the truck house: the beginning.

[Bela's Mom]

Very nice!  Brings back memories of my old truck camper....I loved Ole Blue!  Hope you have a great time in it!

 

[rando]

Thanks everyone! i do have one problem i hope you can help me with. the camper shell is just a little too long for the bed, it hangs over the end/tailgate like 1/2 to 1 inch. the hatch i'm not worried about as i can add some foam weather stripping or something along the bottom but there are noticeable gaps in each corner where you can see daylight. i'd like to plug those holes, but how and with what? can't interfere with the tailgate operation... :huh: i'll try to post pics tomorrow to show what i mean.

 

[akrvbob]

One solution would be to take off the tailgate and door from the shell and build a whole new wall just inside of where they used to be. You could put in a window with screening.

Or you could just leave them on. On my home-built camper I left the tailgate down permantently so it couldn't be raised by mounting a box on one side. I also built a sort of porch over it so the door could be left open in the rain.
Bob

 

[masterplumber]

I had a similar gap on my last truck, I used a couple layers of foam sleeping mat glued together and cut to size. Not sure if that would work in your case. I've actually used cut up mat for several applications. The blue ones at Wally World are pretty cheap.

 

[rando]

good ideas, guys, thanks!

 

[rando]

truck house gets a coat of primer.  then more sanding, another coat of primer, sanding, then paint.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

gonna go white i hope....for heat relection....

 

[B and C]

Wally World sells "Swim Noodles" that are a hollow tube.  They could be cut to length and a notch cut the length to slip over the tailgate.  They come in several colors.

 

[rando]

gonna go white i hope....for heat relection....

oh, yeah!

 

[akrvbob]

I don't know why more people don't do this--probably because its too "ghetto". But there are few things that are too ghetto for me!

If you've go to live in a shell, then at least build a pony wall at the bottom to get more height. Then build in a new back wall to get a door and windows. Paint it all to match.
Bob

 

 

[masterplumber]

I don't know why more people don't do this--probably because its too "ghetto". But there are few things that are too ghetto for me!

If you've go to live in a shell, then at least build a pony wall at the bottom to get more height. Then build in a new back wall to get a door and windows. Paint it all to match.
Bob

 

Bob, I remember many years ago a guy I knew did something similar, but he used a couple top side tool boxes instead of wood. It worked out great! gave him almost stand up room inside, and access to his tools from outside. If I recall he did away with the tailgate and original lift up topper door, and built a whole new back by framing in around a used RV door from a pop up truck camper (shorter than normal door). 

 

[highdesertranger]

masterplumber that's a great idea with the tool boxes. highdesertranger

 

[rando]

truck house gets paint!  rustoleum works pretty well...

 

[badlands]

truck house gets paint!  rustoleum works pretty well...

That turned out nice! Looks way better!

 

[Canine]

You really prepped that camper nicely, that's why it came out so good. Nfortunately for me, prep takes time and I'm impatient so my rattle can jobs look like, well, rattle can repaint jobs. No runs but peeling within a year on the mid top. Oh well, another 5 cans will make do...

 

[RollinWOT]

Rando, the truck is looking great. Any updates on the progress?

 

[Belinda2]

I'm so proud of you! It looks great. Everyone is right, the inside looks cozy!

 

[differently]

wow I really like your build! I would really like to have a bed frame like that...I'm currently using a cot though because I don't want anything too permanent and the cot is easy to fold up and store. Great job