC (I lurk the other camper threads for ideas). Still planning mode on mine, but was going to attach mount points on the side of the GFC and just keep a tarp with carabiners on it to clip to the points and then tarp poles for the other end. Quick to set up and can move it to the other side of the truck if need/want.

 

Thanks! Hoping to talk to Collin soon

 

Does anyone have a photo of the kimdo in the short box?

 

Here ya go.

 

from the pic I wonder if it would be advantageous to leave the tailgate on; looks like it protrudes 6" or so past the end of the bed

 

Yeah would leave it on, but your tire carrier may not fit.

 

yeah- I haven't ordered one (carrier) yet so that's a plus

 

So with my swing out for the bike rack, I am able to open my tailgate without swinging out the rack. Not sure of the pros and cons of going that route for a spare tire. It’s the Kuat Piviot V2.

 

I'll give them a call and see if they have something that would work- they might???

 

Thanks for this. I was thinking maybe removed the tailgate so it does not get damaged from rocks. Or I could just 3m it. The other option I was thinking was bedlining the whole truck.

 

Removing would shorten you up a few inches or keep it and use it as a step. A vinyl wrap on the tailgate might work and be removable same with the 3M.

 

The only trouble with keeping the tailgate on is not having access to the spare...can't get the crank in the hole...just a consideration.

 

Yep, didn't think about that. Best to take it off then.

 

Your setup looks very well thought out - looking forward to seeing what else you come up with! It's great to see other peoples take on what works well for their application.

Your collapsible gray water tank is a great idea, the clear tank will allow you to monitor how full it's getting and also aid in making sure it's clean...depending on how you use it, you may want to think about using a P-trap to keep any odd smells at bay. There is a super compact one available that should fit in the same area you have there...just a thought.

Thanks for sharing!

 

I can comment on the Maxxfan - We were not aware that getting a maxxfan installed at the factory was an option or we would have totally had them do it right out of the gate. It was super stressful (for us) to keep the vent open/cracked when it's raining/snowing on the fantastic fan because there is no cover and we didn't want to throw a huge cover over the top - so the maxxfan with an integrated cover was an important upgrade for us...but there is a drawback. The Maxxfan has problems with moisture killing the circuit board in short order but there is an easy work around for that and a video showing how it's resolved that I posted a while back. (Post #738) There is a product called confromal fluid and it is like a thick, clear fingernail polish that you paint on the circuit board to basically waterproof it. I treated our fan's board before install and we have just finished the first very wet season and have had zero issues here in the northwest. On one snow trip the cover collected enough moisture and froze overnight to coat the inside of the cover and when the sun came out the next morning there was water dripping a bit through the fan (we initially thought there was a leak). So there has definitely been enough water to cause issues if it had not been waterproofed. Bonus: when we installed the maxxfan, we sold our fantastic fan and that helped to significantly offset the price of the new maxxfan - they are admittedly very expensive, but for us...worth every penny.

 

Comment on jackstands/outriggers - I would not recommend lugging them around if you don't need to, due to the weight and for wind resistance concerns. I carried the outriggers for two trips and I didn't feel the need to use them so they only get installed while off the truck (the camper is basically installed on weekends and off during the week). I'm looking into a quicker solution for removing and installing them since they come off and on so often. Over the year we have been using the Kimbo on our Tacoma, we have not felt the need to use the outriggers in casual use however we have not been in super high wind situations yet, I am purchasing a couple of the scissor jacks (like on the back of travel trailers) and will be testing out two of them under the rear just to have in case, they are light and compact so it will hopefully be some peace of mind should we need them.