Isuzu NPR HD Truck Camper Build

[jhrodd]

I have my FE140 insured with progressive for $275/ year as a commercial truck.

[VicHanson]

John - Are you trying to sell the whole truck or just the flatbed? I'm planning on taking mine to a truck dealer tomorrow and see if they will give me anything for the bed.

jhrodd - $275 a year, wow that is cheap!! Is that just liability? Is the camper insured? My main concern was having the comprehensive coverage for the solar panels and electronics/batteries.

Peter - Shoreline Lumber went out of business about a month ago, according to my cousin here.

[john101477]

trying to sell the truck. equipment prices have dropped so much though it is hard to part with it for the going rate now

[VicHanson]

Well I was trying to sell the box today, went to the International truck dealer and he offered me $500 for it, they would take it off and remove the lettering (all the lettering is just stick on). He said it is 'worth' $1500 off the truck and the lettering removed. I bought some "Goof Off" and am going to try to get the letters off.

Went to the Isuzu dealer and he said they would sell it on consignment for me, he figured I could get $1500 for it as is, and they would try to sell it for $2000 and get the $500 for commission. But they didn't want to buy it outright. They want $388 to remove it from the truck, which is figured at 6 hours of labor, which seems high. Maybe I can work out a deal to do most of the work, and they just cut the lift gate from the frame and lift it off. I also asked about an auxiliary fuel tank, they want $1065 just for the tank and brackets, not including any hoses or pump, plus $355 for labor. Looks like I will be going a different route for that!

It is $190.50 for a new wheel, the truck doesn't have a spare. I also got some prices for filters: Air - $43 for Japan Isuzu, $29 for China Isuzu; Oil - $24.50; Fuel - $13.24. I haven't looked any other place, are they available for less at NAPA or other auto parts stores?

Will probably try to sell the box on Craigslist and see what happens for a week or so.

I found some nice looking stuff for the siding of the bike garage today at Lowes, 4x8 sheets of textured FRP, waterproof, .09" thick for $32.50. They also had what looked like the same thing, but it was called NRP, which was only $24 a sheet. Of course there wasn't anyone there that new what the difference is. According to this website http://www.cranecomposites.com/PDFs/6909_corp_tech.pdf the NRP is not fiberglass reinforced, where FRP is, and FRP if supposed to be vastly superior. Has anyone used either of these?

I was thinking of putting 5mm Luan plywood on the outside of the camper and then the FRP on the outside of that.

I plan on taking out the pink fiberglass batting insulation and putting in R-Matte Plus 3 sheathing. In 3/4" thickness ($14 for a 4x8 sheet) it has a R-5 rating instead of the blue Styrofoam brand ($12) which has R-4 rating. The R-Matte also has a water resistant membrane on both the inside and the outside, which is a sandwich of aluminum and plastic.

Ahh, I can see the signs pointing to a large over budget factor already!

Vic

[gait]

warm air sometimes helps with the lettering

[kerry]

I got my Fuso spare wheels off Ebay. Probably could also get one at a truck junkyard. You could probably get a wheel and tire from Busbees for that price:
http://www.busbeetruckparts.com/ You'll want to bookmark their site since they are specialists in Isuzu and Fuso used parts. They should have a fuel tank also.
I think the dealer who is offering to consign the box is the best bet myself. Most people who want box trucks are commercial operations and have no interest in installing a box themselves. But buying a good used box from the dealer where they purchased their truck seems like something a businessman might do. $388 to remove does not seem like a bad price to me.
If I'm thinking of the same stuff, I have used the FRP but always indoors. It's used a lot in restaurant bathrooms. Don't know how it would hold up to UV light. It's held up well in my applications--bathrooms and kitchen splash panels.

[1speed]

If you need specialized wood products, try these guys, right up the road from us. http://www.alvahardwoods.com/

I would like to check out your rig sometime.

[VicHanson]

gait - I guessed that last night, it was getting increasingly difficult last evening after the sun went down. This morning I put it in the sun and in just a few minutes they came off much easier. I got one side done this morning, hope to finish it this afternoon. Then I will use the Goof Off to clean off the sticky residue, it works good for that. I think with a bit of cleaning and maybe waxing, the letter outlines won't show.

Kerry - Thanks for the link to Busbee, I will check it out. I was also thinking the consignment deal might be the best way to go. I put it on Craigslist for $1500 yesterday afternoon and had about 5 calls right away, all wanting to buy the truck for $1500. I went back and edited my ad to stress that the truck isn't included! When I told the last guy it was just the box, he said "Oh, I guess I should have read the ad". Duh!
Trying to remember if the FRP info said anything about UV exposure, will have to check.

Jim - That's great that there is another Expo member here, would be great to meet you! Someone else mentioned Alva Hardwoods, might have to check it out as well.

Vic

[1speed]

What size is the cargo box? Did you sell it yet? Is there any damage to the box?

[VicHanson]

Jim, I was told it was a 14' box, but the actual outside measurement is 14 1/2' by 8' wide. The box is in very good shape but the lift gate has some rust on it (but works perfect). I got most of the lettering off today. There are photos on the Craigslist ad here: http://fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee/cto/1636353685.html