Vagabond Drifter Camper Buildout and Mods

I have a large size Swiss box I got from mule years ago. Made a wood top for it and it’s been our step for the truck and has held up great. We keep our cool gear and dry food in there as well. Slides into our idle way and is the first thing to come out usually.

lots of talk on the STS brackets! I too have them on all three sides as most of you already know from when we first tested them out on the drifter. The single 6ft awning with a room when needed has suited us very well in all conditions. I’m honestly surprised that an arb awning when tied down well, has withstood the winds and snow we have thrown at it.

a buddy of mine gave me an off brand 55” awning recently and I had an extra set of STS awning side brackets so we have been trying it out off the back recently with a sun shade wall to allow us to use the room off the side know they we are camping with a 1 yr old.

this is from some “urban camping” at my dads for the 4th.

 

I received the tent insulation kit and got it installed. My Drifter came with the upper velcro flaps sewn into the tent, so the upper attachment location was ready to go. The kit came with strips of adhesive velcro that were pre-cut and labeled, to be applied around the lower edge of the upper-half of the wedge. Once that was installed, there are two pieces of 2-ply insulation fabric that get attached. The first is a thin strip that attaches to the front (hinge end) of the wedge, and the second is the huge wrap-around piece that matches the entire dimensions of the tent canopy. The big piece took a couple tries to get it centered correctly. There is a little bit of intentional overlap where the big piece meets up with the thin strip at the front of the wedge. This is nice because it provides more overlap in those front corners (where I've noticed air movement) and also allows some forgiveness to tuck solar cables or any wires you may have routed up in those corners.

Once installed, the top still closed with bedding (sheets and a blanket) and pillows in there. No chance to try it out yet to see how much difference it makes but I immediately noticed a sound-insulating effect with the windows zipped up. I've been told it's good for both warm and cool seasons.

I haven't seen any specs on the material and I'm wondering if it can be laundered / washed.

 

looks like it would muffle the wind & cold

 

I had a similar setup in my FWC and it worked as advertised. If I end up doing more cold camping in my Drifter, I'll be installing both a Propex and the insulation package. I am a bit worried about closing it with both the insulation and bedding... seems a tight fit as is. Do you notice the lid not closing all the way along the sides? That's something I've seen if I pack my bedding poorly - it latches just fine, but bows up enough over the length of the lid that the seals don't make contact in the center.

 

I too recently installed the insulated walls except I was Guinea pigging the retro fit kit a little bit.

All in all the kit was very complete and straight forward to install. We Have about a week in it so far and have been very happy with the differences in hot whether. It’s kept the inside a bit cooler when we kept it all closed up and was quieter on windy nights which helped the baby sleep.

one unexpected benefit was over all comfort when sleeping. We typically sleep with just a comforter and sheets which means some times you get a cold touch from the tent if you’re rolling around. I had made some temporary insulation panels we stuck in when we were camping in the winter but this was much better.

I’m excited to test it out this winter. We never had a problem staying warm but this will help keep the propex from having to run as frequently I imagine, and hopefully remove any remaining condensation!

 

I don't have any issues with the bulb not sealing equally down the sides. See pic below, with the insulation kit, bedding and pillow. It will just depend on how compressed your bedding can can be. For my particular setup, it is layers with a fitted sheet and flat sheet (base) fleece blanket (mid-layer, shown in pics) which stay on the bed. Then the top layer(s) are goose down which can either be compressed a great deal, or stowed away compactly somewhere else depending on if your lid can accommodate or not.

Great feedback! Yes, now that you mention it, I remember the cold contact from the sidewalls waking me up if I didn't keep the blanket tucked over the side well enough. That will be nice to eliminate that issue. I'm also guessing the reduced cold drafting at the nose of the wedge will help too, since that is naturally the coldest spot in the camper.

 

I started using the tent insulation back in February, but it was an earlier prototype without the section at the wedge. Had some pretty cold nights up here, and the insulation certainly helped a lot. The new production version is even better, and I expect to leave it in year-round.

 

We actually leaned against it partially on our last trip it was comfy. Definitely closing in the section towards the front will make a big difference.

Good to hear! I expect we will be doing the same as well, I can’t really think of a reason to remove currently. Thanks fully even if I do it’s small enough to fit in a cabinet

 

I have the 4' ARB, so nice to know CVT makes the walls for their smaller awning.

How long does it take to set up and take down the room?

 

Our 6' room only takes 5-10 minutes max to set up, you just slide the keder line end in the onse side and sip the in the opposite side and snap all of the clips onto the awning frame. Staking it down is a different story lol If its really nasty we have 6 stakes that hold the base down plus two for the awning.

Im staring to think if I could find some long very course thread lag bolts I could impact all of them in quick in the snow I keep an aircraft drill in the truck for drilling into ice to get stakes in


Edit:

I may have just found my next purchase...

$8 Penetrator 9" Aluminum Earth Screw Anchor-Holds up to 200lbs

https://www.amazon.com/Penetrator-A...=&hvlocphy=9033404&hvtargid=pla-1326422118384

 

Does anyone know where the serial number is for the MaxxAir fan? My lid is cracked and AirCel support told me they need a serial number to process the replacement.

Except, the serial number isn’t where they said it is. They told me to remove the screen, and the serial number would be visible. See warranty image below.

Anyone have this issue? Does VO place the serial number sticker in a different location when they add the reverse switch?

 

The fan paperwork VO provided to me at install had my serial number on it. New cover is already having the same issue cracking so I think flex tape/plastic epoxy is probably the best long term solution, but might as well get a backup from them.

 

Started working on preparing the utility cabinet yesterday by relocating my battery and swapping it to a Lithium. The AGM did well during its time but this 100Ah will basically double the capacity, it also has a heating blanket on it. The entire enclosure received insulation as I continue making my way around the truck bed. Next will be to install the tank itself which has already come in and has a 10 gallon capacity.

 

Thanks for the update! Did you receive tracking information or did it just show up at your door?

Also, you show the two side windows but what about the third window facing the rear of the truck. Did that have a cut out and zipper on the insulation?

 

Yes, the rear window does have a cutout and zipper. I have received an installed my insulation kit as well. I found no noticeable difference in closing with a very thick down comforter and two sheets in the bed. We haven’t camped in it yet, but on a 100deg day, it kept the interior temps roughly the same as exterior with the fan on high (pulling air through the open tailgate. In the past, the interior has been 15 degrees above the outdoor temp.

 

How much is this insulation package? I went on VB site and I did not see it on there.

I do more winter camping than summer. So I need to order this.

 

Think it’s like $500

 

I'll call Phil and order this. Thanks!

 

No tracking number or shipment notification. It just showed up one day. As MapJunkie mentioned, it does have the zipper panel that matches the one at the rear of the truck. The price I paid was $664.83.

 

How long does it take to set up the rooms to your 270 awning?

I have the OVS and Im looking at getting their kit that makes it into a big room but know that if its too much trouble to set it up I'd probably never use it.
Thinking of switching over to the normal ARB with the room