Great job, so practical. We did a similar project. We might only use for a week or two a year, so a couple thousand invested was the right amount for us, thanks again.
(From a previous question further down in the comments) - The landscape fabric I used was just a medium quality fabric, nothing particularly special about it. If I had it to do over again, I think I would have stayed with the traditional method using canvas drop cloths. The landscape fabric was a bit more difficult to get to stick securly around corners than organic fabric, as it wasn't possible to iron it down to the extent you can do with cotton. But all in all, it still turned out quite nice and has a pleasing sheen.
Thanks! Yes, dry weight came in at 940 lbs. More than I had hoped for, but I tend to overbuild things, such as using the 3 layers of plywood for the studs and beams instead of using cedar like Dave of Endgame Campers did. But it is still relatively lightweight and the truck handles it very well.
Thanks! All totaled, we have about $5700 into it. That includes all the construction materials, the 12v refrigerator, EcoFlow power station, dual fuel cook stove, the porta potti, aluminum step ladder, the truck bed mat, and so on.
Because I always tend to "overbuild" projects, it came in a bit heavier than I hoped - dry weight is 940 lbs. Still qualifies as light weight for a truck camper, and gas mileage isn't badly affected at all.
Fantastic job! Congratulations, it must have been fun to build. We are planning to buy a composite camper shell and kit out the inside ourselves. I’d love to build one from scratch one day, maybe when I retire….
What happens if someone wants to mess with you and close your tailgate while you are sleeping? One of the first videos I watched the person mentioned this, and I have never forgotten it. You need a window lower in the door so you can reach ouch and unlatch the tailgate.
Yes, I considered all of that in my design. My tailgate locks with the key fob. So if the truck doors are locked, I can trip the lock strikers on each end of the tailgate and then it's not possible to shut and latch the gate. However, if we were inside and the truck wasn't locked, someone could possibly shut the tailgate. For that reason, I fabricated a simple long hook that I can reach out of the back door window and catch the tailgate handle to pull it up and unlock and let the tailgate down. That hook assembly will be inside the camper at all times, just in case.
Probably not quite as well as actual fiberglass, although some have had it last a decade or more on their trailers etc. I expect to need to topcoat it again with acrylic latex paint in a few years.
@lylewood1492 I send her videos. From what she does and a few other. As you and a few others put glue over the fabric. She does glue put fabric then it's off to paint
@@122amazonls5 There are variations in the method to do PMF. Many videos are on RU-vid. I recommend taking time to view different ones and then decide on what approach you want to take.
@@122amazonls5 So far it is doing very well, however, it is still quite new, as I only completed the camper and brought it outside in late April 2024. We have taken a 10 day trip where there was a lot of weather variation, including some heavy rainstorms. It held up perfectly through that. Time will tell how it will do in the long run, but my expectation is that it will continue to be fine.
We just got back from a 10-day 1800-mile trip out of Michigan, through Indiana, Illinois, and all around Missouri. We slept in the camper all 9 nights we were gone. Everything worked out great, even with a couple of torrential downpours while we slept. The truck (Ford F-150 4WD with 5.0 V8 engine) did pretty well on fuel economy. Bucking a headwind most of the way down, it started out at 17.5 mpg but then dropped to around 16 because of the headwinds. However, on the way back home, we got 18.5 mpg, and that was even with being stuck in traffic on Interstate 80 for over an hour. So I would say that the camper lowered the mpg by maybe 3 mpg, which isn't bad. All in all, we count it all a success. (Forgot to mention - we kept the speed down to around 63 mph to decrease wind resistance, so that helped the fuel economy.)
We just got back from a 10-day 1800-mile trip out of Michigan, through Indiana, Illinois, and all around Missouri. We slept in the camper all 9 nights we were gone. Everything worked out great, even with a couple of torrential downpours while we slept. The truck (Ford F-150 4WD with 5.0 V8 engine) did pretty well on fuel economy. Bucking a headwind most of the way down, it started out at 17.5 mpg but then dropped to around 16 because of the headwinds. However, on the way back home, we got 18.5 mpg, and that was even with being stuck in traffic on Interstate 80 for over an hour. So I would say that the camper lowered the mpg by maybe 3 mpg, which isn't bad. All in all, we count it all a success.
We just got back from a 10-day 1800-mile trip out of Michigan, through Indiana, Illinois, and all around Missouri. We slept in the camper all 9 nights we were gone. Everything worked out great, even with a couple of torrential downpours while we slept. The truck (Ford F-150 4WD with 5.0 V8 engine) did pretty well on fuel economy. Bucking a headwind most of the way down, it started out at 17.5 mpg but then dropped to around 16 because of the headwinds. However, on the way back home, we got 18.5 mpg, and that was even with being stuck in traffic on Interstate 80 for over an hour. So I would say that the camper lowered the mpg by maybe 3 mpg, which isn't bad. All in all, we count it all a success.
We just got back from a 10-day 1800-mile trip out of Michigan, through Indiana, Illinois, and all around Missouri. We slept in the camper all 9 nights we were gone. Everything worked out great, even with a couple of torrential downpours while we slept. The truck (Ford F-150 4WD with 5.0 V8 engine) did pretty well on fuel economy. Bucking a headwind most of the way down, it started out at 17.5 mpg but then dropped to around 16 because of the headwinds. However, on the way back home, we got 18.5 mpg, and that was even with being stuck in traffic on Interstate 80 for over an hour. So I would say that the camper lowered the mpg by maybe 3 mpg, which isn't bad. All in all, we count it all a success.
We just got back from a 10-day 1800-mile trip out of Michigan, through Indiana, Illinois, and all around Missouri. We slept in the camper all 9 nights we were gone. Everything worked out great, even with a couple of torrential downpours while we slept. The truck (Ford F-150 4WD with 5.0 V8 engine) did pretty well on fuel economy. Bucking a headwind most of the way down, it started out at 17.5 mpg but then dropped to around 16 because of the headwinds. However, on the way back home, we got 18.5 mpg, and that was even with being stuck in traffic on Interstate 80 for over an hour. So I would say that the camper lowered the mpg by maybe 3 mpg, which isn't bad. All in all, we count it all a success.
All I did was install plastic splitting wedges (used for felling trees) between the rear leaf springs and the overload springs. There are RU-vid videos on how to do that. It seemed to make the ride more stable.
Very well done i think its the nicest one i have seen, and you're innovative build technique . Could you share your dimensions and any more build pics. Thank You
Thank you so much for the reply and information. One last hopefully easy question. Did you build it so that the wings sit on the bed rails for support/stability, or do they float?
@@lylewood1492 incredible. I think I now understand the cabover attachment and strength based on your prior description, but if I'm seeing it correctly the only place the base of the wings are attached are at the tub wall vertical section. I can see the strength against the front of the bed/cab because it runs the width, but everywhere else isn't clear to me. I hope that you don't mind, but can you clue me in?
Keep in mind that virtually everywhere on the exterior of the camper, the plywood skin gives a great deal of strength and stability. So there is that. But also, on the front portion of the wings, there are 2 2x3's laid flatways that span the entire width of the camper. Those form the framing for the front bench inside the camper. That together with the stiffness provided by the plywood on the vertical portions of the front of the tub including up to the floor of the cabover gives a great deal of strength and stability. Once the camper was framed and skinned with plywood, I could lift up any of the four corners of the camper and there was no discernible deflection. Everything was tied together securely. Even on the back of the camper with the door framing in place, the plywood on either side of the door along with the stiffness provided by the rafter beam made it all very stiff and strong.
@@lylewood1492 thank you for taking time to reply and describe what makes it all work. I'm in the process of determining what I'm looking to build and trying to understand it all before I do.
What a wonderful build you have there. You're patience and attention to detail are impressive. Yours is the second build I've seen where the cabover is attached to the last post/gambrel which I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around as far as the canti-levered support it gets. Am I correct in believing that the support isn't just from the post/gambrel, but a combination of all attachments to it from preceding members, and the exterior paneling? Do you notice any deflection when weight is applied?
The exterior 1/4" plywood along with the XPS foam that is bonded to it provides a great deal of strength and stability. It appears to be very strong in every respect. Haven't noticed any deflection at all. And actually, the interior 5mm plywood probably adds a degree of strength also. When we were raising the camper to load it on the truck bed, I had two of the camper jacks under the cabover until we got it high enough to put all of the jacks under the "wings" of the camper. No evidence of any deflection at all. We camped overnight in it a few days ago to give it a test run before hitting the road with it, and it performed as hoped and expected. I slept in the cabover bed and felt very secure and comfortable.
So awesome. I’m currently in the process of making one now. Can you explain to me how you strap it down in the front? How do you get to your tie downs? I know there is a door there but do you have an eye bolt as well?
In the front, there are two ratchet strap tiedowns on each side - one going to the factory tiedown point in the front of the bed, and a heavier strap going through the knockout in the front of the bed, down to where I hooked the strap on to the truck frame. I attached the other end of each ratchet strap to the camper with these heavy duty tie down anchors, bolted through framing members. www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07Q2J2Q6D/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1 . I gain access to the straps via the access panel doors I put in front on each side of the tub. Same thing on the back, using the anchors on the back of the camper through a framing member, going to the factory tiedown points in the bed.
Also, I was concerned that the metal of the knockout might over time wear through the heavy duty ratchet strap. So I split a thick piece of neoprene tubing and laid it over the bottom of the metal opening so the strap was bearing on that instead of directly on the metal of the bed knockout.
@@mikeandmollyspivey3051 The knockout opening is open while the camper is mounted on the truck. The knockouts are in the vertical portion of the front of the truck bed. When the camper is removed from the truck, I can re-insert the rubber knockout inserts. Where the knockouts are located is behind the bottom of the cab, and there isn't too much concern about water making its way in at that point. Any that does come in would not pose much of a problem, as the camper is skinned in the PMF everywhere anyway. And I have and recommend a 3/8" rubber bed liner that the camper sits on, which further isolates the bottom of the camper from any water coming in, as the water would mostly go under the bed liner between the raised "struts" of the truck bed. Hope this makes sense.
