The TARDIS - A Four Wheel Camper Build

[Overland Hadley]

Must resist putting weight way out back. Must resist new Aluminess bumper....

In the end my checkbook will help me resist. And I really do not want to put much weight that far aft of the rear axel so it would need to be lightweight items. And to be honest I could put my Thule box on top to store some lightweight items. But it looks so ''expedition''.....

 

[Ramblinman]

Anyone have a ball park price on the bumper/storage combo?

 

[HMR]

Anyone have a ball park price on the bumper/storage combo?

Prices are HERE. That exact bumper isn't listed but you can get a good idea.

FWIW- We spent close to a year, including multiple visits with FWC, trying to get an Eagle or Fleet to fit within the payload ratings of our 2005 Tacoma. We couldn't make it work and still retain any of the creature comforts we wanted. Overland Hadley is not kidding with his payload obsession and sticking to a shell model. The problem isn't with FWC, it's the weak capacity of the Tacoma. That bumper shown above looks amazing. Unfortunately, that bumper plus the Fleet (and it appears to be pretty loaded with options) is WAY past the GVWR for a Tacoma. It would also be interesting to see the actual numbers for the weight distribution between the front and rear axles.

 

[HMR]

While we're on the topic of GVWR...
One of our "Expo" vehicles just got totaled in an accident. The insurance company was very thorough in their investigation. Had we been loaded past the vehicle's GVWR it would've been a factor in our settlement. I'm not an insurance expert but I'm guessing having a Tacoma loaded that far past the posted limits would be an issue in an insurance claim.

 

[Every Miles A Memory]

I've lusted after that bumper combo for years now!! Although I'm not that worried about the weight issue on a F250

 

[Overland Hadley]

This will be this weekends project. I have the parts so it should be fairly straightforward.

The weekends weather turned out to be not conducive (freezing rain) to working outside. So I did more prep work on the cabinets and trim. Sorry, no interesting photos to show for the work. I might also reconsider the roof lifting struts, not sure exactly how or what, just thinking.

On the plus side I am putting the camper back on the truck for a weekend of camping in the local woods. Looks like it might be a rainy weekend again, but my girlfriend just said ''good thing we now have a camper''. The interior of the camper is still mostly empty shell, so it will be more like tent camping than camper glamping.

 

[Overland Hadley]

Rear Bike Rack

I want a simple way to carry a couple of bikes on the back of the camper. I do not want to haul my bikes across the country on the back, just around the local woods for the weekend. (If I ever want to take the bikes across the country I would want them stored inside the camper, out of the weather. Yeah, I am a snob about keeping my bikes clean. A clean bike is a smooth running bike.)

This is one of the best setups I have seen. Thanks NYCO!

Installed a bike rack on the back wall today. I used a Thule fork mount attached to 1/2" aluminum plates on both inside and out. I know it's overkill, but it wasn't much more expensive for the thicker aluminum. On the bottom I cut a length off of a bike tray that I already had and was able to use the ratchet strap as the tie down. I used existing holes but with some larger screws to mount the tray. It's very solid.

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[DesertBoater]

I realize that it's not conducive to the weight reduction strategy you're going for, nor will it be as easy on your aforementioned checkbook as the fork mounts, however last summer I picked up a Yakima SwingDaddy for my and my girlfriends bikes driving across the country (i'm not as much of a clean-freak). It's fairly heavy (47.8 lbs), but fits perfectly behind my Eagle. Maybe 2-3 inches of clearance between the back of the camper and the front of the bike rack. The whole thing swings out of the way when I need to get into the back, and is totally solid while in drive mode. As a bonus, it also works fairly well as a work stand while on the road.

Cheers,
West

 

[Every Miles A Memory]

I'm sure you're going to do this, because I know you and how much you pay attention to detail, but I'd replace those nuts on the inside with Nylock type to keep them from ever loosening, and cut off the extra threads with a Dremel so you don't catch on those things

 

[davidd]

If you want easy to store yet still a very nice riding bike - even for light duty off-road riding check out a Bike Friday Pocket Llama. Pretty much solves the problem of carrying big 'ol bikes. Particularly when you figure weight and space are so premium in your set up. These are the real deal and you could keep it in the camper or behind the front seats when camped etc. These are truly beautiful handmade bikes. Remind me of the Four Wheel campers in a way...kinda weird if you don't know any better, but truly amazing when you "get" it.

 

[Overland Hadley]

Just a teaser....





Took the camper out for the weekend.

The sunrise a few feet from the camper.

 

[Redline]

Nice tease

 

[Every Miles A Memory]

Yer such a tease!

 

[Ramblinman]

OH, I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on the sleeping arrangements in your new FWC. Have you been using the Dreamtime XL that you mentioned in an earlier post? Did your find that original FWC Mattress to be sufficient?

 

[Overland Hadley]

OH, I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on the sleeping arrangements in your new FWC. Have you been using the Dreamtime XL that you mentioned in an earlier post? Did your find that original FWC Mattress to be sufficient?

I deleted the FWC mattress, I saved little money by deleting the mattress but I did not want to use it and I did not want to deal with storing it.

I have used the Dreamtime for over 100 nights, it is amazingly comfortable and it is just as comfortable in the FWC. I have two, one for solo traveling and a second for traveling with my girl.

The nice thing about the Dreamtime is that at 3'' it gives a little added room for storing sleeping bags on top of the bed. And extra storage space is gold in these little campers. It can also be folded in half so storing it while using the camper is also easy, and this last weekend I used it as a couch cushion.

I would highly recommend the Dreamtime.