Pop Up Camper to Hard Side Camper Build

[DanO2020]

This is my first build post on the forum for a little project I'm working on. I'm always receptive to any suggestions and ideas on how to improve. So, always feel free to share your thoughts.

A quick background on this odd project.

We have some very good friends that have a 30' Jayco trailer and they have always wanted us to get a camper and camp with them. A couple years we finally decided to get a little pop up to test the waters. We found a very small Coleman Columbia that was built in 1984 for $600. The sellers had bought it in 1988 and used it pretty carefully. It lived inside of a garage when it wasn't being used. They even had the original Coleman brochure. Nothing had been updated or altered and it looked inside like it was still 1984. Lots of orange and green colors.

It had a little ding here and there but other than that the frame was in great shape. The canvas was, well, original and after 35+ years it was dry rotted, torn in a few spots, and patched. We took it camping a couple times with our two teenage kids and I quickly realized it was just too small and not overly comfortable. So we started looking for a used hybrid that was in reasonably good shape and cheap. Ha, yeah that was a challenge. We did find a 20 year old Jayco Kiwi for $1,500. Bought it with just a cursory inspection and got it home. Well, as you'd expect it had issues. Water issues. A rotten floor, rotten ceiling sections, bad wall area, etc. My friend and I spent last winter rebuilding it. We replaced the canvas bunks, the floor, the walls, etc. It's now very usable and we camped several times last summer with it.

Right next to it though was the little teeny tiny Coleman Columbia pop up. For some reason I just couldn't let it go. And then one night while I couldn't sleep, pretty normal for me, the thought hit me that since the canvas was shot and the roof had water damaged areas, and the crank up system was shot, that maybe I could tear all of that stuff off and make a very very tiny, hard sided, bug out camper for just one or two people. Then the sketches began. And I'd be up at night thinking about how I wanted to build it. It would be great for just quick local overnight trips either solo or with just one other person. Hmmm.

I did a lot of searching online and there are very few that have done a project like this. Probably because it's not a great idea. But that has never stopped me before from building silly things. (Just look at the 6' mini boat I built a few years ago)

So, it was on. I pulled the Coleman into my folk's large garage (it's actually an airplane hangar) and started in.

I usually share projects like this on my YouTube channel. I'm currently on Video #3. Hopefully in the next few weeks I can finish framing in the door and the roof. As far as the interior goes, there will be a small framed out area for a porta potty, a tiny kitchen/sink area, and two benches that fold out into a bed for one or two people. The frame is in very good shape due to it being stored inside for three decades.

I'm open to thoughts and suggestions!

Dan


Video #1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xlEoMAb4eY

Video #2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wF8PxSOmN9Q

Video #3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Agx2HJEDzk

[S. Heisley]

Does that Coleman have brakes? If it doesn't, depending on what state you live in, you may need to watch your trailer weight. Many states have a 1500 pound limit when the trailer doesn't have brakes. 2x4 weight will add up fast especially since you said you tend to overbuild. If you need to, you can cut future 2x4's into 2x2's to help. It's looking good already!

PS. Most of us use 1x2's with 1/8" or 1/4" plywood for the sides and roof. Cuts the weight a lot and they still hold up.

[DanO2020]

Hey thanks for the comments. All input is appreciated.

In Maryland anything under 3,000 pounds doesn't require trailer brakes so we should be way below that. I've estimated that all of the old canvas, the roof, and the side supports that I pulled out weighed around 250 pounds. At the moment it feels featherly light to move around. The studs so far were very dry and pretty light. There shouldn't be too much more framing and, yes, for the roof I'll most likely use lighter weight 2x2s. Still thinking about how I want to cover the sides. Lots of options. Fun project!

Dan

[les45]

I've gone through two evolutions of the pop-up conversion. My latest is a standy retro which is very similar to what you are doing only on a slightly bigger scale.
Check out my latest journal at this link: viewtopic.php?f=50&t=70991
Maybe you can get some ideas that you can adapt to your project.
Feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions or need additional info.
Good luck,
Larry S.

[DanO2020]

Hi Larry,
Awesome. Thanks for the reply and link to your build. I'll check it out this evening.

Dan

[DanO2020]

Great job Larry.

A very well thought out conversion. I may snag a few ideas of yours for my build although mine will not be quite as large a project. What do you estimate the weight as completed will be?

For my roof I'm planning (at the moment) to epoxy and paint. I recently built a small mini boat with marine grade ply covered in fiberglass and epoxy. This seems like it would be a good option for the roof? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW-zfNxbrDc (Incidentally, I think it would adorable to have the mini boat sitting on the front of the camper tongue when towing to campgrounds)

The Coleman door was fortunately one solid piece so the framing and installation should be much easier but I'm still working on how I want to do that.

For my exterior I had an idea the other day to use tongue and groove pine boards that I saw while walking through Lowes. They were relatively light and would be easy to mount. They lock in tightly to each other and with some sealant and paint might be an acceptable exterior finish for the walls. On one side they are grooved to look like two pieces and on the other side they are wide 8" without the groove. Then on the inside I could insulate and finish as desired. The nice thing about this build is that the camper is just shy of 8' long on each side, so... an 8' long board is plenty long; no butt joints. It's a very tiny conversion.

Still thinking and sketching. My goals are to make it strong, simple, and low on cost. We'll see how well I can hit each of those goals.

[les45]

What do you estimate the weight as completed will be?
.

The original pop-up weighed about 1,400 lbs. Obviously I haven't weighed my new project yet but I'm estimating it will come in at about the same weight or maybe a little over. I removed a 200 lb roof, 100 lb AC unit and the canvas, hoisting system, pullout beds, and all the inside cabinets were probably another 2-300 lbs. I've probably put about the same amount of weight back into it.