Belafonte Reboot....Ambulance to 4x4 Camper Conversion

[patoz]

Man, I'm loving those seats and at that price, you stole them! I was thinking of something similar to that, but hadn't been able to visualize it yet. I have been known to take a nap in the afternoon every now and then, so that's why I was thinking more along the lines of a couch. So, I guess your plan is to put the bed on top of a platform above the seat backs when they are folded down, right? Or are you just going to use a mattress on the floor at night?

I see the adjustment handles that slide the seat forward and backwards, but are they sitting on the tracks? If so, instead of building the entire platform wider, what about just extending the horizontal surface inboard enough to support the tracks with the seats adjusted all of the way back, and against the wall? That way they can be slid forward when space is needed behind them, and moved back to gain more walking around room. This configuration will provide more 'toe kick' space for your feet when you're sitting, and also provide more space for carrying stuff on the floor if need be.

My ambulance came with the larger window like you're talking about, and the right rear corner is configured a little different due to an outside full height, right side corner compartment, that was used to store backboards vertically. My window doesn't open and I'm keeping it, however I'm going to remove the thick padding around it inside because even though it serves as the seat back, it makes the bench much more narrow. Of course if I do seats like you are, that's irrelevant.





It looks like a dog on the outside, but the inside of the back is in extremely good condition to be a 1993 model.

Now, we just need to figure out where to put a combination toilet/shower, and we'll be set! :wings:

 

[tgreening]

Ok, see that red shelf behind the seats? That's where the bed platform will stow. Imagine a bi-fold door. Now lay that door on its' side, on edge like an A-frame. The edge closest to the wall will be attached by a hinge to the shelf. When the seats lay down you pull the free edge (closest to the center of the ambulance box), toward the center. It will unfold and lay down as it does so. I hope that makes sense. I tried to make a little ascii drawing in this post but the formatting kept getting screwed up when posting so I bailed. Looks like figuring out a toilet, shower, and just about everything else will be up to you and me. Seems like everybody else bailed.

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[flightcancled]

I'm still here.

There just isn't much you seem to need a hand with!
The only thing I have that might be helpful is that in my rig the wheel well extends 3-4" up from the floor. So you may have a bit of room in there, but that could be better for a slide-out outdoor BBQ or storage based on your current plans.

I am not sure why the exhaust fans seem to wind up in large dead-zones. Mine is in a 3'x18"X10" void in my driver's rear corner. My thought has been that with a little work (exhaust port to the bottom of the rig and a fuel line) it would be a great place to install a diesel fired air heater.

 

[tgreening]

I know, just being a needy girl is all. Tell me I'm pretty!!! Hehe. Anyway, i'm going to run out while the sun is still here and see if I can pull the rest of that bench out without breaking it up. I hope it just unscrews and pulls out, with being able to modify/use it as the gaol. If I can't use it, no biggee I guess, just looking for the short cut. I'm not strong on patience any more. Priority is making sure I've got a solid connection between those seats/seat belts and the truck structure. Couple of pretty important things going to be strapped in back there.

 

[patoz]

Ok, see that red shelf behind the seats? That's where the bed platform will stow. Imagine a bi-fold door. Now lay that door on its' side, on edge like an A-frame. The edge closest to the wall will be attached by a hinge to the shelf. When the seats lay down you pull the free edge (closest to the center of the ambulance box), toward the center. It will unfold and lay down as it does so...

Yeah, I understand about the bed platform and I don't see any reason why that wouldn't work. The only potential problem I can see is that you may end up with seats that are too low, or a bed that's too high. Of course a simple tape measure will reveal that before you start.

Here is a couple of picture from the Mega Ambo build, which is a newer version Wheeled Coach, but with the same compartment configuration as yours in the right rear corner.







I have a feeling you're not going to be able to go any lower than the top of that rear compartment, and I think that's where the platform is now.

 

[Abitibi]

That compartment would be easy enough to cut the top end and recap lower... Interior configuration should be higher on the totem pole than exterior storage

Have you thought of semi-permanently (Velcro...) attaching a cushion onto your bed platform? The hinge would need to be relocated on the base, you'd loose some clearance behind your two seats but regardless you'll still need to store the pad somewhere...

I might have missed it but how many are you intending to travel with? Solo with occasional friends? Kids? Dog for sure!

Seems like you have most of it figured out, keep having fun with it!

Cheers
Mr. D


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[tgreening]

Can't believe I didn't take a better picture while it was apart, but this is it. Turns out it was just a handful of screws holding it to the wall. There used to be some bolts down through the bottom as well. The bottom of this "bench" pretty much lays right on top of the wheel well, which rises above the floor about 8.5", is approximately 15" deep, and runs from where you see in the picture all the way to the back wall. I know only part of this is actually wheel well, the other part forms the top of the rear outside compartment. Since I don't want to reform the wheel well, there would be no sense in cutting/reforming the other compartment. What you see is as low as she's gonna go. So... I'm going to rebuild the bench so it's about 24" deep. The bottom where the seats will rest will remain at about 9.5" above the floor. The vertical walls will rise to about 24.5". This means that when the seats are folded flat the vertical walls of the bench will be apprx. 1/2" higher than the folded seats. The platform can lay down without interference. I have no idea what those wires are for.

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@abitbi: That little red shelf behind the seats is going to more or less stay as is. The bi-fold platform will hinge along that shelf edge when folded up out of the way. The plan was indeed to have the foam semi-permanently attached to the platform. That is going to take some tinkering because however thick my foam is, I'm going to lose double that thickness behind the seats. I'm also going to have a little gap between where it's hinged and the wall where there won't be any foam when it's folded down. I think it'll end up being wide enough that won't be an issue, but if so I'll figure out how to deal with it.

Traveling plans mostly include just myself, and my main pup. The old timer is completely wigged out by this vehicle for some reason and I hesitate to stress him out. But I do want the ability to bring my kids along for a ride sometimes, whether that includes any camp time or not. The wife has decided we need to turn them into little ski bunnies for some reason, and I can picture this being a whole bunch more convenient at the slope than our mini-van. Little scenarios like that are what motivates me to have some passenger capability.

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I don't intend for this to be a serious family camp vehicle. My wifes idea of camping is 43' feet of 5th wheel camper with 1 1/2 bath, bedroom, bunks, 3 tvs, etc etc. :/ It's fun and all, but not "really" my thing. But, the wife is happy, the kids are happy, and the dogs are comfy, which means MY life is easier. Before this though, my camping was my Jeep, a backpack, and a 1st class hammock.

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[flightcancled]

Belafonte Reboot....

One thing to think about now is how you are going to tie in seat belts. My rig had 3 sets of school bus style lap belts through- bolted to the wheel well. Looks like you are going to have to bolt to the frame or the roof of the compartment. -Let me know if you need some seat belts.

I think that wire is for the open compartment system. I found a huge wire bundle also with red/black/white in my roof that appeared to be intended for that area. Depending on the customer spec they might have run one too many. If not check the wire jackets and see if they match either an aux or extra circuit.


Also with Velcro you may have to see it into the cushions. Otherwise it will be anything but permanent. You can see in the photos I just posted jn y build where my PO tried to use tons of Velcro to hold up cushions. The Velcro is intact..... The cushions are gone though lol.


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[patoz]

Mine has a household type switch mounted just inside the side door and above the bench, marked 'Fluorescent Lights'. I don't have any fluorescent lights except under the rear switch panel on the 'Action Wall', but when I first got the ambulance I put a battery in it to see what lights worked and what didn't. When I tested that switch it seems like some of the overhead lights came on.

It's after dark and raining here, but tomorrow I'll pull the cover off of it and see if it has the same wires going to it. I guess it's a a good thing I haven't torn mine all apart yet, or we would never figure out what all of this stuff is for.








This is one of Carl's pictures, and apparently you never had that switch. The square plate up higher covers a brass 'T' fitting for the O2 system on mine.




As you can see in the pictures, there are already lap type seat belt anchor points installed across the back of the bench area for people sitting up, and across the front of the bench for patients lying on the bench or on a flex-cot on the bench. Most newer ambulances now utilize a net type restraint system (required) at the forward end of the bench like this, for times when the attendant isn't strapped in:

Since standard shoulder strap seat belts are designed for a 'face forward' position and would probably hang someone sitting sideways in a head-on collision, you can put in a five point system like this for rollovers:

 

[Ozrockrat]

Seat option

If you are keen to get the seats lower you might want to consider the fold flat seats out of a Caravan. They seem to be thinner on the swab and do fold very flat.

 

[tgreening]

One thing to think about now is how you are going to tie in seat belts. My rig had 3 sets of school bus style lap belts through- bolted to the wheel well. Looks like you are going to have to bolt to the frame or the roof of the compartment. -Let me know if you need some seat belts.

I think that wire is for the open compartment system. I found a huge wire bundle also with red/black/white in my roof that appeared to be intended for that area. Depending on the customer spec they might have run one too many. If not check the wire jackets and see if they match either an aux or extra circuit.


Also with Velcro you may have to see it into the cushions. Otherwise it will be anything but permanent. You can see in the photos I just posted jn y build where my PO tried to use tons of Velcro to hold up cushions. The Velcro is intact..... The cushions are gone though lol.


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The bench as constructed is made out of 3/4". My intent is to change the bottom to 1/2" with a piece of 1/4" aluminum plate under that. The whole mess will be bolted down through the box/wheel well structure, and the seat mounts and seat belts will be bolted to this as well. The morbid thought is anything bad enough to rip all that all will most likely kill us all anyway. :/

My open compartment/door idiot lights all work. Not sure what those wires are for. I believe they are blk/wht/grn, and they are all encased inside a grey jacket. Looks kind of like a big phone cable.
I'll let my wife figure out the seat cushion/velcro issue. She's the seamstress in the house, so all things thready are her concern.

 

[tgreening]

If you are keen to get the seats lower you might want to consider the fold flat seats out of a Caravan. They seem to be thinner on the swab and do fold very flat.

Sureeee, NOW you show up. Where were you a couple days ago before I bought the ones in my pictures? Honestly, if I had known I would have indeed bought those, but those would have been over in the "dodge" section of the pull a part and no self respecting Ford guy ever ventures over there willingly. Hehe.

Seriously though, the thickness isn't going to bother me all that much. I need to extend the depth of the bench anyway, so no matter what something's getting rebuilt, and when it's all turned into bed the height doesn't really matter all that much. Ditto when it's all stowed and in "seat" mode.

One thing I just noticed. That arrangement has Mini Home Theater written all over it.

 

[tgreening]

@Patoz: Hard to believe those pics are of the same ambo.

Five point harnesses are awesome for safety, but suck to wear for any length of time. And if they aren't done right they can cause serious back injury. The ones molded into those seats look questionable to me, but without a body in there for scale it's hard to tell.

To use them I'd have to buy seats made for them, which most likely will not fold, which would make them unsuitable. To use the seats I have I'd have to attach them to the wall behind in some fashion, and that will interfere with with the bed stowage.

I might be able to figure out how to do up a shoulder belt, but in a front/rear impact I'm not sure that's advantageous anyway. Of course people that wear them are involved in side impacts all the time, and manage to survive, even if they dont especially offer any safety advantage in that accident scenario. Up in the air on which way to go.

 

[patoz]

Well, I did a little investigative dis-assembly on mine this afternoon, and here is what I found...

Mystery wires - The light switch I have just inside my side door is wired with two 115VAC 12/3 (Black, White, Green) Rubber Jacketed Cables, which is the same thing used for all of the outlets also. It's also a three-way switch, which means there should be another one for me to look for. Therefore, the mystery wires you have were not for this switch, even if you had one. And given your description of the wire, I'm still at a a loss.



Seat belts - The original bench seat belts were anchored into a 3/8" x 3" aluminum bar welded to the wall frame, just above the level of the bench deck. Of course, this will now be too high once you lower the deck height. You might be able to anchor shoulder straps into it, but they will then get in the way of your mattress storage plan.

If it was me, I would probably just go with some good, functional lap belts and let it go at that. Traditional shoulder straps in automobiles are mainly to keep a persons face and head out of the steering wheel and dash board, or the seat backs in front of them. In the ambulance situation, seat belts on the bench are to keep the crew members in place in case of a roll over. The framework design of the module is not just to hold the walls and roof up, but to function as a roll cage also. The old ones not so much, but with the new ones it's an absolute requirement.

If you get a chance, take a look at this short 1:47 video by Excellance, which is one of the best build in the world.
http://www.excellance.com/construction/safety-video.

As far as the Mini Home Theater setup goes, I had the same thought. I'm thinking about mounting the TV at the top of the CPR seat opening, on a swing out and tilt arm so it can be pointed in any direction. I already have two speakers mounted in the ceiling, which I'm sure need to be upgraded.

 

[flightcancled]

Belafonte Reboot....

One thing I just noticed. That arrangement has Mini Home Theater written all over it.

Damn you figured it out! I was going to hold onto this one, but my couch is going to disconnect so it can face the big white wall. Then I'll use a pocket projector and the ceiling speakers for a big screen setup.




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