More Home Built Camper Resources

In our last entry we introduced you to Dan, the Texas man who turned his garage into his own RV manufacturing plant. Dan's project is fascinating, and it got the mental juices flowing. Just what resources are available for those with a bent to building their own? We're happy to report that camper plans are out there.

Dan got his plans from Glen-L, who offers a pretty big range of camper plans and templates for material cutting. The latter is extremely helpful, as while it may not make building "goof proof," it surely reduces the opportunity. Glen-L has at least 9 different camper plans to choose from. Check out their website for more information.

Interested in motoring back into the past? Well, go dust off your May 1967 issue of Popular Science and you'll have plans for a pop-up truck camper. The pop up raised and lowered (fuel prices should be a great incentive for that today) with the use of handy-dandy bumper jacks, available at nearly any wrecking yard. Don't have a '67 PopSci? Not a problem, follow this link to the Vintage Projects website and you can download a PDF file with the plans for free.

A more modern approach to truck camper building, with classic rolled roof lines comes from Butler Projects. This beauty would look great on a truck equipped with wood side panels, but we're not sure where you'd find one of those today. Butler includes a 33 page shop manual in the price. Check out their website here.

Finally, a larger vintage camper for your consideration. 13 feet of truck camper, but the plan man tells us that truss-style construction gives this rig a lot of strength for those rough roads to the wilderness. Follow this link to the "Budget Camper" page.

And if you hear of any other sites, let us know!

All photos courtesy their respective websites.

Truck Camper on a Budget? Texas Man Builds His Own

Down in Texas a man named Dan wanted a truck camper to go back and forth to his favorite fishing spot. He looked at buying a new rig--and $25,000 just didn't suit his budget. He looked for used--seemed like they were all up in the north end of the country, and driving 3,000 miles to shop for a used camper didn't sit well. So he did what comes natural--he sent off for a set of plans and converted his garage into a camper building shop.

Sound gutsy? Sure does to us. For a man who describes himself as, "by no means a master carpenter," it looks like Dan has done pretty well. Not long ago, the head space in Dan's garage just got too confining, so with a huge stack of concrete blocks, a bunch of bottle jacks, and a group of interested folks to help, Dan rolled his not-quite-completed truck camper out into the driveway and bit by bit (and with letting air out of his tires) got that new rig hoisted up on his pickup bed.

To keep all interested parties up-to-date, Dan's got his own blog site, loaded with pictures and fascinating detail of his project. He provides encouragement, and plenty of cautions, on how other folks can build their own TC. Check out "Homebuilt Truck Camper from Glen-L Plans."


Photos: Dan's Homebuilt Truck Camper blog site.

Getting That Last Little Inch

Maybe it's age. Maybe it's bifocals. I'm not sure, but I'm not liking it. Some years back when we first were truck camper folk, it seemed so easy to "get the truck under the camper." Now I squint, crane my neck, break my arm, and express myself verbally in ways that aren't always befitting. Why does it sometimes seem so hard to get lined up for loading up the rig?

One of the more frustrating aspects is when "you're just about there," with the emphasis on the "about" part. You're lined up and ready to go, but you're just an inch or so "off" the mark. Here's a trick to give a try:

Crank the wheel hard over and pull ahead a few inches. Now crank the wheel back in the opposite direction and roll her back. That little bit of "shuffling" will move your truck tail an inch. Of course, it takes just a bit of practice--doesn't everything?

We'd love to hear your suggestions on how your making loading less stressful. Just leave them in the comments section.

Seattle Website Enough Get Your Knickers in a Knot

There's a little Seattle website called the Seattlest. Normally we don't get to dithered by what others write, but sometimes--well, it's like gettin' a bad batch of beans. Witness the opening paragraph from a recent Seattlest entry:

"For the past few years, we've gotten to thinking about safety and the road just around every Memorial Day weekend. In simpler times, it used to be that we celebrated the sacrifices of our veterans through a paid holiday, lowering the flag to half-staff until Noon, barbeques [sic], and drunken boating. These days, however, things are more complex for we live in troubling, uncertain, and dangerous times. In addition to its patriotic duties, Memorial Day serves as the "official" beginning of the summer driving and vacation season. Not coincidentally, it is also the time that the two greatest dangers to the American road traveler break their winter dormancy: the slide-in, pick-up bed camper and the fifth-wheel trailer on tiny wheels. Like parasites, they attach and attack "[hu]mans' best friend", the automobile. "

Truck campers somehow compared to parasites? Must be some kind of a joke, we sez. But no, my slide-in friends. Apparently this isn't low comedy as we quote a couple more lines:

"The slide-in camper is a horrible structural tumor that slides into the bed and most frequently secures itself by a number of chains that reach down to hooks and beams under the truck's frame." We could go on with quotations; suffice to say the repellent commentary is a stomach churner. The "safety concerns" portrayed about truck campers run them up to the level of Public Enemy Number One.

I did notice with some delight that the publishers of this website did allow for reader commentary. Should you choose to educate the writer and his colleagues, then follow the link here to the appropriate page view and write on.