FLD120 Conversion Update: Exterior/Interior

Travis Q · 10-27-2005, 08:33 PM

Hey all.....thought I would finally post some pictures showing the work that we have done in the last few months on our conversion...the exterior skin turned out well for our first time, as did the interior plywood. Our floorplan layout has proven to be a very workable one with no snags as of yet....looks like all the hours I spent pouring over the forums here are paying off!! Thanks to everyone who posts ideas and photos here, I have tried to pay attention!

Travis

Gary Atsma · 10-27-2005, 08:41 PM

Hey Travis-
NICE rig, man! I need to know one thing, though. What is your ceiling height? I know it had to be high enough to blend nicely with the sleeper roof, which is something I would like to do when I get around to doing something. Carry on! Looking GOOD!
Gary

Travis Q · 10-31-2005, 05:56 PM

Gary -
The interior height is 7'10" to the ceiling surface. When I measured everything out and built the box, I had a very slight miscalculation that resulted in the sleeper cab being about 3/4" taller than the box. This was solved by cutting a "wedge" out of each side of the top of the cab, bringing the top even with the box and glassing the cab back together. This was a pretty easy fix to the problem. The overall height of the box when the bags are aired up is about 12'4", which puts the total height including roof airs at about 13'2". The stacks are 13'4".

Gary Atsma · 10-31-2005, 06:05 PM

Yeah, I figured you had some real ceiling height to match with that TAAAALL sleeper ;-). You are doing a super job on that rig! I will probably end up using a truck with a mid-roof sleeper, as I really don't need such a high ceiling as yours. I might go a little higher than what I had in mind, however. So many choices! Continue having fun with your rig!
Gary

WalliK · 10-31-2005, 06:18 PM

I'm sure you had mentioned it in earlier posts, just cant fint right now.

How long is the box? How much did u stretch the frame? Looks like you have a rather long rear overhang.

Nice connection from box to sleeper. I like these combos, gives you much more light and airy feeling up front.

Walter

Travis Q · 10-31-2005, 06:19 PM

Gary -
I thought about the midroof design as well, but after spending a few days in a way too short (I'm 6'6") and way too cramped Monaco moterhome, I decided to build the tallest box I possibly could, and provide comfortable sleeping arrangements for as many as possible. Understand, though, that this would not be the best deal for someone who stayed in RV sites, as I can imagine that low hanging trees would get real old real quick. This thing is for going to and from the races with a stacker trailer in tow, and believe me, the tall inside height makes it feel a lot roomier inside. The downside is that the roof air controls and vent fan cranks can only be reached by me (everyone else can use a stool). Should have wired in a wall thermostat, but that'll be for the next one I do

Gary Atsma · 10-31-2005, 11:55 PM

Thanks Travis-
I can easily understand the height requirement for your rig; I wouldn't require nearly so much, as I am SOOO much shorter at 6'1" ;-). I figure that about a 7'5 or 6" ceiling would probably suit me OK. I like the idea of using a sleeper cab which gives the same sense of room that an extended cab pickup has. Someday......
Gary

Travis Q · 11-01-2005, 03:25 PM

Walter -
The frame is stretched 5 feet in the middle. A local truck shop did the stretch for the previous owner (a good friend of mine). The box is 28'0", and the rear overhang is 6'6" from the tires. When the airbags are at ride height, the bottom of the box is 14" off the ground, which is a little taller than most conversions that I have been around.

Travis

WalliK · 11-02-2005, 10:07 AM

Thanks Travis

28 is about the length im looking for. I would like to stay under 38 total. Of course your truck is more than 10 feet...

Walter

Travis Q · 11-02-2005, 02:19 PM

Walter -
Truck cab is 10'8" from the front of the box to the front edge of the front bumper.

Travis

Gary Atsma · 11-02-2005, 08:54 PM

....which means that he didn't save much of the sleeper, being that this model Frightliner, known as FLD120, means that the bumper to back of cab(without sleeper) is 120", or 10'.
Gary

WalliK · 11-02-2005, 09:07 PM

Was not sure if this was a FLD120 or Century.

So whith this extra 8" he can now advertise "biggest cab in its class"? lol

Walter

Gary Atsma · 11-03-2005, 06:30 PM

[QUOTE]
So with this extra 8" he can now advertise "biggest cab in its class"? lol
/QUOTE]
Ohhhhh yeahhhhhh!

KAYE RIVERCITY · 11-03-2005, 10:55 PM

.......wish ther was a way for me to enlarge the pix so I could look at the details....anyone out there that could send me some enlargements?......geofkaye

Travis Q · 11-04-2005, 06:29 AM

Geof -
I took these with a low res camera (uploads easier)...if there's something in particular you wanna see, I'll break out my wife's camera and shoot you a few more, just let me know and give me an email to send them to...

Travis

KAYE RIVERCITY · 11-04-2005, 11:26 PM

Travis Q....I just wanted to look at your kitchen layout....that is of interest to me as, I don't cook and I eat out all the time-unless it's raining very hard-so I know nothing of kitchen layouts and the woman at the local Kitchen store knows even less when I asked her for a kitchen layout for a motorhome.....she freaked and never came up with it....So now I'm looking at kitchen layouts: freezer-refrig-sink-food prep area-micro-HWH-using Home Depot- hh greg-Lowes -Walmart throw away appliances-not any RV products at all and cabinets/countertops of Formica .....geofkaye

KAYE RIVERCITY · 11-04-2005, 11:28 PM

....BTW..... KayeRivercity@cinci.rr.com geofkaye or 1-888-513-5293

EdMike · 11-10-2005, 12:09 PM

Great looking truck, whats your plans for the storage compartment (belly boxes as i'd call them!) doors. What about the walls?

Travis Q · 11-11-2005, 08:59 PM

Goef - I haven't forgotten about you. I'm doing a layout for you so you can see where everything is gonna be, and what appliances I'm using (I'll included mfg. and part numbers)....EdMike, I plan on building the comartment doors out of 3/4" oak plywood with 20 ga. stainless on the outside and aluminum on the inside, with a door edge extrusion I found at a place called Thomas, who makes all kinds of trailer parts. The doors will have gas lift cylinders to hold them up, also from Thomas. Continuous stainless hinge on the top edge. The walls are wallboard in the bathroom, and padded grey vinyl everywhere else (the bathroom is finished now, I'll post pix in a day or two) I saw the padded vinyl idea used in a friend's Wildside toter, and it was easy to clean, attractive, and helped insulate from both noise and temperature standpoints.

Travis

Warpath · 11-12-2005, 06:00 AM

Damn Travis that thing looks sweet.

I love how the exterior lines all flow. You match the top condo with the main roof and matched the bottom bins with the tank steps. Just looks like it was meant to be. I see so many conversions that just do not look right (in my eye) when the truck is not married to the box like this. Love the stacks!

This thing looks better than alot of the rigs coming out of the conversion companies.

Are you going to paint the whole thing when you are done?

Great job!

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