EarthRoamer XV-JP "Northwest Edition"

[mhiscox]

Nothing short of inspirational...

Yeah, and it's all your fault. Best regards, though.

 

[squeezer]

And in an odd twist of fate...The Tiger just sold.

 

[mhiscox]

And in an odd twist of fate...The Tiger just sold.

Umm, yes . . . that is an exceedingly odd twist of fate. Congratulations, though.

 

[PaulJensen]

Eight...

Eight…

(above) A pattern has emerged…

(above) Mike is coming up today and I went over the paperwork that has accumulated so far…

(above) Once the paperwork was sorted out, I cut this stuff…

(above) …and put together these…

Mock-up panels for the bench seat backrests / foot area of the bed sleep cushion…

(above) They are open to see how they are built…Later there will be plywood covering this side, then cushioned and upholstered…

(above) Steel pipes fit into the plastic sleeves…They can join two different directions…

(above) Stored in the foot of the bed pull-out…

(above) Single panel for the lounger seating set-up…

(above) Steel pipe inserted and joined together for the double wide back rests…

(above) Mike arrived, we talked about “it all” then spent time seeing how it fits…Like a glove baby, like a glove…

(above) After our meeting, I spent time inside with new inspiration of how to finish off the small space…I can see it all now…

I'm off for about a week…The family is heading to San Francisco for Christmas…

More later…

 

[Northern Explorer]

I'm off for about a week…More later…

This is unacceptable!

 

[PHXtaco]

Just wanted to say thanks for posting these detailed daily build reports. It has become my new favorite thread on ExPo and look forward to reading what is new each day. And reluctantly agree that taking a week off to visit family for Christmas is acceptable

Keep up the good work!

 

[Riptide]

Paul and Mike,

I'm digging the build, but seeing Mike lounging on the bench made me remember something; don't forget to factor in the thickness of the cushions when testing the bench. A few inches of cushion may make the finished bench feel a bit shallower than the bare test bench...

Other than that, looking good!

 

[WhereTheHellIsJames?]

Looking great fellas!! Can't wait to see it in person.

 

[mhiscox]

Don't forget to factor in the thickness of the cushions when testing the bench. A few inches of cushion may make the finished bench feel a bit shallower than the bare test bench.

Yep; I've got plenty of experience with that from sizing the Sprinter benches. No extra room in any event, though.

Thanks for the compliment.

 

[mhiscox]

Looking great fellas!! Can't wait to see it in person.

And you shall.

And it should make you proud that the truck's been sitting outside with the roof up for several weeks with no leaks and doing a good job of holding in the heat. Thanks for that. It wouldn't be doing any good to be finishing off the innards had the tent panels not proven to be bombproof. :bowdown:

 

[WhereTheHellIsJames?]

And you shall.

And it should make you proud that the trucks been sitting outside with the roof up for several weeks with no leaks and doing a good job of holding in the heat. Thanks for that. It wouldn't be doing any good to be finishing off the innards had the tent panels not proven to be bombproof. :bowdown:

Right on, Mike! Glad to hear that it's meeting your expectations and proving to be just what we promised it would be- both functional and good looking!
It took a lot of prototyping of both materials and fitment to make your tent, and my team was really proud of the finished product... glad you are too!

Me and the rest of the Outback Hardware crew are proud to have been a part of this vehicle (re)build, and we're stoked to see it nearing completion!
We'll all be looking forward to checking out the XV-JP-NW-Ed in-person soon... perhaps at the next OvEx? (It's about time for you attend one of these)

 

[ersatzknarf]

Hi Mike,
Happy Holidays !
Wondered, please, if you would mind to comment about the drawer fridges and the "standard" one being used now ?
I have been looking at the 30L drawer fridge, as it fits well to the space we have available, but wonder about its usable space inside, especially compared to a more conventional top-opening fridge...
By the way, what became of the "tiny microwave," please ? Will that be used ?
That is something else on the "required" list from my wife, so would like to hear more, please.
Thanks and very much enjoying following Paul's excellent work ! ! !

.

.

.

(post #100, from page 10) :

A little bit. At least I don't think I've posted about this.

I've bought two Dometic CD-030DC drawer refrigerators, one as fridge and one as freezer. I'll put the freezer under the bench on the floor curbside, forward of the batteries that'll be at the rear, and put the fridge up on curbside of the nose cone.

That will still allow enough width to use the nose cone as part of the bed, and I'm leaning toward doing a one-person bed on the top with the second person sleeping on the curbside bench on the bottom. I've also pretty much decided to make a propane locker behind the passenger seat that can make use of the door in the side that had been cut into the side for removing the toilet cassette.

Also have the Cook Partner stove, the tiny microwave, the computer and a bunch of other components ready to go.

Things aren't going real quickly partly because my wife is retiring soon and we're likely to be replacing my Sprinter camper with some pavement-only thing that's bigger and works better for the multi-week trips she wants to take. Not sure what direction that's likely to take--the 170" wb NCV3 Sprinter is probably most likely--but it's not too critical to get the XV-JP finished right now.

One interesting thing is that since the suspension change and the DuraTracs, the truck is a sweet pavement ride, so we've been just driving it around as part of the normal vehicle fleet. Works great, though you do spend a fair amount of time answering questions about it.

 

[mhiscox]

Happy Holidays to All!

Wondered, please, if you would mind to comment about the drawer fridges and the "standard" one being used now?

I still think the drawer fridges are cool, but they are something like 29 inches deep with the compressors attached, and about 20 mounting the compressors remotely, and both of those depths were too deep, especially given that the JK's wheel well intrudes about 9 inches into the cabin for about 2/3 of the cabin length. The drawer fridges were great when the nose cone was available for them, but once the bed went up there, I had to regroup. The Dometic/WAECO got chosen for having a decent reputation, but more for having the best form factor; the Engels, ARBs, etc (which I've used and like) were a little shorter but taller, and I was height constrained.

I have been looking at the 30L drawer fridge, as it fits well to the space we have available, but wonder about its usable space inside, especially compared to a more conventional top-opening fridge.

Kind of a choose your poison thing . . . two drawer fridges might be easier to place than one 60 liter (which a big thing) or they might not. And it might be nice to have the shallower depth so stuff doesn't get buried, or you might find it troublesome when tall stuff wouldn't fit. And you might like having one dedicated fridge and one freezer rather than relying on some inexact dividing line somewhere from top to bottom of the big single fridge. (I'm pretty sure this would be a big advantage when the ambient is changing a lot. It's hard enough to modulate a single chest to one temperature, let alone hit both, say, 40 and below freezing in the same unit.) Or you could find the mandatory 50:50 split misbalanced and inflexible.

By the way, what became of the "tiny microwave," please ? Will that be used ? That is something else on the "required" list from my wife, so would like to hear more, please.

Well, given that my Rubicon Trail-running, lifted, regeared, skid-plated, ad infinitum Jeep ain't for no prissy glamping folk, I could hardly admit to this macho group that I was installing a microwave. However, there is the happy coincidence that they'll be 120V plugmold running along the top of the streetside countertop, and there's enough height between that countertop and everything else for the little Sanyo microwave to fit. In fact, it looks like someone who's less concerned with his image than I am could just plop the microwave down with some big hook-and-loop patches and be good to go.

Thanks and very much enjoying following Paul's excellent work ! ! !

I can't wait until he gets back to work. Without new pictures, it's hardly worth getting up in the morning. (Just kidding . . . the work's not supposed to be done until January 31.)

 

[Overland Hadley]

I can't wait until he gets back to work. Without new pictures, it's hardly worth getting up in the morning. (Just kidding . . .)

x2 sigh

 

[ersatzknarf]

Hi Mike,

I still think the drawer fridges are cool, but they are something like 29 inches deep with the compressors attached, and about 20 mounting the compressors remotely, and both of those depths were too deep, especially given that the JK's wheel well intrudes about 9 inches into the cabin for about 2/3 of the cabin length. The drawer fridges were great when the nose cone was available for them, but once the bed went up there, I had to regroup. The Dometic/WAECO got chosen for having a decent reputation, but more for having the best form factor; the Engels, ARBs, etc (which I've used and like) were a little shorter but taller, and I was height constrained.

Excellent points, thank you, and I have been running into the same issues, but need to go back and check again the dimensions on the drawer fridge, as I did not think they were that tall with the compressor removed. We were looking at having the fridge on top of the wheel box and the compressor separately on the floor. Having a top-opening fridge that slides out into the aisleway, however, is a nice alternative

Kind of a choose your poison thing . . . two drawer fridges might be easier to place than one 60 liter (which a big thing) or they might not. And it might be nice to have the shallower depth so stuff doesn't get buried, or you might find it troublesome when tall stuff wouldn't fit. And you might like having one dedicated fridge and one freezer rather than relying on some inexact dividing line somewhere from top to bottom of the big single fridge. (I'm pretty sure this would be a big advantage when the ambient is changing a lot. It's hard enough to modulate a single chest to one temperature, let alone hit both, say, 40 and below freezing in the same unit.) Or you could find the mandatory 50:50 split misbalanced and inflexible.

Yes ! Having a separate fridge and freezer was considered a while back and it's good to reconsider. I don't think we have the space for two drawer fridges, but maybe a rethink on mixing and matching the "poisons" might be a better, more flexible solution

Well, given that my Rubicon Trail-running, lifted, regeared, skid-plated, ad infinitum Jeep ain't for no prissy glamping folk, I could hardly admit to this macho group that I was installing a microwave. However, there is the happy coincidence that they'll be 120V plugmold running along the top of the streetside countertop, and there's enough height between that countertop and everything else for the little Sanyo microwave to fit. In fact, it looks like someone who's less concerned with his image than I am could just plop the microwave down with some big hook-and-loop patches and be good to go.

Those are good hints, thanks. I'll have a look at the Sanyo microwaves and see if there is something small enough to fit...

I can't wait until he gets back to work. Without new pictures, it's hardly worth getting up in the morning. (Just kidding . . . the work's not supposed to be done until January 31.)

We're all enjoying Paul's documentation of this great project - it's sure great fuel for thought ! I can wait a little bit longer, for how good this is :sombrero: