Dirt Bag PA

[Quasicran]

Hello All,

After almost a year gawking at all of the cool vans on this site I finally decided to get a van. First off my plan for this thing is to live out if it for the next two years while I got to physician assistant school. Nothing should inspire patient confidence in their healthcare provider like the fact he lives out of a van! But really, I decided I would rather spend the equivalent money to rent on a van that I can have once I'm out of school. I'll also be doing a fair amount of travel my second year so being able to pick up and go will be awesome.

Now for the part people really want to know. I bought a 1976 chevy G30 short box. It has 60K on it and had a new short block 350 dropped in it about 10K ago. It ended up costing me $3800. As you can see in the pictures below the body needs a bit of work but there are no major flaws with it either.

So the plan from here is to first put in two T slider windows and a pop top. From there I will clean up the interior rust and paint. I'm also considering painting the exterior but we will see if the budget allows that. Next is to fix all the door seals and electrical. From there I'll sound proof, insulate, and build out the interior. Its going to be a big project but I'm excited to get started. This will either go down as one of the best or worst ideas I've ever had.

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[Tyrant 66]

Awesomeness!! Good luck!

 

[NorthernWoodsman]

That is a score! I love these vans and have been searching for a good example near me to buy. Almost went for one that was a former Forest Service van, but he wanted too much for what it was, AND he didn't want to let go of the good wheels/tires he had on the van in the ad.

I love the color of yours and the wheels and tires look good in the photos. What pop top are you going to use (I'm not aware of anyone making one for these vans)?

...subscribed...

 

[bdog1]

What's the interior plan? Plain or.....
AC? Fridge? Inquiring minds want to know.


Sent by wing, prayer & ATT

 

[k9lestat]

like it

 

[jtpaintball70]

No thank you, I don't want any candy, sir... Lol. Good idea and nice base for the project. If I ever manage to finish my BS-EMS and decided to go to PA school I might turn my K10 into something like this

 

[Quasicran]

I've been looking around for an old VW pop top but have had no luck finding one so I'm thinking of building my own. I've built a custom roof box using bending plywood before and think I'll try using that as the actual top. I'm leaning towards making it the same dimensions as a VW top so I can buy a pre-made canvas. Hinges have proven difficult to track down but I've found some marine ones that I think will work. I'm working on a sketchup file and will post it as soon as I finish it.

As for the interior I'm thinking of finishing it out. I'm planning on doing propane heat and stove top. A smaller volume cold water wash sink and a 12V fridge should round out the kitchen. The rest will be storage. I've been flip flopping between doing a back pull out bench seat or leaving a center walkway to the rear doors, but I've decided on the walkway. I feel like it will make the space feel much larger and give me better options for cabinetry. I'm going to go for a clean baltic plywood look on the interior. As I described it to my coworkers its creeper on the outside danish modern / ikea on the inside.

Probably the toughest thing for me right now is what do to with the electrical system. My main demands will be the fridge, heater, lights (going LED), and charging my phone and laptop. I plan on charging my laptop at school or when I'm out as much as possible, so it won't be a huge drain. I'd like to have a system that is completely self sufficient off of the alternator and a solar panel. In the name of keeping the project simpler, I was debating skipping an kind of shore power hook up. I figure at worst I can get a trickle charger and hook it up to the battery bank if I get too low. I've seen a few smaller inverters that hook into a 12V outlet that I could use when I charge the laptop. Folks with a similar set up or a greater knowledge of van electrical what are your thoughts on this plan?

 

[schmittie120]

I wanted to do the same think when I went to PA school in Philadelphia. The major problem was toilet faciliteis and shower during didatic portion of school and would have been an even larger problem when isn rotations. Godd luck!

 

[Dawgboy]

Awesome little van! I am a fan of shorties... Still though,if I was planning on living in it for 2 full years, I personally would want a bigger vehicle with an inside shower.

I will be following your progress!

 

[Bbasso]

Small van for a 2 year planned living...
But glad you like it.
As for an inverter for the laptop, big waste of electricity. Get your self a 12v charger for the laptop. It's more efficient and can be used while driving off the starter battery with no ill effect to the house.

 

[Quasicran]

I've thought about the toilet facility issue and think I can get away with using the school gym during the didactic year. Clinical rotations will be a bit tougher but I figure I can either use a public facility like a Y or pool, join a gym for a month, or if the rotation is that remote get a hanging shower. This is definitely going to be an experiment in minimalist living.

So here are some sketches I made to show what I'm thinking for the home made pop top. First the base will be angle iron and attached to the top of the van with the opening on the roof being flush to inside of the long edges and outside the angle iron on the short ends. I think I'll attach it to the roof with bolts that go through to a plate on the inside of the van. Keeping the seal water tight will be tough, but I think with enough silicon and a thin closed cell foam layer between the roof and base it should work. The actual pop top will fit on the outside of the angle iron which will create a rim to keep water out of the van. The inside flat part of the angle iron will be used as a lip for the bed platform.

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Here is the pop top sketch up. It has the two side rails which will be solid wood and connected together by the ribs running across. The channel below the ribs is for 1/8 inch bending ply, to make the inner roof. I'll then fill the voids with insulation and add a sheet of bending ply to the outside. All joints will be fiberglassed to make them water tight and stronger. Two marine strap hinges will be used to connect the top to the base.

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The pop mechanism will be a simple channel and drop on both side rails. Once I get final dimensions dialed in I'll have to do the math and see where and how long the channel and pop up bar need to be.

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[bdog1]

Creeper meets Ikea. I like it!

Those pop tops are tuff to find here in FL too. I like your plans to create a one off. Definitely watching!

The plug in 12v to 110v adapters can handle phones and laptops. There like $12 and there's no fan, therefore no drain, unlike many larger inverters.


Sent by wing, prayer & ATT

 

[Quasicran]

I got a chance to start cleaning out the inside of the van today. The first step was to get ride of the bench and the nasty carpet. The previous owner had used rivets to attach the carpet to the floor so I had to grind those out. Next I washed down the floor with 10% simple green solution and a wire brush. Tomorrow I'll mop the floor again and begin to patch all of the holes and treat the rust. I need to get the floor and walls prepped because I have some spectrum sludge headed my way.

Do any of you know if you can layer a spray on truck bed liner over spectrum sludge? I want to coat the steps by the doors and I'm trying to figure out if that layering will work. If not I could alway spectrum the underside there and apply bed liner strait to the stairs. The van is starting to feel bigger already.

 

[Bbasso]

You can't treat rust, you have to eliminate all of it. Or it will come back. I use this for most rust situations, it will clear all and leave bear metal, then prep and paint. http://www.home-barista.com/forums/userpix/8812_rust.jpg

 

[NorthernWoodsman]

You can't treat rust, you have to eliminate all of it. Or it will come back. I use this for most rust situations, it will clear all and leave bear metal, then prep and paint. http://www.home-barista.com/forums/userpix/8812_rust.jpg

bad link...