Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[atahoekid]

Mel , must be all the Beer !!!

And there's nothing wrong with that!!!

[atahoekid]

I've been playing with materials on the side and still trying to find the perfect blend of conventional and unconventional that works and balances ease, weight, cost, and time.

Yup, it seems like a gain in one area normally creates a sacrifice in another. I guess it's a matter of finding the right balance. To each his/her own. For you it's a bit tougher since you're attempting to sell these to a buyer who may or may not appreciate the fine balancing act. Keep sharing those ideas. It's always interesting to see what you're tinkering with.

[swampjeep]

I started a build journal for the truck model.

Thanks

[linuxmanxxx]

I'm putting this here and the build thread as an added nugget for anyone who would like to know how to easily install the little guy doors frank bear sells. Its taken several installs to get this to an easy quick painless framing and alignment. Get 1/16th aluminum flat stock in 4 ft length. I use 3/4" to match my walls and cut it into 12" pieces. The doors have 3 1/2" radius corners and you frame it 1/4" bigger than the door frame 22 1/4" x 32 1/4". Drill 2 holes on each end of the strip and countersink them and now I make lifer easy for you. Mark 6 3/4" in from corners and that is where you bend and align the aluminum to outline your radius. I cut foam and insert in the corners and cover with luan, aluminum, formica, or whatever I'm using and use trim bit and router the door opening around the frame and metal radius forms.

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[GPW]

That’s a great idea !!!

[GPW]

Officially , it’s been over one year now the cabin has been sitting outside in the weather ... I can find No problems what so ever... No leaks , no rot , no holes , the paint still looks good ... Well into hurricane season and this one remains ready to go , if needed ...
After all we’ve read and thought about , the Foam and canvas is still the easiest , lightest, and most thrifty way to go .... Using paint as the adhesive to attach the canvas does seem very Good and you don’t have to buy any T2 ... Thriftier ... Your “Basic Foamie’ “

The only thing I think I would change next time is use some foam that wasn’t all beat up ( it was Free eh ? ) , and I would make it WIDER/Bigger...

[eaglesdare]

a few years ago, i bought a basket and hitch to put on my car. going tent camping (at the time) i could use the extra space. well we never did get that basket on my car, and then the foamie was built. the need for the basket was gone (at least attached to my car). so i asked hubby last night to attach that basket to the tongue of the foamie. another one of those "honey-do's. i woke up this morning and my honey did just that! he attached it about 5am this morning. he did have to shorten it a bit, so basically its a small square baket. but it should work well for carrying the a/c, or something that needs to be kept outside and not inside the shell for traveling.

i know this post is worthless without pics. but i will get one soon. i am going to get it ready for next week ends trip. 3rd one for this season.

[pete42]

what a guy like most we do as told....................
ac unit or beer cooler either should work on your new installed by hubby carrier.

pete

[eaglesdare]

i will post a pic when i get it put in, but i just finished covering a 1/2 wall for my hatch area. it will probably be glued in tomorrow. the bunk bed will be gone and storage will be in.

[GPW]

A Work in progress !!!

[eaglesdare]

A Work in progress !!!

oh yes, a work in progress for sure. now if hubby will help me finish off the wall to fully enclose it, i will then have a real kitchen in the back. the wall will divide my bunk bed so i will have storage in the hatch area and some storage inside the shell. i really want that part, when i pack to leave, every thing is nicely stuck up there, but by the time i get to the site, everything is all over the bed.

that basket upfront is now holding the easy-up.

i will never get rid of this foamie! even when the new one is finished (if ever)

oh one last thing, i ran out of the quilter blocks. darn it. so i am going to have to keep an eye out for those.

so hopefully tomorrow i will get that wall glued in and get a pic of it and the basket.

[GPW]

COOL !!! You know how we love the pictures !!!

[SteveW]

For anyone who doubted the effectiveness of Gorilla Glue, know that not only does it bond wood and foam extremely well, it also bonds both wood and foam extremely well to driveways.

Found out when I was gluing my door frames to my walls today. Luckily a hack saw blade works wonders at cutting through the GG.

[linuxmanxxx]

Speaking of gg, lowes now carries it in big 18 ounce bottles for 20 bucks.

[atahoekid]

I know what you mean!!! The GG will tend to stick to EVERYTHING! I was playing around with aluminum to foam and I used a piece of board with weights on top to get even pressure while clamping. The GG stuck to the foam, the aluminum and the board. It took quite a bit of pulling to pull them apart. Good Stuff!! I never did get the foam and aluminum apart. I guess i could have if I picked at corners, but I don't think that's a real world scenario. My only issue with bonding aluminum to a side wall of foam is that you only have a few minutes of open working time. Not sure I can work fast enough.