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Jaymancds's avatar
Jaymancds
Explorer
Mar 27, 2019

Custom RV'ing Rig Idea

Hi all, first off I am new to the site, but not to RVing. A quick bio to start then I'll get to the meat and potatoes. I am a 20 year old college student that's good with my hands and I can build anything. Ive been camping since 9 months before I was born, and love everything about it. Be it the mountains of the west, the hills of Missouri and Arkansas, or the beaches of the East Coast. I love it. I also am a car guy, more like I have an addiction to finding a cool way to get around. Through high school I restored a 1977 Camaro to the way I wanted it. Not even close to original and a little bit over the top, but its awesome in my mind and I don't plan on selling it.

On to the meat and potatoes, I had a thought early this afternoon about trying to find a cool way to RV. My family has been doing the 5th wheel thing for a long time, and that's been great, but I was looking for ways to make it "cool". (Im going off the deep end on useless details, skip a couple paragraphs to get to my question if you want) I came up with this idea to get a late 90s Peterbilt 379 with the sleeper, stretch it a mile, do all the ground effects and the custom work that goes into making an OTR truck cool. Lights, airbag kits, fenders etc. This crazy custom truck was my thinking for a tow vehicle. Most likely the wheelbase of the truck would be around the 305" mark.

Custom part 2: The trailer. Im sure we have all seen the OTR trucks that are well kept that have all aluminum trailers that are well polished and look amazing. My idea/thought was to find a trailer company that could make an RV trailer that when going down the highway looked exactly like one of those trailers. The only thing easily seen on the trailer from the outside would be the door handle. Everything else, slides, windows, vents etc. would be hidden in such a way that without looking hard, you would never see them. My thought would be a 48' trailer frame built to look regular but being kind of a "sleeper trailer" with slides and all of our camping ammeneties hidden inside.

So my questions, What does it take to get a semi truck registered as an RV in the state of MO? I know a CDL course wouldnt hurt as Ive never even sat inside of a big rig, but I dont want to have to deal with weight stations and all the other commercial driving laws.

Question 2: Does anyone know of a trailer manufacturer already doing something similar to the picture in my head?

I know many of you are only seeing dollar signs, and obviously as a college kid this is more of a down the road project, but if I have the info I can kind of prepare.

I also know that most campgrounds would be tough to navigate with a big rig, but Im not too concerned with that at this current juncture. So in a perfect world, can anybody help me out? Thanks in advance for the help, and thanks for trying to understand my crazy ideas.

27 Replies

  • Jaymancds, You need to visit Escapees RV website. They have several sections pertaining strictly to HDT (heavy duty truck) conversions for RV needs....the physical truck conversion, licensing, legalities, ect.
  • p220sigman said it pretty well above and I agree with his comments.
    I can't think of too many campgrounds that could accommodate that kind of rig. Even if they could, many would not want it in the campground. Perhaps some "elite" campground would be ok with it.

    If you did find a CG you would probably have a great deal of trouble getting there and maneuvering around in it. Most, unless they are basically a parking lot or open field, will have fairly tight interior roads to get to the sites.

    Your idea sounds really cool but I really can't see any practical use for it in the campgrounds that I'm familiar with. If you are into rock concerts, auto racing, etc. perhaps it would be fine there.

    Good luck.
    Barney
  • I've also see a similar setup, but the guy had a platform on the back of the sleeper where a smart car was riding, and he was towing a fifth wheel. Looked cool to me.

    How do you hide a window?
  • Was thinking along the same lines. I'm a retired trucker. Was thinking Kenworth,stretched to 360" and a custom 53' camper.

    As far as semi into an RV,you need a toilet,bed and water hook up. It all can be portable.
  • I've seen trailers like you reference done for elite stars with the requisite 7 figure price tag. I'm guessing someone like Show Hauler or the like could do what you want.

    I know you said you aren't worrying about the length of the unit at this point, but I suggest you worry about it before you go too far down this road (pun intended). With a 305" wheel base on the tractor and a 48' trailer, you are approaching a 75' overall length that isn't going to maneuver well on tight campground roads. I think you will be severely limiting your camping options as far a campgrounds are concerned. I know that you would not be able to get such a rig in virtually all of the campgrounds we use. Now if you are planning on RV resorts designed to handle these large rigs, then go for it. It would certainly be an awesome set-up.
  • For the aluminum trailer, check with Airstream. They are the aluminum camper experts and are located in Jackson Center, Ohio. You can even take a tour of the factory.

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