Lightweight camper build

Wants:
Something light (like really light) and simple.
Longer than 6' as I am 6' tall and dont want to feel constricted or sleep sideways.
Room for girl, dog and myself, and 2 MTB's (when traveling)
Fit any truck with a bit of creativity
Insulated, lockable and durable
CHEAP!



Bottom half

 

Check out AT Overland Habitat. Not cheap but very high quality.

 

Pretty sweet!
I have this project halfway complete already so im kinda comitted, and I cant sew haha!

 

I started with 2 aluminum toppers. Original plan was just one but buddy threw in the other for $20 to get it out of his life! Total cost, $240.
They are roughly 5' x 7' by 36" tall.



He said they were from a ford ranger. Here is An example of one. (Not mine)

One was in decent shape, one was missing side doors and kinda beat hence the $20 price tag. Both had roof racks which gave me extra material for the build.

 

I wanted something that was a mix of all of these, but keeping it a 1 piece unit was very appealing to me (like the space kap)

 

This was the first idea I mocked up. My mind changed about 50 timesas to the design, almost gave up and sold them. Lots of beer involved just to commit to a plan and proceed. I think I like doing these kind of projects?

 

One of the toppers was missing the side doors, so they had to be filled in. Im a sheet metal journeyman and apprentice welder so metal was the first thought, but went a different route. 1 sheet of puck board, some aluminum and some screws did the trick.
Its really neat material, food grade and almost indestructable. Cut with a circ saw.

 

Cut up the one of the roof racks and welded in supports for the missing doors and for the floor. I guess the bottom half weighs 70 lb at the most.

 

The bottom piece was a little beat and missing some of the seals so had to get creative. I want it to be quite waterproof without relying on piles of caulking. Straight seams are easy with aluminum angle but curves are tricky. My buddy offered up his fiberglass skills so we made these bulletproof pieces.

 

.125 Aluminum finished up the straight seam and sits under the fiberglass.





This is the bottom of the bottom half so it needs to be tough

 

I tried to silicone the puckboard to the aluminum to make it weather tight. Doesnt work, puckboard is wierd stuff.
Used 1 layer of 3m tin tape (quebec chrome) and 1 layer of industrial clear tape (not sure what its called, but we call it sex tape for some reason). Both tapes are unusually thick.

 

Next came the drip edge over top of the tape. Top half will get something similar. Like I said, im not going to caulk the hell out of this and hope for the best.

 

Im a fabricator by trade and fussy as hell. Drives me nuts sometimes but the results are worth it.
There was an obscene amout of fitting, head scratching, and prep to get to this point. Its always more work than expected, but a good excuse to have a few beers

 

Pretty much where im at, will take more pics as i continue

 

Interesting. Sub'd

 

We are having a chinook here in Calgary so took advantage of the warm weather to dig out the top half and get some work done. Top one has all the doors, a roof rack and was in pretty good shape after scraping and scrubbing the dirt off.

 

Got all the top half drip edge fit up and rivited down





All the insulation for top has been cut for a while, but will wait until the end to install. I believe there is 49 pcs. The radius on the top required many small pieces is make the curve. I found all this insulation in the attic if my garage when I bought it. Washed it up and it was almost good as new.

 

My girl was strong enough to help me flip it over without destroying the drip edge so I could hoist it up. Im guessing the top half is a bit more than 100lb.

 

Sub'd for the build. Looking good so far. Interested to see where this goes.

 

Was Kind of an exciting moment for me when they came together. They will come apart again to do insulation