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It's no less than freakin Awesome Putts!  All you guys who have the time space and money to get your ideal rig done right are so lucky!!! :D
 
JustACarSoFar said:
It's no less than freakin Awesome Putts!  All you guys who have the time space and money to get your ideal rig done right are so lucky!!! :D

It's twue...it's twue.

I count myself as very, very fortunate. I also knock wood numerous times a week...it could all go to crap overnight, you never know.  But I've also told myself even if it does, I kept myself busy, I had a plan, it was sweet as honey, and I was enjoying life. C'est la vie if that's all I get, I had fun trying.

But I've changed my self-calculated, pessimistic odds from 70% to 80% of actually making out the driveway. First by accelerating when I think I can bail; and second by continuing to rid my life of distractions and focus on the task at hand. It's not easy, and it's not a straight line, but I know what I'm after and I'm workin' on grabbing that ring.

Ye-haw! (knock wood)
 
While I usually visualize myself and Dart alone in Putt, my best friend and motorcycle riding buddy Paul has plans to buy a rig, and we have long term plans of traveling together. Well, no doubt there will be situations where the weather is crappy outside and we'll have to hunker down inside the rigs. Which means I have to put another seat in the dinette so we can play dominos in comfort.

Ta-daa!

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Like I said before, the battery box is a little tall, so my feet touch the floor but don't have much weight on them...but Paul is taller than I...c'est la vie. Other than that, the position of both seats is great.

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The mock-up table is a bit to short, it'll be a couple of inches higher when I put the permanent one in. I'll also mount the table to the wall with one of these extrusions so that it can slide along the wall.

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I sat at the table last night with my roommate Tyler and the spacing was dandy. When I slide both seats fully forward on their tracks and recline the rear seat, I can put my feet up on the forward seat and it's nice and comfy. Really happy with the spacing.

But there's another problem. While it doesn't happen much, there will be times when someone travels with me. Well, the stock jump seat in front might as well be a bed of nails. It's super uncomfortable, and there's nowhere to put your feet. A person could do a half hour, maybe, but longer than that is torture. They could, of course, sit at one of the dinette seats, but the taco window will have to be closed when moving so the view would suck.

What to do?

Ah-ha! I've had lots of time to think about that one. The battery box has a top, but the seat is mounted to another matching piece of plywood that clamps into place. The mechanics aren't built yet, but there will be a long block of wood against the wall making a groove*the seat plywood slides into. On the walkway side of the seat I cut a long slot in the bottom piece and put block under the top plywood that fits in the groove.

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Eventually there will be a couple of holes in the block into which I can insert "R" clips to hold the seat down.


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In this pic you can see the two pieces of plywood under the forward dinette seat and how they stick out a bit. On the other side of the walkway you can just make out a block of wood I screwed into the cabinet. Eventually there will be a long cover over the water tank there making a lip that runs the length of the cabinet.

Sooooooooooo, I can lift the seat lift the seat out of the groove and flip it around 180 degrees.

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When the cabinet doors and drawers are built, they'll be flush against the top of the seat platform keeping it locked in place.

Voila! A comfy passenger seat. If you slide it all the way forward on its runners you can get a pretty decent view outside. Got to work on the seat belt situation, but that will come along eventually.
 
I'm having a blast following your build.
Coming along really well..!

Thinking is a powerful tool - lol

(speaking of which.. passenger seat belt?)
 
Putts, dang dude, your build is looking incredible so far!
You see what I'm talking about people? That is what folks with carpentry skills can do!
 
Putts said:
Bob, one of my goals in life is to be a worthy subject of one of your videos. I look forward to the day.
That day is today!!

As soon as we are close enough we'll do it!!
 
akrvbob said:
That day is today!!

As soon as we are close enough we'll do it!!

Well, if you're in Montana next summer (that's July 15th to Aug 7th around here) it'll be done enough to show off it's features. Hell, we could go camping...I know some places. 
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Brilliant passenger and dominoes seat solution. I can't visualize that extrusion working. Are the photo labels backwards or am I upside down?

Sassy
 
Here's another pic.

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The table will have a leg one one end, and this at the wall side.  If you lift up on the end of the table high enough it will drop out of the groove on top. If you lift the table a little it can slide along the extrusion. Hope this helps, couldn't find many pictures.
 
Re: #354 -- Aha! I was trying to make it into a fold-down table in my head.

Sassy
 
Well, major progress this weekend. First a bit of trim around the driver's side of the front cabin door. Forgot to take a before picture.

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Here's the top of it.

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But here's the really cool one, been waiting to put this curve in Putt for a long, long time.

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Me like.  
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Putts said:
Here's the top of it.

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Love the wall, reminds me of a (something) and The MYSTERIANS !

I'd highlight it with a neon color when you paint, seriously.

Richard
 
Done with banging my head on sharp corners.

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Now I can bang up against round corners.

Ran the router for about an hour softening all the hard edges.

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Making sawdust, baby!
 
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