FM82 Offroad Teardrop Build
- Thread starter FireMedic82
- Start date
How about now? Would love to see the finished product, nice work man.
capnjackcanon
Observer
This looks really great, would love to see the end product...
HuntfishcampXJRay
Get out, Get dirty
What happened to this build? Was it ever finished?
FireMedic82
DIYer
Revival time! It's been nearly 4 years since I dove into this project, and the same length of time since it came to a screeching halt. Life threw a wrench into the gears and left it sitting, and untouched ever since. This past September, the spark got me fired up to return to this project. October 10th, we were sitting nicely to experience the straight line path of Hurricane Michael's wrath. After slowing down a bit, but coming through with mid category 4 winds, the hurricane nearly left no trees standing. Where the camper build was sitting, the right tire was lifted up by the root system of a falling oak tree, wedging the top left of the cabin frame right into a building. After cutting the tree to wheel it out and assess the damage, I was stoked to see that the framing didn't give. Seeing no broken welds, and no bent metal was great!
Enough about that. As for the current state of everything, the build has taken on quite a bit of damage while sitting away. I'm guessing 3 years of moisture has ruined all of the wood, so all of that needs replacing, but it's nothing concerning. Over the past couple of days, I've lifted the frame from the trailer, and stripped surface rust, and ripped out all of the wood. The frame will be going into primer and paint, soon, and the floor will be replaced.
As I look over some of the things I did, I question what I was thinking at the time. With that said, there will be some slight alterations and improvements. We're back on track, and pictures will be coming as it moves along. I'm glad to be back, and looking forward to bending some ears for suggestions on some of these improvements.
Enough about that. As for the current state of everything, the build has taken on quite a bit of damage while sitting away. I'm guessing 3 years of moisture has ruined all of the wood, so all of that needs replacing, but it's nothing concerning. Over the past couple of days, I've lifted the frame from the trailer, and stripped surface rust, and ripped out all of the wood. The frame will be going into primer and paint, soon, and the floor will be replaced.
As I look over some of the things I did, I question what I was thinking at the time. With that said, there will be some slight alterations and improvements. We're back on track, and pictures will be coming as it moves along. I'm glad to be back, and looking forward to bending some ears for suggestions on some of these improvements.
stomperxj
Explorer
FireMedic82
DIYer
Thanks, man! And yeah, I do remember that. Your build was the one that pushed me into doing mine, and recessing the fenders. What an awesome build.
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Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
jim65wagon
Well-known member
Moisture ruins things quick. We have to keep our teardrop under cover and filled with damp rid when we aren't using it. Left to nature ours would've been ruined years ago. Glad you're back into it,!
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Sent from my SM-G960U1 using Tapatalk
FireMedic82
DIYer
Thanks, Jim! And yes, you are right about that. Come to think of it, I'm glad you mentioned that. I'll most likely keep some in mine just to be on the safe side.
The train is still moving along, guys. I feel like I've taken part in more of a restoration project than a build, up to this point. All is good though. I've spared posting progress pictures, as it's mostly been seen before, but all of the framing is in paint, the floor is now framed up, and insulation will be going back in today, and topped with a new floor.
Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
The train is still moving along, guys. I feel like I've taken part in more of a restoration project than a build, up to this point. All is good though. I've spared posting progress pictures, as it's mostly been seen before, but all of the framing is in paint, the floor is now framed up, and insulation will be going back in today, and topped with a new floor.
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FireMedic82
DIYer
Finally some notable progress. I've reached the point of framing and skinning the interior walls, and building the cabinet. I forgot to get a full picture before putting the floor in, but I changed the insulation to styrofoam. I got two 4x8 sheets of 3/4" from Lowe's, and doubled them up to fill the voids. I also excluded the 12v ports that were going to be in the floor.
The frame brackets that were built under the the rear storage box were removed. Having a box back in that spotis still to be determined.
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The frame brackets that were built under the the rear storage box were removed. Having a box back in that spotis still to be determined.
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FireMedic82
DIYer
The fender wells were damaged beyond repair, so they had to rebuild. Fortunately for the camper, with the recent destruction from the hurricane, there has been an abundance of materials out to be trashed. I came across a 5x10 sheet of acrylic that will serve many purposes. The first was t fender wells. Heated with a heat gun, and bent to form the angles, those were completed pretty quickly. The joints were secured with epoxy. I went over the entire surface with 120 grit sandpaper, then coated them with a rubberized bed liner spray. To be honest, I'm not 100% sure how well it will adhere without doing an adhesive coating first, but we shall see.
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Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk