Not another M109 camper conversion

[63sierra10]

FYI, in the bottom pic, the right side lower terminal is the power feed for the rear exhaust fan. It tests as a ground but if you try to ground to it the fan will run. It only tests as a ground if the fan is plugged in. I found that out when I keyed up my ham radio and the fan started....

I eliminated my fan. I closed the vent off so I could install the shower in that area.

 

[63sierra10]

Ok this weekend I got the water tanks half plumbed and I got the bed frame built. The bed is the size of a standard full bed. I needed a bigger bed set up as I have four little ones. It is a little tight but as long as the kids stay up against the wall we will be just hunky dory. I also mounted but have yet to finish the plumbing to the water heater. Enjoy the pics.

 

[63sierra10]

Well my free time has been used well with the conversion. Here are some pics of what I have done. I only have a few things to do yet and then it is camping time. The first two show the beds,and the third and fourth show my little drop leaf table for counter space and other odds and ends. The fifth shows my stove and sink that I got for free from a guy who was junking out an old camper.Six and seven are the shower stall. I lined the whole stall and sealed it, then used a light difuser panel cut down and put some weather strip around it, then screwed it fast. Pic eight is of the ladder I built for upper bunk access. Pic nine and ten are the water tanks and the drain hose is conveniently routed through the factory access hole, and it works very well.

 

[63sierra10]

Now I got my furnace in. It is a gravity furnace from an old camper in the junk yard here in town. I had to get a new safety valve for it which proved to be almost impossible. It seems all you can get for safety valves anymore require a transformer and so on so I ended up getting a valve for a propane firelog set up off of the bay. Sorry no pics of the valve but here is the furnace. Second is the exhaust for the furnace. Then I ran an exhaust out for the hot water heater in the third and last pics. The fourth pic is my jimmy proof door lock. The fifth pic is the 70 gal propane tank that I will mount on my M103 gen trailer. As you can see in the pic of the hot water heater I found that there was a lot of heat coming out of the side of the burner so I had to put in a piece of aluminum to keep from melting my water lines. The kids have been having sleep overs and taking showers in it and everything seems to be working just fine. I am still waiting on my grey water tank, I ordered the same one that zout and M109guy are using. I will post pics of that when I install it. I still have a cabinet to build for some extra storage beside the shower too.

 

[m109guy]

You have been busy. Lots of work getting done. Looks good. Almost ready for the zombies now

 

[srodocker]

mmm zombies!...wow im going to cheat with doing a m109 conversion and use my newly aquired slide in camper...its big at 11'3" now i need a mechanism to get it in and out

 

[jesusgatos]

That's exactly how I would do it if I wasn't planning on living in it full-time. While we're all building M109 conversions, you'll be out camping.

 

[63sierra10]

Ok now I have the grey water tank installed but have to do the plumbing yet. The first picture shows a 1X4 I used as a anti-rub for the bottom of the unit and the top of the tank. Second I used a piece of shower surround I had left over and some plastic cement, then used some screws and some silicone to seal of the holes that were there for the original plumbing. Three and four are the hangers I fabbed up using ZOUT's idea to use the bumperettes as part of the mount. Five is a pic of the one brace I had to cut to make room, I used some heater hose to cover the edges so I won't wear a hole in the tank.

 

[63sierra10]

Here are some more of my pics from the waste tank install. Pic one is one of the hangers with some weatherstrip to keep the rubbing down to a minimum. Pic two shows one of the hangers in the back where it bolts to the cross member just forward of the tank. I used the factory holes in the cross member so I would not change the structural integrity of it. The third and fourth show the other side of the cross member mountimg. Five shows some clamps I fabbed up to keep it from skidding around at all. I also got this idea from ZOUT. The last pic shows how it is fastened behind the bumperette.

 

[63sierra10]

mmm zombies!...wow im going to cheat with doing a m109 conversion and use my newly aquired slide in camper...its big at 11'3" now i need a mechanism to get it in and out

Yes that is a great idea but I don't like to do things that easy. Besides if I didn't have this headache I would be lost.

 

[63sierra10]

The grey water tank is all plumbed in now and works great. M109guy thanks for turning me on to this tank, it worked out real well. You are the one that inspired this whole build.
The first two pics show the plumbing out of the floor and the third shows I used the factory holes in the frame of the shelter which was perfect for 1 1/2 pipe to fit through, then T into the tank. The fourth is the 3" drain valve and a stabilizing brace.

 

[zout]

Dang - 63 - lets go camping

Looks like your getting a lot closer to what you want done (but we are never done are we)

Keep them pics coming

 

[63sierra10]

That is why it is a hobby though, right zout? I still need to build a skid plate under the drain tank and a few other things. I will be testing it out this upcoming weekend so I will post some pics of the trip to let you know how it turns out. I have now named it HaRVey. The "H" for the first letter of my last name and "RV" for obvious reasons. I know most names of vehicles, especially the deuce, has female names because they are so unpredictablebut I think it seems to fit. I also replaced the old canister oil filters with the spin on adapter from Westfolk and am very happy. This upgrade for those of you who were ever wondering or in doubt be sure it is a very worthwhile upgrade. Now I just hope the radiator holds out. I noticed a little seepage around a couple tubes on the upper header plate. I do have a great radiator guy here in town that will see it after my camping experience.

 

[m109guy]

Looks good. Clean install. I am sure it will serve you well.

 

[63sierra10]

Well we went camping from Fri. morning to today, Sun. afternoon. We left town and started to the mountain, things are good. Got into the rolling hills outside of town and started getting a little coolant coming in around a bolt on the floor board. ( I think I have a cracked head at the back exhaust port) The coolant seems to be coming out around that particular spot. Turbo puts out good at 15 psi and the EGT hit 1200 once. I got to the bottom of the mountain and checked a few things out and decided to go on with the trip. After over an hour of trying to find a camping spot, ( this weekend seemed to be when everybody else decided to go too) we got all set up. I had to set myself on some rocks to level it out and we camped like that the first night. Second night I decided to dig the drivers side down a little and also keep the rocks under the pass. side. While resetting I noticed that one wheel seal seems to be leaking, ( new wheel seal on all six ends) Later I looked and now I have two leaking. Camping carries on. Now we brought two vehicles up and go to the lookout tower and decide to go to the Ranger station where my wife lived as a kid, while there we fill our water cooler at the natural spring. We get back to camp and about 10 min. later we get a visit from a Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer, He wants to know why we were at the Ranger station, which is completely open to the public. I was lucky that I had hung my side arm up otherwise I think he may have been even more of a jerk. This guy was just a total D!@#. He wanted to know if I was in the Military and what branch and then he told me about the guys he knew from tech school that had the same job as me in the Military. In between sentences he kept trying to get us to crack as to why we were there. I finally told him that my wife lived there in the 10 man barrack many years ago and her dad was the head of all the timber management and was a trainer for the Forest Service. Other than that it was a fun ordeal and I got the truck home and am now going to check the head out and I think the cork seal and silicone didn't hold when I did the seals.

 

[63sierra10]

Some more for your pleasure

 

[ARYankee]

Your first post mentioned how it started out as an A2. I have a chance to buy a M109 box and was thinking of swapping the cargo bed out in one of my A2s. Was it as easy as unbolting the cargo bed and removing, then lining the box up and bolting up?

 

[quickfarms]

Nice how big is the shower stall?

Where is the toilet?

 

[Scrounge41]

subscribed.

 

[Bad_Carp]

Nice job...love to see these builds.