Fixing up my camper shell

Before:

Why?

A new shell with all the features I’d want was gonna be $2500+...

I have a silver shell I bought off craigslist for $500 and been rocking for a few years now, just needed some love, some new weather stripping, and a overdue change of color.

I started with the inside.

Have had the idea to use Flex seal to paint the raw fiberglass interior. If I did it again I’d just carpet it, but it’s a nice clean white. It’s rubber, but it doesn’t off gas at all really, and will be easy to clean if it gets dirty. Hoping it will quiet it down a bit, both on the road and when we’re sleeping back there.


Replaced the dome light with a led strip I bought on Amazon, it was a two pack so I mounted the other one in the front of the cap as a night light for when we are sleeping back there. Before the flex seal I used 5 min epoxy to glue a plywood strip in the front and back of the shell roof to mount the lights, worked pretty well and feels solid.


Grabbed some fiberglass bug screen from Home Depot and replaced the two side window screens as well as cnc’d a frame to make one for the front slider, used some heavy duty Velcro to attach it and worked out great!

Next step is Paint, got it all sanded up to 320, filled where necessary. Just waiting for the paint to arrive...


Update!

Due to scheduling I ended up getting the shell sprayed with LINE-X, stoked with the results, dig the texture and it’s great to finally have an all black rig.

 

I would pull the windows before you paint. Would make for a better paint job, plus you get to make sure the windows are sealed up properly.

 

I agree it’d be a better paint job but, the interior frames are bent in spots and I’m afraid it’ll do more harm than good. The windows are the only thing that doesn’t leak currently on the shell, ha, have had it for a few years now. It probably isn’t worth the effort I’m putting into it, was used by a kayak rental company, and was pretty beat when I got it, just tryna breath a couple years more life into it...

 

Looking forward to a report on how well Flex Seal works as an interior paintjob.

 

ya im in the same situation, black truck white cap. I also have bent window frames from what looks like someone over tightening the screws, is this common? I was pretty disappointed to find out thats how they are installed, would be so much better if it had machine screws with proper taped holes.

 

Not sure if it’s common, I got it second hand and I figured it was just the previous owner, but it is a weird thing to bend and probably did happen at the factory, I’d be pissed if I bought it new like that.

 

ya mine was only $300 so I cant really complain, but If I were to buy a new one it would only be one of the new frameless designs like the ARE Revo. (nice Hammer K3 btw)

 

ill have to check those out, I was looking at a contractor shell like the ARE DCU, but I just can't justify the $2600 for a truck with 100k

 

Was looking back over this thread and noticed the hammer k3 remark, thanks! It’s a good saw, didn’t have room for a full slider so I went this route, I like it enough, it has some great features (can fit almost a 12” blade, nice blade tilt adjustments, good power) but the slider mech and fence are so so, hopefully replacing the cross cut fence with something a little more rigid an adjustable, also wish I went with a bigger saw for processing sheet goods. But I make it work