A lot of people say they find our little truck camper refurb project interesting. So I thought I'd share it in a thread here. A little about us: my husband and I are perpetual DIYers and creators. We've done quite a few projects together over the years. Big and small. This is our latest effort.
Found it on craigslist about 30 miles from where we live.
Paid $350. Previous owners had replaced some of the water damaged wood. All the original interior had been stripped out of it.
This is what it looked like the day we got it.
The inside walls had been covered in a combo of click together laminate flooring, treated lumber, and reflectix sheeting. We removed all of it. That left the camper stripped to the studs.
I understand this isn't everyone's cup of tea. That's cool. But we enjoy making things. We have the time and ability. The unconventional is our normal. This is right up our alley. We're building this camper out to serve as our off-grid travel rig.
We paid $350 for the camper. After all is said and done we'll have put about $3500 into it. We could've bought a more "ready" camper for this price. But it likely would not have had solar, nor the new components we're outfitting this one with. With this build we're spending very little $ (compared to what CAN be spent) and getting a camper custom built to suit us. WIN!
Truck: 1999 Ford F350 4x4
We're documenting the work on our YouTube Channel: Adventures of Sandra and Dave - Truck Camper Playlist
Replaced the old vent with a new 12v Fantastic Fan.
The new "escape hatch" can be seen in the above photo....plus you're seeing a lot of new framing. We added much to the structure and replaced some pieces that had water damage.
We patched all the penetrations on the exterior with galvanized sheet metal - riveted & glued - edges sealed underneath, behind, and edges. Before this the holes were covered only with eternabond tape.
All the edging was gone - the only thing cover the edges was eternabond tape. We added metal - screwed and glued and sealed underneath. You can also see one of the LED running lights we installed.
I'll add many more photos as soon as I resize them smaller to post here. In the meantime if you have interest in the project go check out the videos at the link above. We've come a long way since we got the camper. THANKS!!! Have a super great day.
Found it on craigslist about 30 miles from where we live.
Paid $350. Previous owners had replaced some of the water damaged wood. All the original interior had been stripped out of it.
This is what it looked like the day we got it.
The inside walls had been covered in a combo of click together laminate flooring, treated lumber, and reflectix sheeting. We removed all of it. That left the camper stripped to the studs.
I understand this isn't everyone's cup of tea. That's cool. But we enjoy making things. We have the time and ability. The unconventional is our normal. This is right up our alley. We're building this camper out to serve as our off-grid travel rig.
We paid $350 for the camper. After all is said and done we'll have put about $3500 into it. We could've bought a more "ready" camper for this price. But it likely would not have had solar, nor the new components we're outfitting this one with. With this build we're spending very little $ (compared to what CAN be spent) and getting a camper custom built to suit us. WIN!
Truck: 1999 Ford F350 4x4
We're documenting the work on our YouTube Channel: Adventures of Sandra and Dave - Truck Camper Playlist
Replaced the old vent with a new 12v Fantastic Fan.
The new "escape hatch" can be seen in the above photo....plus you're seeing a lot of new framing. We added much to the structure and replaced some pieces that had water damage.
We patched all the penetrations on the exterior with galvanized sheet metal - riveted & glued - edges sealed underneath, behind, and edges. Before this the holes were covered only with eternabond tape.
All the edging was gone - the only thing cover the edges was eternabond tape. We added metal - screwed and glued and sealed underneath. You can also see one of the LED running lights we installed.
I'll add many more photos as soon as I resize them smaller to post here. In the meantime if you have interest in the project go check out the videos at the link above. We've come a long way since we got the camper. THANKS!!! Have a super great day.
There are 3, 100 watt solar panels on the roof. We have a 200 amp hr battery. A pure sine wave inverter for charging laptops and cameras. A MPPT controller. The outlet is connected to a plug for "Shore Power" when/if we have it available. All the lights (LED), fans, etc are 12 volt.
The fridge is a Whynter brand. It operates as a fridge or freezer. We like having a fridge and oven that are free-standing units. We can move our stove outdoors. We can use the fridge in other places besides the camper. It runs on AC or DC power.
The cargo nets are from Harbor Freight - I think they market them as motorcycle cargo netting. They'll be in place while we're underway to keep things from flying off the shelves.
The stove/oven is a CampChef unit. Strapped down securely. There's a vent over the stove with a 12volt fan that pulls air to the outside.
The sink & faucet are original to the camper. We raised the faucet using plywood pieces sandwiched together (leftover scraps from the countertop).
I haven't posted pics in awhile. Good news is we are mostly finished with our work on the camper. Just getting a few things with securing it and final touches squared away. We anticipate taking off on our first trip in it very soon. Here's some more photos (the work we did up to present)
I'll post more pictures tomorrow.....they're on an SD card I don't have on me at the moment.
I'll post more pictures tomorrow.....they're on an SD card I don't have on me at the moment.
The toffee and brown was so faded, and chalky, as well as UGLY, I made it white with silver.
Photobucket has screwed up the order of my pics, so sorry for the confusssion! LOL!
Photobucket has screwed up the order of my pics, so sorry for the confusssion! LOL!
I too have redone an older out of production camper. Mine was an "El Dorado" camper from "Kommifornia" where we live. Since we are in the high desert, the sun does more damage than the rain, but when it does rain.......well it is usually a cloudburst!!
Here is our 1972.
with original paint...then with newer job, with subtle pinstripping and one contrast panel.
The inside we just remade as original as possible, but the old wet bath had a soggy floor, so out that came, and was rebuilt with teak that I had from my Dad's wood shop.
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Here is our 1972.
with original paint...then with newer job, with subtle pinstripping and one contrast panel.
The inside we just remade as original as possible, but the old wet bath had a soggy floor, so out that came, and was rebuilt with teak that I had from my Dad's wood shop.
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The truck: 99 Ford F350 4x4
7/12/17 - Wednesday: Made good progress this afternoon. 25 gallon water tank installed, cabinets built around it, holding it secure. Another storage cubby done. I'll update with pictures when I get them.
