Project "Autonomous" F-350

[rayra]

Don't turn it into too much of a jungle gym. What are you using for covering panels? 1/4" luan plywood is light and sturdy. So is foam core board, if you want a visual screen with little structural strength. And you don't have to go too 'minimalist' and live in a metal can, you can cheat with some pressure-sensitive-adhesive (PSA) -backed thin real wood veneers. Peel and stick. And stain or clear coat as you wish. You can have a wood interior or touches for very little weight, dimension, or cost.

Remember, too, that most of the difference between beauty and ugly in these projects is where you make the cuts. Doesn't take much more effort to make something cool looking as well as functional.

I renovated our kitchen a year or so ago with PSA Oak veneer, it went on really well and easy. stuff costs about $3/sq'

There's a lot of nice looking wood-finish linoleum floor products out there now, also PSA-backed. And their lowest grade is about .90/sq'. You could have a 'wood' floor.

What I'm saying is you can 'warm up' the interior look some without a lot of fastening or loss of space and not much money. Combine it with some warmer-spectrum lighting and not harsh white and it wont feel like you're living inside an aluminum can.


This reminds me, I've got a catalog clipping I just spotted a couple days ago, it was a fold-down mini desk, sort of looks like a dartboard box on the wall when it's closed up. Meant for a kid to do their homework on, but it would make a fine dining table idea for two. I'll dig it up and scan it for here / you.

 

[rayra]

http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/products/vinyl-tile/traditional-wood/_/N-67tZ6wb

The light hickory would help keep the interior bright, while being a good shade to mask the inevitable desert dust.

The peel and stick tiles are a lot easier to work with, especially with a smooth floor. The sheet vinyl will cover a lot of imperfections in something like a toy hauler trailer floor and make cleanup a lot easier. With the proper edge trims and a good coat of liquid wax on teh square tiles to act as a seam sealer, you could literally hose out your floor. Both tile and sheet in the basic tiers are available for under a dollar per square foot. You could just as readily put the PSA tiles on the walls. Like paneling. But easier. And regular wood paneling is in the same low price range, but you have to deal with large awkward sheets.

Vinyl will also help with noise / echo dampening on that box skin. Like those butyl rubber 'sound absorber' products for stereos and computer cases.

 

[rayra]

Design could be enlarged into a two-place eating table. Something similar for your working desk. And spice rack and counter extension for your food prep area.

 

[pappawheely]

Rayra, I have seen folding furniture like that. I plan on having an L shaped couch that folds down from the wall. I will definitely have the walls covered with something. Cedar paneling will go in the bunk area. I have been giving a lot of thought to insulation. Most of the time I will be in the heat. I need to keep the heat out or have a way to get rid of it. That's why I left a gap at the top of the bulkhead to allow air to circulate throughout. The last thing I want is to trap heat inside. Maybe fabric of some type on the ceiling would allow the heat to rise and get exhausted out through roof vents. I am going to a lumber yard in Fontana tomorrow that has tons of materials to choose from. It might help me decide what to do with the interior walls and flooring.

 

[rayra]

You could do a sort of an air-gap thing, space an interior skin away from the metal box exterior and have it be a sort of passive thermodynamics sort of thing where that heated air has a path to rise or be drawn up and out.
There's also that metallized mylar radiante barrier stuff they have for attics, which turns the voids between rafters into just those sort of flues.
You could fix some 1x2 lath strips vertically to your walls, staple that radiant barrier to them and then cover it with a cosmetic panel.

The big upside of an air gap is that it doesn't retain any heat like heated foam does. As soon as the exterior cools, the gap cools. Downside it takes space and engineering.

I'm still rooting for the external fabric shade. Most effective (and passive) heat shield is keep the sun off the exterior skin in the first place. You could do the same sort of 'air gap' design with a fitted shade tarp on the side of the vehicle and the roof. Some sort of quick attaching standoff posts of a few inches in height, with your fabric mounted taught between them. A temporary second skin like spaced armor. You could even have the side panel printed up as a huge advertising banner for your business, featuring one of your best photos. Wouldn't take 5-10mins to put it up once you are parked for an event. Put the side panel on whichever side is facing south/west. Throw the roof cover on, and get to business.
And since the banner sheet is temporary, you don't have it drawing unwanted attention when you dont want it.

 

[pappawheely]

All great ideas. I have already thought of an aerodynamic aid over the cab with a limb rail that also holds my solar panels on the roof. Having a shade that drapes over it would be doable. The interior roof treatment would fit my requirement for light weight construction nicely.

 

[rayra]

eggselent. Just what I was envisioning. Make a good hand rail or tie down rail too.

Boy if you put a fiberglass air-dam extension on the front it would be a phenomenal place for an inset LED light bar, hidden satellite TV dish or even big storage from inside / your bed loft.

http://www.fptts.com/airshields.htm

 

[Sooper Camper]

i like where you are headed. carry on!

 

[pappawheely]

I put a camper shell back on the truck. The lack of aerodynamic drag created by the pop-up camper is very noticeable. Keeping drag to a minimum is a high priority for me. I plan to create a wooden frame for the nose cone and cover it with fiberglass. I don't need anymore light out front from an LED lightbar. The two Vision-x Transporters I have mounted on the Warn bumper are super bright and give me complete coverage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXaQHRaZyZQ&x-yt-ts=1421914688&x-yt-cl=84503534

 

[Sooper Camper]

what is the box on the roof for?

 

[pappawheely]

what is the box on the roof for?

I modified a roof rack to hold my 120 watt solar panel. Once I put the box on, I will move it to the box roof and add the other two panels I have to bring it up to 320 watts.

 

[snowaddict91]

Man that is one good lookin' truck! And digging your progress on the camper so far! One day I dream of having a dedicated camper rig like this.

 

[pappawheely]

Out at King of the Hammers this week. Did a big 20 mile loop out in Johnson valley looking for photo spots. The good news is it went everywhere, nothing broke or fell off and I was in 2wd the whole time (Even in the sand), Falken Wildpeaks were awesome! It did very well for an 8K lb. truck. Not nearly what I'm used to; my prerunner has 18" of wheel travel on both ends. I don't think the F350 comes close. My Atlas Springs were articulating nicely but the long wheelbase really gets rough in that choppy cross grain stuff. I need some performance shocks to damp the oscillations better and to work as a bumpstop. Sure did get some looks from a couple of guys with some very high-end jeeps. They couldn't believe I was out there in such a large rig. Going to need paper plates when I get the camper box on!

 

[Sooper Camper]

awesome! I'll be out there Friday night and keep an eye out for this beast.

Isn't it fun to make Jeepers feel silly in a big truck?

 

[dmanbluesfreak]

When will the gallery be up for this KOH visit on your website? That picture you posted is great and I'd love to see more.