Home Built camper for Tacoma

[monkeyshowpictures]

I am going to build a camper this spring. The concept is to build out of 2 layers of 1/8" plywood with 3/4" foam between and fiberglass on the outside. The camper will go on my 2010 double cab Tacoma. My inspirations are , http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/80666-Pop-up-A-frame-Camper-La-Roulotte http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/58224-Making-my-Uro-Camper-Kubic-1-0 and the Action Camper.

I want to be able to sleep in it with the pop-up down. Last spring I was in Moab for some heinous wind storms and I want to be sure I can keep the dust out if I need to. I also like simple things so I will try and keep it as simple as possible. I am choosing my materials because I work with them every day so they are very familiar to me.

Things I have not figured out are what size air springs I should use for the roof. I am going to put a rack up there which may have some stuff on it. I have seen pop top Land Rovers with heavy gear on the roof so I know it can be done. I would like to have a pass through window to the slider on my truck but have not been able to find the right windows. I also don't know how I am going to attach it to my truck.

Anyway here is my design.

 

[Overland Hadley]

Sounds like a great project.

What is your estimated finished weight?

As far as the gas struts go, it will depend on the weight on the roof and the angle the struts are mounted, but I would hazard a guess at a pair of 40-60 pounders.

 

[monkeyshowpictures]

Sounds like a great project.

What is your estimated finished weight?

As far as the gas struts go, it will depend on the weight on the roof and the angle the struts are mounted, but I would hazard a guess at a pair of 40-60 pounders.

I am hoping to have the shell weigh under 500lb. I think this is reasonable after looking at the weight of rolling's camper. I have not yet done any actual calculations though. Nathanael, does your 4wheel attach to some metal brackets in the bed of your truck? I saw some pictures in your build thread but could not quite tell what was going on. If so what are those brackets bolted to?

I think the roof will weigh about 30lb and I would like to be able to put about 150 lb of stuff up there.

I am currently starting to redraw my design in my CAD program at work so that I can cut the parts on my CNC router.

Morgan

 

[southpier]

these folks are helpful: http://www.reidsupply.com/products/...rings-shock-absorber-accessories/gas-springs/

 

[pods8]

The concept is to build out of 2 layers of 1/8" plywood with 3/4" foam between and fiberglass on the outside.

Might want to also consider prefab FRP panels rather than 1/8" ply and fiberglass over top. I can vouch for large lamination's being quite time consuming. You'd need to punch of the weight and strength numbers but the ply will soak up a decent amount of resin so I bet you'll be in the same weight ballpark. A decent FRP panel might still be stronger too depending on how much glass you were going to put on the outside. From a labor standpoint just bonding the FRP panels down and then doing limited fiberglass work across panel joints seems alot more appealing. Once that is done move onto your surface prep and paint to make it all look nice and provide UV protection. The manufacturers that make those textured panels that the box stores carry also do smooth surface ones so the box stores may even be able to special order them in for you potentially.

Just something to ponder over, good luck!

 

[Ursa Minor]

I think the roof will weigh about 30lb

30 lb would be on the light side for that square footage going with glass + wood + foam + wood. I usually build a test panel 12" x 12" in the lay up I am testing to get a weight baseline, and then use that against total surface area in the CAD model to see where the total weight may land. It also gives you a physical part to bend and see if it is going to delaminate or bend too much...before you start on the real parts. If you go with really light foam, there will be deflection in the top panel as you put bigger gas struts on it in that area so plan for extra ribs etc.

Overall on the build, the wood can make for a nice interior, if you plan to glass the outside anyway, skip the outer layer of wood skin and go with a heavier glass layer if the resin is compatible with the foam

John

 

[Haf-E]

You might check out these guys here in WA state - They make up custom insulated panels with a variety of materials on the inside/outside. They can do one with fiberglass on the outside and thin wood luan on the inside. They list 4" x 8" x 1" sheets weighing 30 lbs as a typical amount. They can do up to 10 x 12 foot panels.

http://singcore.com/sips.html

I haven't used them - just found them doing some internet searching. I do plan to visit them for a project I need to complete soon.

 

[MGTexas]

I did some work on a custom horse trailer interior last year and the side panels were a fiberglass reinforced structural panel. I looked on the Hart trailers website to find the manufacturer of the raw material. it was highly rigid and about 3/4" thick. so far I have not found it specifically but check this out.

http://nida-core.com/english/nidaprod_lamin_comp_h8pp.php

I could def see some value and possibilities with this product. pretty strong, light, and insulated.

Mike

 

[AeroNautiCal]

I recall that the Super Camper was built out of Nidacore.

http://thesupercamper.blogspot.co.uk/2006/09/super-camper-inspiration-concept-and.html

 

[monkeyshowpictures]

I recall that the Super Camper was built out of Nidacore.

http://thesupercamper.blogspot.co.uk/2006/09/super-camper-inspiration-concept-and.html

The Super Camper is sweet. For me the Nidacore presents a few challenges. First is price. Skinned Nidacore panels, like on the Super Camper, cost around $300 for a 4x8 sheet. Also, joints must be mitred, as the honeycomb core can not be exposed. This presents a big problem for me as I only have a 3 axis cnc router so I can not cut mitres. Using the router will save me a lot of time building my camper and provides extremely accurate cuts. For those interested Nidacore panels are available here http://boatbuildercentral.com/proddetail.php?prod=NIDA_H8PP_finished#.UQncfKWIXGk I have also seen them skinned in marine plywood or veneers which would be nice for interiors.

For me Plywood and foam are convenient materials even though they may not be the best materials. I am going to be working on a pretty tight schedule to get this thing done. My shop will be busy building skis until the first week of April and I have a trip planed for the first week of May. So I will have to bust this thing out.

Morgan

 

[monkeyshowpictures]

You might check out these guys here in WA state - They make up custom insulated panels with a variety of materials on the inside/outside. They can do one with fiberglass on the outside and thin wood luan on the inside. They list 4" x 8" x 1" sheets weighing 30 lbs as a typical amount. They can do up to 10 x 12 foot panels.

http://singcore.com/sips.html


I haven't used them - just found them doing some internet searching. I do plan to visit them for a project I need to complete soon.

These look pretty sweet I'll have to give them a call. Thanks.

 

[pods8]

These look pretty sweet I'll have to give them a call. Thanks.

When I called them they would just laminate down commercial FRP panels over their core like I was discussing above (they'll also to plywood or such too). At the time I wasn't interested in the reduced strength to weight ratio that commercial polyester FRP panels would have given me over the epoxy based lamination I was planning to do. However if starting over I'd run the numbers and see where things would really stack up, my panels are stronger than they structurally need to me to get me to the impact resistance I wanted so perhaps polyester would have been fine. The amount of time to hand lay a few plys of glass is hefty... Laminating down commercially available panels over a core though is a much easier deal, which is what Sing is doing. However sing's core is more time consuming as its a grid of wood (better skin to skin bonding) with a polyurethane foam (which may be a perk depending on how you view it as well).

My chat with him was short because rather than provided construction options and pricing he just kept asking how much I wanted to pay. I told him the raw material costs of the method I was thinking of personally doing and he cut me off before I could acknowledge that there would obviously be labor costs on his end and said we couldn't sell a panel that inexpensively. At that point I felt we weren't a good match for buisness and I didn't pursue further.

I can seriously say that having complete sandwich panels to start with would have meant I'd be using my camper right now rather than still chipping away at it... there is definitely more cost (and likely weight, etc.) involved there but that needs to be balanced against time. Short of premade sandwich panels I think pursuing commercial FRP skins to laminate down yourself may be a good balance between it all. There are quite a few hours to lay just one ply of fiberglass cloth down over the 1/8" ply you were thinking of using when you're talking that much square footage and it sounds like your built time is short...

 

[Overland Hadley]

I am going to be working on a pretty tight schedule to get this thing done. My shop will be busy building skis until the first week of April and I have a trip planed for the first week of May. So I will have to bust this thing out.

These camper projects take a lot of time, more time than most people think it will take. I am worried about your time limits. Will you have multiple people working on this? Think about some of the time saving ideas pods8 has mentioned. Best of luck.

 

[Goober]

I started working on a camper last november. What I've got done so far weighs around 190 lbs.
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/pr...-your-own-camper-trailer-glen-l-rv-plans.html

 

[ober27]

goober,

I just registered over at Tacoma World so I could subscribe to your thread. Your camper is looking great. I've been considering ordering the Glen-L plans myself to use as a general guide for a custom camper. I look forward to watching this progress.
Perhaps you to start a thread over here also, I'm certain you could inspire a few more folks to start similar projects.

Darin