I have been camping in my 1990 Chevrolet Silverado Blazer 2-door for the last 20 years. When I removed the back seat there was just enough room for a 3/4 sized (Hollywood, as some people called them) mattress to fit between the wheel wells and from the back of the console to the tailgate.
After all those years with my wife and I getting older, she decided we needed a little more room so she found me a 2001 Chevrolet Express van with low mileage on the internet. After checking it out and taking it for a test drive we bought it on the spot. It was a nice passenger conversion LT model with all the bells and whistles available in 2001. I will chronicle the changes I made to transform it into my Class B- motorhome in the next few postings. I call it my Class B- (B minus) motorhome because it is just a regular van without the raised roof.
Camping at Custer State Park, SD in February, 2015.
Camping and visiting Scott's Bluff National Monument, NE in October, 2014.
After all those years with my wife and I getting older, she decided we needed a little more room so she found me a 2001 Chevrolet Express van with low mileage on the internet. After checking it out and taking it for a test drive we bought it on the spot. It was a nice passenger conversion LT model with all the bells and whistles available in 2001. I will chronicle the changes I made to transform it into my Class B- motorhome in the next few postings. I call it my Class B- (B minus) motorhome because it is just a regular van without the raised roof.
Camping at Custer State Park, SD in February, 2015.
Camping and visiting Scott's Bluff National Monument, NE in October, 2014.
Most of the modifications I make now are more like fine tuning my van as we are using it now. Every once in awhile I find something new that helps make life easier in our van. This is one of those. I had my dash cam connected through a 12 volt adapter, but this new adapter lets me plug my dash cam directly into a USB port type charger. One less adapter to mess with. I hid the dash cam cord behind the trim around the windshield and under the trim on the front of the door opening trim to keep it out of sight.
Another accessory plug that I have added under the dash on the passenger side.
When mechanics work on my van's engine they have to remove the console and the "doghouse." I added a quick disconnect plug to the wires supplying voltage to the accessory plugs so the mechanic can quickly disconnect them without having to cut wires. The white plug can be easily seen in this shot but I normally have it behind the trim out of sight.
Another accessory plug that I have added under the dash on the passenger side.
When mechanics work on my van's engine they have to remove the console and the "doghouse." I added a quick disconnect plug to the wires supplying voltage to the accessory plugs so the mechanic can quickly disconnect them without having to cut wires. The white plug can be easily seen in this shot but I normally have it behind the trim out of sight.
In addition to the little tray I added to one of the window sills in the van (http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/28113784/gotomsg/29274082.cfm#29274082) I also added another similar try to the top of my sink edging.
I used a piece of paneling edge trim to hold it in place on the edge of my van sink. I mounted the paneling edge trim with some 3M body molding tape from my local auto supply store. It turned out to be very handy and easily removable. My wife thinks it is the cat's meow! It makes a great place to store the TV remote, pens, and other needed items.
I used a piece of paneling edge trim to hold it in place on the edge of my van sink. I mounted the paneling edge trim with some 3M body molding tape from my local auto supply store. It turned out to be very handy and easily removable. My wife thinks it is the cat's meow! It makes a great place to store the TV remote, pens, and other needed items.
I had some problem with the water bag falling off the picnic table seat where we like to place it because it would tend to roll with water in it. (reference: http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/28113784/gotomsg/29037356.cfm#29037356 ) I solved the problem by building a plywood platform with a plastic edge on it (from surplus pieces of white bathroom wallboard).
I used the bottom of the bag as a pattern so it would fit. Then I flattened the front edge for faucet functionality.
I used the bottom of the bag as a pattern so it would fit. Then I flattened the front edge for faucet functionality.
I made another modification to my roof rack basket this week. Due to garage door clearance issues, I could not pack both of my reclining lawn chairs on the rack as it was too short and one chair had to stack on top of the other chair, which made it too high to drive into my garage. I ordered another rack extension on the internet and installed it. Now there is enough room for both chairs to lay flat and I can drive it into my garage without removing one chair first.
My original roof rack was a Bison brand and it came with one extension. The second extension I purchased was a Curt brand and it fit rather nicely without any modifications.
My original roof rack was a Bison brand and it came with one extension. The second extension I purchased was a Curt brand and it fit rather nicely without any modifications.
Now that camping season is here, I am finding small modifications to make again. After mounting my roof rack on the van, I did not have a good place to mount my magnetic TV antenna, so I got a piece of metal from my local home improvement store. I cut it at an angle to fit one corner of the roof rack, painted it black to match, and screwed it in place. Now I have a nice flat location for my magnetic TV antenna while camping and it doesn't interfere with loading my recliner camp chairs for travel.
I have also shortened the coaxial cable for the TV antenna since this picture was taken so I don't have extra cable coiled on the ground.
I have also shortened the coaxial cable for the TV antenna since this picture was taken so I don't have extra cable coiled on the ground.
Time for another small modification to the camper van. My wife wanted more room for small things, so I used a drawer organizer and added a couple of metal brackets that I bent and shaped to fit the contour of my door window trim with my Pop-Rivet tool. After covering the inside (so things don't rattle while we drive) with sticky-back felt, I slid it over the edge of the trim by the window of one of the side doors. The second picture show how I bent the bracket over to catch the edge of the plastic trim and hold it in place.
Very interesting thread on your RV but your photos make it hard to read (unless you have a large screen display) because they exceed RV.net recommended size. What method of sizing your photos do you use? If you use the RV.net photo website your photos will be polite and not require reader scrolling right and left to read your text on smaller screens such as are on many laptops. Below is one of your photos as it appears after using the RV.net site to size and host it. It's a little late to make this suggestion but I just noticed your thread a few days ago.
This modification is not one I made to my conversion van, but to the camera tripod I carry in it. I like the Chevy Express van's large door pockets where I carry my little fold up camp chairs and my tripod, because it is so easy to get at them. I modified my tripod with a slow-motion adapter that I purchased from an astronomy telescope website. It allows me to make fine adjustments as I am tracking a bird or an animal with my telephoto or zoom lens on the camera.
http://www.telescope.com/Orion-Precision-Slow-Motion-Adapter/p/7033.uts
The other modification to the tripod was wire-tying the shutter release cable to one of the knobs on the tripod. Now I do not have to dig through my camera bag looking for it and it is always ready and handy to use when I am trying to take tripod pictures.
http://www.telescope.com/Orion-Precision-Slow-Motion-Adapter/p/7033.uts
The other modification to the tripod was wire-tying the shutter release cable to one of the knobs on the tripod. Now I do not have to dig through my camera bag looking for it and it is always ready and handy to use when I am trying to take tripod pictures.
I found the roof rack basket for my van camper. Now I will be able to carry our recliner camp chairs with us as it is 60" long. I had to mount it low on the roof rack brackets due to the clearance with my garage door, but it works quite well. Also got a hook net set-up to hold everything in place. Will add a "packed for travel" picture later.
