Lady Bug Winter Warrior - finally campable!

[danlott]

How about using hood spings. Something like this.



These are on eBay for 30 dollars.

Dan

[starleen2]

One thing I have to say is peer pressure stinks. The moment of insanity has passed and the build resumes. Here is picture of the “bug” with the hatch down

Close up of top wing – still needs some sanding and finish work but you get the idea – the two inch offset of the hinge eliminates the gap that was problematic on other weekend warrior builds


Some more shots of the “wings”
Hatch UP



T nut installation – the sides will be bolted through into the T-nut

Resting block – will have securing clamps when sanded and finished. T-nuts will also be used in the same hole of the hatch as when extended also to hold it securely. The hatch is not quite finished – still need gasketing on the sides to seal the Lady Bug up

Still need to install the door section – haven’t decided on Gary’ Swing down door – or the swing up style – both have their advantages and disadvantages

And now the most important test – the Mrs. Starleen test. Oh yeah baby plenty of room, 5’10” of interior height

I’m able to muscle the hatch up fairly easy – but I still like the idea of an assisted lift just for the cool factor.

[dsmith]

Glad you decided to keep the original intent
The cool factor is totally in play!

[Ivar the Red]

I’m able to muscle the hatch up fairly easy – but I still like the idea of an assisted lift just for the cool factor.

Remote controlled hydraulic actuators!

[Miriam C.]

I’m able to muscle the hatch up fairly easy – but I still like the idea of an assisted lift just for the cool factor.

Remote controlled hydraulic actuators!

And if you figure out how to get them to work in sync please do a tutorial. It is amazing how much you are getting done with a full time job. Looks great!

[jagular7]

To help raise the hatch, look at a torsion bar setup. The neutral location of the hatch can be about half way up. This would keep pressure at both lock down and lock up positions, pulling towards the 'zero' position. Locking down is obviously already accomplished. The locking up will need some type of stiff mechanism.

Or, like my full size Bronco, the rear seat was latched and also spring loaded. There was a rod (maybe 3/8" dia) that was bent with a 'Z' in the middle that laid flat under the seat. When you released the latch, the seat sprung up. The end of the rod was square to fit obviously into a square hole and the 'Z' part was what lifted the seat up. This was sort of like a torsion bar setup.

Or, like those clamshell campers, long gas struts. You may be able to get shorter travel ones but they will have to handle higher weight to function. Then it call comes to the mounting points. They will also have to handle the weight.

[wlivesey]

I'd like to see a picture or two of your gas strut setup. It seems to me that the struts should be plenty strong enough to lift the hatch if they are mounted properly. It's all about leverage, right?

[starleen2]

I'd like to see a picture or two of your gas strut setup. It seems to me that the struts should be plenty strong enough to lift the hatch if they are mounted properly. It's all about leverage, right?

So would I! I actually haven't decided what route I 'm going to take - I still need to finish the interior for a final weight on the hatch that way I can determine what size struts I need - or the length of push for a pneumatic lift system. the pneumatics would only be used to lift until the the hatch is locked into place and bears no weight after that.

[wlivesey]

So would I! I actually haven't decided what route I 'm going to take - I still need to finish the interior for a final weight on the hatch that way I can determine what size struts I need - or the length of push for a pneumatic lift system. the pneumatics would only be used to lift until the the hatch is locked into place and bears no weight after that.

Oh! I read Cliffs comment...

My hatch weighs 35 lbs. But lifting it without gas struts was difficult for me, impossible for my wife. The struts (150 lb struts x 2) won't hold it up, but I can lift it with one hand now!

...and thought that was your post. OOPS!!! Either way, I would think that 300lbs of lifting power would be more than enough for a Winter Warrior hatch.

I'm going with gas struts on mine... I'll prbably have to fab some brackets but that shouldn't be a big deal.

[Cliffmeister2000]

It's all leverage. I mounted mine incorrectly the first time. Eddie of www.azroundup.net took one look and knew what I had done wrone. One end of the gas strut has to be within 6" of the hinge. Mine were 9 inches away. I moved them to about 5.5", and they work great! But, they don't hold the lid up.

In this photo, you can see the struts on the two middle hatch braces. I had to build a vertical support for each of them. The twisting force was great enough to break both 2x4s in one weekend camping trip. The braces are now a 2x4 with a 3/16" steel brace running the length of the 2x4.

[starleen2]

Another quick check of the weight:
Left wheel=290 lbs
Right wheel=295 lbs
tongue= 155 lbs*
total= 740 lbs so far and this DOES include the trailer!

Under a 1000 lbs empty looks plausible
*not too worried about this because it will drop when I get the rear portion finished

[starleen2]

No pictures to post right now - all the work done today involved underneath the trailer - got the trailer lights wireds today and also did some welding on some of the trailer joints to stiffen them a bit

[starleen2]

I hope I haven’t put you folks to sleep yet, but I had a conference to attend to. So here’s what has been done so far. I managed to get the upper rear panel finished and installed. Also completed the trailer lighting wiring – all tidied up and out of the way. The top hatch is fiberglassed for added strength. So far I can still raise it up with one strong arm.
Side view


Here you can see the door cut out and the recessed lights. I also modified the hatch rests to be a little less clunky (Mrs. Starleen’s idea)

Just had to throw in a air mattress for the horizontal view of things – pretty roomy. A 4” Queen size foam mattress is on the way for luxurious camping rest

Started on the door today. This is where I did something a bit different. The outside of the door skin is 3/8 ply instead of the 5 mm stuff. This is to reduce warping of the door. Tip – Make the door in one piece first. It makes for fitting the door and construction easier.

The board is centered on the hinge cut line – so after I finish the door to the opening, I’ll cut it into two sections and should not have any problems with the fit. The panel next to it is the panel for the air conditioner opening. Both the door and the panel received their coatings and prepped for paint


It’s taken a while to get to this point – but I’m doing everything in sequence to avoid going back to do things over or when it’s more difficult. I’m trying to use minimum exterior trim, so that means a lot of sanding and shaping to get the lines right and have a strong – light weight camper. I have decided not to use the offset on the side or any other means than the hatch supports. I found some gasketing material used to seal door frames that will work just fine to seal the edges and makes the perfect seal

[Alan Wood]

Looking great Scott.

[starleen2]

Today I finished installing the door and check the fit. It’s pretty solid. I decided to go with the lower hinge method (sorry Gary). This method insures a one piece door hinged in the middle and makes for what I feel to be a sturdier one piece rear wall.


Now all the pieces are in place, sides have been coated, top and edges fibergalssed ready for paint. However, I still need to put in the roof panels. I’m going to save myself some aggravation and remove the hatch to install them and to apply the polyurethane sealer. Then, the hatch will be permanently installed and sealed Almost there folks