Camper Conversion & Drawer System (1 Viewer)

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Amazing craftsmanship and design! Now pull it all out and make patterns!
 
just a thought, couldn't you add another hinge to that last part and have it fold over and down when the fridge is out?

Great looking system by the way! Gives me many ideas on making mine one of these days.

Thanks for the props, guys.

I did have someone ask how I got the pieces of the top to fit correctly against the sides of truck. It simply a matter of building the drawer frames as you like, then cutting cardboard patterns. BTW, the top of drawers. etc is 9.5" above the deck of the cargo area.

As for selling patterns, afraid you're on your own for now. I've got a dissertation to finish right now. But since it's for a doctorate in history, I may end up building custom drawer units to pay off my student loans...:doh:

It would probably be possible to hinge the panel that fills in over where the fridge slide usually sits, putting the hinge in the center. But I think it's easier to just use the bolts and have a separate panel when setting up for the night. That also allows the panel to be used elsewhere, say for a table top, although I haven't thought too much about that yet.
 
Bad ass setup man. I want one
 
Thanks again guys. I'll be PM-ing y'all to let you know my customizing services are available if I fall on hard times and need to sell some of these to make some $$ to pay back my student loans.:whoops::D

A few updates on how the rig has been used in the field.

We went ahead and sprang for a DAC tailgate tent (the bigger size). It doesn't quite fit right on an 80, but I plan to sew an additional panel into it to specifically accommodate the 80's tailgate. This should allow the hatch to rise to its full height, which will make the DAC tent fit much better around the extended fridge on the tailgate.

While we sometimes used the step I built to enter the side doors (comes in handy for reaching over the truck for things, too), I bought a folding step stool to use at the tailgate. It's easier to crawl in that way directly from the awning in most cases.

On the side of the fill panel for the fridge space that faces up, i.e. the bottom side when it fills that area, I laid strips of non-skid tape. This provides a convenient area where you can set parcels on where they don't slide forward on the wood deck of the sleeper. The non-skid is safely tucked out of the way underneath the panel when the sleeper is in use.

Here are pics of our rig in use at three different camps (Point Abbaye, High Rock Bay, and 1500 Road in Ottawa NF) on our shakedown trip to Michigan's UP last October. The DAC tent is visible under the awning in the first photo.
PointAbbayeCamp-1.jpg
HighRockBayCamp-2.jpg
EchoCampRear-4.jpg
 
did u have my permission to come here :mad:
 
"...I laid strips of non-skid tape..." Something I've been using on my finished wood platform is, the tool drawer liner. I found it in black and I've had coolers on the platform with no straps and the thing didnt budge an inch. I now keep several different sizes rolled up in the truck for when i need to keep something put.
 
did u have my permission to come here :mad:

Oh, is the UP getting like Colorado?:p
Next time I do wanna make a reservation to ride in your M35, though:bounce:

Sonny,
Yep, a great trip, too. We don't mind it cool. And the M101 is the key to making it all work. We upgraded to a new chuck box kitchen and a Camp Chef Camp Stove, plus a new hot water heater since, so next time out will be even cushier:grinpimp:

womacje,
Good tip on the tool drawer liner. I've even got some extra laying around I'll throw in the truck.

My ace in the hole on this issue are the flip up parts of the sleeper floor at the front. When they're locked up, it acts like the front of a pickup bed and keeps stuff from sliding forward. Spent a lot of time in various rigs in the Rockies with **** sliding forward when crossing passes there, so designed that in specifically for that purpose.
 
Oh, is the UP getting like Colorado?:p
Next time I do wanna make a reservation to ride in your M35, though:bounce:

We're working on that elite status. Let me know next time you're in this neck of the woods. Hijack off....
 
DAC Tailgate Tent Modded

With warmer weather, I had a chance to do some fitting, and a lot of cussing, and some sewing this weekend. I got out the sewing machine, the patch of green nylon tent fabric (6' 6" long by about 60" wide) I bought last fall, and threw the DAC tailgate tent on the back of the 80.

Let's just say I learned a little bit about sewing and it took a lot of time. But I got it done and fitted. The first 4 pics show it when the tailgate floor is installed, but before final hemming and other stuff.
rearcornner1.jpg
rearlow2.jpg
rearlowest3.jpg
 
Basically, I sewed a half pocket that slides under the lowered tailgate. On the 80, this extra fabric allows the hatch to rise all the way up, while enclosed the area around the lip and bottom of the tailgate. The bottom shock cord that the DAC tent comes with is relocated so that it provides tension wedgied up underneath the lowered tailgate.

This relocated bungee and the floor helps the seal of the DAC tent even more.

The extra width of the cloth was enough to make a flap that hands down to enclose the rear of the truck when camped with the awning enclosing. The last two pics show the modded tent with the flap hemmed and a shock cord installed to attach to the legs of the awning to help seal things up underneath.

I added grommets at the corners of the doors so they could be tied up out of the way more easily for better ventilation. The extra coverage also accommodates the fridge when it's slid back for the night so we can make up the bed.

The extra room on the tailgate now that the hatch goes all the way up makes it seem noticeably roomier in the back of the truck. With the floor, there is now a threshold of fabric to get over and onto the tailgate, but it's just right so that it is easy to get in while provided the tension to makes zipping the screens and doors easy.

Be glad to answer questions how I did this. The DAC tent is priced at just over $100 and is easily available. Doing this mod makes a great product even better for the 80.

There are some more pics of our awning and rig here:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/trailer-te...epmts-return-home-swimming-lake-superior.html
side4.jpg
rearcornerdone5.jpg
reardone6.jpg
 
Mike, your DAC tent looks different. My tent allows the hatch to be fully up and the tailgate to be fully down... and everything enclosed without having to add any material. Maybe you have the minivan version?

Edit: There are three different versions. Minivan/SUV, Mid size truck & Full sized truck. I think I have the Mid-sized truck version.

http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=...ord}&ctype=5&rct=j&q=dac tent minivan&cad=rja
 
hoser,
It's the full-size truck version. Somewhere along the way to ordering it, I cam across a reference that suggesting using this one.

I knew about the mini-truck version, but figured it was too narrow. I think the break on the tailgate width is at 60", which the 80 series being just an inch or so narrower.

I later found out there was a minivan version. If it's wide enough, it would probably have the extra height built in I would think. Maybe that's the one you're thinking about?
 
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Here is a full sized version and you can kinda see the bottom of the outer door "curtain" and then how the skirt below it tucks under the tailgate. Seems like there is more material than in your pictures. :meh:

newfullsizebig.jpg
 
hoser,
Yeah, that looks like the DAC version (for vehicles with rear tailgates larger than 60") I have in un-modded condition. I don't have a handy full-size pickup truck and topper to measure, but I suspect the tailgate to hatch height on the 80 is about 6" greater than with the pick-up truck/topper tailgate to hatch height.

Sewing the new floor into the DAC allows the hatch on the 80 to rise all the up to the full extension of the gas cylinders permit. Part of the difference is due to the fact that the 80's hatch and tailgate are both thicker than the average pick-up tailgate and topper hatch combo.

I looked at the minivan/SUV version and it does accommodate tailgates up to 67" wide. That's more than enough width for the 80, so it may be the better choice for the Landcruiser and obviate the need to sew a panel to serve the higher tailgate to hatch height. However, it's going to fit more loosely, especially around the hatch, because the full-size model I used hangs over only about two inches on both sides, so I suspect the linked model is going to be about ~3" wider overhang on each side.
 
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I had a PM inquiry about a couple of things and they said go ahead and post up my reply, because it may be of benefit to others.

Could 1/2" plywood be substituted for the top? Probably, although I'd use a good quality grade and that's a little harder to find in 1/2" than in 3/4". I'm not a small guy (~250 pounds) so I thought better to go thicker. If you and yours are lighter crawling around on top, less of an issue. They also asked about the underneath, I assume the supporting structure. Most of that is solid poplar, with a little oak in the central divider between the drawers. However, using 1/2" plywood should work in most cases.

Where 3/4"would be better is the flaps at each sidedoor and the one at the front of the unit right behind the front seats. 1/2" might not be substantial enough for them. Keep in mind that even if every bit of 3/4" was converted to 1/2", it would save only ~33% of the total wood weight of the materials. For me, erring on the side of strength where you think it might matter is still a good thing to keep in mind.

The other question was whether to strip out the carpet and add Fatmax of other sound deadening material as this could also gain a little bit of overhead space. That could work, although I've always considered the install in our truck a temp one. This would be particularly so for the front section that replaces the second row seats, which is more likely to need to come out than the rear drawer section. Another thing to consider is that the carpet protects against whatever is loaded into each compartment, so consider what you'll be throwing in each one. If you have to add in a protective sheet of 1/4" over the Fatmax, you'll not end up gaining as much as you might think.

Good questions and glad to answer them.
 
Thanks for the thoughts. Is there anything you'd change now that you've lived with the setup for a few years?
 
Thats nice and I'm sure it will serve you well, but I would have used hardwood plywood like maple and easing the edges makes for a real clean look, but nice job.
 
Thanks for the thoughts. Is there anything you'd change now that you've lived with the setup for a few years?

One thing I'd like to add I just saw recently in a recent post about a similar, very professional looking build here. They did a drawer on the left for a cooler like mine, but only went half-height with the drawer. Underneath it there was room for another, shorter sided drawer. I'm actually thinking about retrofitting something very similar to mine, as that would be useful.

Another thought would be to just use 1/2" ply for the right-hand storage drawer.

Some recessed flip-up tie downs recessed into the top surface would be nice, but you'd probably need to use 3/4" plywood to make them work, as most as sized to work with that IIRC.

I would like to find some durable, slightly cushioned cover material for the top that could be bonded to it. That would be a lot nicer to crawl around on. If about 1/4" thick, it would also more than clear the edge of the hinges that protrude slightly above the surface. There's probably something like that out there, sort of halfway between linoleum and a gym mat, more or less, so any recommendations would be welcome.

In a perfect world, hinges that don't protrude at all would be nice, but they're not standard big-box stuff, which is what I stuck to for most things with this -- except those bodacious drawer slides.:D
 

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