First of all I have watched the build video a dozen times or more by now and am very grateful for your detailed build. From the point of view of an experienced winter camper who is mostly a ground dweller your best bet on condensation is probably to add a fan and a warmer sleeping bag to the mix. Maybe a wabasto style heater over the MR buddy. Its something im strongly considering in the planning phase with mine as its mostly winter here in northern British Columbia.
Glad it’s been helpful! I have gone to a slightly warmer bag and will be adding in a diesel heater hopefully in the next month or so. I don’t like using the MR buddy since it puts out so much moisture. Cheers!
I applaud you for making such a intense effort and to do it while saving a lot of money. I myself built my own off grid 24v solar system to my house. I didn’t know anything about electricity so I made a lot of errors, but I wouldn’t give up until I got it done. I did have to get somebody to connect it to the grid breaker panel, as that was way over my head. In the end the whole electrical panel box had to be replaced because it was built badly and a fire hazard. Would’ve never known if I hadn’t started the project.
Lookup hurricane hinges for a teardrop style camper. It will change the orientation of the hinges potentially causing the door material to need size adjustments
Hey Man thank you for taking the time to make this videos, it has helped me tremendously with my build. I had the same issue with water leak and narrowed it down to the corner pieces, I removed all four corners and fill all the extrusion holes with silicone, problem solved no more rusty water in the frame. As far as condensation I would highly recomend a webasto style heater or Chinese diesel heater. I noticed you have a buddy heater and they seem to generate a crazy amount of condensation. I ended up purchasing a webasto gasoline heater plumbed it straight to the fuel tank and man its such a game changer, just flip the knob and done, nice warm dry air.
No problem! Glad you got it sorted! Yeah I know about the webasto and other heaters. I have a diesel heater on the way. A byproduct of propane burning is water vapor, so I always knew that would be an issue.
That's sweet or is it suite? No, great job and I appreciate all the thought you put in it! I'd like to build one for my FJ so thanks for sharing your brilliance.
Epic man. Thankyou for filming the whole build to give others contemplating this a real insight on whats involved. One question- how much did it weigh?
Hey glad it was helpful, thank you for watching! I unfortunately do not know how much it weighed, but based on the number of people needed to get it on the truck I’d wager 300-400lbs
Have you thought of using a limiting strap w/ a clip for the side/rear door? Set the the strap length at the limit you need for the 85 degree angle. Now it’s time for a bumper build!
You need to move your bulb seals to the space frame. Mount it on the flat part of the tubing and all your problems with dripping go away. Plus it's how the manufacturer says to mount them.
I wonder if you can put the hinges on the outside of the doors and then attach them to the 8020. So at least you won't have the hinges in the way of the seal. You'd still have the issue of water building up on the top of the bulb seal.
felt is good for insulation; its what mongolains use on their ger, and they air it out during the summer, its a good insulating layer and wicks moisture
Great review, you named off the exact issues I'm having and so you know it's worse when you live in the valley🤣 I'm looking into a waterproof continuous hinge that's not crazy expensive.
Let me know what you find! I did find something on McMaster carr that might work as a little gutter for the door so rain doesn’t drip in when it’s open. Gonna order some later this week
Great video. You winter camp a good bit, it seems. Do you use a sleeping bag? How about info on keeping warm. Noticed the buddy heater n video, does the tent section capture the heat from it? Thanks for taking the to do your videos
Yup I use a 20 degree bag with a liner. That keeps me pretty warm. Only time I have used a buddy heater was when it got down into the low teens overnight and I only used it to take the edge off waking up and going to sleep. Heater works good, just creates a lot of moisture. Thanks man!
Well, if you haven't done it already, having your doors slope away from the truck would be a good way to start minimizing the water getting in while you have them open in the rain! Especially over the tail gate! And it probably wouldn't take much....an inch or two slant would change to run off!
Hey man, looks excellent. Where abouts in the PNW are you? I’m in WA, Seattle area. Be interested in checking it out in person if you’re ok with that, I want to build one too lol
Thanks man! I am located down in Oregon. I bet there is a few people around your area that have built one. Check out the Tacoma world thread in the description of my build video !
Could you hinge the doors off from the 8020 with an external hinge? I am wondering if I made the steel frame slightly smaller than the 8020 so it hung over 1/4" if you could just hinge the doors off the 8020 and have the bulb seal and door thickness kind of flush with the edge of the 8020? Also wondering if you could do a simple drip rail around the bottom edge of the 8020 so water would not drip down into the seals. Perfect timing on this vid, I just found yours and Ripcord's builds and am excited to do this style of tent for my Gladiator. Also, shorter struts would angle the doors down on the outside so the rain would run off. Not sure if your rig is tall enough but even if they were just slightly down, the water wouldn't run to the inside and drip. Thanks!
This is kind of the double edge sword of building yourself, there are many different options to try, each with their own challenges. Likely the best solution for the hinges is to find a waterproof continuous hing and mount it on the top side of the frame and sandwich it between the 80/20. No angling of doors down for me as I am 6’3” and need the height lol
Great update. Do you ever regret not having any windows causing some significant blind spots when shoulder checking or backing up? My last truck canopy had windows and the blind spots still bugged me so I was thinking of using clear Lexan for all the side panels, I don't plan on having anything valuable laying in the box so there won't be anything for people to see to want to steal it. thoughts?
No regrets at all. I have a backup camera by my hitch and I recently installed a digital rear view mirror with front and rear cameras and I have all the visibility I need now. I like that people can’t see what’s inside the camper.
Hey, love your videos. How is the space frame holding up? I'm ready to take the plunge and start building my spaceframe but wondering if the .062 thickness is adequate. Have you had any issues? Thanks!
Awesome build! I just finished building mine and have already noticed some of the same issues with leaking. Any updates on how you fixed your leaking issues? What did you use to secure the neoprene rubber you put on the corners of the extrusion to secure it in place?
Awesome! I have not really addressed my leaking as it’s not much an issue on summer. Still brainstorming lol. The neoprene rubber has a sticky backing, that is what is holding it in place
How were you able to seal the 8020 with the wedge closed? It doesn’t look like the bulb seal will be able to extend all the way to the corners for a thorough seal.
No longer own the truck. But this wasn’t an option as I’m 6’3” and I don’t want to have to crouch a bunch when under a side door. Already considered it.
When you were sourcing all of the material that you used for your build, you mentioned in your build video that you had ordered your 8020 and your fabric. However, for your steel did you source that locally and what wall thickness did you go with? And it is a 1"x1" external measurement?
I sourced the steel locally. Thickness was whatever the spec Ripcord called for (I believe 16ga??) and it’s 1.5” square tubing to match the 1.5” thickness extrusion
@@pnwxplore Thanks for taking your time responding to my questions! When you used your camper did you sleep with your head to the rear or front. I watching this and thinking of you slept towards the front there is nothing to support the weight other than a 3mm piece of composite. Did you ever have a issue with that?
Was the water intrusion coming from a bolt hole or an area that was not welded shut? Man, so many good thoughts! I'm still pondering my build. Thinking about scraping the 80/20 and just welding the whole thing in steel. I might make the tent frame 'overhang' by 1/4" or something to make it a 'gutter', I guess I just need to make sure I can open the door all the way. I'm also thinking about a way to swing the rear door open and to 'quick release' so that I can carry my MTB especially since I don't plan to build mine out and it would make it so that I could have the rear open like a van :)
No issues with welds on the outside. Water offs coming in from bolt or rivet holes. You could scrap the 80/20 but you then lose all the functionality and are going to have a ton of holes to drill ahead of time and anything you want to mount will require holes drilled all the way through if it’s not welded. Barn doors would be rad!
Want to stay comfortable? Stay home , once you leave your PS3 and gaming chair and the coziness of your own room in your parents basement it’s a bitch and camping is not going to be a walk in the park , just rough it and grow some hair , do everything you can to waterproof it and deal with the cold or the heat and the dust what have you, the tent should not be a condominium, condensation? Yes it’s life enjoy the rough times , it builds character.
Just starting into my build, using only 8020 and not welding. Stoked to see how well your build turned out!
Awesome man! I’m sure yours will turn out great!
I'm late to the party now, but you did a very good job of covering your experience of living out of your own creation. And it looks awesome, BTW
First of all I have watched the build video a dozen times or more by now and am very grateful for your detailed build.
From the point of view of an experienced winter camper who is mostly a ground dweller your best bet on condensation is probably to add a fan and a warmer sleeping bag to the mix. Maybe a wabasto style heater over the MR buddy.
Its something im strongly considering in the planning phase with mine as its mostly winter here in northern British Columbia.
Glad it’s been helpful! I have gone to a slightly warmer bag and will be adding in a diesel heater hopefully in the next month or so. I don’t like using the MR buddy since it puts out so much moisture. Cheers!
I applaud you for making such a intense effort and to do it while saving a lot of money. I myself built my own off grid 24v solar system to my house. I didn’t know anything about electricity so I made a lot of errors, but I wouldn’t give up until I got it done. I did have to get somebody to connect it to the grid breaker panel, as that was way over my head. In the end the whole electrical panel box had to be replaced because it was built badly and a fire hazard. Would’ve never known if I hadn’t started the project.
Lookup hurricane hinges for a teardrop style camper. It will change the orientation of the hinges potentially causing the door material to need size adjustments
I have seen those. Will take another look at them and see if they might work. Thanks!
Hey Man thank you for taking the time to make this videos, it has helped me tremendously with my build. I had the same issue with water leak and narrowed it down to the corner pieces, I removed all four corners and fill all the extrusion holes with silicone, problem solved no more rusty water in the frame. As far as condensation I would highly recomend a webasto style heater or Chinese diesel heater. I noticed you have a buddy heater and they seem to generate a crazy amount of condensation. I ended up purchasing a webasto gasoline heater plumbed it straight to the fuel tank and man its such a game changer, just flip the knob and done, nice warm dry air.
No problem! Glad you got it sorted!
Yeah I know about the webasto and other heaters. I have a diesel heater on the way. A byproduct of propane burning is water vapor, so I always knew that would be an issue.
Thank you very much, I’ve seen so many builds like this but so few for our first gens
Welcome! They look really good on the 1st Gen
Best diy wedge camper on all of YT, Great job man!
That is incredibly kind! Thank you.
That's sweet or is it suite? No, great job and I appreciate all the thought you put in it! I'd like to build one for my FJ so thanks for sharing your brilliance.
Thanks man! Glad you enjoyed the video.
Such a good video precursor to a build
Might I suggest installing a pull handle in your tailgate under one of the attachment screws for the liner.
That’s a good idea!
Epic man. Thankyou for filming the whole build to give others contemplating this a real insight on whats involved. One question- how much did it weigh?
Hey glad it was helpful, thank you for watching! I unfortunately do not know how much it weighed, but based on the number of people needed to get it on the truck I’d wager 300-400lbs
Have you thought of using a limiting strap w/ a clip for the side/rear door? Set the the strap length at the limit you need for the 85 degree angle.
Now it’s time for a bumper build!
I’m 6’2” so it needs to open as much as it can lol
Love the build and great video!! 👍
Happy Holidays and safe travels!!
Thanks 🙏!
There is a company called Overland out of Idaho and they sell a Hurricane hinge. It is continuous with a rain gutter built into it.
I’ll have too check it out! Thanks!
A rubber exterior flashing to go over the seam way help with water. Additionally laying a bead of caulk would do wonders
Yeah there is def a few options! I just haven’t been bothered to fix it just yet 😂. I need to get on it
You need to move your bulb seals to the space frame. Mount it on the flat part of the tubing and all your problems with dripping go away. Plus it's how the manufacturer says to mount them.
I might give that a try! Did not know that’s how the manufacturer said it should be done
I wonder if you can put the hinges on the outside of the doors and then attach them to the 8020. So at least you won't have the hinges in the way of the seal. You'd still have the issue of water building up on the top of the bulb seal.
Weld a drip edge on the frame as long as the door clears.
Amazing job!
Thank you!🙏
Good Video ,, Oregonian
Thank you!
Good equipment. Merry Christmas friend.👍👍
felt is good for insulation; its what mongolains use on their ger, and they air it out during the summer, its a good insulating layer and wicks moisture
Aaww man great info thanks for the straight up approach. I enjoy your videos Thank You Sir
Thanks for watching!
Great build and a really well done video!
Thank you!
Thanks for the great insights. Gosh I wish someone made carbon fiber 80/20
Or perhaps fiberglass.
Great review, you named off the exact issues I'm having and so you know it's worse when you live in the valley🤣 I'm looking into a waterproof continuous hinge that's not crazy expensive.
Let me know what you find! I did find something on McMaster carr that might work as a little gutter for the door so rain doesn’t drip in when it’s open. Gonna order some later this week
@@pnwxplore sure will 👍
Great video
Appreciate the follow up
Nice job bro! Cheers!!!!
Thank you!
Thank you .
Great video. You winter camp a good bit, it seems. Do you use a sleeping bag? How about info on keeping warm. Noticed the buddy heater n video, does the tent section capture the heat from it? Thanks for taking the to do your videos
Yup I use a 20 degree bag with a liner. That keeps me pretty warm. Only time I have used a buddy heater was when it got down into the low teens overnight and I only used it to take the edge off waking up and going to sleep. Heater works good, just creates a lot of moisture. Thanks man!
That's great! 💎💪🏽😉
Well, if you haven't done it already, having your doors slope away from the truck would be a good way to start minimizing the water getting in while you have them open in the rain! Especially over the tail gate! And it probably wouldn't take much....an inch or two slant would change to run off!
It’s a good solution, the problem is I am too tall 😂. Need the upward slant so I don’t have to duck much
Hey man, looks excellent. Where abouts in the PNW are you? I’m in WA, Seattle area. Be interested in checking it out in person if you’re ok with that, I want to build one too lol
Thanks man! I am located down in Oregon. I bet there is a few people around your area that have built one. Check out the Tacoma world thread in the description of my build video !
Your big buddy heater creates lots of Condensation. Diesel heater work a lot better or a wood stove! B Deacon Manitoba Canada 🇨🇦
Yup yup! I have a diesel heater note.
Excellent self-review, thanks. Any idea what you spent on materials for the entire build?
$3k on materials, $1k on tools and such for the job
Great job! What size of extrusion for the tent frame? 10 or 15 series? Length and width? Thanks so much!
Thank you! Extrusion is 15 series and 100” long and 50” wide internally
Thanks for the great video. Is there a supplier you like for accessories for the aluminium extrusion?
Tnutz and 80/20 are the best ones
Could you hinge the doors off from the 8020 with an external hinge? I am wondering if I made the steel frame slightly smaller than the 8020 so it hung over 1/4" if you could just hinge the doors off the 8020 and have the bulb seal and door thickness kind of flush with the edge of the 8020? Also wondering if you could do a simple drip rail around the bottom edge of the 8020 so water would not drip down into the seals. Perfect timing on this vid, I just found yours and Ripcord's builds and am excited to do this style of tent for my Gladiator. Also, shorter struts would angle the doors down on the outside so the rain would run off. Not sure if your rig is tall enough but even if they were just slightly down, the water wouldn't run to the inside and drip. Thanks!
This is kind of the double edge sword of building yourself, there are many different options to try, each with their own challenges. Likely the best solution for the hinges is to find a waterproof continuous hing and mount it on the top side of the frame and sandwich it between the 80/20.
No angling of doors down for me as I am 6’3” and need the height lol
@@pnwxplore everyone thinks being tall is sooooo great, until they get tall. 6’4” of head banging misery here.
Great update. Do you ever regret not having any windows causing some significant blind spots when shoulder checking or backing up? My last truck canopy had windows and the blind spots still bugged me so I was thinking of using clear Lexan for all the side panels, I don't plan on having anything valuable laying in the box so there won't be anything for people to see to want to steal it. thoughts?
No regrets at all. I have a backup camera by my hitch and I recently installed a digital rear view mirror with front and rear cameras and I have all the visibility I need now. I like that people can’t see what’s inside the camper.
I would put a light film of WD40 on the rubber.
Weep holes... sealant will fail so you should be sure to leave a path for the water to escape
Good note! I do have some holes where water can exit and it can breath.
Hey, love your videos. How is the space frame holding up? I'm ready to take the plunge and start building my spaceframe but wondering if the .062 thickness is adequate. Have you had any issues? Thanks!
Thickness is more than fine. No issues at all. Anything else would be overkill. Thanks for watching man!
@@pnwxplore great!!! Thanks for the reply. I just purchased a bundutec super king RTT and will make a space frame for it similar to yours
Awesome build! I just finished building mine and have already noticed some of the same issues with leaking. Any updates on how you fixed your leaking issues? What did you use to secure the neoprene rubber you put on the corners of the extrusion to secure it in place?
Awesome! I have not really addressed my leaking as it’s not much an issue on summer. Still brainstorming lol. The neoprene rubber has a sticky backing, that is what is holding it in place
Replace the hinges with a hurricane hinge. It's what they use on ARE construction caps.
How were you able to seal the 8020 with the wedge closed? It doesn’t look like the bulb seal will be able to extend all the way to the corners for a thorough seal.
I have some neoprene rubber in the corners that seal there
You needs to add a diesel heater to your gear. Heat with no moisture.
Indeed! It’s on the list for one of the next things I am ordering. Will be essential to winter camping
Stretch out your gas struts to make the doors slope down a bit.
No longer own the truck. But this wasn’t an option as I’m 6’3” and I don’t want to have to crouch a bunch when under a side door. Already considered it.
Propane will always have condensation....move to a diesel heaters dry heat no condensation
Sounds like some people are exercising their 2A right around you. 👍
Indeed!
When you were sourcing all of the material that you used for your build, you mentioned in your build video that you had ordered your 8020 and your fabric. However, for your steel did you source that locally and what wall thickness did you go with? And it is a 1"x1" external measurement?
I sourced the steel locally. Thickness was whatever the spec Ripcord called for (I believe 16ga??) and it’s 1.5” square tubing to match the 1.5” thickness extrusion
What’s the year and mileage on the beauty?
It was a 2002 and only 107k miles on it!
No regerts!
What kind of carpet did you use to line that bench seat thing
Was just some cheap carpet I found at either Home Depot or Lowe’s.
@@pnwxplore oh thanks. Building a camper and almost ordered some pricey marine carpet off Amazon haha
What is the overall height of the truck and camper? Will it fit in a standard 7' garage door?
I don’t recall exactly as I no longer own it. But it did fit in our garage which is 7ft tall
@@pnwxplore Thank you, Thinking about doing this build. Was there a particular reason with the design why you sold it?
No issue with the design. I wanted a bigger truck and camper.
@@pnwxplore Thanks for taking your time responding to my questions! When you used your camper did you sleep with your head to the rear or front. I watching this and thinking of you slept towards the front there is nothing to support the weight other than a 3mm piece of composite. Did you ever have a issue with that?
What is the reason that you did not use 8020 instead of welding a steel frame ? Is it the cost or weight ?
Cost, would have been multiples more expensive. Steel frame at the time this was built was less than $100 and I got to learn how to weld, win win.
you could have made the side door under awning fold down for a table....
Could have, but then it’s in the way for pretty much anything else in terms of accessing the inside.
8020 sells a slot seal.
It was in use on this build in various ways from the front of the camper to the seal between the wedge roof and bottom
Was the water intrusion coming from a bolt hole or an area that was not welded shut? Man, so many good thoughts! I'm still pondering my build. Thinking about scraping the 80/20 and just welding the whole thing in steel. I might make the tent frame 'overhang' by 1/4" or something to make it a 'gutter', I guess I just need to make sure I can open the door all the way.
I'm also thinking about a way to swing the rear door open and to 'quick release' so that I can carry my MTB especially since I don't plan to build mine out and it would make it so that I could have the rear open like a van :)
No issues with welds on the outside. Water offs coming in from bolt or rivet holes.
You could scrap the 80/20 but you then lose all the functionality and are going to have a ton of holes to drill ahead of time and anything you want to mount will require holes drilled all the way through if it’s not welded.
Barn doors would be rad!
brtoh,cool ! =))
Where is local for you.
What was the build price, if you don't mind me asking?
Awesome build btw!!
$3k plus $1k for tools like welder, sewing machine and other stuff
@@pnwxplore Thanks, sounds worth it!
Gonna be a bit more expensive now with inflation, but def still cheaper than something prebuilt
How did you build the cross bars for the roof?
Some 1050 series 8020 and external brackets they sell
Is this a ripcord design ?
Sure is. I modified it a little
How do you heat it?
Diesel heater outside the truck ducted into the tent.
What was your total cost?
Right around $3k including tools and supplies. But that was almost 2 years ago, so more now.
Tire size?
265/70/16
Hi what materials did you use for the exterior panels? @PNWXplore
E panel
use a bungee cord duh
Want to stay comfortable? Stay home , once you leave your PS3 and gaming chair and the coziness of your own room in your parents basement it’s a bitch and camping is not going to be a walk in the park , just rough it and grow some hair , do everything you can to waterproof it and deal with the cold or the heat and the dust what have you, the tent should not be a condominium, condensation? Yes it’s life enjoy the rough times , it builds character.