And now the moment you didn't know you've been waiting for...Atl-Atl's 4x4 Ford E350 RV documentation thread!!

[b. rock]

Btw, what did you do with the chrome grill you took off? I'm in CO so it'd involve shipping, but I'd be interested if you're not keeping it.

 

[Todd780]

Nice! I will probably do a regular van after we get back from our trip with this RV. It does have plenty of get-up-and-go and I havent even installed the programmer yet! I dont actually recall which axle it is, I only looked at the tag to see the gearing. I dont plan to install a locker right now since I dont need to open up the axle. If I had needed to regear I would have installed a selectable locker. Hopefully I dont come to regret that decision.

As in you won't be keeping this RV and will sell it to get a van?

 

[Todd780]

Looks really good. I'm sure you'll have a blast with the finished product. Job well done!

 

[Buddha.]

So I spent a couple days getting familiar with the roof. Turns out there is a mini solar panel up there which is cool. Theres a light on the control panel that has a label that says "solar charging when lit" but I missed the panel last time I was up there since its about 12" x 18" and stuck to the top of the AC unit. I cant imagine it does much but its better than nothing.

Also the two vents are enclosed in these massive boxes that are meant to allow the vents to be open during any weather. Thats great and all except they render the vents nearly useless. When wide open they have almost no air flow. So I ripped out the one above the bed in favor of a powered fan. Super pumped about this one. I happened to have the exact fan new in the box because I was going to install it in my Go Fast Camper but never got around to it.

Old vent box
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Old vent
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The name of the game on RV roofs is GOOP and lots of it. What a pain in the ass to remove, especially since the roof is thin rubber. Best tool I found was this fiber strand removal wheel. Too much force and it will go through the rubber but it did a great job.
View attachment 769584
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New fan
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Next up I cut the opening for the new range hood. This one actually vents to the exterior unlike the old one that did nothing.
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Installed some fake subway tile as the backsplash.
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Also installed a new tinted operable window with a screen. Its a slightly smaller size than the one I removed which is not great. It also uses a slightly different mounting flange that Im not happy with. Looks great but its not sealed correctly and Im kinda stuck about what to do. Just waiting on the new faucet to arrive so I can finish putting the kitchen back together.
View attachment 769591

Looks good, the color scheme is kinda what the new rpods look like. Black and brass/gold.

I’ve been a rv tech for a while and I’ve never seen a full refresh like this. I don’t think anyone wants to pay the 180/hr shop rate to get it done.

Are all those lights on the rear original? I haven’t seen that style before.

I’ve never used one of those fiber wheels before. I’ve seen guys use the Roloc bristle disc to get things real clean.

Most guys use a flat scraper blade on an oscillating multi tool and just accept you can’t get the last 1/8” of sealant off.
You CANNOT try to scrape right to the rubber, it’ll go right through

 

[RVflyfish]

It’s gonna feel like Christmas Eve for a week...

 

[ujoint]

Hey thx for chronicling all this. You've actually got me percolating converting a 19RD (mentioned in post#12).

I'm a numbers guy and axle ratings are perhaps more important here than maybe other places so very interested in how this scales out. Would you share the shipping weight for the UJoint parts - if you saw it ?

And sorry can you expand on, "personal limit". Is that a goal, red line ??

Looking great btw. Really good !

Are you looking for a total weight gain # for the conversion? If so, ~800lbs.

 

[Roam.Wild]

Hey thx for chronicling all this. You've actually got me percolating converting a 19RD (mentioned in post#12).

So as the person who was looking into the ALP-19RD, I'll say this, we didn't end up buying one because it's impossible to finance it. They are only built/sold by Adventurer / Fraiserway RV, a Canadian company. You'll have to pay cash for one, which might not be a problem, but just know the average price we were finding them was $50,000-$65,000 USD. But the good thing is Adventurer is always selling them. Or if you live in Canada there's no issue. But they have quite a few for sale at the moment: HERE




OP can not WAIT to see the wheels and tires on! This is gonna be a beast!

 

[oldnslow]

Those dump hoses are usually in the bumper from the factory, and the rubbing on the steel bumper (which is soon rusty) destroys them. That is why people put those PVC sewer pipes on to hold the hose without it being destroyed. Just a heads up.

 

[Hound]

Love the Ujoint bumper! This looks like a very cool build. Excited to see where you go with it.

 

[FreedomTraveler]

So as the person who was looking into the ALP-19RD, I'll say this, we didn't end up buying one because it's impossible to finance it. They are only built/sold by Adventurer / Fraiserway RV, a Canadian company. You'll have to pay cash for one, which might not be a problem, but just know the average price we were finding them was $50,000-$65,000 USD. But the good thing is Adventurer is always selling them. Or if you live in Canada there's no issue. But they have quite a few for sale at the moment: HERE




OP can not WAIT to see the wheels and tires on! This is gonna be a beast!

This is the company I bought my Adv. 19RK from in January 2020 to avoid the hassle and expense of re importing from Canada.

Although I can't recommend them right now due to crazy pricing, they appear to have one in stock;

Adventurer Class CAdventurer Class C for Sale on RVT.com

New and Used Adventurer Class C RVs for Sale in Arizona on RVT. With a huge selection of vehicles to choose from, you can easily shop for a new or used Class C from Adventurer in Arizona

www.rvt.com

There are good units, but I would wait for a downturn in the economy before trying to buy one now.

I paid $19,500 for a unit with 119,000 miles ( Inst. cluster was changed to US / Imp. ) It's now has over 240,000 mi. and runs great. 5.4L 2 valve.

 

[Kingsize24]

This is going to be awesome!!! Great job so far!

 

[ujoint]

Those 6R140s are so damn heavy.

 

[marret]

Nice.

 

[ujoint]

Splice the ABS wires together and you're good to go! Drive it 20 or so miles before you add the trac bar, we do it once the van has been up and down the road a few times and back from alignment. The front will come down once the rear is up and some of that weight transfers forward.

Its lookin good! Congrats!

 

[ujoint]

Thanks Chris. So for the ABS wires, the colors dont match from the axle harness you provided to my chassis harness, can I connect the wires in any order and it will work?

Doesn't matter, splice away!