Poor man's 1999 F450 Truck Camper Build

[user 22017]

Found your build thread! Wow. Congratulations on all you have accomplished this past year. I'm impressed. And here I am struggling with tie-downs for an already built camper.

You and Weldman are crazy Good crazy.

 

[Weldman]

I’m using ratchet straps for mine, was supposed to be “temporary” but seems checking them every time I fuel up works well. Thanks :thumbsup:

 

[ByeBye]

In process of throwing together a small sink out of a stainless mixing bowl.

 

[Cajunwolf]

Sweet rig and what a deal on the truck. 7.3 is my favorite, bulletproof. I had a 1988 F250 just like that with the N/A 7.3L and it had 886,237 miles on it still running strong when I sold it to a friend. He made a Wrecker out of it and still drive it to this day. You got a winner!

Kudos! :thumbsup:

 

[ByeBye]

Got a functional sink with a single inlet drinking water dispenser installed. I will finish out the cabinet later. Got 2 gallon jug as gray water tank for now

Also picked up a 19"×60", 750 lb capacity hitch carrier from Harbor Freight, $65 out the door after 20% off coupon. Put it in front and mounted my generator on it

 

[Weldman]

Watch your transmission temp gauge blocking air flow like that, if you don’t have one get one, keep it below 200 degrees. Nice place to hold a generator overall  :thumbsup:

 

[highdesertranger]

nice I am thinking of mounting my spare up front. highdesertranger

 

[LowTech]

Wouldn't that be a big air block? Even more so than a genny.

Maybe I just have rigs that run hot, but I'm always looking at ways to not block the air.

 

[highdesertranger]

well I would for sure keep an eye on the temps. it's been done for years I have never tried it on my Ford but have done it in the past. on my Chevy I built an adaptor to mount my outboard motor right across the radiator that plus my winch. on the Chevy I could tell no difference but it has a huge radiator. my new radiator for the Chevy is even bigger. I think the trick is not to mount the tire or anything right up against the grill but to leave a healthy gap. on the Chevy the winch is about a 6 inches gap between the grill and the winch. the outboard was in front of that, probably 12 inches from the grill. also I have no AC condenser which I believe make a huge difference.

of course every vehicle is different I believe everyone who tries this must monitor their temps, what they should be doing anyway.

highdesertranger

 

[B and C]

I have the spare in the front on my Chevy Roadtrek and haven't noticed a difference in engine temps. It does have some space between it and the grill though. The tire tilts backwards at the top and the rim is aluminum with the holes in it. I have thought about putting a tire cover on it for UV protection but then thought better.

 

[rokguy]

Got a functional sink with a single inlet drinking water dispenser installed. I will finish out the cabinet later. Got 2 gallon jug as gray water tank for now

Also picked up a 19"×60", 750 lb capacity hitch carrier from Harbor Freight, $65 out the door after 20% off coupon. Put it in front and mounted my generator on it

Very nice work on the sink.
Down here that front mounted genset would not be allowed as it a pedestrian strike hazard, even though most trucks  have bullbars ?
 I guess your not going anywhere near big cities.
My first van had a front mounted spare tyre on the bulbar but radiator airflow was directed under the bumper.

 

[ByeBye]

Photo of distance between gennie and grill

 

[ByeBye]

Fabbing a rear hitch bike for my fat tire Radmini. Dug into my buddy's junk pile and so far only needed to buy some eye volts. Repurposing FTW!!

Doing some welding for the first time in 35 yrs

Design is meant so I  can pull a pin and bike/rack will enough to use my deck without removing the bike. 

Probably have 2 or 3 hrs of work left, take out slop in setup and painting it.

 

[ByeBye]

My first attempt at a mast for my directional antenna for weboost.

Using a 20ft window washer pole and various pvc fittings. Should give at least 23ft working height. Haven't decided where I will mount it yet. Put a surface mount auto 12v plug inside camper, may change to better connectors but wanted a plug connect as well. Netflix just became more available 

Got it lashed to rear camper jack now. 

Results have been very nice. Oak Flat campground, AZ, went from (Verizon) no bars with weboost &  omni antenna to 12mb & 1.5mb after getting the directional one dialed in.

 

[highdesertranger]

nice. highdesertranger

 

[B and C]

Ditto^.  I use a two section painters pole that sways in the wind.  Does the window washer pole sway much?  My storage for the pole is limited to 6 feet is why I got a two section.



I attach it to the van using the vans exterior hinges on the side door.  I bought a long S hook in Ehrenberg a few years ago and hang it on the lower hinge.  I stick the hollow handle on the end of the S hook and use a large spring clamp to clamp it to the top hinge.  It gets the antenna up about 15 feet in the air.  I generally can pull in a signal when others can't.  More height would be better though   I thought about a flag pole but they don't collapse down short enough and I would probably need a different mounting method.

 

[maki2]

get some "Amsteel" cord and put 3 guy wires on your antenna mast. That will take out much of the sway and risk of the pole getting bent. Amsteel is super strong with a small diameter and it is easy to coil and store. Cost more than other cording but it is reliable and worth the expense.

 

[B and C]

Forgot to add that I am lazy. It takes about 10 minutes to setup the way it is. Driving stakes for guy wires, attaching guy wires and unraveling the tangled mess would take me a whole lot longer. The painters pole was cheap but sways in the wind. The antenna still works while it sways. If it breaks, I will just get another one. I was just hoping the longer window washing pole would be stiffer than my painters pole.

 

[ByeBye]

@BandC
I doubt the washer pole I have is stiffer. It sways pretty good in 10mph wind.

I knew this to be a potential problem but wanted to assess the need before rigging guy wires, for exact reasons you mention.

I'll shoot a video next wind we have

 

[mudbunny]

I use my old concrete bull float handles. They are 6 feet long and quite sturdy. There are two types, screw together and plug together with spring loaded locking pins. Any more than 3 and the wind will whip it around.

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk