Retro-Kamper (Puffin for Four)

[ssj4jarrod]

That is a really nice looking camper. I love what you've done for the interior.

[aggie79]

Jerry,
Do you have a grey water tank or will you use some sort of portable tank? BTW, your epoxy work looks really nice!
Take care,
Tom

[Donutboy]

Thanks for the compliments.

With regard to the grey water, I have no plans to add an internal tank, but could use an external tank in a pinch. Since I also "need" a water supply and also electricity, I will probably stay in RV locations primarily, which should have a sewer connection also.

I thought about adding a small (5 gallon) tank with hand pump at the sink. So for that small amount I could catch it in one of the blue jugs.

I am also trying to determine what to cover the seats with. I found an Internet source for the foam and will be ordering that soon.

Thanks!

Jerry

[Donutboy]

Making slow but steady progress. Finally got the shower pan built-up with epoxy to my liking. It passes the "golf ball test" now (a golf ball set anywhere on the pan will roll to the middle). The color is funky, but the whole bathroom will be painted white when complete. I also have a few imperfections I will fill in before the paint.

[rebapuck]

An in-house shower sounds so luxurious. looks good.

[S. Heisley]

Looking really, really good!

[Donutboy]

Hi all. Just checking in. Work continues on the bathroom. I've applied the first layer of epoxy, sanded it, and applied the second layer. I plan to do at least three coats. Not much point in posting pictures; not much to see.

Did I mention how much I hate sanding? And I especially hate sanding epoxy.

I hope to paint the bathroom in the next couple of weeks.. THEN I'll have more pictures.

[aggie79]

Slow but steady is the course, Jerry.

Having indoor "facilities" and a shower will be worth the effort.

BTW, the other day I was visiting the forum, and more particularly your build journal, when my wife walked by the computer and commented on how much she too liked your TTT. She even mentioned that she would like to have a camper like yours. I'm not sure that her comments were a full "green light" to start another project - which I've been itching to do - but your build certainly helped me advance my cause.

Take care,
Tom

[Donutboy]

Hi Tom. Hopefully when your wife sees the final project, you'll get the green light!

I have machine sanded the second coat of epoxy, and now I have to hand sand all the corners. I had filleted them all with epoxy, so the sanding consists of wrapping sandpaper around a small, deep well socket (12 mm or so) and just rubbing it back and forth along the fillets. I have also filled in some voids with more epoxy and filler.

I made a small design change. The Coleman thermoelectric refrigerator was not going to work well for this application. First, its a power hog, so we would have to carry the food in a cooler to the campsite, or else run 12V from the tow vehicle back to the camper. It has an inlet and an outlet on top of the cooler, and under the cabinet, after it ran for a while, it was just circulating hot air and not cooling anything. I experimented with some ducting to keep the intake and the outlet apart. This worked, but it blew hot air into the camper--something else I didn't want. I decided to go old school and install a Formco Ice Box. As luck would have it, the framed opening I built is the perfect width for this cooler, and slightly taller, so I can fill that in easily.



The reviews suggest that by itself, it doesn't hold ice all that well, but if you install blue foam around it, it will work very well. It should arrive next week, and it should be a simple matter to get it installed.

I'm hoping to do the third coat of epoxy on Saturday.

[Weirdnerd]

I have read the whole thread and I am sold on the model, This weekend I am getting an 9x7 trailer and start construction, previously I have built a teardrop that has served me well, but now I have dog, and the four of us can't fit in completely without looking like spaguetti... Thanks for your excellent idea!

[Donutboy]

I haven't been on here for a while, but have made some more progress. The icebox arrived, but as luck would have it, the WFCO power converter burned out. Specifically, something went wrong with the 12V converter portion of it. I ordered a new one and replaced it. You know your build is taking too long when you start wearing out parts before you are ready for camping!

To install the icebox, my framed opening where the thermoelectric refrigerator previously sat was the right width, but I needed to fill in some space vertically. I decided to add the space above, not below, to give me some room for electrical stuff. I cut a piece of wood to fill in the gap, coated it with polyurethane, and discovered that it was lighter than the wood around it. This stuff yellows over time! It is a close match, however, and should be an exact match in a few years.

Next, I mounted a 110V AC outlet, 12V receptacle (I still want to call it a cigarette lighter outlet), and a relocated switch for the lights over the sink. I also took time to properly run the wires below the cabinet-they were previously connected in a very temporary fashion! I'll get pics of that next time I yank the icebox. Here's where we're at now.



Today I spent about three hours sanding the epoxy in the bathroom. I hope to get that painted by the weekend.

...

Hey Weirdnerd! Sorry for the late reply...I'll have to look for your build. Maybe I can steal some ideas from you!

[aggie79]

Jerry,
Sorry to hear about the WFCO. I have one and so far - fingers crossed - I haven't had any issues. The new icebox looks nice! I can't wait to see the finished shower room.
Take care,
Tom

[Donutboy]

Hi all.

Finally! The bathroom is painted. I've installed the hardware for the toilet but I want to let the paint cure for a week or two before I put the toilet back in.

Next up is the plumbing. I bought a bunch of plumbing parts from Lowes for the drains on the way home this evening, and I already know some of it is wrong. I hope to have that sorted out by the weekend.

[Weirdnerd]

I hope to get mine as nice as yours! your camper pictures are beautiful!

[KCStudly]

Your camper pictures are beautiful!

Amen brother. One of the best builds here; certainly one of the best interiors. Nice work.