OverlaNERD's Home away from home

Extra holes drilled because #fuckup

 

Got any pics of the driver side with the camper? I'm curious about how you did the fuel filler.

 

Fuel filler project is still in the works. Have to change the metal overflow line for rubber fuel line. Have all the parts but no time. It will be mounted about 2 - 3" higher then and should be flush with the cab. The locking gas cap sticks out a little further as well.



Was saving that pic for the gram...

 

Integrating the fuel filler into the bed was suggested, but I didn't want to do it. You end up having to hold the nozzle in place or bring a 4"x4" to prop up the DS to prevent backflow. I like to walk around the vehicle or hit the restroom while refueling, so that wasn't an option. Also, the filler is also a vent. Seal it up and CEL codes are thrown. If water gets into the canister, it could freeze and damage the solenoid in there. A $300 part. At least this is what I read on this thread:

http://forum.expeditionportal.com/threads/145395-Toyota-Tacoma-Aluminum-Flat-Bed

 

I moved my fuel filler down on my '85 flat bed and it's a pain every time I fill it.

That's with out all the nanny smog stuff.

The gas nozzles just don't like my filler neck anymore. It's a pain, luckily I drive it rarely so I don't have to fill it very often.

 

That's Mike's truck. I used to see him in passing and chitchat when he lived in the same town as me. That was before he went flatbed when he still had the Conqueror trailer. He seems to have dropped off the radar after starting over on his flatbed and camper build. FWC uses a UTE bed for their conversion, but I haven't seen any pics of how they deal with the fuel filler. I coulda sworn that LX450 and Zolo got into a separate discussion on the filler location over on Expo, but I can't find the thread now

Out of curiosity, any reason in particular that you chose a hinge on the front of the pop up vs going with something more like the VW camper style? It'd give you a lot more foot room without needing the roof to stick up five feet. Ok, that's an exaggeration, doesn't look quite that high, but it does look high enough that I'd be worried about setting up in a strong wind.

And without totally hijacking your thread, Benicia was near the top of my list of places to live if I had to live in California Went to college in Vallejo but haven't been back in a loooong time.

 

I like your camper. Its awesome!

 

I found that thread and saw what Mike did with a custom waterproof fuel fuel door. I didn't have that space since I went with raised fenderwells.

We went with the hinge style because of simplicity. @Iggy actually made a beefy westfalia style hinge, but it was wide and would have made the bed area narrower. Or we would have had to widen the top about 4 to 6" to keep the same bed height. The room in the foot area is fine. It was a concern of mine (size 13 feet), but my feet are fine since I'm a side sleeper. As far as stability in the wind, I'm not really concerned. After having a Flippac and 4wc, this design seems more stable. Probably less flapping than the Flippac and about the same as the 4wc. We also plan to add a support bar for added peace of mind, but right now I have to almost hang from the lid to get it back down.

Benicia is a pretty cool place to live. Not widely know about in the Bay Area. Assuming you went to the maritime academy?

Thank you!

 

In my DD work vehicle (1st gen Tundra) I'm having similar issues. Stock filler height, but the gas door is lower than the Tacoma's. I have to hold the nozzle, the whole time while refueling, at 1/3 of stations. Didn't want to deal with that. At the current height, I haven't had to hold the nozzle with the Tacoma. About 10 fill-ups since I got it back.

 

Judging from your camper, I would imagine that we have very similar pictures in our truck idea folders. I figured you guys would have looked at that westfalia option for hinges, though I wouldn't be so quick to rule them out completely. You do lose some bed width, but a narrower bed down below the knees usually isn't a big deal. The westfalia hinge would make it easier to store something like a canoe or kayak on the roof without having to take it down to set up the camper should you go that route. Are the kids sleeping downstairs?

Yeah, best four years of my life. Errr... Not really, but every year since has been pretty great. I still have lots of friends that went shoreside in the area, but there's not much incentive for those who go to sea to stick around the state. I moved out of state the day after I filed my first tax return post graduation.

 

The extruded hinge works great. Advantage of the Westfalia top is that you can make it really low profile. The compromise is width and lower profile for bedding. I can keep a 4" mattress and all the bedding up top since the overhang and roof have a thicker profile. Really no issues with foot room. At all. This is a 72" Thermarest. I can scoot back if my feet are cramped with the thicker mattress, but I'm a side sleeper and it's not an issue. At the end of the extension, the height is 48". 36" height at the end of the carpet.



I checked out an Ursa Minor JK setup a few weeks ago. Roof was roughly the same width, but the bed was really narrow.



The kids will sleep down below, but sometimes will end up with us up top. It's tight, but it would be impossible if the bed was 4 - 6" narrower. Widening the top, to accommodate Westfalia hinges, wasn't good either since we wheel in the tight trees. It was a challenge with the 4wc that is not an issue with this setup.

Lastly, there is some lateral movement with the Westfalia hinges. Almost none with the 52" extruded hinge.

Edit: As far as roof storage, the struts are more than enough to support the weight. There is aircraft track on the roof for a future rack. I will not have to remove anything from the roof to popup the camper. Running 150 lbs. struts now, but may switch to 250 lbs units (sitting in my garage courtesy of @Iggy ) to haul a canoe or cargo. It takes about 3 minutes to switch the struts.

 

@Overlanerd Dude i just found this thread and have to say its pretty sweet! The newest camper is beautiful and really inspiring. Keep it up! Sub'd

 

How tf am I 6 pages late to the party??

 

Thank you!

Party just started. And at my rate, it will probably never end...

 

Sub'd for the continued amazingness! Great job!

 

I can't quite tell from the pics, do you know how they attached your L-track? Like with rivnuts drilled from the outside or bolts going all the way through the frame tubing?


They said the track isn't something they stocked in-house normally and since I'm not local to bring it to them we agreed on just putting some additional tubing running length-wise within the roof and I'll bolt the track on myself later. Rivnuts seem like the way to go, but I haven't worked with them before, so not sure if they can be relied on for a critical task like holding a roof rack on.

 

They are drilled through. Here's a pic:



Cabinets will cover up the bolt heads, but T-nuts might be a better solution. Rivnuts will work too, but aren't as strong. Probably good enough for traction boards. I am debating putting Rotopax containers on the side though and want the strength. It will make putting panels in a challenge.

So, you have an order placed? Did you order with the fabric? Just wondering because the fabric solution is not fully figured out yet. @Iggy and I met with them last week and it's very close. Basically, @Iggy got it figured out with a little input from me. My fabric will be in within the next week or so and they will hopefully have a clear path forward.

 

Thanks for the info. Bolts all the way through seem like the best bet, I don't want to be worrying about whether the rivnuts will fail and drop my kayak on the highway.

I placed an order last week, no fabric. I wanted to customize the dimensions a bit, so I figured it wouldn't fit if they are planning to mass produce or outsource a standard size for the fabric. But, if they are developing the in-house capability to make the fabric, maybe they could add it to my build before it ships. I'm not counting on that though, I've talked to a couple shops here in Seattle that handle boat covers, awnings, and sails etc and it sounds like I can get them to sew the fabric for me. Also have an idea for making the fabric in 2 parts joined with either a zipper or awning track so it's easy to put on/take off and not quite such a large and hard to work with single piece of material.

Thanks for all the ground work you guys did with the basic design.

 

Damn I live under a rock.. How did I miss this build.