Vagabond Drifter Camper Buildout and Mods

I need to do something similar! Looks awesome. Where is your fridge, most likely in the back seat?

You should add this to the 8020 cabinet thread do a build write up!

 

I have been camped out in some very high wind situation out in the desert before. One night, in Anza Borrego, we got stuck in a sand storm. That was fun. I know I’ve been in gusts above 60mph and the lockout bar is necessary. The bed will sway, but that’s about it.

 

I'm considering doing one of these drawer fridges to save room. Less capacity though, obviously.

Dometic CD-030DC Drawer Refrigerator Black 31 Quart 12/24 Volts DC

https://www.amazon.com/Dometic-CD-030DC-Drawer-Refrigerator-Black/dp/B00L4HVJU8

 

Yeah fridge is in the back seat. Took up way too much space in the bed.

 

That was the original design but the fridge just took up way too much space being the bed. So now it's in the back seat.

 

Goose gear has a new east/west system set up for VO according to this Instagram post by VO:

use the arrows to scroll through the photos.
vagabond_outdoors
New @goosegear Vagabond interior setup. Same layout with east/ west fridge slide and double drawer setup, while still maintaining a modular lower sleeping platform.
Why? For a different camper entry option in the works...

https://www.instagram.com/p/B7HYYg4Ad_W/

 

Incredible build. What did you use for the panel material?

 

I've used the camper in those winds before. First time was in Anza, but pointing the truck into the wind really helped that time, but the cross winds shook the truck like crazy. At Expo west last year, the winds were really bad and approached those speeds at night. Besides the fabric flapping it was fine. I even left my Shadow Awn open for science

 

I've seen that, but it still has a super tall area for the fridge which is what I'm trying to avoid. The drawer fridge allows me to keep the overall build height down.

 

I have also used our Drifter a lot in the wind and in high wind snow storms. We have a “hunker down mode” that keeps everything we need in side for nights like that. With the lock out bar I haven’t ever had a concern with high winds but it won’t change the sway factor.

I built a slide in the back of our rig that holds an RTIC 45 cooler most of the time but it’s built around a smaller 35 Dometic CFX. The bench is good hight for sitting and our floor partition can be set up on the internal L track rails to give a full lower sleeping platform. I am not utilizing a lower plate however like most.

 

This is basically what I'm trying to do, with the caveat that I need to figure out a crib setup first. I'm gonna try out a few baby sleeping options this spring, as desert season is here in Utah. Once I have that part dialed, I plan to rebuild with 8020 and a fridge and fridge slide.

 

Added led strip lighting to the ceiling. They are warm white and on a dimmer switch. I found a roll of 1/2" x 30yd foam double-sided mount tape on Amazon for attachment. It took a bit over 6m of lights to do 3 sides of the roof, but you could get away with a single 5m strip easily. They pull around 1A or 12W on wide open throttle.

 

Also added a Mountain Hatch tailgate surface, and a rubber strip along the tailgate hinge line to help keep dust out.

 

1/4" plywood. Then I just stuck some decorative "wood" vinyl decals on those pieces. They have all kinds of wood variations on Amazon.

 

Both of those make such a big difference!

 

Do you have the direct Amazon link?

 

Curious what LED strips you used. That dimmer will be so worth it.

 

$25 d-c-fix Peel and Stick Contact Paper Oak Sheffield Pearl Grey Wood Grain Self-Adhesive Film Waterproof & Removable Wallpaper Decorative Vinyl for Kitchen, Countertops, Cabinets 26.5" x 78.7"

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011I4209K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Ask and ye shall receive.

 

Thanks. Ok I get it now. It's shelf liner.

 

Mine are marked "LC-242" but I don't think it's a valid reference... search ebay for something like "led strip light warm white 5m 300" (300 leds/5m, or 60/m is what I'd look for) It should return results <$10.

Ah, Amazon actually has them (they used to be $$$ there)

LE 16.4ft LED Strip Light, Super Bright, 300 LEDs SMD 5050, Non-Waterproof LED Tape, Flexible Rope Light for Home, Kitchen, Under Cabinet, Bedroom, 12V Power Supply Not Included, Warm White

https://www.amazon.com/Non-Waterproof-Flexible-Kitchen-Included-Daylight/dp/B00JQV6NNC

The dimmer is great. I use them in the house under kitchen cabinets and on moulding near ceilings, and adjustability rules. The type of dimmer I used is like this

$8 Maxmoral 1pc DC 12V 24V LED Strip Dimmer Switch with DC Female Male Adapter Single Color Mini LED Lamp Lighting Accessories Brightness Adjustable Controller Manual Knob Dimmer Switch Black

amazon.com/Maxmoral-Accessories-Brightness-Adjustable-Controller/dp/B07KW4NCCJ

so you would also need barrel connectors for wire like

$8 DAYKIT 10 Pairs 12V Male+Female 2.1x5.5MM DC Power Jack Plug Adapter Barrel Connector for CCTV Security Camera Led Strip

https://www.amazon.com/DAYKIT-Female-2-1x5-5MM-Adapter-Connector/dp/B01J1WZENK

There is also an RF remote that works well.

$12 Updated Mini Remote Control for Single Color LED Strip Lights, RF Dimmer for 12V DC LED Ribbon, Shelf Lights, Wireless Remote Control for Dimmable 3528 5050 Under Cabinet Puck Lights(Single Color)

https://www.amazon.com/Updated-Controller-Wireless-Control-Dimmable/dp/B01M7TGZ9B/ref=sr_1_13