F350 Custom Flatbed Build - The Mobile Studio
- Thread starter YnotDIY
- Start date
YnotDIY
New member
bumping this as we are making a bit of progress. We are pulling the bed this week and beginning the design of the subframe. It will get something similar to @Motafinga 's die spring frame. Pretty excited to see the bed come off and start on the subframe. Although I know there will be a lot of clean up to do on the truck frame rails....
I'll update with some photos after we pull the bed, then ya'll can cringe at the surface rust clean up I'm about to get into.
I'll update with some photos after we pull the bed, then ya'll can cringe at the surface rust clean up I'm about to get into.
YnotDIY
New member
Back again with a bit of progress on the build.
We pulled the bed back in July and immediately afterwards I started fabrication on the spring mounted subframe.
I was able to sell the bed locally which was awesome. dude got a deal and also threw me a full set of factory Aluminum wheels for the 350. $200 for the bed and he gifted the wheels.
We pulled the bed back in July and immediately afterwards I started fabrication on the spring mounted subframe.
I was able to sell the bed locally which was awesome. dude got a deal and also threw me a full set of factory Aluminum wheels for the 350. $200 for the bed and he gifted the wheels.
YnotDIY
New member
The frame on this thing is definitely not perfect. It's not horrible, but definitely it needed to be cleaned up as it was about to sit for a while while I figured out this torsion free, spring mounted frame.
Here it is right after we pulled the bed.
Here it is after I spent a day sanding it with a wire wheel and coating with POR15. That stuff is seriously awesome, dries super hard like it had been baked on.
I didn't get pics of the subframe build, but here it is in my yard in Michigan freshly painted with the same POR15
I got all the steel used from a metal yard near my house. The whole thing cost me $150.
SHINYYYY
I'm sure ya'll have seen @Motafinga 's alaskan build and this is essentially the subframe he went with on his build, so a huge thank you to him for this advise and knowledge and willingness to share his build. I'm super happy with how this turned out.
Here it is right after we pulled the bed.
Here it is after I spent a day sanding it with a wire wheel and coating with POR15. That stuff is seriously awesome, dries super hard like it had been baked on.
I didn't get pics of the subframe build, but here it is in my yard in Michigan freshly painted with the same POR15
I got all the steel used from a metal yard near my house. The whole thing cost me $150.
SHINYYYY
I'm sure ya'll have seen @Motafinga 's alaskan build and this is essentially the subframe he went with on his build, so a huge thank you to him for this advise and knowledge and willingness to share his build. I'm super happy with how this turned out.
YnotDIY
New member
BIG fast forward to the beginning of September. I finished welding up this very simple flatbed with 2x8 decking.
The decking was coated top and bottom with epoxy resin and each board was bolted to the flatbed frame with 3/8" grade 8 bolts.
The flatbed was then bolted directly to the torsion free frame with 1/2" grade 8 bolts.
This is how it's basically sitting today. I did get the fuel filler necks sorted out haha. They aren't dangling there anymore. I fabbed up a very quick 1/2 bed box out of scrap wood to make hauling stuff a little easier as it's likely I won't be able to move forward with the actual camper/mobile studio build until after winter.
My current plan for the studio build is to closely follow your build technique @IdaSHO . I'm definitely most comfortable in a wood shop although I've not once framed a house. I'm a ceramacist / sculpture by trade and know my way around most shops you'd find at a university art school. I know quite a bit about epoxy and resins which I know will be of help in the build. I'll post more photos as things happen with the truck hopefully I'll be figuring out some underbody boxes this winter, taillights, ect. I'll pretty much do whatever I can other than begin to build the actual camper portion which is still in the design planning stage. I know the shape, but I'm not settled on the overall dimensions.
Cheers ya'll hope Summer was sick.
?
The decking was coated top and bottom with epoxy resin and each board was bolted to the flatbed frame with 3/8" grade 8 bolts.
The flatbed was then bolted directly to the torsion free frame with 1/2" grade 8 bolts.
This is how it's basically sitting today. I did get the fuel filler necks sorted out haha. They aren't dangling there anymore. I fabbed up a very quick 1/2 bed box out of scrap wood to make hauling stuff a little easier as it's likely I won't be able to move forward with the actual camper/mobile studio build until after winter.
My current plan for the studio build is to closely follow your build technique @IdaSHO . I'm definitely most comfortable in a wood shop although I've not once framed a house. I'm a ceramacist / sculpture by trade and know my way around most shops you'd find at a university art school. I know quite a bit about epoxy and resins which I know will be of help in the build. I'll post more photos as things happen with the truck hopefully I'll be figuring out some underbody boxes this winter, taillights, ect. I'll pretty much do whatever I can other than begin to build the actual camper portion which is still in the design planning stage. I know the shape, but I'm not settled on the overall dimensions.
Cheers ya'll hope Summer was sick.
?
Last edited:
KiwiMtnClmbr
Member
I realize PO hasn't been around in 2.5 year but I would have loved to see how this ended up...