EarthRoamer XV-JP "Northwest Edition"

fog cutter

Adventurer
The mounting of the piano hinge is annoying...

it does seem odd after all the good woodwork the builder would choose this way to hinge the hatch. Henry taught me to wrap the hinge in naugahyde to keep out water and mount to the edges of the hatch/ opening so it virtually, visually, disappears.
 

PaulJensen

Custom Builder
Paul, would you recommend epoxy resin, or will polyester do the job?
These panels are laminated with polyester resin... Five gallons of the stuff came back from Red Cannon with the Jeep... It stinks, it goes off fast, it's not as strong, but for this application, it's fine... I prefer Resin Research Epoxy from FiberglassSupply.com for most projects, it's worth the extra money because it is stronger, low VOC, has predictable cure times and did I mention, it's stronger... With polyester resin, after it cures I can get underneath the fiberglass and peel it off without too much trouble... It will tear like a sheet... With epoxy, no way, can't do it, forget about it...
 

PaulJensen

Custom Builder
18 - Roof Work Continued...

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(above) After the panels had cured, they were flipped over and sanded with 120 grit, then given two coats of natural Watco oil...

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(above) Everything was looking great... I needed the worktable, so the panels were moved outside to the shade... At the end of the day when I went to bring them in I was horrified to find they had warped beyond repair... Grrrr... I had to work out of town all last week and I held onto a sliver of hope they would flatten out...

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(above) I have been helping with the exteriors at homegrowntrailers.com... This is trailer #2... The end panels are 1/8" bending py, stained and attached to the wood frame with adhesives and copper ring shank nails... Over that it all gets fiberglassed and at least two more coats of epoxy...

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(above) Fun, creative work... I also built the wood windows with screens and the entry Dutch Door...

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(above) Back home, the ceiling gets insulated with 1/2" foil faced polyurethane foam...

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(above) Polyurethane adhesive...

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(above) The wiring for the solar panel is embedded in the foam...

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(above) The fan wiring is taped to the plywood...

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(above) Glued, pressed hard and aluminum foil tape over all the seams and edges...

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(above) Instead of the unsalvageable redwood, the ceiling will be prefinished birch plywood... Brighter, neutral, ready to use and cheap at only $30 each...
I will figure out a way to give it some character before this is over... The ply panel is ready to drop into place...

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(above) Clamping strategy...
 

PaulJensen

Custom Builder
19 - Roof On...

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(above) Windows about to be installed...

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(above) Redwood window stop ...Rough glue up...

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(above) Windows installed... The window stop was routered with the cut out jig... The glass was set with stuff from an expert... The 1/4" ply is glue to foam which is glued to the shell... The window cut out was routered with a flush bit in a trim router...

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(above) Waiting for this day...

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(above) ...and it's up...!!...

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(above) Just a bit shorter than my Sprinter...

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(above) Front view... Gonna get a bright light up there...
 

PaulJensen

Custom Builder
20 - Roof Stuff and Water Tank...

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(above) With the roof on, some of the bolt-on components are loosely placed onto the rear cabin... Light bar up front, solar panel behind that and the ventilation fan near the top...

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(above) The curb-side window was chalked-out on the cabin... At first I wanted a window that was 52" wide, but downsized it it to 42"... Happy with that, the window was ordered from Peninsula Glass in Vancouver, WA --> http://www.rvwindows.com/products/sprinter-van-conversion-windows/ ... It will be basically a modified Sprinter window with a lower slider... Takes about three weeks to get built and delivered...

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(above) The new upper water tank finally gets mounted to the existing lower water tank... Three layers of fiberglass will make it solid...

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(above) Still need to get more glass and epoxy on the inside, but it's getting close...
 

PaulJensen

Custom Builder
Thought I'd throw this out there: thin flexible solar panel that would install right on the roof, nothing protruding and much lighter than glass/aluminum.
https://www.amazon.com/GreeSonic-SunPower-Photovoltaic-Thermostable-connectors/dp/B01ET1LR6Q/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1467659031&sr=8-4-fkmr1&keywords=solar+cynergy+flexible

Don't know anything more about them, but might be worth a look.

Good tip... However, the Jeep came with two conventional rigid panels... Free makes sense in this application...

The trailer company I am helping out uses six of those thin solar panels tied into really nice and light lithium-ion batteries in their trailers.. The batteries are impressive with their light weight...
 

PaulJensen

Custom Builder
21 - Water System

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(above) Since the last time, the roof got glued on...

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(above) Polyurethane push rood tube stuff...

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(above) The plan is to have aluminum track along the seam, after epoxy, glass, bondo, etc...

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(above) Welcome to the water system... It starts with the 20 plus gallon tank...

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(above) Down on the floor an electric water heater, a strong water pump and an accumulator tank...

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(above) It was the least worst option...

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(above) Next, the propane locker was replaced and the outdoor water system components were placed... Original E.R parts... Woooooooo....

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(above) An easy outdoor kitchen or shower...

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(above) Cassette toilet door...
 

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