Another Truck?! Third Time's the Charm TURBOCHARGED

I'll bring the uranium glass and my trusty Geiger counter to see how it does.

 

I've seen some of these before. I think they get used by utility contractors who need a reliably watertight enclosure. The ability to move the entire assembly (with contents) between trucks is probably appealing to fleet management too.

Anyway, I always dismissed them because I assumed they were heavy, and because they don't look like the most efficient use of space. I'm curious to hear your thoughts once you have it in hand.

 

The interior with the contractor boxes intact would absolutely be a pretty big space limiter, but I think with that structure, and the bed slide structure removed it should net some decent interior space, certainly more than my tent has. I'm going to look at it from all the possible angles of use. But ultimately the tapering design is nearly exactly what I had drawn up and started to build the camper frame to support. I want to essentially bridge the lowest part so the bed exists in the widest part and the bottom is a storage drawer. The rest can be opened up though. Weight may or may not be a problem, I'm betting the fiberglass structure isn't insanely heavy but the inner pieces most notably that huge metal drawer assembly and huge steel bedslide can be removed.

 

So anyway, predictably... I own it now. It's in the gentle caring arms of the T-100 for the moment

 

Well we took all the stuff out of this one. Minus the doors, I don't have a big scale but I'd guess it is 250-300lbs. I can lift half of it easy enough and it didn't strain a single ratchet strap at all. So uh, a little heavier than my bed slide haha

 

300lbs would be on par with a GFC-type camper, so if your guess is accurate that's not bad.

 

Yeah, I was pretty stoked on how easy it was to shed most of the weight out of it, this camper plus the frame we've already built for the new flatbed is maybe within +/-100lbs of the stock bed with nothing in it. And I still have to finish removing the bed slide frame that came with the camper, so it has maybe another 30lbs to lose. A lot of things are made cheaper and simpler with this as the base for the design. Most notably I don't have to make an aluminum camper frame now or figure out how to bond FRP panels weather proofed to it. Downside is the modifications and repairs I do have to make will have to be done with fiberglass, which I don't look forward to but at least is straight forward and after a gelcoat is very weather resistant.

Also finally found a makers mark on the damn thing (it's maybe a 2003 or so BrandFX body), it was for the weirdo 7' bed Ford Rangers... which in some clandestine turn of fate is the overall length of the new bed frame we knocked up. The design of the slide in structure has it focusing its weight on two big structural rails underneath so only those really need direct support form the truck, everything else is cosmetic to make it fit the vehicle it was designed for.

This guy on Mud had the idea to make a camping trailer with one too. Not using the interior for sleeping space though.
BrandFX Workpod Trailer Build | IH8MUD.com Forum | Toyota, Lexus & Off-Road Community Discussions

 

This shell looks like it is going to change the game quite a bit for you. Well done.

 

Thanks, I'm pretty stoked on it. Interior is gonna be fun to make got a nice blank slate to start with

 

How much headroom is in it exactly?

 

From floor to roof (center) just over 40"

 

Not bad. Perfectly fine to sleep in and shit. Not as nice as a pop up style wedge thing(gfc ect). But not bad.

 

Yeah I don't need to stand in there, but I can sit and move around way easier than the tent. Who knows in the future I might get the track saw out and section the roof to make it pop up. But for now I like the comparative roominess to what I have. I don't particularly like the GFC style and I like staying about even with the cab top and def not overhanging it. If I do a pop up, it will be a vertical pop. I think wedges are just a dumb trend look, also think the price is a joke for what you get with a GFC.

 

yeah price is way too steep for really any of the pop ups out there these days IMO.

Be cool too see when it's all done that's for sure. Plus this is all hard sides so no wind issues which is a big plus.

Biggest issue I bet will be figuring out how to use the space well so you don't have to unload the whole thing ever time you want to sleep.

 

Same thoughts, if you recall what's in my bed though... I don't carry much. Fridge, small OSK, small kitchen, luggable loo, water jug... that's half the bed slide, the other half is spare tire and my folding chair. The flatbed design we have has boxes around the outside of the center portion that carries the camper. So other than the fridge none of that will be in there. I still think I can probably come up with a way for the fridge to be outside too but I might have to redesign and maybe combine a box to make it top side opening. Spare tire will go on a swingout and that's all the bed contents accounted for besides my chair... which I could just put on top of my bedding in a canvas bag easy enough I think.

 

Yeah chair is easy to deal with.

Im curious about the box designs since you have to leave a decent amount of room in the middle of all that for the tire(obviously). So really just like 4 boxes, 2 per side one on each side of the tire yes? ish? How deep are they?

 

The boxes I drew are stepped and the top is a smaller box because of the bed walls. But I could combine an upper and lower box I think, I really like my fridge but opening on the short hinge makes it cumbersome to leave space to open.

 

Opening the fridge on the long axis is great. Some fridges have the option to switch between them. Is that the way yours is?