Party of One

[65swb45]

So, back in September, T4WDO mag ran a verson of my story on taking the passenger seat out of my FJ40 and making it into a micro camper. IMO a lot of context was lost in the editing for the published version, as well as a lot of flavor. I figured that when the issue was no longer 'current' I would post up the original. Then my computer got a trojan horse, and I had to dump my OS. So now that I am partially recovered [in Linux] I got ahold of my original version. Those of you that have the published version can compare the two and let me know what you think.

Party of One by Mark Algazy

Just as the many roads of Death Valley wander off to places that I may never explore, so too have the people who have accompanied me on my many adventures these last 25 years moved on to other undertakings. Paths converge for a while, only to eventually separate again. Even the bonds of family are subject to the laws of time and space. Where I once struggled over where to put all the belongings my family and friends insisted on cramming into my FJ40, I have now come to find myself with the luxury of space created by my own economy of living, traveling alone.

Economy is both an interesting and very relative thing to ponder, especially while traversing the hundreds of miles we usually travel to reach the ‘official’ start of our adventures [I personally believe that the adventure starts the moment you pick a date] Many consider the process of selecting provisions for backcountry adventures an exercise in learning to ‘make do’. If given a choice, most would proffer a list of necessities that would take an RV to accommodate. Hence, rooftop storage provisions have become almost obligatory, as we cannot see ourselves traveling without a level of equipage that properly reflects our station in life, or at least the perception of it we wish to project.

I on the other hand, having spent time as a cyclo-tourist, consider even the de minimus confines of an FJ40 an IMMENSE improvement in accommodation over my other mode of recreating. Freed from the relative restriction of loading a set of panniers that would still make a backpacker jealous, I have surrounded myself with the unheard of luxuries of an 8lb sleeping bag, a 12” frying pan and a full-size dreadnaught guitar! Whoohoo!

While I have not come to covet my current traveling associates’ portable electric refrigerator or DVD player, the one thing I’ve continued to consider a ‘shortcoming’ in the FJ40s’ accommodations has been its lack of a sleeping option . It has been my perception for these last three decades that FJ45, 55, 60, 80 and 100 series owners all have a decisive advantage over FJ40 owners when it comes to onboard sleeping quarters, whether they use them or not.

All that changed last year.

At Surf N Turf 2007, one of our annual beach pilgrimages, we were all treated to the sight of Dave Berry’s unique Landcruiser camper. Based on the venerable FJ40 chassis, a fabricator with a fair amount of skill, and a corresponding amount of resources to sustain his imaginative endeavors, created a remarkably compact version of an RV. In this artist’s conception, from the windshield back, EVERYTHING was negotiable. Here was a demonstration that sometimes thinking ‘outside’ the box sometimes includes rethinking what’s ‘inside’ the box.

On the drive home, many more gears were turning than were required to propel the truck. While I considered my roll cage non-negotiable, the passenger seat certainly was. The back seat had already left years before, its empty cushions serving only as a melancholy reminder that my children had grown up. Once home, out came the tape measure. Seven feet from the tailgate to the dashboard. Excellent. Inboard side of the driver’s seat to the passenger door: 39”. Awesome.

 

[65swb45]

My initial thoughts were to build a platform as low in the truck as possible, just high enough to clear the now-exposed fuel tank. This I supposed would maximize the amount of living space in the vehicle, though it would require a considerable amount of shuffling to make use of the space once the vehicle was packed. As I had a fair amount of free plywood at my disposal, I actually produced and briefly deployed this deck. Briefly as in about 10 minutes! That’s about how long it took to realize that the right rear wheelwell was a major impediment to accessing the full width of the front of the cab for sleeping. Fortunately, plywood also burns easily, and shortly all the physical evidence of version 1.0 was destroyed!

Having reconsidered my remaining stock of plywood, version 1.5 fortunately never got past the sketching stage. 1.5 would have basically consisted of a wooden box whose lid matched the wheelwells for height, requiring only a forward extension at lid height to span the passenger side of the cab. The box would have the obvious advantage of being a separate entity, capable of being removed for other uses of the bed. Living space would give way to sleeping space, as I slowly acquiesced in the idea that the confines of the truck were better considered as a refuge from inclement weather than as a primary accommodation. However, once I stopped to calculate the amount of vertical space that remained in this hypothetical box after accounting for the thickness of the top and bottom plywood, I realized this span accommodated virtually NONE of my current camping provisions. Considering that this point in my life I have at least three different versions of each piece of equipment I use [subject for a different story!] this did not bode well for version 1.5.

While pondering this, I happened to lay a piece of wood across the top of the wheelwells, as my friend Ian Rogers had done a couple of years earlier for one of our club’s trips across the Dusy trail . Hmmm. The space to the bed of the truck would now easily accommodate a couple of my existing kitchen boxes . Good. The extra space and permanence of the section forward of the rear kitchen boxes would easily hold my selection of trail spares without further concern over the weight of a removable load. Even better. The forward section of the deck would now transition to the dashboard with relative ease, creating an enormous storage cavity in the passenger footwell. Excellent. Version 2.0 was born!

Using existing holes in the wheelwells from my old rear seat meant that I did not have to drill any new holes for the deck itself. However, the cumulative weight of the anticipated spare parts cache still had me concerned. In the end I elected to construct a four-sided vertical framework for that compartment that could be inconspicuously anchored through the sides of the wheelwells. But the parts also had to be accessible without dismantling the deck.

 

[65swb45]

The design of the lid remained elusive. I wanted to refrain from using hinges if possible, even flush-mounted ones. Air mattresses and even seemingly smooth metal objects don’t have a history of mixing well. While I am far from satisfied with the decision, the lid for version 2.0 currently consists of a pair of wood blocks under one side of the lid that the overlap the underside of the adjoining deck, and a flush-mounted, rotating wooden knob on the other side that locks and unlocks a metal arm under the other side of the deck. No modifications to the deck were required with this approach. This way, a lid of superior locking characteristics can be easily swapped in at a later date. Settling this problem allowed me to move forward, figuratively and literally.

A full width forward deck was totally impractical. Even without a front heater, there still had to be space for the floor shifter. More importantly, a wooden box in close proximity to my ribcage was something I reckoned best postponed until my funeral! So I chose to follow the angle chosen by Toyota for the factory fuel tank as the vertical transition point for the deck. The remaining span to the driver’s chair readily lent itself to becoming a console, at seat cushion height.

This arrangement resulted in three rather substantial compartments. The first, in the footwell forward of the fuel tank, provides almost three cubic feet of storage space with the lowest center of gravity in the truck. For hardcore wheeling trips, this makes an excellent location for a spare third member, though accessibility is still an issue in version 2.0. For all other occasions, this seems to be an excellent place to put various scraps of hardwood for the campfire, ensuring that no one accuses the FJ40 owner in the group of not doing their share for the community.

The cavern between the fuel tank and the driver’s seat rivals that of even the largest commercially available center consoles, providing easy storage and access for tool bags, shop rags, hand cleaner, tissue paper and just about anything else you just HAVE to have handy.

 

[65swb45]

The space above and immediately behind the fuel tank, also easily accessible through the open passenger door, provides a good space for a multitude of camping items that are shallow in height and ’secondary’ in necessity. Though my fuel tank does not leak, I would still be reluctant to store food or clothing in that compartment, but I have no issue with putting the camp stove, or a spare pair of shoes there.

My remaining gear ties off comfortably to either side of the roll cage, allowing sufficient room to sleep alongside the ice chest without having to move it from it’s dedicated spot directly behind the driver’s seat. For the moment, I have to move the guitar from it’s spot on the passenger’s wheelwell to sleep, but I am currently considering a way to hang it from the passenger’s side of the roll cage, since retaining headroom over a non-existent passenger seat is a moot point.

While I still plan enjoy the comforts of a tent when camp arrival times and weather permit, I am also glad to have finally found a solution to one of the only stigmas surrounding the use and full enjoyment of an FJ40 as a camping vehicle.

 

[55guy]

good write up

were are the pics ?? fj55 lots of room & wheel great !

 

[65swb45]

I know the pictures are on here...somewhere!

 

[65swb45]

Bump

 

[65swb45]