Resources for complete beginners? S-250 build-out

[MrNobody]

Greetings!

I am new to the whole 'overland' world and embarking on my first DIY camper build.

After a bit of searching around the forums and the internet at large, I couldn't find a master beginner thread for newbs such as myself but I figure there must be something.

I recently bought an S-250 communications shelter and am going to convert it into a camper to sit on my flat deck truck.

I have no construction, electrical (except some circuit soldering), or mechanical experience (I can change my oil, simple part swaps of course), I make dentures for a living, so as far as this sort of thing goes I am about as green as it gets.

Anybody have any pointers or directions toward resources they found helpful when they began doing this sort of thing?

Also, I was thinking of documenting the whole process, would there be any interest in following along if I were to post that here?

Sincerely,

Mr. Nobody

p.s. thats me on the left

 

[NatersXJ6]

Hmmm…. I think you’ve found the best resource in coming here, although the “look what I built” threads are much more often becoming the “look at my list of brands” threads.

You are asking for a huge list of skills, tools, and ideas to be dropped into your lap all in one neatly bundled resource… it is unlikely to happen.

Some starter advice: get the box mounted and start camping. Add needs as you go. Form follows function, and what you “think” function will be is often ground into the fine powder of reality while camping.

Have a place to work. If you are trying to do all this in the parking lot of an urban apartment…. Just… don’t.

A guy on here wrote an awesome book about building your own teardrop trailer. Most of that info will cross over to finishing your own box and is a really good starter resource. I’m not near my bookshelf, so can’t tell you exactly what it is called, but it might be “Building your own Teardrop Trailer, Tips and Techniques to craft an heirloom camper” and is available on Amazon.

Someone will no doubt link to it.

Otherwise, start by making a list of all your wants, then re-sort the list by priority: survival, comfort, convenience, social status, etc… You aren’t going to do Alaska to Patagonia in year 1, so start camping and follow your list starting at the top until you run out of space or money.

 

[MrNobody]

Hmmm…. I think you’ve found the best resource in coming here, although the “look what I built” threads are much more often becoming the “look at my list of brands” threads.

You are asking for a huge list of skills, tools, and ideas to be dropped into your lap all in one neatly bundled resource… it is unlikely to happen.

Some starter advice: get the box mounted and start camping. Add needs as you go. Form follows function, and what you “think” function will be is often ground into the fine powder of reality while camping.

Have a place to work. If you are trying to do all this in the parking lot of an urban apartment…. Just… don’t.

A guy on here wrote an awesome book about building your own teardrop trailer. Most of that info will cross over to finishing your own box and is a really good starter resource. I’m not near my bookshelf, so can’t tell you exactly what it is called, but it might be “Building your own Teardrop Trailer, Tips and Techniques to craft an heirloom camper” and is available on Amazon.

Someone will no doubt link to it.

Otherwise, start by making a list of all your wants, then re-sort the list by priority: survival, comfort, convenience, social status, etc… You aren’t going to do Alaska to Patagonia in year 1, so start camping and follow your list starting at the top until you run out of space or money.

Well thank you, that is excellent advice and I will start by finding that book.

I have plenty of room in my yard so there is no worries as far as that goes. The jack mounts to get it on my truck bed are a priority but I want to strip it and clean it before anything else. Probably just going to need to hire a welder to make me the mounts.

Things I have been considering are:

Do I want to have a roof top tent on it to keep space in the interior or put the bed inside?

Where should the kitchen go?

How do I heat it, wood, diesel?

Will I need AC?

How do I wire a battery and solar for a ham radio, synthesizers and maybe speakers?

I guess because the unit is so unique I am worried about making commitments, attaching things inside and then later thinking it could have been placed better, then having to do a patch job on the holes and such. Thusly damaging the integrity of the unit.

 

[jgaz]

Take a look at this thread posted here.

eatSleepWoof gets a 6x12

Here we go again. Yet another trailer that we'll be using for our glamorous camping (err... overlanding) trips. This is a 2017, Mirage 6x12, single axle cargo trailer. It is basically a box on wheels, but will soon be a very comfortable box on wheels. I picked this up a week ago. It tracked...

forum.expeditionportal.com

IMO the gentleman did an excellent job of planning and execution of this build. You may be able to get some ideas from his trailer

I will caution you however that the guy that built the trailer has serious skills and is a perfectionist to boot.
I’ve followed some of his other projects that are very well done.

This is not to say you can‘t obtain the same sort of results, we all started somewhere. Just know that it will take time, tools, and repetition as you learn to build your project.

 

[simple]

All the info is archived here in various threads. There is no specific guide thread. Your going to have to commit to days of reading. What you're doing is roughly the same as all the DIY van, trailer, camper builds. You can also look at builds on the Sprintersource forum to get ideas.

The advise to not overthink it and get out and use it is good.

Don't be afraid of hacking and whacking on that box. There isn't very much that can't be undone or deleted if you decide to go a different direction with an idea.

 

[OverlandNA]

Learn CAD - cardboard aided design for your layout.

 

[MrNobody]

Take a look at this thread posted here.

eatSleepWoof gets a 6x12

Here we go again. Yet another trailer that we'll be using for our glamorous camping (err... overlanding) trips. This is a 2017, Mirage 6x12, single axle cargo trailer. It is basically a box on wheels, but will soon be a very comfortable box on wheels. I picked this up a week ago. It tracked...

forum.expeditionportal.com

IMO the gentleman did an excellent job of planning and execution of this build. You may be able to get some ideas from his trailer

I will caution you however that the guy that built the trailer has serious skills and is a perfectionist to boot.
I’ve followed some of his other projects that are very well done.

This is not to say you can‘t obtain the same sort of results, we all started somewhere. Just know that it will take time, tools, and repetition as you learn to build your project.

Awesome thank you!

That's very much the information I am looking for.

 

[MrNobody]

All the info is archived here in various threads. There is no specific guide thread. Your going to have to commit to days of reading. What you're doing is roughly the same as all the DIY van, trailer, camper builds. You can also look at builds on the Sprintersource forum to get ideas.

The advise to not overthink it and get out and use it is good.

Don't be afraid of hacking and whacking on that box. There isn't very much that can't be undone or deleted if you decide to go a different direction with an idea.

I will definitely check out that forum, thank you!

I am realizing now that this box is pretty forgiving if I don't like the way I did something and that is liberating. Certainly was worried about making a mess and wasting all the money on the s-250 itself.

 

[MrNobody]

Learn CAD - cardboard aided design for your layout.

😂 noted.

 

[NatersXJ6]

I think that the answers to many of your core questions depend on where you are going to stay.

The first thing I personally would do with the rig in the pictures is fill the gaps in the sides with under-bed tool boxes.

I would put a diesel heater in one box and plumb it into the main space through the back, if I thought heat might be needed.

The other side would get batteries charged from roof solar.

I’m fine with setting up a tent to sleep in, but would want storage and sheltered space, so an awning one one side with kitchen gear in the under-bed tool box would be good. I would design slots into the main box frame mount to slide in one or two tables.

Rooftop tents are fun, but that is really high, so maybe a ground tent? I would probably put a fold-down canvas cot high on an interior wall for simple trips or camping alone.

Maybe some windows? Not being able to see out isn’t really fun.

I would not put a kitchen inside, but might pack a simple canister stove for severe weather events.

Not knowing the box construction and strength, I might start with an interior frame of strut or shelving members to be able to hang and adjust stuff if needed.

LED light strips will be your friend for sure. I still think the LED strip along the back glass of my Jeep is the single best-value mod I’ve done. When needed, it is awesome, and I use it at least weekly… for probably less than $20.

 

[MrNobody]

The boxes are a top priority for sure. Not certain what I want to make them out of yet but maybe if I can find old ammo boxes.

A solar and battery setup on one side, I was thinking a water tank on the other side. As far as diesel heaters go, I am still considering a small titanium hot tent wood stove for heat that is mounted on the inside.

Wood heat because fuel is everywhere and doesn't need to be carried, and the ambiance of firelight is sublime and I love it. But I do appreciate the practicality of a diesel heater.

I intend it to be a 4 season unit so camping outside defeats the purpose of it, especially if I am road-tripping out east and using parking lots and highway pullouts to overnight in.

Definitely putting windows into the two window slots on the passenger side (not in the picture) and maybe a large single on the driver if I have room.

I am certainly going to have a pull out kitchen in the boxes on the exterior sides, but a small sink/hotplate/fridge kitchen setup inside will be necessary for -20 winter mornings for boiling coffee and making some food. I think based on some of the cook setups I have seen, I can make it very compact.

Dweller-Ti Wood Stove | Titanium Outdoor Fireplace | POMOLY & GREEN STOVE New Arrival

Dweller-Ti Wood Stove | Titanium Outdoor Fireplace | POMOLY & GREEN STOVE New Arrival

www.pomoly.com

Lumberjack | Titanium Wood Stove | Portable Tent Stove | POMOLY New Arrival

Lumberjack | Titanium Wood Stove | Portable Tent Stove | POMOLY New Arrival

www.pomoly.com

just imagine how cozy that would be!

In all honesty all this is just dreaming until I find a way to get it on and off the truck relatively easily.

My three options are: a steel frame with a hoist so I can lift it and place it on the deck. Welding brackets for jacks that are wide enough for me to back between and under. Or a ramp and winch to pull it onto the deck from my bumper.

Frame and hoist would be my preferred method but expensive.

I like the jacks idea, but my flat deck is exactly 84" wide and the box is 79 and 5/16" so the brackets need to be pretty damn wide off the side of the box to give me clearance to back under, and the winching just seems sketchy.

 

[NatersXJ6]

Better than brackets for jacks might be a sub-frame with pockets that jacks could be placed into. The jacks could then be removable and stored in slots in the sub-frame.

Wood heat might make sense depending on where you are and where you plan to go. However, it is relatively dirty, consumes a lot of air, and burns extremely hot. You will be surprised at how much heat is generated by even a small fire, and how hard it is to keep a small fire burning slow enough to last most of a night.

I would look into the marine world for some of the smallest, safest wood stoves you can find, but bring your $$$.

The diesel heater advantage is that is draws outside air for combustion, exhausts outside, and blows in fresh air too.

In any case, it looks like a fun project. Keep us updated!

 

[MrNobody]

It might even be possible to have both options of heating built into the camper so situation depending I could do one or the other.

When you mentioned air consumption, obviously having a small open window or air intake is necessary but is that a concern people have when using wood heat in campers and trailers?

I have considered the sub frame idea but the jack pockets still need to protrude at least 6" out from the side of the S-250 to give me enough clearance to back underneath them without the risk of taking a jack out with my deck. I also don't think having my rig extend that far out would be road legal and would also dramatically limit the more narrow roads I would be able to travel down.

I am in South-Eastern British Columbia, North of the Idaho panhandle and 80% of action this baby will see is logging roads and large quad trails in dense hemlock and spruce forests between 2000 and 6000 ft. of elevation.

In progress news however, I have removed all interior fixtures and fitments, drilled out all the rivets (around 100), filled any and all holes through and in the body from, rivet holes, exhaust vents, compressor couplings etc. with spray-foam to keep the wall interiors dry and covered all foam filled rivet holes with jb weld.

Tomorrow I will sand all the jb weld flush, and then scrub the whole interior with automotive grade grease soap.

Then she will be ready for an interior paint job before I start building out the inside. I will attach some pictures once she is all scrubbed down.

 

[NatersXJ6]

All the “Jack pocket” needs to be is a standard trailer hitch receiver with enough clearance to reach under and place the pin…. All of the “stick out” part can be built onto the Jack, which can be stowed when not in use. Thus the subframe would or could be the same width as your truck bed.

I’m guessing that wood burners in a tent are not really an air concern, because even awesome wall tents breathe quite a bit, and they are big in comparison to your box… They also have no insulation to speak of, so the wood stove will be huge compared to your needs.

I personally would not burn wood without an outside air source. I believe there are wood stoves that have dedicated intakes as well, but it has been at least 25 years since I put in a wood stove anywhere, so who knows what is out there. Also don’t forget a CO alarm / low Oxygen alarm.

Dual fuels certainly isn’t a bad idea, redundancy seems nice but requires more maintenance. I don’t use my China diesel heater enough to have a feel for it’s reliability.

Are you also heating water tanks?

 

[MrNobody]

You think the jacks with that much extension on them would be safe? If that's a possibility then that is absolutely the way I want to go.

Regarding the stoves I was reading on Polmoly's website that they are often used in RV's and trailers so there is some consideration for that type of usage. Perhaps there is the option of getting an air intake retrofitted.

As far as heating water tanks go, I wasn't really planning on it, I'm used to just cold ass water when I am out and about but these stoves do have inline chimney water tanks to have a small amount of hot water available.

I was considering a small solar heater for a shower tank on the top perhaps but that is late stage luxury and not much of a concern.