Truck Camper Build QnA | 5 FAQs About My Custom Overlander Build
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- čas přidán 30. 06. 2024
- You've been asking some good questions about my custom truck camper build, so here is a QnA video to answer the 5 most common FAQs about my DIY overland vehicle. I cover dimensions, weight, cost, and why I didn't just buy a camper.
0:00 Intro
0:30 What are the Camper Dimensions?
1:15 How much does it weigh?
4:10 How much did it cost?
4:35 How long did it take?
5:00 Why did I build a Camper?
6:00 End
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I've said it before on another video, but man do I like this build. I think it turned out fantastic. I'm kind of disappointed that you're done because you won't be doing any more build videos.
Thanks.
I've still got some projects planned, but now that the thing is useable I will be getting it out camping a bit more and tinkering less.
This is incredible engineering, craftsmanship, and resourcefulness…thanks for sharing! So many unanswered questions though. What I would love to know more than anything in the Q&A is where did you learn how to do all this?? I mean everything from the blueprinting software to welding to the fiberglass work to the electrical to just understanding the physics of how this would all be possible on the body of the truck. This is not something one learns by watching a dozen CZcams videos. Did you grow up in a home with a super industrious and skilled parent who immersed you in this DYI world? Are you an engineer by education and/or profession? What kind of career did you have before you got into over-landing? And are those specialized tools and equipment all yours? I know you had to buy a ton of materials, but seems you were always equipped with the right tool for whatever you were working with. 😊
I have been getting similar questioning, so I think I will make a video that takes a deep dive into this, but I'll give you a basic answer here.
My dad is a DIY guy when it comes to his yard and a little in the house, so I grew up with the idea that I could learn and labor at something to make it happen without paying someone else to do it.
I am not an engineer in any way. I only formal education in this is highschool level math.
I am a boat captain by trade.
I really do watch youtube videos to try to figure out how to do these things and then learn as I go.
@@TheTravelingTogetherJournal That’s awesome Matt, and good for your dad for doing that (and you for learning it). I love my dad, but he was on the opposite end of the handiness spectrum, try as he did. 😂
Yeah, a video of your background in this type of work would be really cool.
This has to be your nerdiest video, all those numbers! Nevertheless you presented the facts, and only the facts ina very entertaining manner. OK, I guess I’m ready to take on watching the full build video. Great Job!
Nice job Matt! your attention to detail and quality work turned into and impressive build. can’t wait to watch your new adventures.
Thorough video! Thanks!
Thanks, Matt,😎👍
Outstanding job! I do look forward to you sharing the trails and trials of your future adventures. Thanks for bringing us along.
Nice job, Matt. Better than anything on the market.
That is a great build Matt
Awesome job Matt! Such a great DIY build inspiration for people that have an actual budget and cant just invest 50 to 100 thou into a traveling rig. Mad respect for what you've done!
Thanks. Yeah, everyone is working with different resources.
Even if i had $100,000 there's no way i could bring myself to spend it all on a vehicle knowing I could put together something pretty good for under $20,000 and then go travel for 2.5 years with a pretty generous daily budget. 😁
@TheTravelingTogetherJournal Totally on the same page. And watching you and Amie adventure with the DIY T100 has been one of my favorite travel channels to watch!
thanks@@duncdunc76
Awesome as always Matt! Thank you. I think what I found most interesting was the payload, I know you've worked hard on it and I know I want more payload so I'm going to have to plan and execute my future truck camper build very well
I'm glad it was interesting. It's definitely a challenge to juggle the comfort, weight, and cost of a camper build. Good luck
Thanks for the real numbers and justifications. And you forgot to mention the knowledge you acquired in the building process. Happy travel!
Thanks. There is definitely knowledge and satisfaction to gain in designing and building something. 👍
Has anyone mentioned your video skills? Add those to your resume. I always enjoy the background music, cut aways, multiple camera angles and snappy editing. And man you saved a lot of money AND got the personalized features!
Thanks 😁
you're always so positive 👍
You may want to double check your payload capacity. Vehicle manufacturers include the driver, at 150 lbs in the payload formula. I think you actually have 550 lbs. Not too bad at all.
Cool! I had no idea. Thanks for sharing the knowledge
That chair looks awesome
It is super comfy. I've definitely takin some naps in it. lol It's this one: amzn.to/49Cx7S2
This is very true... while it would be cool to have an EarthRoamer, non of the commercial offerings are really very personalized to your specific lifestyle. As an end user you are working around the limitations and built-ins the designers thought were good ideas, but most likely were checklist items, and not used in real world scenarios and tested by many different people. They seem to be made for the average camper. If I was dropping any kind of money on a new RV or camper, my first thought is always to build it myself. That way I get the materials I want, and the features that I find are best, especially after living the off-grid lifestyle for the last almost 4 years.
It's so much more empowering knowing you can do anything yourself. As with most, it's not my ability to make something, or even the time... it's the money needed up front to get all the materials and accessories ahead of time. Because when doing it yourself, you often need the item in hand to get perfect measurements. Or you don't want to paint yourself into a corner by sipping ahead on the build because you have to wait to save up for the new items that are really the next step in the process. So you are forced to jump around on what can be done at the time.
I love watching all these builds, and I think my next personal project is going to be a foamie of some kind.
Having all that experience, I'm sure you have lots of ideas about what you want and it's probably not what manufacturers have decided is best.
Good luck on your foamy project. I've watched some cool foamy builds that make it look like a fun project to get creative with.
Dude I loved everything about you and your build (I still like you I just need to make a point) EVERYONE ON YT is a liar! Why do we feel the need to try to brag about cost, every DIYers has this Interneter mentality “some contractor wanted $5k to do the job….I diy it and saved $5k!” Hang on, you “rounded up” but what cost do you put on your labor time? Everyone conveniently leaves that our, that and if I paid a pro to do a $5k job you better believe I’m getting a warranty contract and I’m gonna make sure the quality is perfect, that and it will obviously time, so pro does it I pay $5k, his quality should be that of 1st novice to a pro and I won’t have to act like my 4 weeks of labor was easy, I forget to put into reality filming every step and editing these videos on top of the work, like I’m paying the pro $5k for the warranty, time and I’m too busy making money to act like my labor/time is just free! Everyone on YT “the culture” is just hurting each other buy acting like everything is so easy and time is free, labor is free, then your trying to make it sound like the materials were super cheap (not you the YT diy/ woodworking community) I like to point out that’s how carpenters framing houses the SF cost has been so undercut and unrealistic in 2024 crews are doing houses for the same SQ FT cost as my dad was doing then right out of high school in 1979 $10 sf…..it’s f’n stupid! You’re a hell of craftsman when that question came up you should of said blah blah materials were this, my knowledge, my labor and time is this so total cost is $40k! Lemme ask ya this, how much you sell it for right now? Like what’s the number you’ll have to take cause it’s enough money, like it would set you up for the next rig! Exactly your selling this for $10k/ even $20k I’ll bet it will take $30k so forget that “cost me $8k bs”
Great job by the way! You killed it, hopefully you’re in Central America getting pitted…..drinking margaritas….thinking f’that dazzanw guy! F’n Interneter! Hahahaha, no I just wanted to say, mucho respect! Cheers
Thanks. Fair point. and no animosity felt.
I like to think I was being realistic in stating that it took me many hundreds of hours. I'm not trying to downplay that this was a very time consuming build process. If you don't like doing projects, then that is time spent miserably toiling away. If doing a project like this is a chance to be creative, learn new things, and maybe even have fun, then the hours spent working on it aren't all bad.
The other factor is how much time you spend at your day job each week and how much you earn per hour. Someone that works 60 hours a week and makes $100 an hour will probably pay someone else to do the project. Someone that works 30 hours a week and makes $18 an hour might see the DIY route as a great way to spend their free time and build something they wouldn't have been able to afford.
That being said, you are absolutely correct that I would charge $40k to design and build a camper like this for someone else. But that's not doing it as a hobby, it's doing it to make a living and I see that as a different goal
Awesome job mate!
Question: will you do another trip down to Panama in blue beauty?
Thanks
Probably not. If we do, it will be because we are on our way to South America. There are just so many places that we haven't been that we would like to go, we probably won't repeat that trip.
U did it right bra!
Super well done, Mat!
Quick question: what brand chair is the one you were sitting in at the end?
The stargazer. Super good for camp naps: amzn.to/49Cx7S2
Great job Matt!! I stumbled into your camper project looking for urethane foam sandwich panels. I've had that on my mind for years , but you actually did it! You took the helmet and you were the stuntman THANKS!! I'm glad I watched the rest of the series as that answered most of my questions.
I want to make some thicker section panels (~3") faced with a glassed thin plywood skin to deck a small Jon boat. Should be stiff enuf to span about 2' and tough enuf to walk on assuming I leave the spiked heels at home*. I still got a couple questions though:
1) You poured the panels essentially in a vertical mold formed by the ply skins and pour in layers, right? If so, roughly how much did you use in a layer and how long did you wait between pours?
2) How much support on the "mold" walls did you need to keep the larger panels flat? Were the pours small enuf to fill that level and only expand up?
3) I'd like to use polyester resin for my project. Plenty strong and hecka cheaper. Once you decided to use the urethane foam , any reason you used epoxy?
And here's a tip: DONT cut urethane foam with a hot knife or hot wire. Those work great on EPS foam but produce some reeeeally nasty stuff with urethane. I'm guessing you probably already know that since you're still able to camp.
Thanks again for doing the danged thing and with such aplomb! Really fine job!!
*note: I don't actually have any spiked heeled shoes at home
Awsome. Glad you found it useful.
1. Yeah, basically build a skinny box and fill it with layers of foam. I was doing a mix of 6 oz. or less each pour, so 3oz part A and 3 oz part B. I did smaller pours as I got to the top of the panel and didn't need so much to fill it or if it was a narrow section and I wanted to make sure the foam had room to expand.
I waited 15+ minutes between pours.
2.Smaller pours will help prevent the the skins from bowing and so will more frame members between the skins.
I was working with the materials I had on hand. The best system I came up with was clamping rectangular steel tubing on either side of the panels. With the materials I had, I could support 6" vertically, so I would aim to fill 6" of the panel at a time. If the gap between the. internal frame was smaller (like in my smaller doors) then I could get away with spacing the steel supports further apart and pouring 10" vertically at a time.
If I was going to do this a lot, I would build a form to clamp the skins inside of and would expect to get better results faster.
3. No good reason 😅. It's what I had experience with and find it easy to mix and work with. I used polyester long ago and remember having issues with it kicking off too quick or too slow with variations in my mixing and/or temperature. But that could have just been that I knew even less then than I do now.
Hope that rambling made sense and good luck on your project.
Afterthought, if you had any concern about the strength /rigidity you could use 6Lb pour foam.
@@TheTravelingTogetherJournal Thanks for the fast reply and that all made perfect sense!
I think the panel thickness should give me plenty of rigidity.
I’m just a little concerned with impact/puncture resistance of the thin ply sheathing. Another layer or two of glass and backing plates under the high stress areas (cleats, seat mounting plate) should do it.
I’ll send you a link when I gitterdun and I’ll be certain to cite you as a my reference! Thanks again
@@fishesfromtupperware Sounds like you've got a solid plan. I was a bit concerned with impact resistance as well. Having the relatively rigid plywood under the glass seems to make a big difference compared to glass over foam. Also, if you are doing an Awlgrip style deck paint, that would help with impact and abrasion resistance.
good luck, happy tinkering
How does the T100 handle the weight in the mountains, everyday driving etc? Have you done any engine, brake upgrades etc?
Good questions.
I haven't done any upgrades to the engine or breaks. I compression tested the engine recently and it is definitely tired, but still within spec. I also serviced the breaks before I started driving it with the camper on.
I have taken it up and down some steep, windy mountain roads and am happy with how it drives. It does lean a bit more in curves but I think that will be improved when I tinker with the rear suspension.
When I took it out to the desert (higher speed limits) it cruised at 70+mph no problem.
I do think the manual transmission is a key element to this. I can hold lower gear going up the mountains and engine break on the way down.
Are you willing to build campers for other people? Thanks!
I'd be willing, but remember it took me "many 100s of hours" when you're considering the cost 😁
@@TheTravelingTogetherJournal I've converted a Promaster myself. So, I do understand it's labor intensive. I'll be ready for a Tundra build in about a year. Let's keep in touch. Thanks.
@@ozmanfidaar6311 Sounds good
You can comment on any video to get ahold of me or send me an email: travelingtogether814@gmail.com
When you're ready, we can discuss your ideas and what you are looking for in a custom camper that you can't get from the standard manufacturers. Looking forward to it 👍
@@TheTravelingTogetherJournal Thanks for the contact info. Will definitely shoot you an email as soon as I've got solid ideas and a good time frame. Thanks.
If I remember correctly, you had initially considered using Owens Corning FOAMULAR 250 XPS Insulation Board but because of covid related issues you were unable to. Would using that material have been more economical? It appears it's only about $40 per 4 x 8' 2" thick sheet now. Would you have used the same kind of wooden sheathing on exterior and interior walls to sandwich that material? What material would you use if you were to start the build now? Would coating both sides of the foam sheets provide enough structural integrity?
I did originally plan on using foamular xps as you remember.
I think if I was going to do another build and I was up for experimentation I would build it out of foamboard. I would glass over the foam with no wood except in the floor. I think I would still sandwich the floor in 3/8" ply and do wood inserts for the mounting points. I think this would be enough structural integrity, but I would do thicker glass on the exterior for impact resistance and probably some extra glass in the interior seams as well for strength/rigidity.
As far as cost go... this would be a lot more in foam, a lot less in lumber, a bit more in epoxy, and a bit more in fiberglass... It would probably be about the same cost depending on how much more glass/epoxy I opted for.
Question, from what I've seen on the build video, the cab over is only supported by the floor itself and the walls. Are you experiencing any flexing?
That is correct. I'm sure there is some amount of flex technically. But when I was crawling around up there with or without a mattress I couldn't feel any flex, and when I'm looking at it from the outside and Amie is moving around in the cabover I can't see any flex.
If you got that truck for 2,500, that was a gift
This was nearly 8 years ago. The T100 was flying under the radar even more than now, so didn't have to pay the toyota-tax😉
I knew what I was getting though. Bought it, changed the oil, and drove it to Panama. $2,500 well spent 😁
Shouldn’t you subract the truck bed not add it to the overall weight of the vehicle?
I added it for the purposes of figuring out the weight of the camper based off the weight of the truck since I don't have a way of weighing just the camper.
In real life the weight of the bed is subtracted from the new weight of the truck, so even though my camper weighs 1300 Lb dry, I really only added 1000 Lb to the truck by replacing the stock bed with the camper.
I can't believe how much space you wasted on the surfboard cupboard . You could have had so much more space inside the camper.
😂 That's the beauty of a DIY project. When you build yours you can design it however you want.
Personally I value this storage space and the counter top it provides inside the camper. If you prefer the storage to be accessible from inside, or you want less storage in favor of a sitting area, then go for it!
That don’t weigh any thing, great job on keeping so light.
How long in Meters and what does weigh in Kg?
5.25 meters
2385 kg
Additional question, exept the one for a metric version, is your chair. Need to figure out if its available in a metric non english speaking country.
I'm not 100% sure I understand the question, but here is a link to the chair I used in the video: amzn.to/49Cx7S2
I hope that helps
Tnx it helped.
The ting about a metric version, let me explain a bit more.
Living outside USA and a interesting video like this that contains a lot of data I find myself pausing every time a measurement is provided so I can convert it to a metric value, makes watching these kind of videos quite cumbersome. Now that's not your problem to solve I can handle it.
Thanks again for the link to the chair.
Thanks for the input@@MrEazzyW
I had thought to include metric labels in the video, but apparently I forgot when I was editing. That's an oversight on my part. Thanks for the reminder for future videos
What breed is your dog?
Mexican street dog. She may be a chupacabra mix 😜
@@TheTravelingTogetherJournal ahahahahaaaaa
Where's your travel buddy?
Amie is working. Somebody needs to make some real money if we're ever going to get traveling again lol
@@TheTravelingTogetherJournal I know how that is. I work all the time. I enjoyed your travels through the Americas.
@@jacbox3889 so did we 😁
Great intro Matt . Vintage funk with a modern twist like your camper.🤌
What kind of gas mileage fully loaded?
Are you going to keep old blues vintage patina or rino coat her a new color?
I rock a 2001 Tundra with a 8ft 1982 lance it is huge but I have air bags and a 5.7 v8 im getting like 14 and way less with 4high .
14 isn't bad... as long as you compare it to vehicles that get worse😜
I haven't kept track for long enough to get a good average, but I got 16mpg combined on the first 2 tanks. I'm just happy to be over 15mpg. I feel like that keeps me at having a decent range on the stock 24 gallon fuel tank.
When I traveled with some 80 series landcruisers we were stopping at every gas station in Baja. They got 12mpg on the highway and had smaller tanks 😅