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Old 03-03-2014, 09:18 PM   #361
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Quote:
Originally Posted by LandLubber
very clean shower install. like the video a lot.
Thank you. It’s getting to the point where I really enjoy working on it because I can see the end of the tunnel.

----

A note on the insulation in my walls and ceiling: It’s been fairly warm here for the past week or so (up into the 80s on some days ... sorry to my skoolie friends in the north), but the interior of the bus never gets above “cool.” In the “garage” section, where there is no insulation, it gets uncomfortably hot by lunchtime. I’m very happy with the thermal characteristics of my build so far.

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Old 03-18-2014, 11:49 PM   #362
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Couple of little projects today:

I used my new Kreg Jig Jr (birthday gift from my girlfriend) to install a header at the top of the shower door opening. This side will be covered with the door jam, but the inside is exposed and free of holes. These pocket screws make a very strong connection.

After the header was installed, the shower enclosure became very rigid, so I used the reciprocating saw to cut off the flanges of the acrylic walls and sanded them flush with the opening. Trim and a door will cover all these exposed edges.


You can see that my measurements were really close on the initial design—the top edge of the header is parallel to the roof hatch opening to within 1/16th of an inch. Once the trim/door is installed, those two surfaces should line up perfectly (fingers crossed).


Also decided to fabricate a small bracket to hold the outside air temperature sending unit for a digital clock/weather display I have on the inside. I wanted the sending unit to be out of the direct sunlight and protected from the elements, but still somewhere it would give me somewhat accurate readings. I can also see from the bedroom window the readout on the sending unit itself. The orange rubber band is temporary until the Scotch heavy-duty fastener (like velcro) adhesive is fully cured. Nothing like a little scrap aluminum for a small project.


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Old 03-19-2014, 10:58 PM   #363
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

My bus doesn’t have air brakes, so one of these days I’ll need to buy an air compressor to keep in the bus for use in emergencies. I found a small, inexpensive model on eBay for $32 delivered. The max pressure is 125psi, so in theory I could inflate my tires for maximum vehicle weight rating, but I’m not sure something like this will have the duty cycle to inflate a 22.5” tire all the way to 120psi without burning up. Obviously, I won’t need to fill more than one completely flat tire at a time, but I may need to occasionally top them all up to whatever pressure I’m running at the time.

Anyone have any experience with small air compressors? Suggestions?
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Old 03-20-2014, 11:15 AM   #364
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

The bunker door.


The distance between the new walls and the shower wall needed to be parallel so I could open the shower door and have it line up with the vestibule wall exactly. I’ll need to be able to latch it open to take a shower, and I’ll want to be able to lock the dogs into the office/bedroom if I have a guest in the front areas. It will also make my sleeping area more energy efficient at night as I’ll only need to heat or cool the area aft of that door instead of the whole living area. Turns out these two wall edges are parallel to within 1/16th of an inch or less.


In that photo you can also see the ceiling light that will provide light to the shower. It should be bright enough for a shower, if not for reading a novel.
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Old 03-21-2014, 01:50 AM   #365
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

I like the handles you cut to pull up to get into the cubby hole. I am curious would they eventually break resulting in a possible 1/2 gainer 1 1/2 back flip when they do?
I'd reinforce them; alum. sheet on the other side would do it and no chance of a fall in the future.
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Old 03-21-2014, 06:58 AM   #366
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Quote:
Originally Posted by PDBreske
The bunker door.


The distance between the new walls and the shower wall needed to be parallel so I could open the shower door and have it line up with the vestibule wall exactly. I’ll need to be able to latch it open to take a shower, and I’ll want to be able to lock the dogs into the office/bedroom if I have a guest in the front areas. It will also make my sleeping area more energy efficient at night as I’ll only need to heat or cool the area aft of that door instead of the whole living area. Turns out these two wall edges are parallel to within 1/16th of an inch or less.


In that photo you can also see the ceiling light that will provide light to the shower. It should be bright enough for a shower, if not for reading a novel.
Where did you get that door, and what is it from? I need something similar for my bus..
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Old 03-21-2014, 09:38 AM   #367
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bullwhacker007
I like the handles you cut to pull up to get into the cubby hole. I am curious would they eventually break resulting in a possible 1/2 gainer 1 1/2 back flip when they do?
I'd reinforce them; alum. sheet on the other side would do it and no chance of a fall in the future.
They’re actually a lot thicker and stronger than they look in this recent photo. I’ve tested their strength and I’m satisfied they will never break (½” plywood is very strong stuff), but I’m not really going to use them for hauling my entire weight into the bedroom—the handholds are primarily for pulling myself out of the bedroom so I can step out onto a small ladder that will be under the opening.
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Old 03-21-2014, 09:50 AM   #368
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Quote:
Originally Posted by leadsled01
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDBreske
The bunker door.
Where did you get that door, and what is it from? I need something similar for my bus..
It came with the vehicle. This used to be a bookmobile and it has another just like it near the rear of the bus. I will eventually be removing the other one so I can cut away the walls aft of the living space to make room for parking my Jeep.

I’d be happy to give you the other door, but I can’t say when it will be available. Could be six months—could be a year. Unfortunately, the previous owner removed all the hardware from one of the doors to make room for his kitchen cabinetry and I had to consolidate all of it into this door for my own use. The other door has only an outside handle, but no latch or locks. I do, however, have a closing mechanism for this door that I’ve decided to not use, so I can throw in that as well. (I’d recommend against it—when a 50-pound door gets to swinging, it can be a real hard knock to the shins if you happen to be leaning into the opening.)
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Old 03-21-2014, 09:53 AM   #369
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Quote:
Originally Posted by PDBreske
Quote:
Originally Posted by leadsled01
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDBreske
The bunker door.
Where did you get that door, and what is it from? I need something similar for my bus..
It came with the vehicle. This used to be a bookmobile and it has another just like it near the rear of the bus. I will eventually be removing the other one so I can cut away the walls aft of the living space to make room for parking my Jeep.

I’d be happy to give you the other door, but I can’t say when it will be available. Could be six months—could be a year. Unfortunately, the previous owner removed all the hardware from one of the doors to make room for his kitchen cabinetry and I had to consolidate all of it into this door for my own use. The other door has only an outside handle, but no latch or locks. I do, however, have a closing mechanism for this door that I’ve decided to not use, so I can throw in that as well. (I’d recommend against it—when a 50-pound door gets to swinging, it can be a real hard knock to the shins if you happen to be leaning into the opening.)
I appreciate the offer but your in Fl I'm in Ohio so shipping would be a killer. Nice build!!!
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Old 03-21-2014, 09:55 AM   #370
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Quote:
Originally Posted by leadsled01
I appreciate the offer but your in Fl I'm in Ohio so shipping would be a killer. Nice build!!!
I agree, that might be a costly shipment. And thanks!
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Old 03-24-2014, 06:31 PM   #371
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Today I cut and installed the ¾” plywood shower door blank—I’ll cut out the door pattern after some more measurements—and the ¼” plywood kitchen wall. The kitchen wall was a lot easier than I thought it would be. The cutouts for the plumbing seemed to be just a nightmare of measurements and cuts, but once I got started, it went smoothly and quickly. Came out pretty nice, too. The tall opening will surround the drain pipe after the sink is installed. (Ignore the piece of channel metal at the bottom of the shower door—that’s the rain gutter from over the entrance door that I haven’t yet reinstalled.)


I installed the kitchen wall all the way to the outside corner over the ¾” plywood on the door-side. I’ll eventually add corner protection of some kind—maybe angle aluminum.
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Old 04-06-2014, 09:13 PM   #372
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

The shower door is complete. You’d think designing, building, and installing a single door would be an easy task, but this little project ran into four days of work. But I’m very happy with the results.

First, I measured the location for the piano hinge (.120” aluminum, 6-ft long by 5-inches wide with 2-inch knuckles, from McMaster-Carr; about $40) and mortised the inlay with a router. Right after I started this, the router spun a bearing, or threw a rod, or whatever it is that routers do that causes them to shower blue sparks around the inside of the motor housing. A quick trip to Lowes for a new router and larger straight bit and I was back to the races.

Soon-to-be dead Craftsman router and work accomplished with dull, ¼” straight bit:


Router jig made from scrap plywood and C-clamps:


After I had the mortise on the door completed, I measured the shower side wall and routed a mortise for the other leaf of the hinge. Apparently, I made a slight mistake in the measurements, because the mortise was about an eighth-of-an-inch too long. Since this side isn’t easily seen, I’m not too worried about it. I think I can fill the gap with some caulk ... or just leave it alone. ;)


The front-side mortise looks fantastic:


The door itself is attached to the hinge with these stainless steel low-profile binding posts, also known as Chicago screws. The barrel side has no features on the head, so that is what goes through the hinge and perfectly locates the door to the hinge metal; no loose play at all here so the hinge mortise should always remain very tight.


Once I had all the screw holes pre-drilled and ready to go, I again removed the plywood and cut the (very carefully measured) lines for the door opening. First the top and bottom edge, then—after mounting and unmounting the door again—the right edge at a length that would allow the striker side of the door to line up with the entry wall on the other side of the space. Every gap is parallel to within about 1/16th of an inch.



Door closed, looking forward:


The entry wall is on the right. The top edges of these two pieces were never meant to be the same height:


Perfect gaps:


Binding posts from the inside:


I used a palm sander with 120-grit paper to brighten the aluminum:


The shower stall is so tight that the door has a built-in air damped closure; I can slam it as hard as I want and it will stop with a puff of air just before the door contacts the jamb.

I still need to fabricate a latch that will work to hold the door shut on the shower stall as well as open ninety degrees to create a comfy thermal zone for the bedroom and computer desk.
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Old 04-07-2014, 11:00 AM   #373
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Good looking craftsmanship!
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Old 04-07-2014, 01:18 PM   #374
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Unless you have figured out a watertight seal with your shower door, water will leak out onto your floor, in the same way that a shower curtain hanging on the outside of a tub will. If you have room you may want to hang a shower curtain instead so that you can drape it on the inside of your shower threshold.
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Old 04-07-2014, 01:49 PM   #375
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

The shower door is really only a place to hang shelves and a garbage can. The door itself will be opened when I'm in the shower and I'll have a shower curtain hanging inside the door. The curtain will simply push out of the way when I close the hard door. The curtain will also allow light to enter the shower stall when I'm using it.

If you check some earlier posts, you can see the layout renders I created with SketchUp that show how it will function when complete.
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Old 04-07-2014, 02:01 PM   #376
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

Nice, I was suspecting that.

You have attention to detail. I had no doubt you had it figured out.

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Old 04-09-2014, 11:03 PM   #377
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

I made a latch for the shower door, again from scrap metal leftover from other parts of the vehicle that I have piled in the “garage” area for now.

I cut down two pieces of angle aluminum and angled the protruding edges to keep from catching my sleeve or skin as I walk by. There is a coupling nut inside the door panel, surrounded with a small piece of PEX that acts as a bearing for the pivot. The stainless cap screws sandwich the levers against the coupling nut and are tight enough to make both levers raise or lower as one. It’s the same on the inside and outside, so it can be used to keep the shower door shut or hold it open against the entrance opposite the shower. A stainless steel pin through the door holds both sides up when the door is latched. I still need to fine tune the fit with nylon washers, but it works already and was simple to make.



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Old 04-10-2014, 02:27 PM   #378
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

It's the little things that are the most fun!
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Old 04-10-2014, 02:29 PM   #379
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

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It's the little things that are the most fun!
Agreed.
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Old 04-16-2014, 10:54 PM   #380
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Re: The Camel Conversion Project

A small project and another milestone today.

I fashioned a cover for the front of my water storage area/water pump bay and put a fluted knob on one end to keep it closed, yet easy to open. The other end slides between the platform and the shower kick panel


The knob has a 5/16-18 threaded bolt and I put in a matching brass insert in the platform. The top edge of this panel will get a length of angle aluminum to protect from constant abrasion of shoes and dogs


Then I moved on to more exciting stuff. I used leftover cardboard pieces to make templates for the two walls that mount floor-to-ceiling behind the front seats. This is the same trick I used to make the entry walls and it worked perfectly. Again. My luck is amazing.

Looking from the office towards the front seats. The view in here is getting narrower and I’ll have to start taking pictures with my wide angle lens instead of the iPhone


Behind the driver seat


Detail of the cutouts around the door latch




Looking through the kitchen


Passenger side view through utility area. You can see how well I pay attention to the settings for my Kreg pocket hole tool—the first (incorrectly placed) holes are too far from the edge of the panel and the screws didn’t come close to hitting the stud in the wall. Luckily, cabinetry will hide all flaws.


With these two walls in place, the interior is really filling in. I feel like I have enough room to move around and still be cozy and efficient. There will be an insulated curtain between the two walls to seal off the cab from the rest of the interior. The only sun-exposed windows will be on the entry door, and there will be an insulated curtain across the entry as well. Essentially, I’ll be able to completely black out the interior to keep the heat out in the summer and in for the winter. I remind you that I’ll have quick access to a roof deck for those days when I want to enjoy the views from home.
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