Pop Up Camper Modification for Carrying Motorcycle. Also, warning **GORE PICS**

[dieselcruiserhead]

A couple months ago a friend of a friend asked me to build an extension into his pop up camper. It is a neat Coleman model that is very well set up and I can't believe how light it is and well it tows considering how well it is set up. It is large but it would make and excellent off road trailer in my book with the right modifications. My little '89 truck towed it excellently.

The addition involved cutting off the tongue of the frame of the camper, extending the frame 3', and adding a platform and box for his and his son's dirtbikes... I also had considerable mishaps in the shop including a cutoff wheel that exploded and caused a major cut in my arm (hence the photos). So I thought I would use this thread as a warning on safety with cutoff wheels. This is my tool of choice that I use for so much stuff, but you have to be really really careful. In this case I was in a hurry and the injury could have been prevented...

*WARNING THE FOLLOWING PICS ARE NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART*

What I was attempting to cut off / removing the tongue...

Which was caught in the tongue in a pinching motion because I didn't secure the front of the tongue from pinching...

The whole grinder popped out of the tongue and went into my arm... It was quite disgusting, I could see my tendons in my arm. Luckily I only lightly nicked one and the cut has already healed very well... I go in tomorrow to try to break down some of the hard scar tissue that's developed around the cuts in the wound...

All stitched up, 30 stitches total. They had me in and out in 50 minutes. I've already received a $2200 bill for which is about $1300 after insurance because of my $1000 deductible... Unbelievable a country where 50 minutes of work costs $2200 for a public health mechanism...

 

[motomech]

:smilies27

OUCH! That's gonna leave a mark.

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

A few days later I sacked up and was back at it again. The trailer was rendered useless and was blocking other vehicles and the shop so I at least needed to do the tongue extension...

Cutting off the tongue, the goal of it all...

Frame extension steel. This is 2" x 4" steel. The frame is 2 x 3. You'll see why I chose this in a sec...

Cut technque. Between the cuts lengthened the frame exactly 3'. I used a drop metal band saw to make the initial cuts...

Added on as most of the weight will come from above. Steel is more efficient in a pulling/stretch mechanism than pushing:

The extended tongue on day 2 (the second day working on it after the accident).

 

[Christian]

Yikes!

Well it's good to have a reminder of how dangerous the tools we use almost daily can be. I can also see the safety goggles are securely on the forehead. I doo the same thing, and I know its stupid.
I hope you consider yourself lucky that it didn't damage the tendons or hit your face.

I had a somewhat similar experience with a wire brush on a similar machine. I was removing the underbody coating on my cruiser when the wire wheel caught on an edge. The wheel proceeded in to my face striking my upper lip, touching my teeth and going down my chin. I looked a bit freaky for a couple of weeks. fortunately I heel well, and have no scar, but I use full face protection when I can...

Thanks for the reminder, and good to hear that the only permanent damage was to the cutter disc and your wallet!

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

The following day I added frame plating for the extension and started working on the box for the motorcycles... I am very proud of my work as it will outlast the life of the trailer. I also made recommendations that the owner add a beefier axle which he may or may not do...

I didn't take too many pictures but here is the final product. It took me approx 13 hours and about $200 in steel at discount steel rates...

I was concerned about the added tongue weight and how it would tow possibly being too squirly. My concerns we unwarranted as it actually tows *excellently* , possibly better with the added weight on the tongue.

The bike is a Honda 450. It looks a lot smaller because it's compressed for travel. The overall length is considerable, longer than the trailer is wide. I made the rear opening for stability of the bike to lock the tire in. The gate drops and acts as a ramp and it also locks for possible theft prevention...

Cheers,
Andre

You can see strap added to the frame "jsut in case" - the design of the box also greatly helped with lateral stiffness and to accent the strength of the frame addition...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Here is what it looked like before for reference...

thanks guys also for your comments. I'll snap a pic of it now a couple weeks later, it's healed up pretty nicely and no complaints... Again, safety first... Also Christian when it actually happened my goggles were down, full respirator on, gloves, etc... But nevertheless...

Cheers,
Andre

 

[Xtreme XJ]

Little off course here, but I spend most of Aug. each year over the hill from Heber... up above Kamas... see the picts. with familiar hills and the one in your trailer build... I'm getting antsy to get out of here... toooo damn hot.

Hope the arm is better...

Curt

 

[UK4X4]

Do you think you might have missed out on the pain of an emergency room bill

by using the hand guard that came with the grinder ?eepwall:

Nice mod on the trailer, I just about to buy one of those bikes...they are wicked...

 

[corbin8or]

I can't even count how many times I've been in a hurry and do things a little out of the norm. I remember once trying to drill through hockey sticks to mount new picks the day before going to world championships in Germany. I was holding the stick in one hand braced on my wheelchair wheel and hooked up my air drill that goes 50bajilion rpms! mind you drill press is 10 feet away! I was using a cool pilt drill bit, that had a smaller tip and then stepped up to the size I wanted... it started "dancing on me a little so I tilted the drill to make it dance back to the correct place. well when I tilted it it hit the larger part of bit and jumped off and hit my finger. It happened so fast that I thought "man was that a close call" as I felt it brush my finger. A couple seconds later two deep red bubbles of blood started flowing like a river. I didn't "brush" my finger... I drilled though it! from right in the middle of finger print pad to the bottom of nail about an inch away. that bit was so sharp and going so fast that it just punched right through. that tournament was so painfull! my hockey gloves were full of blood after every game. ouch!

 

[R_Lefebvre]

Damn dude, that's a pretty bad wound, makes mine look like a paper cut. Did the grinder cut away any material, or was it a pure puncture wound? You really should try the full face shield. Can you imagine what would have happened had you hit your face? I actually did. Had something similar happen, and the grinder hit me in the face. The face shield protected me, I only got stunned for a bit from the punch to the face.

I wonder what else can be done, because obviously the angle grinders are pretty dangerous. Probably the most dangerous tool we have, though they are so innocuous and common. Think a leather welders shirt would have worked? Wonder about a ballistic nylon like a motorcycle jacket.

As for the cost, yeah, that's nuts. The people in the US who tell you costs will only go up with public health care are full of crap. Yours are already way too expensive. A big part of our health care system was the institution of pay caps on doctors. We had to suffer a doctor's strike about 50 years ago when it all went down. Anywho...

Do you think you might have missed out on the pain of an emergency room bill

by using the hand guard that came with the grinder ?eepwall:

Nice mod on the trailer, I just about to buy one of those bikes...they are wicked...

Yeah... I have mine off on my grinder and flapper wheel (I have 3 tools). They just detract way too much from the function, and I figure those two are less dangerous. I let the guard on my cutting wheel.

 

[UK4X4]

"They just detract way too much from the function"

the function is to cut steel not body parts

Me I use the guard gloves overalls and glasses, at work a face shield too

I like my body parts and try hard not to loose any of them:sombrero:

 

[R_Lefebvre]

I understand that, but... sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. The guard may not have done any help anyway, they only protect 180° of the disk.

Do you have special gloves or overalls? Or just leather/cotton? Just wondering if there's anything out there, like a kevlar shirt. Never seen anything like that.

 

[Funrover]

OUCH!!!! That sucks man! Camper looks good however. I was going to do the same thing to my pop up

 

[UK4X4]

"The guard may not have done any help anyway, they only protect 180° of the disk."

you are correct- thats side I hide in :victory:

anyway we digress back to the thread !

I'm concidering the same sort of thing for my trailer- only the space was being saved for my fuel cans...

now I have to either fit a rear hitch to the trailer and make a rack for the bike or similar to this one.

It just makes the hitch weight so high, which worries me, my tow truck's rear suspension is standard and not HD for an extra 300lbs or so

That and the lable above my pintle hitch - says for recovery only not towing ????? so it will take the weight of the truck in a recovery but not a trailer ! it seems odd to me

 

[BigAl]

The fab work looks great. Is the axle/wheel bearing up for the added weight? Without the bike is there enough tongue weight to tow? You got my wheels turning. I'm picturing gas can holders, cooler, etc. Good work