I had an M934, but realized the box was a waste as to design around the folding out sides was dumb. So I sold it.

Here I am a couple years later and my how prices have changed. $4500 for a 5 ton? HA! They're 3x that now, easily.

I ended up buying a deuce and thought I'd use that as a base to build on. The idea of using any fuel I want, was huge, to someone who plans on driving around the country. The add'l savings in fuel costs were a huge bonus. The relatively light weight was also a bonus (compared to a 5 ton). Pretty much everything about it, I love... with a few exceptions... No power steering (air assist doesn't count, which it has), MANUAL transmission, which I'm not a fan of, and brakes.... To 'fix' all that would mean putting way more into the truck than is reasonable. BUT, getting 8-10 MPG vs 5 MPG, when driving across the country, is huge, even more so when taking into account being able to run a mix of whatever is cheapest or alternative fuels like WMO.

The deuce also feels more complicated than a 5 ton. Air brakes = simple. No master cylinder or air pack to fail, no single circuit systems, etc. Manual transmissions have clutches to deal with (although they can also be push started). It seems like for every negative, I'm finding positives, and it's just annoying me.

So, I started doing the math, and if I wanted either air or disc (or both) brake conversion I'd be looking at 2-3K, finding an auto would probably mean switching to a 6BT, which defeats the purpose of having a multifuel (but would also solve the power steering issue)... So, I'd be looking at dumping 12-15K into a truck... just to make it more like a 5 ton, to get better fuel economy. I could buy an entire 5 ton, sell the deuce, and use the deuce money to offset add'l fuel costs... although that doesn't solve the fuel flexibility issue... The NHC250 can run WMO in limited amounts though, provided it's filtered properly. One of the reasons I'm shying away from the A2 is tighter tolerances on the 8.3 = less wiggle room in running non-conventional fuel, and higher cost. I can add a turbo to an NHC250 if I want more power.

Anyway, now that you have a basic background of how my mind goes in circles....




I currently have a 15'5" box that I can use to build on... however it's not mandatory that I stick with that 'box'...


I see 3 realistic options, currently. Option 4 would be to build on the deuce as planned, but that seems like it's gonna cost a lot more money.

1. Get an M931, and a 12' box.
2. Get an M923, existing box bolts right on (remove bed).
3. Get an M934, and either use existing box and make a partial flat bed, or just mount a 20' connex to it.


Option 1: M931 with 12' box -


Pro:

• Best fuel economy - I'm guesstimating a whopping 6-7 MPG instead of the 5-6 I got with my M934. :p
• Short wheelbase - easier to park in a normal spot.
• Better offroad, lighter weight.
• M931s are less desirable and cheaper.

Con:

• Will have to find a frame mounted 12' box, which is hard to find + added cost.
• 12' isn't a lot of space to permanently live in, although others have done fine with a lot less.
• Not a lot of storage room for other stuff, like WMO filtration.
• Not a lot of room for solar (Maybe 1-1.2KW max)
• M931s are harder to find.

Option 2: M923 with existing box -


Pro:

• Easiest to find.
• Already have box.
• Not as long as an M934

Con:
​

• Not as good offroad as M931
• More expensive than M934 or M931

Option 3: M934 with 20ft connex -


Pro:

• Massive amounts of space
• Lots of room for solar
• There's one local for about 4K$ lower than an M923
• Connex provides more protection than a van body (truck box) and looks rugged (fits the .mil motif)
• (??) Comes with limited slip (??)

Con:

• Looks 'heavy' = increased potential for interaction with LE who don't know the law.
• Extra weight = not allowed in all places + easier to get stuck.
• Extra length = not allowed in all places + poor off road ability.
• Connex = extra cost + extra fabrication.
• Worst fuel economy, but may actually be on par with M923 - and realistically, we're talking like 1 MPG difference.

I love the idea of keeping things as small as possible, and the lower expenses and better fuel economy of the 931 are extremely attractive.

The 923 is the middle of the pack, but has the downside of not being as big as the 934, and also more expensive than either option.

The 934 would be amazing, but will be absolutely horrible offroad and I can forget about driving it in quite a few places due to the length, as some parks have length restrictions. The weight of the connex alone is about 5K lbs, which is significantly more than the ~1500 lb aluminum sided box that I currently have.... and that is empty weight - not including the stuff I'd put in it.



Yeah, it's a lot..... I know....



EDIT - pics/specs of similar vehicles.


M931 plain with M109 box mounted. 22 ft .5 in Long - Wheelbase 13 feet 11 inches




M923 with box, similar to but not exactly what I was gonna do... 25 ft 11 in (almost 4ft longer than M931 - won't fit in normal parking spot) - Wheelbase 14 feet 11 inches



M934 is the same model as my last 5 ton. Takes up 2 parking spots long. 30 ft 2.6 in long - 17 feet 11 inches wheelbase means its offroad capabilities are significantly less than either the 931 or 923.

Pic is actually of an M927 to show length and how damn long it is and extended wheelbase... It's the same chassis, just M934 has a box.

20’ connex is almost 5k lbs. That right there is half of your transport weight. But, it’s a Fort Knox too and lots of easy ways to insulate and “live” in the connex.

If your body can take a cross county journey in one of those hideous rattle can cabs, then go connex and sleep soundly to recover.

Why not buy an old semi and put collector plates on it?

https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/hvo/d/chehalis-lowboy-tractor/7593101127.html
https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/hvd/d/lodi-peterbilt-axle-day-cab-tractor/7596480980.html

Trailer:
https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/tro/d/arlington-27-semi-trailer/7591214706.html

If you still want to use a conex you might be able to find a chassis to put it on. There was a shortage a while ago, not sure what the market is right now

Parts are easy to find, milage sucks (low 6s on a big cam)

The M931 is a tractor.... just a military one. The issue with a semi is offroad capability, or lack thereof. Even worse if I'm towing a trailer. They do make .mil trailers that are great for turning into homes. But again, while they have better offroad capability than a normal semi, the hitch can articulate more, it still sucks and isn't something I'd want for boondocking.




I forgot to post pics, for those not familiar with the models. I should do that, to show the difference in length and wheelbase.

If it was gonna be a pavement princess I'd get a box truck and save a ton of money on the truck and fuel, but I wanna boondock a lot, so....

You've heard of logging trucks right?

With a power coupler and diff locks you can get out of a lot of situations. For better articulation you could go to the pintle hitch in stead of the 5th wheel, but yea, trailers offroad suck

Whichever way you go it's going to be a big project, not just size but scope of work to get it built

Added cost.



Not as much as you think.

The idea is to make it mostly modular, with everything contained in the box... which means it can be unbolted/removed if need be. No major modifications to any of the trucks. Standard 34-36" frame width makes that possible.

I overthink everything.... an excerpt from a recent PM on the project..



Not planning on just driving it out in the middle of nowhere and parking it for a year.. I plan on moving around every 2 weeks or so to chase 70* year round :D So, 200 miles every 2 weeks, which costs me roughly $1/mile. So, $400/mo in fuel costs/expenses... which is neglible. I plan on having substantial savings and common spare parts on the truck before I head out.

I dove a stick with a broken right leg just fine. I had hand controls for throttle and brake.

Not so much. Old stuff is not that bad at LKQ. One of the things I miss about not being out there is the access to all the sources of parts. It really wouldn't be that hard to find a set of rear axles cut off a truck with lockers and a power coupler. Loads of logging trucks out there that rolled over or were otherwise destroyed except for the axles. Long term cost is something to consider too. You need to be able to get the parts to maintain it


That's ashit ton of work no matter which way you slice it (granted: If you've got the money it's all easy).Whatever truck you get is going to need work. My recommendation for the semi is substantially based on that. My old, outdated truck is sometimes easy but a lot of times hard to work on. Not so much the work itself but just finding the parts. Rebuilding the front wedge brakes took weeks. I blew two tires on the move out here and was lucky to find shops that had 11R24.5 tires in the back room of their warehouse. All the OTR trucks use 22.5 rims. Good luck finding 14.00R20 tires in BFE




Yea... I think you're missing quite a bit. Not trying to knock you but there's so much more to consider. I'm not going to even pretend that I know it all either

One point to get out of the way: You only use the clutch to get moving in a semi. Once you're moving you shift by floating gears. To stop you can pop into neutral and brake, but that's not the correct way to do that. Besides all that... Fix the root problem. Get the gout under control

None of the rigs you listed are 'offroad' vehicles. That's coming from a guy that has driven a boom truck all over construction sites (offroad) and gotten stuck, then had to get unstuck while having outriggers and a boom to winch out. The best you're going to do is forrest/logging roads and because of the size of the rig you're not going to go far if the road hasn't been used for a while. Overgrowth and wash out will make them impassable

Again, the trucks won't really need that much work. The box will.

Tires are a good point, but I could run 1200r20, dual in the rear, which essentially gives me 5 spares if I carry a spare, since each axle only needs 2 tires..... I could also get 22.5" wheels, but that added cost for off road 22.5" tires is substantial. .mil surplus is pretty cheap. While the 1400s and 1600s are tubeless, the 1100s and 1200s are tube tires (or, can be run with tubes, depending on the wheels), meaning it would just be a tube replacement instead of an entire tire (unless there's a huge gash on the sidewall). I ran into a flat on my 5 ton bringing it back from Bragg. They just replaced the tube and I was on my way.

As far as off-road - The deuce is better offroad due to weight... and forest service roads are what I have in mind, with open desert/hilly terrain (think AZ/TX desert, eastern WA, etc).. Due to ground clearance and power, you're supposed to go THROUGH any trees/shrubbery... Not joking, it's in the TM. I think if it's less than 6" (for the 5 ton) the TM instructs you to use the bumper to push it over and drive over.

I'm not talking about mudding, I'm talking about cross-country. Mud and ice are 2 things I don't eff with. Winch and snatchblocks are on the list of modifications.

5 ton has front axle air locker. It's rear wheel driver in normal operation, then when either put in low range, or switch engaged, it engages and locks the front axle. I believe the M934 has lockers in the rear, whereas the M931 and M923 only have lockers on the marine corps version, but a limited slip diff runs about $500 an axle....

These trucks are pretty capable.....

This is not something I'd do with a normal semi..