M35A2 Camper Build Questions

[ammoman]

Hi! Just a couple weeks ago I purchased a 1966 AMG M35A2 (Deuce and a half) to take me on may new adventures! Right now it has the troop carrier seats in the back with a canvas top. While this will be fine for short trips without the family, I need something I can stand up in with more protection. Because every now and then I might use it as a truck (never know when you might need a 8' x 12' bed!), I don't want to remove the bed. Instead I've decided to build a camper that can mount on top of the bed!

After lots of reading here and knowing how bad the Deuce vibrates, I decided to build a steel tube frame for the camper. Attached are my initial drawings for the shell. Since I'm not an engineer, my two biggest concerns are overall rigidity and the safety of the over-cab beds. (it extends 42" out past the main shell)

How does my plan look? Anything I need to modify?


Here is my new ride: (I installed the muffler before the 300 mile drive home so it wasn't too loud)


And here are my new camper drawings. NOTE - the blue tubes are going to be 1" x 2" 11 gauge steel tubes and the brown ones are 1" x 1" 14 gauge steel tubes.







If you noticed, in the back there is a big opening - I'm planning on having two great big double doors so i can open both to load up an ATV or motorcycle if needed.

 

[bajajoaquin]

I think that at 11ga and 14 ga, you're waaaay overbuilding. That structure looks to be pretty well triangulated, so you're getting a lot of strength from your design. I'd guess that you need 16ga as a maximum, unless you have some specific design element that needs more strength, like a spare tire carrier cantilevered from the back. You are also running steel tube along the width, which adds to the effectiveness of the shape, further reducing the need for wall thickness. You could probably go to 20ga on some of your sections and still have plenty of strength. Remember that a deuce doesn't have unlimited capacity, and weight is still weight.

Also, a small design comment: The diagonals in your cab-over section place the metal joint in tension. If you did them the opposite way, with the diagonals running up towards the front corner, the joint would be in compression, and the strength wouldn't be so totally dependent on the strength of your weld.

 

[ammoman]

Thanks for the feedback. I always have a tendency to overbuild things, and there isn't any design reason that requires it to be really beefy. I just want to build it strong enough to handle offroading and not worry about the cab-overhead falling while my kids are sleeping up there at night. (they are small now, but in 5-8 years there could be around 300 lbs sleeping on that overhang) And since I live in a small town I don't have access to a wide selection of tubing.

I checked with the local seller and I can get 1x1 in 14 gauge, but not any thinner. Instead of using the 1x2 for the main exterior portions, do you think I would be okay with using the 1x1 14 gauge for the entire structure? My only other options would be to go with 3/4x3/4 16 gauge or 1/2x1/2 16 gauge. But that just seems really small to me... (and would also reduce the amount of insulation I can put in the walls) I'm also planning on skinning the structure with 22 gauge sheet metal, so that will help add to the strength and rigidity too.

And thanks for the design comment - I showed the design to one other person and they too pointed that one out!

I just ran the rough numbers, and if I build it only with 1x1 14 gauge tubing and 22 gauge sheet metal shell, the structure would weigh just under 700 lbs. Definitely not a light camper! But I'm planning on keeping things extremely simple inside.

 

[bajajoaquin]

Now you're getting out of my realm of understanding. When I drew up something similar (before buying a house which didn't have space for a project like this), I figured on 16ga 1x1, so sure, I think 14ga would be more than strong enough. But I'm no engineer. I've just built a few things with 16ga tubing and have gotten a feel for my own comfort level.

There's no reason you can't have thicker insulation. It just won't sit flush with the 1x1. In fact, it will eliminate the thermal bridge if you do it that way. For any place you want to hang something on the wall, like cabinets, you can put in an additional backer to bridge the gap between the steel structure and the interior skin.

 

[LowTech]

Did this ever go anywhere?

 

[ammoman]

Not yet. I haven't had any free time to work on it. And now that is winter, it probably won't happen until the spring.

 

[Ozrockrat]

Here is something to keep the fires burning.

I don't have any details just a photo a buddy sent me from Colorado.

 

[LowTech]

Don't have much to go on, but I'm going to say that's a Ural. Doesn't look to be US made, and the Urals ran there air cleaners on that fender. They also had that fender shape.

 

[toylandcruiser]

Don't have much to go on, but I'm going to say that's a Ural. Doesn't look to be US made, and the Urals ran there air cleaners on that fender. They also had that fender shape.

It's an M35A3


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[LowTech]

You are right it is an A3. I'd forgotten that they run that set-up.

 

[red EOD veteran]

Out of curiosity with the camper design, what about using an s280 shelter and modifying it? They are overbuilt, cheap, and already slide into your bed

 

[Kelly 4x4]

Hello , just use 1.5 box -90 & 120 wall , I just added 3FT to mine using the same as the original build . My frame is about the same as what your disine is good and stiff they used the original bed
as the floor the way the bed is mounted to the frame it will flex more then enuff ...KELLY

 

[Kelly 4x4]

Here is a pic of the back after the redo ..and be for the inside is finished .. KELLY

 

[Henry_G]

Hello , just use 1.5 box -90 & 120 wall , I just added 3FT to mine using the same as the original build . My frame is about the same as what your disine is good and stiff they used the original bed
as the floor the way the bed is mounted to the frame it will flex more then enuff ...KELLY

That is AMAZING!

 

[red EOD veteran]

What's your total height?