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.
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.
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
After mounting and using the camper, how does the poor man's fiberglass hold up at the corners? I've been curious about how slight movements in the wood effects the places where there's a long 90° angle/seam?
Thanks! Yes, the door is also skinned in PMF. 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.
@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.
I used Loctite PL Premium 3X construction adhesive for bonding the XPS to plywood. I used Titebond 2, but if I was to do it again, I think I would pay the extra and use Titebond 3, as it is fully waterproof, whereas T2 is only water resistant. I did thin it about 25% with water.
@@lylewood1492 Thanks for responding, just watched your other video too. You're the second person I've seen use landscape fabric. I did a test piece with Titebond II and it's bullet proof, stuck like crazy with just one application of glue. I did some research on Titebond III and they recommend it for areas that are continually. so I think multiple coats of II is fine, good paint is important. Titebond III does have a longer work time though and they say to thin it by 5%. Does your tailgate lock off your key fob? My doesn't, so I'm going to go with operable port hole or dutch door just in case someone shut my tailgate while I was inside! Enjoy your travels.
@@andrewkvasnak183 Yes, 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.
Nice camper. Im in the middle of building mine, same type composite technique. I like the PMF material. What is the inside cab over height without mattress? I'm struggling with this area, overall height vs weight vs comfort.
It measures about 28" where it starts sloping down toward the front of the cabover section, sloping down to about 20" where the forward storage compartment is. I can't quite sit completely up on the edge of the cabover bed, but that works ok for me. It's a little less than I might have preferred, but it was more important to me to keep the overall height of the camper as low as possible. Interior floor to ceiling height of the camper is 6'1".
@@lylewood1492 Thanks, I'm looking at the cab over starting at 48" from bed of the truck and going up. (Ford F-250) With 2" of EPS on the roof, 1" on the cab over floor and 4" mattress, I'm looking close to 7' 4" at it's highest point to comfortable. It just seems huge.
@@d512295 As I remember, I made the bottom of the cabover floor 46 1/2" from the bed of the truck. I still have a couple of inches clearance between the cabover and top of the truck cab.
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.
