F150 Flatbed Overlander Build

escadventure

Adventurer
Finally, a bit of progress is going with our project…

The plan is to build a reliable overland vehicle of a brand that has worldwide factory support, and with budget discipline. Decisions like this are also a degree of compromise. For the past few years we have used our FJ Cruiser with RRT and loved it, but finally consented to the reality it is just too small and the RRT is a pain when the weather is bad. Having prioritized realities of size, weight, storage, comfort, ease of repair, reliability and cost- we chose a 2000 F150 with 60k miles.

What it looked like when we bought it in FLA.
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My job has us living in Germany, so we sent it to a friend's shop in GA for some mods (to avoid hefty shipping costs of big parts), before having it shipped to us. So, after a UTE bed, Weatherguard boxes and wheels/tires…
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Now in progress is the custom bumpers. The rear was relocated and has shackle mounts that will be part of the mount for the custom caamper cabin being built here in Germany. The front is getting new mounts and will have a reese hitch too.
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The camper is from a small German company called Fernweh Mobil. The build quality is flawless and the design is a result of years of R&D from personal use by the owner. In fact the goal is to have our camper (Serial # 26) done by May because the owner plans on driving his Hilux and Fernweh camper to Mongolia. So far here is how it's coming along.
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More to come- hopefully soon...
 
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NorthernWoodsman

Adventurer/tinkerer
Awesome! Great to see another F150 getting built up. Love the camper too. Good luck with the build.

*edit- just looked at their website. interiors look really good on these. But, what are those yellow bags with the zippers for?
 
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escadventure

Adventurer
Northwoodsman, those yellow bags are simply extra storage. They are an option available with the camper which we chose not to get. There is just so much we like about the Fernweh camper design, we feel is worth spending the extra money for it. The scissor rear door, the front hinge roof, total fiberglass build including furniture. They are also installing a single 150 watt solar panel so the wiring can be integrated into the build install of the roof.

Hey Raul I've been watching your build thread progress too. Very nice...
 

escadventure

Adventurer
PROGRESS ON THE CAMPER

The fiberglass shell is complete.

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As you can probably tell from the pics- the roof is front hinged and in the rear is where the scissor door will be.
 

edlaffoon

Adventure Every Day
This is VERY cool. I love that camper, anxious to see how it works and looks.

What will your weight be with the camper?
 

escadventure

Adventurer
Goodwaves- I bought the UTE bed from the US distributor whose info I got off the internet. A guy named Randy. Very friendly and helpful guy.

http://www.uteltd.com/pgs/10-contact.html

The shop in GA who installed it is owned by a friend of mine with an impressive, state of the art shop called Wallis' Paint and Body.

Edlaffon- not sure about the weight but it shouldn't be too bad. The flatbed should reduceit a bit from the factory bed. And the camper should weigh in around 1000lbs. Then add perhaps 600lbs of camping gear. I plan on tweaking the suspension. (please no suspension arguments on this thread…)
 
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escadventure

Adventurer
OK, phase 1 of my overlander build is complete. That is, the stateside work is complete and it's on it's way to me in Germany. Here is how it looks now-

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Amazingly the front isn't sagging with that bumper and the truck is sitting level.

When I get the truck, build phase 2 will begin- electrical and suspension mods.
 
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Rovertrader

Supporting Sponsor
Looks great!! I had a UTE on my Power Wagon a few years ago, and really loved it!! Can't wait to see the camper mounted- great platform/build- thanks for detailing it all.
Cheers
 

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