A lot of travellers tend to opt for the van life. And why not?! It’s easier to get your hands on an awesome van these days and you've got plenty of space to work with! But for us, it wasn’t adventurous enough and we felt we didn’t want to be limited to the places that we could visit. So, we thought what could be more ideal then a bloody troopy?! They’ll go just about anywhere and pretty much live forever!
With such a high demand for them these days, It isn’t easy trying to find the perfect one and of course this has made the price of them go up! We we’re looking for a solid 6 months before we found Big Ol’ Bell, searching everywhere along the East Coast. After a couple of duds, we managed to get lucky and purchase her off a legend on the Sunshine Coast, even a bonus it was so close to home! With only 160,000kms on the clock and no damage or rust, she was just perfect!
Big O'l Bell is a 1989 75 series Troopcarrier with a non turbo 4.0L 2H engine. Sounds like I know what I'm talking about right? Well I don't.. I'm just really good at reading it off the registration. But to put it simply, she's super slow and can barely hit 110kms on the highway however she's always managed to get us to the next place safely. She currently has 208,000kms on the Odometre and with all the added weight, we usually get around 550kms out of a tank of fuel (we don't have a dual tank).
The layout
Originally there was nothing in the back of the troops besides the old bench seats and some vinyl flooring, which was perfect for us to plan and build our own design. After discussing it for weeks, we decided to go for something that could be versatile to suit our needs. We can transform our bed into a little lounge room where we can sit up, cook, eat or just relax in the back. We have four storage hatches under the bed. Two of them are used to store our clothing and shoes. We have one each but obviously I still sneak some clothes in Jasper's! The other two are used to store water, spare linen and electronic equipment. On the left hand side we have a 1.4 metre draw divided into three sections, which is basically our kitchen! It holds all of our cooking equipment, food and general cleaning materials. On the right we have a 50L fridge that almost sits level to the bed so it doesn’t eliminate too much leg room when sleeping.
With the framing being made out of pine it was a lot cheaper for us to make, only costing roughly $300 -$500. This was more affordable then some other setups we were considering.
For example: A custom built aluminum framing with draws that can cost up to $2000 -$5000.
It took Jasper and his mate, who's a chippy, just two days to put the framing together and build the hatches and draw. After a couple more days of sanding and oiling up the timber, we we’re on the hunt for our bed! Having such a versatile design, we couldn’t have any mattress thrown in the back. We specifically chose a high quality mattress from Clark Rubber, which was then cut into sections to fit around the fridge and can be moved around to make the lounge. It's just a little smaller then a queen size bed and fits all three of us comfortably!
If you're looking to buy a troopy and build your own space in the back, the best advice we can give is think less! We feel that by having a simple layout, it makes everything easy to access and is more manageable whilst living on the road. Small spaces can be frustrating at times, so the less complications you have the better!
When we’re not constantly on the move and we do decide to base ourselves in a camp spot, we also have the option to set up the two awnings; our mesh flooring, solar panels, the fold out table and our chairs just like you would on a camping trip. This could be the best feeling ever, making it even more homely and creates more room for cooking, eating and just cruising around!
Servicing & Maintenance
Also if you haven't already (and you love troopys), jump on Facebook and join the 'Troopcarriers of Australia' page. It's a close community of legends that live for their troopy's and share everything there is to know about all the different varieties. You can find pretty much anything your looking for and even ask for help if you're having problems.
What are we travelling with?
Without having to go into too much detail, I've just created a list of the specifics below and some details as to why we have them while traveling in the troopy.
Exterior
Headlights, Spotlights & Light Bar
Also, our setup is designed mostly for ‘free
camping’ as it’s an easier and cheaper option whilst traveling. The last time
we stayed in a caravan park was actually in August last year! Our sleeping spots range from
carparks, rest stops/truck stops, on beaches, on top of headlands & cliffs,
free camp spots as well as some paid camping areas. Having a 4WD, we manage to sleep pretty much
anywhere and we’ve woken up in some magical places with not a soul in sight!
When we’re not constantly on the move and we do decide to base ourselves in a camp spot, we also have the option to set up the two awnings; our mesh flooring, solar panels, the fold out table and our chairs just like you would on a camping trip. This could be the best feeling ever, making it even more homely and creates more room for cooking, eating and just cruising around!
Servicing & Maintenance
On a trip like this, we feel that it helps to know a little bit about your Troopy and even learn to service the car yourself rather than use a mechanic. It'll save you heaps of money and if you end up having problems in the middle of no where, you'll have some idea of what to do! Before we bought the troops, Jasper and I didn't really know much about cars (and I still don't). But from the first day we brought her home, Jasper spent weeks learning the engine and taught himself how to change everything.
Since leaving home, Jasper has serviced the car himself every 5,000kms, changing oils, filters and even replacing parts. I don't mind getting my hands dirty (or just passing the tools), so I try to help wherever I can too. We purchase most of our filters, oils, parts and other car products from Supercheap Auto & Repco depending on who has the best sales at the time. If your with RACQ or other state partnerships you receive an extra 10% off at Repco.
Since leaving home, Jasper has serviced the car himself every 5,000kms, changing oils, filters and even replacing parts. I don't mind getting my hands dirty (or just passing the tools), so I try to help wherever I can too. We purchase most of our filters, oils, parts and other car products from Supercheap Auto & Repco depending on who has the best sales at the time. If your with RACQ or other state partnerships you receive an extra 10% off at Repco.
Also if you haven't already (and you love troopys), jump on Facebook and join the 'Troopcarriers of Australia' page. It's a close community of legends that live for their troopy's and share everything there is to know about all the different varieties. You can find pretty much anything your looking for and even ask for help if you're having problems.
What are we travelling with?
Without having to go into too much detail, I've just created a list of the specifics below and some details as to why we have them while traveling in the troopy.
Exterior
Headlights, Spotlights & Light Bar
Winch & 4WD Recovery Gear (A must, if you're planning to do any extreme off road adventuring)
ARB Rear Diff lockers
20L Jerry Can
KINGS Roof rack with 9 inch brackets
KINGS Rear Awning & Side Awning
KINGS Awning Wall & Mesh flooring
200W Solar Panels
Reverse Camera (Installed ourselves)
Large Rhino Storage box (stores all our tools, spare parts, recovery gear & spearfishing gear)
Bushranger Wheel bag (basically our wet bag for wetsuits/swimwear & a rubbish bin at times)
Custom made wheel bar with spare tyre
Custom made wheel bar with spare tyre
Fold out table
2.5kg Gas Bottle
Shovel, Axe & hand saw (for fire pits & collecting our own firewood)
5 x surfboards & accessories
Fishing gear (4 rods & tackle bag)
2.5kg Gas Bottle
Shovel, Axe & hand saw (for fire pits & collecting our own firewood)
5 x surfboards & accessories
Fishing gear (4 rods & tackle bag)
Interior
Custom mattress/cushions from Clark Rubber with removable covers
DIY curtains & magnetic flyscreens (a must if you want to avoid mosquitoes & flies!)
UHF Radio
Original 2 person bench seat in the front (we decided we liked the originality, however some people do replace this with a better chair)
Freezing cold Air Conditioning (this was a $2,000 installment done by the previous owner)
Original 2 person bench seat in the front (we decided we liked the originality, however some people do replace this with a better chair)
Freezing cold Air Conditioning (this was a $2,000 installment done by the previous owner)
50L Eva cool fridge (Aussie brand, 5 year warranty off eBay)
50 Litres of water
600W Pure sine wave inverter (this allows us to charge our laptop and other camera gear)
C-Tek DC-DC Charger (distributes even charge to our duel batteries)
LED Strip lighting & fairy lights
LED Strip lighting & fairy lights
Caframo Sirocco 2 Fan (worth the $400!)
Wanderer camp chairs
Beach Umbrella
12V shower (which we rarely use)
Exercise equipment (I enjoy my fitness & love doing workouts whilst living on the road)
Camera & Electronic gear (laptop, iPad, canon camera, drone, go pro)
Cooking equipment (2 Burner gas cooker, camp oven, pots & pans, utensils etc.)
Collapsible sink
Towels & spare linen set
If your reading this and thinking, WOW that seems like a lot! Well, I know right... How the hell does all of this fit into one car?! It's amazing how much you can store in your little home on wheels, especially when you learn to be organised and find the best way to piece it all together, just like a puzzle (or I call it Tetris). Like going to work everyday or making the bed in the morning, it becomes part of an everyday routine.
Getting used to your set up is something that you'll work out over time, after a few weeks or even months you'll be able to see what doesn't work anymore and you'll be able to reorganise everything better. For us it's no longer a holiday or just a road trip, it's a lifestyle and I hope that we can continue doing this for as long as possible!
Beach Umbrella
12V shower (which we rarely use)
Exercise equipment (I enjoy my fitness & love doing workouts whilst living on the road)
Camera & Electronic gear (laptop, iPad, canon camera, drone, go pro)
Cooking equipment (2 Burner gas cooker, camp oven, pots & pans, utensils etc.)
Collapsible sink
Towels & spare linen set
If your reading this and thinking, WOW that seems like a lot! Well, I know right... How the hell does all of this fit into one car?! It's amazing how much you can store in your little home on wheels, especially when you learn to be organised and find the best way to piece it all together, just like a puzzle (or I call it Tetris). Like going to work everyday or making the bed in the morning, it becomes part of an everyday routine.
Getting used to your set up is something that you'll work out over time, after a few weeks or even months you'll be able to see what doesn't work anymore and you'll be able to reorganise everything better. For us it's no longer a holiday or just a road trip, it's a lifestyle and I hope that we can continue doing this for as long as possible!
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