It may have started with paint. In 2010 Trey Hermann was repainting his old FJ62 Land Cruiser. He knew he was going to need a front-end guard to protect his fresh paint and bodywork, but quickly discovered that what was available was heavy, steel, and not much to look at. Those options didn’t look good enough, so he grabbed a pencil and designed something better. Something fabricated from aluminum for lighter weight performance and engineered with a fully boxed design to be as strong as the steel bumpers at half the weight. And he didn’t stop there. He added new ideas about functionality, modular design, and how to make it not just another bumper, but a practical off-road and expedition tool. That design became the first Alpha AllTerrain system (FJ62) and with that Pronghorn Overland Gear was born and Trey Hermann became it’s founder.
PHILOSOPHY
From that prototype Land Cruiser Alpha A/T emerged a different way of thinking about off-road and expedition gear. This industry has it’s roots deep in the last century and while some of the ideas are time honored and proven, some needed to be rethought. Materials and technologies have advanced, but much of the gear is still designed the way it was being built in the 1970s. We decided that we would sit down and take a long look at the gear we were using and see if we couldn’t improve it. The design slogan on the shop wall is “Off-road and Expedition meets SEAL Team 6 meets NASA. With a dose of LRDG to keep us focused.” Rugged durability, intensely focused functionality, and high-performance, all combined with proven materials.
Our goal is simple, make the very best off-road and expedition gear we can with zero compromises. We build the gear we would want to use. We also understand that this is equipment that will be used in some pretty unforgiving environments and in some pretty serious scenarios. We know that there will be times when the hypothetical load limit on the Rotator Shackle Assembly can be a very real search and rescue operation. For this reason we design every component to be as strong and as safe as we can make it.
Our engineers and designers know that this is more than just building cool off-road gear and they take the job very seriously. Everybody here knows what we’re doing and why we’re doing it. We want to build the best gear that we can possibly build. No, we’re not cheap, but cheap and severe duty performance rarely intersect. We build our gear to work every time and we build our gear to last a long time.
MANUFACTURING
This pursuit of building the best set us on a two year trek to not only create the best product design we could think up, but also to find the best materials and best manufacturing partners out there. All Pronghorn components are designed and manufactured in the USA and we have adopted the best manufacturing technologies to make sure we get the best parts. CNC machined 7075-T6 and 6061-T6 aluminum for our recovery components. Laser cutting, computer controlled bending and TIG welding for our MFES bodies. Fasteners are triple-coated for maximum corrosion and galvanic protection.
Parts are two-stage powder coated with the Alpha A/T bodies receiving a third stage alodine dipped to ensure maximum protection and durability. And all of this is backed by a five-year structural warranty against manufacturer defects.
All of the design, tech support, shipping, and marketing for Pronghorn Overland Gear are based at our headquarters in Spring Branch, Texas, about 25 miles North of San Antonio. If you’re ever in the area drop by and we’ll give you the tour.