Concept: I'm working to develop a hard-sided, lightweight, wedge style pop-up camper shell designed to withstand the rigors of daily life, which will keep you protected in the middle of a snow storm or while relaxing in the shade watching the waves roll in.
Next Steps: Bolt and bond structural frame, fabricate and test folding triangular sidewalls, mount on the truck, throw a Wyoming winter at it and see what happens.
Timeline: I plan to have the proof of concept camper on my truck by the end of February, test and iterate into the spring, and work towards a production ready version this summer. I will do the work to get this right, set as fair and honest of expectations as I can, and not waiver on my standards for high product quality and customer satisfaction.
Thank you for checking out my initial post regarding the hard-sided wedge camper! If you now find yourself entranced watching endlessly looping gifs, by all means. And if you're skimming posts, thanks for giving this one a glance. Otherwise, feel free to read on below for more background and context as to what brought me here. (You can also skip ahead, reply to this thread, or email me at wycamperconcepts@gmail.com)
A Little Background......
I feel incredibly fortunate to look back on a childhood growing up in the mountains of Wyoming, exploring public lands and camping in every type of tent, snow-cave, hammock or camper that we could find. That rare opportunity was largely a byproduct of my grandfather’s adventurous spirit decades earlier, when he built his own camper in the 60’s and moved the family out to live and work in Grand Teton National Park. The move his DIY camper enabled has instilled in our family a love of public lands and dedication to protect them. I have long shared my grandfather's dream of building a camper, and I hope that my work can continue propelling folks to get out and explore.
(My dad sits on my Grandfather's lap while they map out their trip across country with the homebuilt family camper. Summer of 1961)
A stroke of luck 10 years ago landed my first truck camper in the form of a $350 Wildernest on Craigslist. I’ve seen my share of campers, tents, trailers, and inspired DIY shelters, but the simplicity and grandeur of the space inside of a Wildernest Camper won my heart. A daily driver camper shell somehow mysteriously housed a structure inside of it which, when unfolded, extended into a vaulted space with room to stretch ones’ arms high overhead! The Wildernest also showed me how invaluable a lighter weight, low profile camper can be, but not without the trade-offs of battling wet tent fabric and the slow, steady deterioration of it’s other aging materials. The day that I watched the Wildernest drive into the distance, I resolved myself to forge ahead with my dream of creating a camper of my own design that I can share with the outdoor community.
(My '89 Toyota 22RE and the Wildernest. Taken the day those two became partners in crime when I purchased both on Craigslist; Summer of 2010)
Building on firsthand experience and extensive research, my first step has been to investigate the application of modern materials and manufacturing methods to create a hard sided pop-up that captures the spirit of my old Wildernest. Although Wildernests were a product of the 80’s, there’s a wealth of inspiration that can also be found by looking further back in time. After all, my grandfather built his camper in the 60’s, and a search of old patents and publications from that era uncovers original hard sided pop-up camper concepts that were commercially produced. Both Del-Rey and Amerigo campers utilized folding wall sections that enabled additional interior spaces to be popped out of the core unit. Contemporary designs can be practically developed through obvious applications of this prior work that is now part of the public domain.
Stewart E. Gardner’s patent from 1968 describes folding hard sided wall sections being “hingably attached” that may be comprised of “triangularly shaped rigid panels” that fold out to form final walls “generally triangular in shape”. I am working to employ obvious applications of these concepts through iterative design and testing. Currently the first proof of concept camper is being assembled, as can be seen in the images included at the beginning of the post, and I look forward to putting it through its paces to improve the production model.
My hope is that introducing this concept to the outdoor community will lead to many years of positive collaboration, new ideas, and adventures aplenty. I will do my best to answer questions and keep folks updated in a timely manner as I have my sleeves rolled up in the workshop over the coming weeks. Thank you in advance for your interest and support while I develop the product and gauge interest in the broader community.
Please keep the ideas and comments flowing here in the forum, but also feel free to shoot me an email. You can reach me at wycamperconcepts@gmail.com
Cheers!
Beau
(Thumbs up!)
Next Steps: Bolt and bond structural frame, fabricate and test folding triangular sidewalls, mount on the truck, throw a Wyoming winter at it and see what happens.
Timeline: I plan to have the proof of concept camper on my truck by the end of February, test and iterate into the spring, and work towards a production ready version this summer. I will do the work to get this right, set as fair and honest of expectations as I can, and not waiver on my standards for high product quality and customer satisfaction.
Thank you for checking out my initial post regarding the hard-sided wedge camper! If you now find yourself entranced watching endlessly looping gifs, by all means. And if you're skimming posts, thanks for giving this one a glance. Otherwise, feel free to read on below for more background and context as to what brought me here. (You can also skip ahead, reply to this thread, or email me at wycamperconcepts@gmail.com)
A Little Background......
I feel incredibly fortunate to look back on a childhood growing up in the mountains of Wyoming, exploring public lands and camping in every type of tent, snow-cave, hammock or camper that we could find. That rare opportunity was largely a byproduct of my grandfather’s adventurous spirit decades earlier, when he built his own camper in the 60’s and moved the family out to live and work in Grand Teton National Park. The move his DIY camper enabled has instilled in our family a love of public lands and dedication to protect them. I have long shared my grandfather's dream of building a camper, and I hope that my work can continue propelling folks to get out and explore.
(My dad sits on my Grandfather's lap while they map out their trip across country with the homebuilt family camper. Summer of 1961)
A stroke of luck 10 years ago landed my first truck camper in the form of a $350 Wildernest on Craigslist. I’ve seen my share of campers, tents, trailers, and inspired DIY shelters, but the simplicity and grandeur of the space inside of a Wildernest Camper won my heart. A daily driver camper shell somehow mysteriously housed a structure inside of it which, when unfolded, extended into a vaulted space with room to stretch ones’ arms high overhead! The Wildernest also showed me how invaluable a lighter weight, low profile camper can be, but not without the trade-offs of battling wet tent fabric and the slow, steady deterioration of it’s other aging materials. The day that I watched the Wildernest drive into the distance, I resolved myself to forge ahead with my dream of creating a camper of my own design that I can share with the outdoor community.
(My '89 Toyota 22RE and the Wildernest. Taken the day those two became partners in crime when I purchased both on Craigslist; Summer of 2010)
Building on firsthand experience and extensive research, my first step has been to investigate the application of modern materials and manufacturing methods to create a hard sided pop-up that captures the spirit of my old Wildernest. Although Wildernests were a product of the 80’s, there’s a wealth of inspiration that can also be found by looking further back in time. After all, my grandfather built his camper in the 60’s, and a search of old patents and publications from that era uncovers original hard sided pop-up camper concepts that were commercially produced. Both Del-Rey and Amerigo campers utilized folding wall sections that enabled additional interior spaces to be popped out of the core unit. Contemporary designs can be practically developed through obvious applications of this prior work that is now part of the public domain.
Stewart E. Gardner’s patent from 1968 describes folding hard sided wall sections being “hingably attached” that may be comprised of “triangularly shaped rigid panels” that fold out to form final walls “generally triangular in shape”. I am working to employ obvious applications of these concepts through iterative design and testing. Currently the first proof of concept camper is being assembled, as can be seen in the images included at the beginning of the post, and I look forward to putting it through its paces to improve the production model.
My hope is that introducing this concept to the outdoor community will lead to many years of positive collaboration, new ideas, and adventures aplenty. I will do my best to answer questions and keep folks updated in a timely manner as I have my sleeves rolled up in the workshop over the coming weeks. Thank you in advance for your interest and support while I develop the product and gauge interest in the broader community.
Please keep the ideas and comments flowing here in the forum, but also feel free to shoot me an email. You can reach me at wycamperconcepts@gmail.com
Cheers!
Beau
(Thumbs up!)
