I also emailed QuickPitch about flat pack shipping and had the same experience as you. As guess they are only interested in the Australian market. I went back and forth on how to setup the cargo area and was planning on going with the Maltec setup above. My wife shot it down because of our kids......go figure! So I've decided to do what Expeditions 7 did with their Troopy. I've already got it partially built. Just need to source some slides, etc., which is not easy to do in Japan. By the way, you mentioned that the wheel arches are from the GRJ71. Do you a part number?
Builds GoTroopy - A Dubai Troopy Build
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- #62
I decided to call Quick Pitch. They weren’t really able to help. They didn’t think anyone here would have the experience to build the interior from flat pack.
I enquired about working with them on a CAD (and obviously paying for it). They kept on referencing the interiors designer, and him being unwilling to work on CAD designs only. I’m guessing they’re referring to ASPW? Anyway, I left it with them to see if there’s something they can do. We’ll see.
These are the numbers we wrote down when ordering the arch flares. It’s front and rear flares, plus rear mud flaps. You would still need the rubber moulding (comes with the font arches, but separate part number on rears), plus the bumper extensions to match the width of the arches. Brackets are also seperate.
Hope that helps.
Hey, thanks. That helps a lot. I’m trying to keep the dealer out of the loop as much as possible, due to costs. That‘s too bad with QuickPitch. It’s not like I can’t rivet aluminum and I told them that. I did it at Boeing so I know that it’s not difficult to do and I was happy with the design that ASPW came up with. And I can do CAD; it’s finding someone here that could laser cut everything. Oh well, Baltic birch plywood is easy too, just a bit heavy.
Quikpitch is notoriously awful at communicating. If they got their s*** together they'd move a lot more product. I've had this experience with them on other products.
I'd be interested to see your interior setup. Especially if it's in file format so I can bring it to a local cutter and reproduce it here.
I'm sure you've seen the build Paul Marsh did for this couple. I like the addition of top access and not just drawers. Plus the simple build materials.
www.wanderlibre.com
I'd be interested to see your interior setup. Especially if it's in file format so I can bring it to a local cutter and reproduce it here.
I'm sure you've seen the build Paul Marsh did for this couple. I like the addition of top access and not just drawers. Plus the simple build materials.
Land Cruiser Troopy Camper Conversion: Part 3 of 4 – Wander Libre
Part 3 of a 4-part series about our year-long quest to transform a stock Toyota Land Cruiser Troop Carrier into a go-anywhere tiny home on wheels. In this post, interior work begins and Alu-Cab cuts off the roof to install their custom pop-top roof. Click here to see photos of video as the work...
www.wanderlibre.com
some one has said in some post , to make drawers and any box Dust proof .
I would strongly raccomando this .
from what I was able to see , Quickpitch cabinets are NOT dust proof .
they have only a upper rubber seal .
in the desert , when you go through fech-fech , dust goes every where .
pls put special effort in doing so , you will be happy fro the years to come .
I would strongly raccomando this .
from what I was able to see , Quickpitch cabinets are NOT dust proof .
they have only a upper rubber seal .
in the desert , when you go through fech-fech , dust goes every where .
pls put special effort in doing so , you will be happy fro the years to come .
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- #66
Not really a huge amount to report.
I’m back in the UK, enjoying some ‘normal’ weather for a few days while the electrician instals the house power system.
Still struggling with the designs for the interior. Boarding on just building something cheap/wooden initially while I find a designer who seems to know what they’re doing and can bring a concept that works and is well through out.
Comments reference dust proofing taken on board. This is also a part of the cabinet build that’s slowing it down as the last designer showed no consideration to this.
Anyway, I should hopefully be able to show some progress next week when I’m back in Dubai.
I’m back in the UK, enjoying some ‘normal’ weather for a few days while the electrician instals the house power system.
Still struggling with the designs for the interior. Boarding on just building something cheap/wooden initially while I find a designer who seems to know what they’re doing and can bring a concept that works and is well through out.
Comments reference dust proofing taken on board. This is also a part of the cabinet build that’s slowing it down as the last designer showed no consideration to this.
Anyway, I should hopefully be able to show some progress next week when I’m back in Dubai.
- Thread starter
- #67
So I went all TRON on the interior. Applied an adhesive dust excluder to all metal points where the new aluminium interior panels will touch the bodywork to hopefully stop anything rattling or resonating.
I've also put M5 rivnuts in all the original holes to replace the plastic pop connectors.
While I was at it, I took down the overhead tray that comes with the roof. Justify another demonstration of some shoddy work by Alu-Cab and poor quality control.
Three of the bolts weren't tightened, so it rattled chronically. Plus, the tray was full of swarf from when they build the roof. They stuck the interior light in using adhesive tape, including the power cable. Ultimately, the swarf has stuck in to all the glue too. We ended up having to cut the power cable for the interior light to get the tray out.
On the upside, I found an ill-fitting piece of carpet under the mattress. I can only assume this was destined for the overhead tray but got missed. Some cutting and double sided carpet tape and I have a semi-tidy tray.
I've also put M5 rivnuts in all the original holes to replace the plastic pop connectors.
While I was at it, I took down the overhead tray that comes with the roof. Justify another demonstration of some shoddy work by Alu-Cab and poor quality control.
Three of the bolts weren't tightened, so it rattled chronically. Plus, the tray was full of swarf from when they build the roof. They stuck the interior light in using adhesive tape, including the power cable. Ultimately, the swarf has stuck in to all the glue too. We ended up having to cut the power cable for the interior light to get the tray out.
On the upside, I found an ill-fitting piece of carpet under the mattress. I can only assume this was destined for the overhead tray but got missed. Some cutting and double sided carpet tape and I have a semi-tidy tray.
- Thread starter
- #68
Not a huge amount to report. Electrical work is taking quite a bit longer than expected. No issues, just workload and rather than rushing it, we're taking our time and doing it right. Looks like the trip to Salalah scheduled for next week will have to be canned though :-(
On the plus side, I think we've finally tied down the plans for the bench and cabinets. A combination of laser cut aluminium, folded, TIG'd and riveted, plus a bit of carbon fibre (mainly for vanity sake). Build on the interior probably won't be done until end of August.
In other news, in the past two months, three Hercules roofs have been fitted in the UAE. It's funny how these things work out as before there were none, and now we have three. To mark the occasion, we all got together for a wadi drive out in Wadi Showka. A little rack crawling, creating some new tracks and an excuse to get a family photo.
The closest one is owned by a guy called JB. His was the first Hercules in the UAE. He installed it himself and built his own interior. He's off to Central Asia in his in the next couple of weeks (waiting for visa's). He's got an instagram account for this travels @cookandcompass.
Mine is the middle one.
Chris (I think he's on here - say hello!) has the farthest one. He's installed some Tech-Safe seating as a second row for passengers and plans to build the interior for local weekend camping trips around the UAE and Oman. Much more family orientated than me
His instagram is @geoffthetroopy.
Probably the only time we will get all three together.
On the plus side, I think we've finally tied down the plans for the bench and cabinets. A combination of laser cut aluminium, folded, TIG'd and riveted, plus a bit of carbon fibre (mainly for vanity sake). Build on the interior probably won't be done until end of August.
In other news, in the past two months, three Hercules roofs have been fitted in the UAE. It's funny how these things work out as before there were none, and now we have three. To mark the occasion, we all got together for a wadi drive out in Wadi Showka. A little rack crawling, creating some new tracks and an excuse to get a family photo.
The closest one is owned by a guy called JB. His was the first Hercules in the UAE. He installed it himself and built his own interior. He's off to Central Asia in his in the next couple of weeks (waiting for visa's). He's got an instagram account for this travels @cookandcompass.
Mine is the middle one.
Chris (I think he's on here - say hello!) has the farthest one. He's installed some Tech-Safe seating as a second row for passengers and plans to build the interior for local weekend camping trips around the UAE and Oman. Much more family orientated than me
His instagram is @geoffthetroopy.
Probably the only time we will get all three together.
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boozewz
SILVER Star
Very nice line up!
Is the one on the right a V6 petrol?
Is the one on the right a V6 petrol?
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- #70
No, the right hand one is a 1HZ from 2010.
All three builds are very different, so it’s quite interesting to see the different approaches.
- Thread starter
- #71
Finally making progress with the interior. All of it will be constructed in laser cut aluminium, 3mm thick, which I though was a little over the top, but the fabricators say is necessary for the weight of me/my wife and the fridge. It will then be machine folded, TIG welded and riveted together.
This is where we stand with the drivers (LHD) side at the moment. The fridge will be accessible from inside the vehicle, but also from outside through a Gullwing. I have the awning on the drivers side and will also be fitting a drop down table of some sort.
There will be a long drawer the length of the fridge sunning alongside the inner wheel arch. The space to the left of this will be secret storage under the false floor that the fridge sits on. The side cavity in the wall here also contains my compressor.
The front section directly behind the drivers seat contains a 200mAH AGM battery, CTEK BMS and COTEK 1500W inverter, plus all the various wiring relays and distribution box.
The top of the bench in front of the fridge is split in two. One long cupboard space above the wheel arch for tripods and long items (1m long) with the space in front split in to top and bottom levels in front of the wheel arch. This will be used for rarely used recovery gear and odds and sods.
The entire unit will be sealed in to the aluminium panels we’ve installed over the cavities (to replace the fibreboard stuff Toyota installed) and powder coated in white for now. I may look at brightening it up with some coloured graphics in the future.
We have kept the bench at around 450mm tall, and the aisle between the bench and drawers on the passenger side at just over 500mm wide so the fridge can be placed on the floor if needed and we can create a downstairs bed platform.
I am now working on designing some pouches to be fixed between the end of the unit and the back door to store light weight items, plus some storage within the inside of the smaller back door.
The passenger side is still a WIP. The main target now is to get the drivers side finished within the next week so we have somewhere to mount the fridge and install the power to enable us to do our Salalah trip. Nothing like a 3,000KM drive for the monsoons to beta test the vehicle.
This is where we stand with the drivers (LHD) side at the moment. The fridge will be accessible from inside the vehicle, but also from outside through a Gullwing. I have the awning on the drivers side and will also be fitting a drop down table of some sort.
There will be a long drawer the length of the fridge sunning alongside the inner wheel arch. The space to the left of this will be secret storage under the false floor that the fridge sits on. The side cavity in the wall here also contains my compressor.
The front section directly behind the drivers seat contains a 200mAH AGM battery, CTEK BMS and COTEK 1500W inverter, plus all the various wiring relays and distribution box.
The top of the bench in front of the fridge is split in two. One long cupboard space above the wheel arch for tripods and long items (1m long) with the space in front split in to top and bottom levels in front of the wheel arch. This will be used for rarely used recovery gear and odds and sods.
The entire unit will be sealed in to the aluminium panels we’ve installed over the cavities (to replace the fibreboard stuff Toyota installed) and powder coated in white for now. I may look at brightening it up with some coloured graphics in the future.
We have kept the bench at around 450mm tall, and the aisle between the bench and drawers on the passenger side at just over 500mm wide so the fridge can be placed on the floor if needed and we can create a downstairs bed platform.
I am now working on designing some pouches to be fixed between the end of the unit and the back door to store light weight items, plus some storage within the inside of the smaller back door.
The passenger side is still a WIP. The main target now is to get the drivers side finished within the next week so we have somewhere to mount the fridge and install the power to enable us to do our Salalah trip. Nothing like a 3,000KM drive for the monsoons to beta test the vehicle.
are you planning to travel in 2 , or more ?
just to understand your truck set up .
just to understand your truck set up .
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- #73
Just my wife and I. Plus our dog.
Like the design and the fabrication method, especially the dual access to the fridge, smart! Couple of thoughts:
I assume the long drawer under the fridge opens to the back? Stating the obvious, but you can only access these items with your back doors open - can be a pain when you're sitting inside and it's raining/cold/mosquitos outside. You can have the exact same drawer slide to the inside making it always accessible.
Do you foresee the fridge as a sitting place? If not, I think the sitting area is only big enough for one adult and you'll need to create something on the other side too.
I fitted the inverter, fuses, charger etc behind the recess. You never really need to access them, if you do, taking the bench out is no drama. Saves a ton of space. It's also filled with spares I only need during a service.
I have my dual household batteries under the bonnet, saves a ton of space, but no idea if the 78's have a more cramped engine bay compared to the 75's
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- #75
Thanks Paul. The long drawer was considered as an internal short slide, but with local climate, I thought I'd much rather have external access. It's likely to be recovery gear, the more I think about it, which means it's likely to be accessed only when we're outside the vehicle.
We will have lots of storage on the drivers side that's only accessible from the inside, so that's not a huge worry.
I did think that the bench inside was a bit short, but really restricted by available space. I've got the option of moving the fridge to sit on the floor and creating a longer bench and more storage by adding a lid to the current fridge position - that was another consideration when designing the interior. We'll be testing it locally over the coming season and will be able to change this relatively simply and cheaply with some hinges and a wooden lid.
All of the inverter, fuses and relays run behind the panel. Most of the space within the bottom of the unit is the battery. The 200mAH is really a huge beast. I'll review power requirements after a season testing and see if I can go smaller/lighter.
Unfortunately there is very little room in the engine bay on the VDJ78 to locate the battery in the engine bay.
if you travel with only 2 people , and a dog , I would consider to have a potential flat space behind .
so to give the chance to the passenger to nap ,sleep or rest , on a flat surface ,while the driver is running .
can also be useful in case of an injured person , hope not .
we have such a solution and were able to make very long transfer trips in 1 day , 1 person is driving , while the passenger can sleep.
made 1750 km in 24 H .
so to give the chance to the passenger to nap ,sleep or rest , on a flat surface ,while the driver is running .
can also be useful in case of an injured person , hope not .
we have such a solution and were able to make very long transfer trips in 1 day , 1 person is driving , while the passenger can sleep.
made 1750 km in 24 H .
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- #77
We will use it for the coming season with the build in its current state.
We do have the option to create a long bench/bed downstairs if needed. This will probably be considered for next year when we plan on taking it on longer journeys in to Africa.
Next week I have a 1300km solo drive from Dubai to Salalah for the Khareef (monsoon) which will be solo. It will be undertaken in one go (approx 15hrs) as the temperatures outside of Salalah are 40°c+.
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- #79
They’re Evo Corse Dakar rims. 16x8 with ET-20. Massive bead bed on them so I can deflate in the desert down to single figures if needed.
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- #80
I've still not actually taken any photos of the interior. It's only half finished (drivers side) but still needs some work and modifications to make it perfect, plus still need to build the passenger side.
Anyway, a pretty shambolic packing system allowed me and the wife six nights away in the Troopy to Salalah, southern Oman, to enjoy the Khareef (monsoon). While temperatures in the UAE and across most of Oman are mid-40's (Celsius), Salalah enjoys a mild mid-20's with plenty of mist and a bit of rain, all brought in by the Indian monsoons.
Covered 3,750km over the seven days, three nights with the wife and a further three nights solo. I can tell I'm going to love spending more time in the Troopy. The wife still needs some more persuasion, and definitely will be more excited when the interior is finished and we can pack better.
Anyway, a pretty shambolic packing system allowed me and the wife six nights away in the Troopy to Salalah, southern Oman, to enjoy the Khareef (monsoon). While temperatures in the UAE and across most of Oman are mid-40's (Celsius), Salalah enjoys a mild mid-20's with plenty of mist and a bit of rain, all brought in by the Indian monsoons.
Covered 3,750km over the seven days, three nights with the wife and a further three nights solo. I can tell I'm going to love spending more time in the Troopy. The wife still needs some more persuasion, and definitely will be more excited when the interior is finished and we can pack better.
