A big offroad(ish) benroy (B.O.B.)

[aseawood]

I awoke this morning to a BOB update. The canopies look awesome!

Where do you store the coffee table while driving? Does it fit in the toolbox with the solar panel or do you just put it in the back of the car while traveling? Must be so convenient to have a matching BOB coffee table at the campsite.


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[azgreg]

Love that galley shot.

[SCwood]

Thanks, guys!

Where do you store the coffee table while driving? Does it fit in the toolbox with the solar panel or do you just put it in the back of the car while traveling? Must be so convenient to have a matching BOB coffee table at the campsite.
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Ha! I thought it was pretty obvious. BOB has a receiver and BOB jr. has wheels, so you just throw in a hitch, tie BOB jr. to it with some twine, and then tow that little guy along for the ride! Well... that, or BOB jr. just sits on my back porch.

[ratrod71]

Great job! A work of camping art.

[Andrew Herrick]

Super inspirational build. I just binge-read the whole thing. Would love to know how many hours (rough estimate) it took? My favorite work of art has to be the tongue box. Very well done.

[Dirtclod]

Thanks for the update and bringing BOB back to the top of the page again. I re read your post and have gotten inspiration again for an AC unit mounted in the teardrop. Gravel guards, the cabinetry, the switch mounts, LED lighting, ... lots of good ideas to borrow.

How has your AC setup worked out for you in the Texas heat?

[SCwood]

Thanks! As for number of hours, I didn't keep track, but guessing by the number of weekends and nights I worked on it I'd say somewhere around 350. Probably double that if you include the hours of people who helped.

I haven't actually had a chance to use the A/C yet! We've been camping probably a half dozen times now but every time we go the temperature drops and it's time to break out the blankets. I'll report back once I get a chance to use it though.

I went and got BOB weighed. He's a big boy at 2500 lbs. (fully loaded). I'm sure I could've cut down on weight if I tried, but our 4runner tows it just fine.

Small update- BOB went to visit some cows:


Built an exterior cabinet for a shower out of some 16 gauge steel. I didn't bother to make it waterproof because the shower continues to slowly leak water even after you drain it, so this way that water can escape.


The nuts are used to mount the shower and the steel bars keep it from rocking around in the cabinet:




I also needed a propane tank mount but the ones I found for sale seemed ridiculously expensive for what they are. So I bent up some strap steel and made my own:


I also made a tab to hold down the bottom of the tank and keep it from bouncing around:


Tank and cabinet mounted. This side of BOB is getting a little busy, but I wanted the hose outlet close to the shower and I have plans for the other side of BOB still:




And a closeup of the tank mounting:


Still have a few more things to finish!

[KCStudly]

Nice job on both fabricating and installation.

So how much did that steel cabinet add to the weight tally?

It sure would have been nice to make it from aluminum, both from a weight and corrosion resistance perspective. Just saying.

[SCwood]

Nice job on both fabricating and installation.

So how much did that steel cabinet add to the weight tally?

It sure would have been nice to make it from aluminum, both from a weight and corrosion resistance perspective. Just saying.

Thanks! I'd like to put the cabinet down for about 1,000 lbs. and say that's why BOB's so overweight, but it's probably more like 10 for the cabinet and 10 for the shower itself.

I agree using aluminum probably would've been better, but I've never welded aluminum and didn't want to use rivets, so steel it was!


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[S. Heisley]

Wow! Nice!

[RandomAbstract]

Thanks for all the details. Great build.

[SCwood]

Well, looks like I'm another victim of Photobucket. If I get some time I'll go through and put the images back up. So annoying.

We'll be going 100+ degree camping soon so I pulled BOB out to make sure the a/c works, and it did! I ran it for a few hours in 95+ heat and everything seemed fine. The inside got cold the exhaust fans seemed to work (shame there's not a picture of them...). I'm not sure the fans are even needed with a setup like mine. At one point I turned them off and the a/c exhaust fan keep them moving almost as fast as when they were powered. I bet the heat would work its way out naturally.

I also finished the last of the welding- I made some water jug holders and bolted them to the fender. Some nylon straps that the wife sewed up should keep the jugs from bouncing out.





I also added a bungee cord in the galley to keep spices, etc. in their place. The wooden divider works to keep things back there, but they still tend to fall over. Hopefully this keeps things upright.



And finally, a towel rack! My mom embroidered some towels so they needed a home.

[Dirtclod]

We'll be going 100+ degree camping soon so I pulled BOB out to make sure the a/c works, and it did! I ran it for a few hours in 95+ heat and everything seemed fine. The inside got cold the exhaust fans seemed to work (shame there's not a picture of them...). I'm not sure the fans are even needed with a setup like mine. At one point I turned them off and the a/c exhaust fan keep them moving almost as fast as when they were powered. I bet the heat would work its way out naturally.

Thanks for the follow up on the AC. I am feeling a bit better on my untested setup now. ;

[KCStudly]

Love the towels! Go mom!

[SCwood]

Small BOB update!

BOB’s been out and about but it turns out I’m terrible at taking pictures while camping. This is all I have:



BOB also got a small update recently. I found we liked leaving the galley leds on at night but not really the porch lights cause they’re so bright, so I expanded the leds to BOB’s undercarriage:







Also- we ran the A/C for 3 days straight in 100 degree heat and didn’t have any issues. I’d say the side hatch venting is a success. And pictures are back up!