ITTOG's Truck Camper Build (was 6' x 12' Trailer Conversion)
- Thread starter ITTOG
- Start date
ITTOG
Well-known member
Valid point on one shot to move it. While it will be modular, it will be bolted together so I could leave the modules in there as well. I will not have a fridge or heater. I only camp in the winter at this point so the outdoors is my fridge. sometimes I have to use a cooler to prevent items from freezing. I will definitely will have a counter with sink and my coleman grill and storage. Not sure if the storage will be under a bench or cabinets.
Thanks. You and me both on getting it skinned. While I love welding, I hate grinding. More than anything, I think I am just ready to get to that next phase.
I have really enjoyed seeing your pictures. I can only hope to use mine as much as you seem to use yours.
ITTOG
Well-known member
Date: October 14, 16, and 17, 2020
Time: 15 hours
Total Time to Date: 137 hours
Rework: 0 hours
Total Rework to Date: 34 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 475 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 363 (309 + calculated 54 pounds)
With 15 hours of work the past week you would think I would have gotten a ton of work done. Unfortunately I do not feel that is the case. What I completed was all of my floor to frame braces. In total there are four on each side, which is also probably overkill. Instead of an angled bracket from the floor to the frame I stair stepped it as it provided more space. Of course I couldn't make it easy and designed them to maximize floor space in the camper. This meant the braces were made out of five pieces each. So a lot of cuts, welding, and grinding. I definitely should have eliminated the bottom pieces that makes the floor wider by 5/8" on each side. In the end, it wasn't worth the effort.
For those building their own pop up campers and using gas struts, how did you connect the struts to the camper? I am using 16 gauge (about 1/16") 1.5" square tubing. I believe that is too thin to support the struts. I can't decide the best way to reinforce the tubing. I have thought about welding 1/8" or 3/16" plate to the tubing or using rivet nuts. Anyone have experience, thoughts, or ideas on the topic?
Time: 15 hours
Total Time to Date: 137 hours
Rework: 0 hours
Total Rework to Date: 34 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 475 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 363 (309 + calculated 54 pounds)
With 15 hours of work the past week you would think I would have gotten a ton of work done. Unfortunately I do not feel that is the case. What I completed was all of my floor to frame braces. In total there are four on each side, which is also probably overkill. Instead of an angled bracket from the floor to the frame I stair stepped it as it provided more space. Of course I couldn't make it easy and designed them to maximize floor space in the camper. This meant the braces were made out of five pieces each. So a lot of cuts, welding, and grinding. I definitely should have eliminated the bottom pieces that makes the floor wider by 5/8" on each side. In the end, it wasn't worth the effort.
For those building their own pop up campers and using gas struts, how did you connect the struts to the camper? I am using 16 gauge (about 1/16") 1.5" square tubing. I believe that is too thin to support the struts. I can't decide the best way to reinforce the tubing. I have thought about welding 1/8" or 3/16" plate to the tubing or using rivet nuts. Anyone have experience, thoughts, or ideas on the topic?
Andrew_S
Observer
^ I had a similar problem with that gas struts on my rear gates. I was concerned the thin aluminum wall tubing would fatigue over time. My solution was just rivet flat bar to the tubing and then rivet my gas strut mount to the thicker bar/thinner tubing to sandwich everything together. Worked like a charm and isn't showing any sign of wear after 4000km+ of backroads.
ITTOG
Well-known member
Thanks for the info. Glad to hear adding the thicker metal works. In that case I will weld some 1/8" or 3/16" flat stock on the the tube and then tap it to accept the bolt threads. Excited that is working because I didn't want to use the rivet nuts.
ITTOG
Well-known member
I recently read a post on here asking if you ever make dumb mistakes. Oh boy, have I! I believe it was @Pacific Northwest yetti that asked this in his truck camper thread. This entire post is primarily about mistakes. I debated if I even wanted to post it. But, you build and you learn so I will post my mistake!
Date: October 20 and 25, 2020 and Nov 1, 2020
Time: 2 hours
Total Time to Date: 139 hours
Rework: 11 hours
Total Rework to Date: 45 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 475 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 363 (309 + calculated 54 pounds)
For some reason I didn't feel like starting the door so I decided to clean up and improve the floor to camper framing in the tailgate area. It was too close to the tailgate jamb which made it too easy to scratch the paint. Unfortunately I do have a lot of scratches. Win for using aluminum. . It also had two tubes welded together which was overkill. This was built before I decided to make it a slide in and therefore didn't really fit the build any more. So I cut it out and changed it.
Here you can see the two tubes both near and far.
Rotating around to see the area better.
There is a third tube there that is there to build the internal wall. So three tubes very close together in the same area. Can you say overbuilt?
So I cut out the two tubes welded together and left the tube used for the internal wall. This is after that change. It is much cleaner and now I don't have to worry about scratching the paint.
Apparently my measurements were a bit off though. The tube at the bottom is actually touching the taillight housing. So I cut it out and moved the support from the outside of the two vertical posts in this pic to the inside of the two vertical posts.
In this pic, you can see it is no longer touching. It is now about 1" from the taillight.
That was probably more photo's than needed but I believe more is better than less with build photo's.
I didn't take any pictures but I also rebuilt the flip up bed where I bent the tube by the hinges when I left it up and tried to park in the garage. The frame was rebuilt and now I need to add the hinges and the lock in tab. I also welded some blanks over open ends on the tubing.
Not only do I have 45 hours of rework, I also calculate I spent about 19 hours on building the initial design for the front weight support. Thus, you can argue I have 64 hours of waste by changing my design to a slide in. Too bad I didn't start with that design. If I did, I would be closer to 113 hours on the build. Oh well, we build and learn.
Date: October 20 and 25, 2020 and Nov 1, 2020
Time: 2 hours
Total Time to Date: 139 hours
Rework: 11 hours
Total Rework to Date: 45 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 475 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 363 (309 + calculated 54 pounds)
For some reason I didn't feel like starting the door so I decided to clean up and improve the floor to camper framing in the tailgate area. It was too close to the tailgate jamb which made it too easy to scratch the paint. Unfortunately I do have a lot of scratches. Win for using aluminum. . It also had two tubes welded together which was overkill. This was built before I decided to make it a slide in and therefore didn't really fit the build any more. So I cut it out and changed it.
Here you can see the two tubes both near and far.
Rotating around to see the area better.
There is a third tube there that is there to build the internal wall. So three tubes very close together in the same area. Can you say overbuilt?
So I cut out the two tubes welded together and left the tube used for the internal wall. This is after that change. It is much cleaner and now I don't have to worry about scratching the paint.
Apparently my measurements were a bit off though. The tube at the bottom is actually touching the taillight housing. So I cut it out and moved the support from the outside of the two vertical posts in this pic to the inside of the two vertical posts.
In this pic, you can see it is no longer touching. It is now about 1" from the taillight.
That was probably more photo's than needed but I believe more is better than less with build photo's.
I didn't take any pictures but I also rebuilt the flip up bed where I bent the tube by the hinges when I left it up and tried to park in the garage. The frame was rebuilt and now I need to add the hinges and the lock in tab. I also welded some blanks over open ends on the tubing.
Not only do I have 45 hours of rework, I also calculate I spent about 19 hours on building the initial design for the front weight support. Thus, you can argue I have 64 hours of waste by changing my design to a slide in. Too bad I didn't start with that design. If I did, I would be closer to 113 hours on the build. Oh well, we build and learn.
Pacific Northwest yetti
Expedition Medic
I'm still excited to see it all come together!
And we all make mistakes, and have to adapt. I have plenty of stories of the like.
Thank you for sharing, Its a great learning experience.
I have a quote in my work email. " the only mistake is the one, in which we learn nothing" I believe that is from Henry Ford.
Happy tails and Safe travels
Hopefully sent from somewhere pretty and remote.
With my entertainment and navigation multitool.
Contract AEMT, Firefighter, MCPIC,Remote Medic, Safety Manager.
And we all make mistakes, and have to adapt. I have plenty of stories of the like.
Thank you for sharing, Its a great learning experience.
I have a quote in my work email. " the only mistake is the one, in which we learn nothing" I believe that is from Henry Ford.
Happy tails and Safe travels
Hopefully sent from somewhere pretty and remote.
With my entertainment and navigation multitool.
Contract AEMT, Firefighter, MCPIC,Remote Medic, Safety Manager.
ITTOG
Well-known member
Me too. I can't wait to begin skinning it. Yeah that is a good quote and one I have told my kids numerous times.
Thanks. I decided early on I wanted to track the time. Now I wish I didn't because my wife knows how poorly I estimated the build. She doesn't care that there have been scope change. LOL!Your frame is looking great
ITTOG
Well-known member
Date: October Nov 8, 2020
Time: 1 hours
Total Time to Date: 140 hours
Rework: 4 hours
Total Rework to Date: 49 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 475 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 363 (309 + calculated 54 pounds)
Rework seems to be the theme of late. However, the good news is most of that is done! Today's work included welding four more blanks onto open tube and attaching the flip up bed hinges and support to the camper. I am now done with the blanks and the flip up bed.
I like to flip the camper and let it bang to the ground. This knocks off some of the grinding splatter (whatever it is called) and dust. Also, if I have any poor welds they may present themselves, or at least that is what I tell myself. This pic is from the front looking towards the back, and it is upside down.
Still upside down, from the street side.
Upside down looking at the floor towards the back of the camper.
Upside down looking at the floor towards the front of the camper.
For some reason I like to stand it on end. It is only 12' long but it always looks taller when on end. This is looking from the bottom. Seeing the frame in its final form makes me think I can easily hang my Honda Rincon 680 ATV off the back of it. It probably weighs about 800 pounds. I may go over my payload before damaging the frame.
Looking from the street side.
It is also a part time jungle gym. I got up on the very top before my son came out. It was a bit unstable up there so I decided to count my blessings and not risk falling again. So my feet are now at 8' which is more stable and thus safer.
Here I installed an anchor point to the truck bed bolt at the front. I will use it to connect a turnbuckle. With this connection and the other four bed bolts I will have no weight on any of the bed rails. All on the floor of the bed and all connections to the frame of the truck. It should be very solid.
This pic is right before I took it to a local machine shop. It has the roof on, first time in a couple months probably. The roof is the top two tubes and is 3" tall. The machine shop is going to do some work for me with some 1/4", 3/16", and 1/8" plate. I don't have the tools to do what I want so this will make a better product than me trying to do it. The work will be for mount reinforcement plates for my gas struts and roof clamps. They are also making jack plates (the piece that connects the camper to the jacks at the four corners) for me. The front and rear plates will be unique to prevent using bolt holes. The final piece they are working on is a wedge for wind deflection on the cab over. I will show all of this in future updates.
A friend sent this to me the other day. Holy cow, if I had only known about it before I began.
Okay, just kidding. It wouldn't have changed my approach.
Time: 1 hours
Total Time to Date: 140 hours
Rework: 4 hours
Total Rework to Date: 49 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 475 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 363 (309 + calculated 54 pounds)
Rework seems to be the theme of late. However, the good news is most of that is done! Today's work included welding four more blanks onto open tube and attaching the flip up bed hinges and support to the camper. I am now done with the blanks and the flip up bed.
I like to flip the camper and let it bang to the ground. This knocks off some of the grinding splatter (whatever it is called) and dust. Also, if I have any poor welds they may present themselves, or at least that is what I tell myself. This pic is from the front looking towards the back, and it is upside down.
Still upside down, from the street side.
Upside down looking at the floor towards the back of the camper.
Upside down looking at the floor towards the front of the camper.
For some reason I like to stand it on end. It is only 12' long but it always looks taller when on end. This is looking from the bottom. Seeing the frame in its final form makes me think I can easily hang my Honda Rincon 680 ATV off the back of it. It probably weighs about 800 pounds. I may go over my payload before damaging the frame.
Looking from the street side.
It is also a part time jungle gym. I got up on the very top before my son came out. It was a bit unstable up there so I decided to count my blessings and not risk falling again. So my feet are now at 8' which is more stable and thus safer.
Here I installed an anchor point to the truck bed bolt at the front. I will use it to connect a turnbuckle. With this connection and the other four bed bolts I will have no weight on any of the bed rails. All on the floor of the bed and all connections to the frame of the truck. It should be very solid.
This pic is right before I took it to a local machine shop. It has the roof on, first time in a couple months probably. The roof is the top two tubes and is 3" tall. The machine shop is going to do some work for me with some 1/4", 3/16", and 1/8" plate. I don't have the tools to do what I want so this will make a better product than me trying to do it. The work will be for mount reinforcement plates for my gas struts and roof clamps. They are also making jack plates (the piece that connects the camper to the jacks at the four corners) for me. The front and rear plates will be unique to prevent using bolt holes. The final piece they are working on is a wedge for wind deflection on the cab over. I will show all of this in future updates.
A friend sent this to me the other day. Holy cow, if I had only known about it before I began.
Okay, just kidding. It wouldn't have changed my approach.
ITTOG
Well-known member
I picked up the camper on 12/8/20. Exactly 30 days after dropping it off. So this update is about what I had the machine shop do for me. First is build the required hardware for jacks. My design for all four corners was to have a way to attach jacks without using any bolts that go into the camper frame. On the front I designed a sleeve with slide in brackets that attach to the jack. In this picture you can see the slot for the slide in bracket.
In the next pic you can see the jack with the bracket in the sleeve. It works well. I jacked it up while the camper was still bolted in and it easily lifts the truck. Not tires off the ground but raising the suspension a couple inches. Who knows, if I used a ratchet on the jack instead of a drill maybe it will lift the tires off the ground. I don't think I will try it though.
This is the back of the camper and there are four round sleeves welded to the top horizontal tube. These sleeves are capped on the top and open on the bottom.
This bar has pegs that will fit in the sleeve. At the ends of the bar I can attach jacks or possibly just a stand given I can easily lift the back of the camper. I could build the stands to be an inch taller than the bed of the truck and save $500 for jacks. Not sure what I will do yet. I will probably fab a cover for the sleeves so they do not get filled with mud.
The next item is the front wedge I wanted on the front of the camper. The gap at the top is to ensure the top doesn't hit the wedge when closed. It is hollow so in the future I could inset a LED light bar if I wanted.
The next two pics are from behind the wedge. It is connected to the camper by eight 3/8" bolts.
I have six clamps to hold the roof down and four gas struts to open the roof. Concerned about the thin tubing, I had them make 1/8" plate with the holes already cut out with their plasma cutter. The two on the left are for the top and bottom brackets of the clamps. The small holes are for the clamps and the large holes are for plug welds. I will weld the nuts onto these and inset them inside the tubing by drilling holes large enough to pass them through. The two on the right are for the gas struts. I will utilize them the same way.
A pic from the front of the entire wedge.
The last item I had them do is cut a piece of 1/8" plat to use as a drip guard across the back. It will be above the door and I will probably weld a few hooks on it so I can attach a tarp for shade or protection from rain if needed.
Now that I have it back in my hands it is time to begin working on the door next. After that attaching the roof clamps and gas struts, walk through all my attachment points for the skin to ensure I don't need to weld anything on, and then off to sandblasting and powder coating.
In the next pic you can see the jack with the bracket in the sleeve. It works well. I jacked it up while the camper was still bolted in and it easily lifts the truck. Not tires off the ground but raising the suspension a couple inches. Who knows, if I used a ratchet on the jack instead of a drill maybe it will lift the tires off the ground. I don't think I will try it though.
This is the back of the camper and there are four round sleeves welded to the top horizontal tube. These sleeves are capped on the top and open on the bottom.
This bar has pegs that will fit in the sleeve. At the ends of the bar I can attach jacks or possibly just a stand given I can easily lift the back of the camper. I could build the stands to be an inch taller than the bed of the truck and save $500 for jacks. Not sure what I will do yet. I will probably fab a cover for the sleeves so they do not get filled with mud.
The next item is the front wedge I wanted on the front of the camper. The gap at the top is to ensure the top doesn't hit the wedge when closed. It is hollow so in the future I could inset a LED light bar if I wanted.
The next two pics are from behind the wedge. It is connected to the camper by eight 3/8" bolts.
I have six clamps to hold the roof down and four gas struts to open the roof. Concerned about the thin tubing, I had them make 1/8" plate with the holes already cut out with their plasma cutter. The two on the left are for the top and bottom brackets of the clamps. The small holes are for the clamps and the large holes are for plug welds. I will weld the nuts onto these and inset them inside the tubing by drilling holes large enough to pass them through. The two on the right are for the gas struts. I will utilize them the same way.
A pic from the front of the entire wedge.
The last item I had them do is cut a piece of 1/8" plat to use as a drip guard across the back. It will be above the door and I will probably weld a few hooks on it so I can attach a tarp for shade or protection from rain if needed.
Now that I have it back in my hands it is time to begin working on the door next. After that attaching the roof clamps and gas struts, walk through all my attachment points for the skin to ensure I don't need to weld anything on, and then off to sandblasting and powder coating.
Last edited:
D
Deleted member 9101
Guest
That's coming along nicely!
ITTOG
Well-known member
Date: Dec 21 and 22, 2020
Time: 12 hours
Total Time to Date: 152 hours
Rework: 0 hours
Total Rework to Date: 49 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 510 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 398 (309 + calculated 89 pounds)
For some reason I have not wanted to work on the door but it was now time. With my new jacks in the front and saw horses in the back it is much easier to get the camper out of the truck. However, the saw horses are a complete pain in the butt. Thus, I purchased jacks for the back.
I don't have pictures, but I welded 1.5' x 1/8" angle to create a door jam. On the outside I welded the entire perimiter to prevent water entry. On the inside it is just spot welded. I didn't take any pictures of that process. Here, I am using 1/8' rubber to simulate spacing for my gasket. You can also see after welding the angle in, I ground the weld to create a rounded corner to the frame of the camper. This pic is the left side of the door jam and the next pic is the right side. Yes I know there are some pits/blemishes in the welds but I don't care because I think the powder coat will pretty much hide it given it is black.
One of the big perceived problems was how to create the bottom of the door. I was thinking about cutting the bottom tube and making it more of a triangle to set flush with the door.
The door has been finished except for finishing the welds on the four corners and I need to grind the welds.
This pic shows the bottom of the door and you can see I used angle to sit on the tube and eliminating the need to cut the tube so it would be flush. I still need to install the hinges to see how well the door works.
Luckily the jacks arrived in regular Amazon Prime 2 day shipping and here you can see I have installed them. This is so much easier than using the saw horses. But, I was surprised how much movement the legs have. I may make some cross braces for them.
Time: 12 hours
Total Time to Date: 152 hours
Rework: 0 hours
Total Rework to Date: 49 hours (not part of Time above)
Current Weight: 510 pounds (calculated)
Roof: 112
Camper: 398 (309 + calculated 89 pounds)
For some reason I have not wanted to work on the door but it was now time. With my new jacks in the front and saw horses in the back it is much easier to get the camper out of the truck. However, the saw horses are a complete pain in the butt. Thus, I purchased jacks for the back.
I don't have pictures, but I welded 1.5' x 1/8" angle to create a door jam. On the outside I welded the entire perimiter to prevent water entry. On the inside it is just spot welded. I didn't take any pictures of that process. Here, I am using 1/8' rubber to simulate spacing for my gasket. You can also see after welding the angle in, I ground the weld to create a rounded corner to the frame of the camper. This pic is the left side of the door jam and the next pic is the right side. Yes I know there are some pits/blemishes in the welds but I don't care because I think the powder coat will pretty much hide it given it is black.
One of the big perceived problems was how to create the bottom of the door. I was thinking about cutting the bottom tube and making it more of a triangle to set flush with the door.
The door has been finished except for finishing the welds on the four corners and I need to grind the welds.
This pic shows the bottom of the door and you can see I used angle to sit on the tube and eliminating the need to cut the tube so it would be flush. I still need to install the hinges to see how well the door works.
Luckily the jacks arrived in regular Amazon Prime 2 day shipping and here you can see I have installed them. This is so much easier than using the saw horses. But, I was surprised how much movement the legs have. I may make some cross braces for them.
Last edited:
D
Deleted member 9101
Guest
Damn good work man!
ITTOG
Well-known member
Thank you. It has been fun learning new skills on such a big build. Big for me at least.