rebuilding the dodge

[Desert Proven]

Looking for some input here.....................

For years, my wife and I have talked about driving around the world, or at least to South America and maybe places beyond. The journey would most likely start in a couple of years and we'd be taking our two kids along with us. We've decided to take steps towards making the dream a reality.

We currently have a lower mileage (78,000) 2002 Dodge Ram (see signature and picture). The plan would be to put a flat bed on the truck and build a custom, pop up camper. We have an idea what we're getting into with pop ups as we've owned and Outfitter and fourwheel camper in the past, but like the lower profile.

I feel like we're taking a pretty realistic approach to this. We're fluent in Spanish. Have lived abroad and have travelled internationally pretty extensively. Wife is an emergency room nurse. We've taken this truck Baja countless times and aren't underestimating road conditions we might encounter as many of our favorite places there are at the end of some of the worst roads.

What are some considerations for:

Truck/motor parts availability for the Americas and beyond (think Russia/central asia as well)
Flatbed types and mounting
camper materials (nidacore looks cool - think supercamper meets popup)

I'd appreciate any input as we're in the early design stages and no real decisions have been made other than the fact that we already own the truck and think it might be a good starting point.

thanks

 

[Marc1]

Hi DP
I was in a similiar situation and had been toying with the idea of what my wants/needs were in my next camper. Having previously owned both an Alaskan and an ATC I was sold on the concept of low profile campers. What I thought I wanted in my next camper wasn't really out there. I had been looking at the XPCamper site and liked alot of what I saw but wasn't sure If XP was willing to make changes. What I was to find out was that I could have a shell built to basically any configuration based on what was offered, which in itself is quite extensive. With out wanting to re-invent the wheel and having limited time, I had a meeting with the owner of XPCamper's and discussed my reqirements. Working out my build was a breeze, and I am looking forward to my builds progress. Check them out.


http://www.xpcamper.com/

 

[Desert Proven]

Marc

I'm a big fan of the XP Camper. I met Marc when he was building the first one. My wife also has it on the top of the list as a possible candidate for our rig. I, too, am leaning towards a shell model to buildout ourselves based on the family of four factor.

thanks