Flatbed and composite panel build on Dodge 2500
- Thread starter Jeep
- Start date
Thanks guys, appreciate the comments.
The panels…..well, I started playing with composite panels about 10 years ago, and recent developments have brought out the viability of composite panels in other ventures. I found it very difficult to find any of the panel manufacturers to take me seriously, especially the reputable ones, and those with distribution points that took out some of the logistical nightmares and costs of shipping 8x14-30' panels. I got to the point where I built a small shop, designed the vacuum tables, did all the science over a 2 year period, and decided to build panels myself. Within 15 minutes of placing an order (3 truck loads) for core material, I got a phone call from a manufacturer with facilities in Canada, USA, and Mexico who agreed that a favourable business relationship was better than having a competitor. I guess that's what it took! I have other needs for panels for some of the industries I service, some are glass skins, some are aluminum, some are both, mostly PP core, working on foam core, but for the most parts the stuff we build generally sees a pretty hard service life suited to PP core. We also use aluminum core/aluminum skin for some really slick service van interiors and I see some integration with the camper body. The quality is very good, and the price is fair, I should be able to release pricing on my next order which is coming up pretty quick, we did pay some small premiums on the first go around, and I do have some discussions for panel options so a little patience but rest assured this stuff is affordable and very construction friendly. I designed some pretty serious extrusions to put mobile structures together, and have my first production order in, so the body will go together pretty quickly, be very strong, sealed up, and attractive.
I'm watching your 5500 build Ward, I have a crew cab 84" CA 5500 on order, should see it in October, just in time to cure the winter blues. Once that one is done the F-650 is for sale. What's the CA on your reg cab?
The panels…..well, I started playing with composite panels about 10 years ago, and recent developments have brought out the viability of composite panels in other ventures. I found it very difficult to find any of the panel manufacturers to take me seriously, especially the reputable ones, and those with distribution points that took out some of the logistical nightmares and costs of shipping 8x14-30' panels. I got to the point where I built a small shop, designed the vacuum tables, did all the science over a 2 year period, and decided to build panels myself. Within 15 minutes of placing an order (3 truck loads) for core material, I got a phone call from a manufacturer with facilities in Canada, USA, and Mexico who agreed that a favourable business relationship was better than having a competitor. I guess that's what it took! I have other needs for panels for some of the industries I service, some are glass skins, some are aluminum, some are both, mostly PP core, working on foam core, but for the most parts the stuff we build generally sees a pretty hard service life suited to PP core. We also use aluminum core/aluminum skin for some really slick service van interiors and I see some integration with the camper body. The quality is very good, and the price is fair, I should be able to release pricing on my next order which is coming up pretty quick, we did pay some small premiums on the first go around, and I do have some discussions for panel options so a little patience but rest assured this stuff is affordable and very construction friendly. I designed some pretty serious extrusions to put mobile structures together, and have my first production order in, so the body will go together pretty quickly, be very strong, sealed up, and attractive.
I'm watching your 5500 build Ward, I have a crew cab 84" CA 5500 on order, should see it in October, just in time to cure the winter blues. Once that one is done the F-650 is for sale. What's the CA on your reg cab?
Healeyjet
Explorer
Ours is the 120" cab to axle length, giving us a 17' camper body. We will be 8' wide and around 6'9" maximum inside height.
Good luck with the business venture. Interesting how they knew so soon after you placed the order, LOL. If you need any help or suggestions moving the core material let me know as I am in the trucking industry.
Ward
Good luck with the business venture. Interesting how they knew so soon after you placed the order, LOL. If you need any help or suggestions moving the core material let me know as I am in the trucking industry.
Ward
Thanks Ward, we ship a lot of stuff to and from Saskatoon, I will get in contact in the next while.
You should have lots of room inside, I wish I could get a 108" CA in a crew cab but will have to be creative with the 84" truck, have to fit 10 pounds of stuff in a 5 pound sack....
You should have lots of room inside, I wish I could get a 108" CA in a crew cab but will have to be creative with the 84" truck, have to fit 10 pounds of stuff in a 5 pound sack....
Lower cabinets
CNC router makes perfectly clean joints for TIG welding.
I like getting a little practise, lets my guys know know how good they are! As decent as my welding is my guys are better!
If you use a grinder to make a weld pretty you are a grinder, not a welder. Looks like I'm a grinder! On cabinets or anything that gets painted, we always polish the weld. A clean naked TIG weld is a thing of beauty but as soon as you powder coat it it looks like crap (mostly on aluminum, steel is nice and smooth). Use a sanding disc, and dress it with an orbital to get rid of any scratches and nicely blend the corner nicely. One thing I do on corner joints is use a bit more filler rod to make a very convex bead, this way when you polish the corner you don't cut the weld strength out, and if you get it right there will be 100% penetration and a nice little bead on the inside of the corner, on boxes that take more abuse we stitch , or seam weld the inside with the wire feed too.
Ready for powder coating, I have to fit one box tomorrow and notch it for the fuel filler line, nothing I hate more than a slow filling fuel tank.
CNC router makes perfectly clean joints for TIG welding.
I like getting a little practise, lets my guys know know how good they are! As decent as my welding is my guys are better!
If you use a grinder to make a weld pretty you are a grinder, not a welder. Looks like I'm a grinder! On cabinets or anything that gets painted, we always polish the weld. A clean naked TIG weld is a thing of beauty but as soon as you powder coat it it looks like crap (mostly on aluminum, steel is nice and smooth). Use a sanding disc, and dress it with an orbital to get rid of any scratches and nicely blend the corner nicely. One thing I do on corner joints is use a bit more filler rod to make a very convex bead, this way when you polish the corner you don't cut the weld strength out, and if you get it right there will be 100% penetration and a nice little bead on the inside of the corner, on boxes that take more abuse we stitch , or seam weld the inside with the wire feed too.
Ready for powder coating, I have to fit one box tomorrow and notch it for the fuel filler line, nothing I hate more than a slow filling fuel tank.
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The trailer
I am also putting a trailer together to haul the bikes, currently a have a Royal Cargo 14x7 V nose which works great and has help up for 3 seasons with no issues, but it's heavy. I had 2 other enclosed trailers that made it 1 season, and I sold them off cheap, they were breaking up all over. So since we are only hauling 3-5 bikes and gear, we don't need super heavy duty, but we need heavy enough in the right areas to last a long time, and I know those areas from the failures and successes of my last 3 trailers!
The frame is 2x3x.125 perimeter, 2x2x.100 cross members, hitch is a bulldog coupler rated beyond the chassis but I really like the quality and security of the design, 3500 tandem straight axles sprung over on leafs, and there is a "tension beam" that runs right down the center of the chassis from the coupler to the back bumper/cross member, it really made a big difference in chassis reaction. Everything was powder coated black on a zinc rich primer. Deck is good old 3/4" fir G1S, bonded and screwed to the chassis. The walls are 1.5" thick fiberglass on one side and .040 aluminum on the inside with 8" wide doubler strips laminated in so we can hang stuff with inserts or rivets in case we get too lazy to bond stuff. I have extrusions for everything from anchoring the panels to 90 and 45 degree corners. Hope to be done this in 2 weeks.
I am also putting a trailer together to haul the bikes, currently a have a Royal Cargo 14x7 V nose which works great and has help up for 3 seasons with no issues, but it's heavy. I had 2 other enclosed trailers that made it 1 season, and I sold them off cheap, they were breaking up all over. So since we are only hauling 3-5 bikes and gear, we don't need super heavy duty, but we need heavy enough in the right areas to last a long time, and I know those areas from the failures and successes of my last 3 trailers!
The frame is 2x3x.125 perimeter, 2x2x.100 cross members, hitch is a bulldog coupler rated beyond the chassis but I really like the quality and security of the design, 3500 tandem straight axles sprung over on leafs, and there is a "tension beam" that runs right down the center of the chassis from the coupler to the back bumper/cross member, it really made a big difference in chassis reaction. Everything was powder coated black on a zinc rich primer. Deck is good old 3/4" fir G1S, bonded and screwed to the chassis. The walls are 1.5" thick fiberglass on one side and .040 aluminum on the inside with 8" wide doubler strips laminated in so we can hang stuff with inserts or rivets in case we get too lazy to bond stuff. I have extrusions for everything from anchoring the panels to 90 and 45 degree corners. Hope to be done this in 2 weeks.
goofballracer
Observer
Thats some clean fab work
Thanks.
I finished building the sealing flanges for the cabinets, I originally made them so they would sit inside the cabinets but I installed them on the outside when it came time to put them on. That way the compression latch keeps pressure on the whole flange rather than pulling on the rivets, I figure stuff will last longer if it's squished together rather than be pulled apart. They are installed with a strip of 3M VHB hi heat tape which is designed for temps far above powder coating and I have used it with great success in that application, the rivets are of a sealed design with a 40psi water pressure rating, and the flange gets a bulb seal to work against the door. I might make another set of doors with a deeper flange since mounting the sealing flange on the face of the box, it made it protrude an additional 1/4". The cabinet in the pic is cut out to clear the filler nozzle, I had to get fuel yesterday and it filled up fast at the commercial pump, happiness!
The vice grip monster escapes!
The sealing flange and the clearance notch for the filler hose, didn't lose too much room in the cabinet.
Flange from the inside.
From the outside
The way the door fits.
I generally build cabinets with a triple returned lip, it takes up about 2 more inches of cabinet door opening and works really good in HD applications, strong, 100% seal, and the weatherstrip is encased on 3 sides completely protecting it from abuse. This design makes for a bigger door opening and the application is what I'd call non-abusive, so it will work just fine in the smaller cabinets, these are 16" tall and 11" deep, the front measure 42 " at the top and the rear measure 34" at the top, so a lot of space inside.
I finished building the sealing flanges for the cabinets, I originally made them so they would sit inside the cabinets but I installed them on the outside when it came time to put them on. That way the compression latch keeps pressure on the whole flange rather than pulling on the rivets, I figure stuff will last longer if it's squished together rather than be pulled apart. They are installed with a strip of 3M VHB hi heat tape which is designed for temps far above powder coating and I have used it with great success in that application, the rivets are of a sealed design with a 40psi water pressure rating, and the flange gets a bulb seal to work against the door. I might make another set of doors with a deeper flange since mounting the sealing flange on the face of the box, it made it protrude an additional 1/4". The cabinet in the pic is cut out to clear the filler nozzle, I had to get fuel yesterday and it filled up fast at the commercial pump, happiness!
The vice grip monster escapes!
The sealing flange and the clearance notch for the filler hose, didn't lose too much room in the cabinet.
Flange from the inside.
From the outside
The way the door fits.
I generally build cabinets with a triple returned lip, it takes up about 2 more inches of cabinet door opening and works really good in HD applications, strong, 100% seal, and the weatherstrip is encased on 3 sides completely protecting it from abuse. This design makes for a bigger door opening and the application is what I'd call non-abusive, so it will work just fine in the smaller cabinets, these are 16" tall and 11" deep, the front measure 42 " at the top and the rear measure 34" at the top, so a lot of space inside.
A cool project
Ever watch the Tornado Hunters on CMT www.tornadohunters.com ? We are building their second chase truck, 2015 F-150 Eco Boost, Lite ROPS heavily modified for their needs, Addictive Desert Designs bumpers, custom mitigation bars, Zone 2" leveling kit, 33" Generals on Fuel Trophy wheels, enough Rigid lighting to be seen from space, Lite custom cargo management system for all the luggage and camera gear, the whole truck is Line X'ed, we are using Switch Pro's switch panel which is one of the cleanest electrical management systems I have used, and a bunch more stuff too. A fun build, great guys to work with, should be able to catch a look at this thing rolling around on the bad days!
Will add more pics as the build progresses if anybody wants.
Ever watch the Tornado Hunters on CMT www.tornadohunters.com ? We are building their second chase truck, 2015 F-150 Eco Boost, Lite ROPS heavily modified for their needs, Addictive Desert Designs bumpers, custom mitigation bars, Zone 2" leveling kit, 33" Generals on Fuel Trophy wheels, enough Rigid lighting to be seen from space, Lite custom cargo management system for all the luggage and camera gear, the whole truck is Line X'ed, we are using Switch Pro's switch panel which is one of the cleanest electrical management systems I have used, and a bunch more stuff too. A fun build, great guys to work with, should be able to catch a look at this thing rolling around on the bad days!
Will add more pics as the build progresses if anybody wants.