Overland Weight reduction

[Jeff Graham]

Does weight play a role in the gear you choose to carry, when you outfit your Rig? I'm of the school of thought, that when Overlanding, light is right. Im working on examining all the gear I carry, to see if it is reasonable to reduce my load. Today, I replaced all my steel shackles with soft shackles.
I'm looking for suggestions on how to reduce the weight of my rig, without sacrificing functionality. What have others, in the OB community done, to reduce the weight of their rig.

 

[Daniel Etter]

Yes, weight does matter when overlanding, especially when carrying stuff on a roof rack. The more weight, the more strain on the vehicle to get up to speed, increased braking distance, reduced mpg, etc. Recovery gear is a great way to reduce weight by switching to the soft shackles, like you have done, or synthetic winch line. Camping gear is another way to save a ton of weight by switching to backpacking gear. We bought a 3 person, 3 season backpacking tent that weighs a total of 7lbs. That's 10lbs lighter than our previous tent. Switching to a single burner cooking setup, like a jetboil, will save a few pounds as well when compared to a double burner.
My previous rig had steel skids and bumpers for protection. Switching to aluminum will drop the weight a ton! These are just a few areas to consider to reduce weight.

 

[Jeff Graham]

Yes, weight does matter when overlanding, especially when carrying stuff on a roof rack. The more weight, the more strain on the vehicle to get up to speed, increased braking distance, reduced mpg, etc. Recovery gear is a great way to reduce weight by switching to the soft shackles, like you have done, or synthetic winch line. Camping gear is another way to save a ton of weight by switching to backpacking gear. We bought a 3 person, 3 season backpacking tent that weighs a total of 7lbs. That's 10lbs lighter than our previous tent. Switching to a single burner cooking setup, like a jetboil, will save a few pounds as well when compared to a double burner.
My previous rig had steel skids and bumpers for protection. Switching to aluminum will drop the weight a ton! These are just a few areas to consider to reduce weight.

Great suggestions. I started my build with weight savings in mind. I started with aluminum skids, from River Raider. My Super Winch was designed for, and uses synthetic line. The AEV bumpers are steel, but do to their stamped design, are lighter then most steel bumpers. I'm slowly looking at everything I carry, to see if I can reduce weight, without sacrificing functionality/comfort. I will try and keep the thread alive, as I discover more light weight gear options.

 

[The other Sean]

It is a consideration for me. One thing I did this year was go through all the kitchen gear. I was carrying enough plates, cups, mugs and cutlery for 4-6 people when it was my wife and I 99% of the time. We swapped out our stainless french press for a plastic one. We also realized we were always carrying paper plates as well as plastic ones, Tons of plastic forks, multiple rolls of tin foil and many other things. Also, on solo trips, I pare that down even more and only bring one set of things for myself. All of this is only a pound here and a pound there, but, it all helps. Also, fewer items = more room in the rig.

I also pared down my tools. I take no SAE sockets or wrenches. My Nissan had no SAE fasteners, so, extra unneeded weight.

My wife and I sleep on cots in our tent and have a pair of heavy Coleman units. We plan to replace those with lighter Motorcycle camping ones.

Lastly, I always go through all my gear before a trip and make decisions on what goes and what gets left home. Campground? no need for my folding table. Is it just me? no tent and cot, I'll sleep in the truck.

 

[Jeff Graham]

In my attempt to reduce weight on my JK, I purchased a HiLift aluminum jack handle. I know this is probably frivolous, but every bit of weight savings adds up. Once it arrives, I will do a short review, in the Forum review section. I will link it back to this thread for continuity.

 

[Jeepney]

It is for me but not for my wife. Our clothes box alone loses me 2" travel! LOL!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Daniel Etter]

In my attempt to reduce weight on my JK, I purchased a HiLift aluminum jack handle. I know this is probably frivolous, but every bit of weight savings adds up. Once it arrives, I will do a short review, in the Forum review section. I will link it back to this thread for continuity.

View attachment 28604

I didn't know they made those! It will be interesting if it will be durable enough.

 

[britz]

I switched out the Hi-Lift on one of my Jeeps for a 6k Unijack. 5-6 lb savings plus no need for a separate base ( 2-3lbs) and easier for me to handle. Have 35's and lifted. I'll probably switch out the other as well. Also switched out my wood handled Pulaski for fiberglass, more for sun exposure, but there' some weight savings.

 

[Jeff Graham]

I didn't know they made those! It will be interesting if it will be durable enough.

I'm searching for a way to test gear fully. I think a destructive test, comparing the original to the aluminum would be interesting. I'm looking for a lab to do this work, but haven't found one. The search continues.

Next up, if I can find the shop that builds the Aluminum HiLift jack Post. I would like to test this also.

 

[Jeff Graham]

I switched out the Hi-Lift on one of my Jeeps for a 6k Unijack. 5-6 lb savings plus no need for a separate base ( 2-3lbs) and easier for me to handle. Have 35's and lifted. I'll probably switch out the other as well. Also switched out my wood handled Pulaski for fiberglass, more for sun exposure, but there' some weight savings.

I always advocated for a HiLift, because it can also be used as a winch. I have done this in practice, but never in a real world recovery situation. I stoped carrying all the heavy chain etc.. I need to evaluate weather a heavy HiLift should be replaced with something lighter. Might even be safer. Thanks for challenging my preconceptions. Do you have a photo of your jack in use?

 

[1derer]

Tires is also a big one! 35s for instance can be very heavy 80lbs (without rim) other 35s can be much lighter in the high 50lb range. Reduction of rotational mass is huge. KM2 60LBs , Firestone Destination MT 72Lbs , Dick Cepek Extreme Country 62lbs. Staying away from the Firestones in this case would save you 50+ lbs including spare. Sure its not sprung weight but still takes gas to push.

 

[Jeff Graham]

Tires is also a big one! 35s for instance can be very heavy 80lbs (without rim) other 35s can be much lighter in the high 50lb range. Reduction of rotational mass is huge. KM2 60LBs , Firestone Destination MT 72Lbs , Dick Cepek Extreme Country 62lbs. Staying away from the Firestones in this case would save you 50+ lbs including spare. Sure its not sprung weight but still takes gas to push.

I couldn't agree more. When I went through the process of choosing my tires, I put them all on a scale. The Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac seems to be the best compromise between aggressive AT and weight savings. They seem to work great in every terrain except mud.

I'm preparing for my Aug trip to Colorado now. I'm changing out my 315/70R17 (35ish) to 285/70R17 (33ish) tires Next week, for this exact reason.

 

[britz]

I always advocated for a HiLift, because it can also be used as a winch. I have done this in practice, but never in a real world recovery situation. I stoped carrying all the heavy chain etc.. I need to evaluate weather a heavy HiLift should be replaced with something lighter. Might even be safer. Thanks for challenging my preconceptions. Do you have a photo of you jack in use?

We do a LOT of recovery. we live in the Idaho Mtns and need rigs equipped for self rescue, but most is on other vehicles. In Winter, we pull out 2-3 rigs a week since we live past where the plows go and flatlanders think they want to come up here and play in the snow. My jacks mostly get used for tire changes. Usually when a rig goes up here, it's a full meal deal. Had to pull out one of those Banshees out of a ravine after a gal flipped it, and a fullsize dodge a logger dropped the ass end over into the creek. All our rigs have 9-12k winches, but we've seen too many cases of folks getting hurt with Hi Lifts trying to self-rescue on our EMT runs. I also like that I can service my vehicle in snow if I need to (actually had one guy with a nasty axle wrapped chain, good times).

Plus, i'll admit it's damned heavy (boyfriend makes fun of me on this one), needs a lot of lube, cleaning, and is too much drama for me to get stuff done.

Here's the jack I have, I've heard negatives of hydraulic fluid leaking, but I've never had any issues. If someone didn't have a winch, a Hilift may still be an option, but mine stays at the cabin for building fences and jacking up buildings now.

Enjoying the thread, good ideas!

 

[Jeff Graham]

During one of my trips through jungles, I came to the conclusion that the interior carpet and plastic trim pieces where more trouble then they are worth. I chose to remove interior carpet plastic trim pieces. This gave me a Weight saving of 85lbs. This is probably an extreme measure for many of the OB forum members that use their Rigs as a daily driver. For me, it was just unnecessary weight.

 

[Jeff Graham]

We do a LOT of recovery. we live in the Idaho Mtns and need rigs equipped for self rescue, but most is on other vehicles. In Winter, we pull out 2-3 rigs a week since we live past where the plows go and flatlanders think they want to come up here and play in the snow. My jacks mostly get used for tire changes. Usually when a rig goes up here, it's a full meal deal. Had to pull out one of those Banshees out of a ravine after a gal flipped it, and a fullsize dodge a logger dropped the ass end over into the creek. All our rigs have 9-12k winches, but we've seen too many cases of folks getting hurt with Hi Lifts trying to self-rescue on our EMT runs. I also like that I can service my vehicle in snow if I need to (actually had one guy with a nasty axle wrapped chain, good times).

Plus, i'll admit it's damned heavy (boyfriend makes fun of me on this one), needs a lot of lube, cleaning, and is too much drama for me to get stuff done.

Here's the jack I have, I've heard negatives of hydraulic fluid leaking, but I've never had any issues. If someone didn't have a winch, a Hilift may still be an option, but mine stays at the cabin for building fences and jacking up buildings now.

Enjoying the thread, good ideas!

Thanks, this is great information.

 

[britz]

Tires is also a big one! 35s for instance can be very heavy 80lbs (without rim) other 35s can be much lighter in the high 50lb range. Reduction of rotational mass is huge. KM2 60LBs , Firestone Destination MT 72Lbs , Dick Cepek Extreme Country 62lbs. Staying away from the Firestones in this case would save you 50+ lbs including spare. Sure its not sprung weight but still takes gas to push.

Spot on! This is the same for Mountain Bikes (weight, rotational force, etc.) but I went through quite a few brands before I settled on the 62lb Grabber AT2, I could barely lift some of the others, but the "drop, bounce, mount" technique on the spare, sure helps.

But speaking of Mtn Biking and weight savings, it seemed that it cost $$ to shave a few grams. It's a bit cheaper for vehicles, but I found dropping 10-15 ( or whatever amount) lbs of fat off my body was the cheapest way to go.

 

[Jeff Graham]

Spot on! This is the same for Mountain Bikes (weight, rotational force, etc.) but I went through quite a few brands before I settled on the 62lb Grabber AT2, I could barely lift some of the others, but the "drop, bounce, mount" technique on the spare, sure helps.

But speaking of Mtn Biking and weight savings, it seemed that it cost $$ to shave a few grams. It's a bit cheaper for vehicles, but I found dropping 10-15 ( or whatever amount) lbs of fat off my body was the cheapest way to go.

What size tire? My 285/70R17 weigh in at a lean mean 54lbs.

I agree about the $$$ associated with loosing pounds from gear. I should also work on droping a few lbs from the blob in the drivers seat. Lol...

 

[britz]

What size tire? My 285/70R17 weigh in at a lean mean 54lbs.

I agree about the $$$ associated with loosing pounds from gear. I should also work on droping a few lbs from the blob in the drivers seat. Lol...

The Grabbers are 315/75r 16's.

 

[The other Sean]

We do a LOT of recovery. we live in the Idaho Mtns and need rigs equipped for self rescue, but most is on other vehicles. In Winter, we pull out 2-3 rigs a week since we live past where the plows go and flatlanders think they want to come up here and play in the snow. My jacks mostly get used for tire changes. Usually when a rig goes up here, it's a full meal deal. Had to pull out one of those Banshees out of a ravine after a gal flipped it, and a fullsize dodge a logger dropped the ass end over into the creek. All our rigs have 9-12k winches, but we've seen too many cases of folks getting hurt with Hi Lifts trying to self-rescue on our EMT runs. I also like that I can service my vehicle in snow if I need to (actually had one guy with a nasty axle wrapped chain, good times).

Plus, i'll admit it's damned heavy (boyfriend makes fun of me on this one), needs a lot of lube, cleaning, and is too much drama for me to get stuff done.

Here's the jack I have, I've heard negatives of hydraulic fluid leaking, but I've never had any issues. If someone didn't have a winch, a Hilift may still be an option, but mine stays at the cabin for building fences and jacking up buildings now.

Enjoying the thread, good ideas!

Your post got me thinking of the fact that in a group, almost every rig will have a hi-lift. So, do I really need to carry mine? I also carry the powerbuilt jack thing now and have actually used it on the trail, unlike my hi-lift.

Maybe thinking of unnecessarily redundant gear in a group setting is another way to think of weight loss.

 

[Jeff Graham]

Your post got me thinking of the fact that in a group, almost every rig will have a hi-lift. So, do I really need to carry mine? I also carry the powerbuilt jack thing now and have actually used it on the trail, unlike my hi-lift.

Maybe thinking of unnecessarily redundant gear in a group setting is another way to think of weight loss.

I agree completely. It's good when assumptions are challenged. I'm considering dropping my HiLift, and just carrying an X-jack and a Unijack. I will start a new thread for group discussion on this topic. This has started me questioning, is a HiLift jack really a needed part of my kit.