Coast Resorts Open Roads Forum: Our custom true flatbed truck camper build thread

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Topic: Our custom true flatbed truck camper build thread

Posted By: Jfet on 07/15/13 07:26am

Thanks for the links. I had not thought of semi truck parts as a source for coil aluminum. It looks like they have 0.040 inch thick in 103" width which is quite beefier than the 0.024 I have found at rv supply. We did get a piece of .025 to test bending around the front curve and also folding down the sides. I have not tried it yet.

Posted By: Bedlam on 07/15/13 08:28am

.040 aluminum is pretty thick. I had a contractor canopy on my truck skinned with that material and it may be hard to bend around the front cap. Even the canopy maker scaled back to .035 on current production.

http://www.centurycaps.com/dcu

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Posted By: gkirtley on 07/15/13 08:50am

Jfet,

I have been following your project and would like to ask you a few questions please.

My understanding is that you skinned the camper with "0.062 aluminum sikaflex 252 glued to the steel frame with 1/16" nylon spacers". I don't know the properties of sikaflex but I wondered if an aluminum panel(s) is damaged how do you remove it and/or replace it?

With adajacent panels touching on a 1" sq. tube each panel has 1/2" of contact surface on the vertical tube--correct?

What did you use for the nylon spacers and what kind of Al panels did you source?

I have long been interested in something similar but on a much smaller scale and the skin issue has always been problematic. Thanks

George K.

Posted By: Jfet on 07/15/13 09:49am

gkirtley wrote:

Removing a damaged panel is going to be a pain...the Sikaflex 252 is flexible but bonds with a pretty high strength (I would guess well over 100psi but don't know exact figures). If I had to remove a panel I would probably try to slice under it with a long thin razor blade, then scrape off the old Sikaflex. I don't see any of these panels flying off during our travels though! :-)

The panels are layered in a fish scale fashion so each panel bonds fully to a 1 inch steel stud on one side and on the other side overlaps the previous panel 1 inch (aluminum to aluminum bond). The spacers we used between the aluminum and steel were 1/16" thick nylon tie wraps, cut into little 3/4 inch long sections and stuck into the Sika after it was applied. We did not use spacers between the aluminum to aluminum bond, but rather just ran a uniform bead and let it squeeze out to about 1/32". I could not easily rip apart two aluminum panels joined this way over just a 1 square inch area!

The alloy we used was 5052-H32, mostly in 5'x12' sheets. We had local sheet metal shop source the aluminum and shear cut it to size (big time saving and not very expensive).

* This post was edited 07/15/13 08:18pm by Jfet *

Posted By: TheCascadian on 07/30/13 12:38pm

Bump for new pics. Would love to see some overall progress pics Jfet!

Thanks.

Posted By: Jfet on 07/31/13 06:24pm

Yeah...a little delay in pictures as there is not as much interesting to see right now...polyisocyanurate insulation, 5mm plywood siding, wiring...rinse repeat.

This past weekend we finished cutting out the hatches and holes...I think there were 15 hatches or holes in the driver side...amazing. Since we didn't want any hatches on the rear of the camper or underneath, everything has to come out on the driver side or the passenger side...water, waste, electric, fridge vent, air conditioner vent, range vent, bathroom vent, windows, fan vents, exterior electric outlets, passthrough for solar wiring.

We decided to go with standard Rhino truck liner for the roof and a tough paint over that. This is quite a bit cheaper than the aluminized Rhino eco-coat and is a lot closer (30 min vs 5 hour drive).

I could use some advice on the aluminum siding. If you recall, it is 5052-H32 0.063 aluminum which has been Sikaflex 252 bonded to the steel frame with nylon spacers to prevent galvanic action. I got a quote for painting just the sides of $3500 locally. I am not a paint expert, but that seems a bit steep. I know it is a several step process, but we are considering doing it ourselves. I am looking into self etching primers and types of paint to use. Any suggestions are welcome.

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Posted By: camperpaul on 07/31/13 09:33pm

Jfet wrote:

I could use some advice on the aluminum siding. If you recall, it is 5052-H32 0.063 aluminum which has been Sikaflex 252 bonded to the steel frame with nylon spacers to prevent galvanic action. I got a quote for painting just the sides of $3500 locally. I am not a paint expert, but that seems a bit steep. I know it is a several step process, but we are considering doing it ourselves. I am looking into self etching primers and types of paint to use. Any suggestions are welcome.

Alumigrip paint is commonly used for painting aircraft.

Paul
Extra Class Ham Radio operator - K9ERG (since 1956)
Retired Electronics Engineer and Antenna Designer
Was a campground host at IBSP (2006-2010) - now retired.
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Posted By: Bedlam on 07/31/13 09:46pm

What about using a vinyl wrap as the TC external skin?

Posted By: kereams on 07/31/13 10:16pm

Bedlam wrote:

What about using a vinyl wrap as the TC external skin?

Thats actually a great idea. Its not expensive to have done either, is pretty durable and easily swapped out.

*2011 F350 SRW CC/LB/PSD - Mods: Custom overload springs with custom early engagement blocks~Firestone Airbags~Hellwig Big Wig Rear Sway~Rancho RS9000XL~Bilstein Steering Damper~19.5" Hankook DH01'a on steel wheels.
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Posted By: silversand on 08/01/13 05:05am

Quote:

Alumigrip paint is commonly used for painting aircraft.

...wow. Alumigrip is a legend, and goes back to about 1968 (first post-trial fully developed product aircraft application), developed by US Paint, Bayer (Germany) and Monsanto jointly (Monsanto made hydraulic fluid {Skydrol} that dissolved aircraft paint at that time, so Monsanto, being a global coatings manufacturer, like US Paint, helped out). A very close relative of mine (and an award-winning coatings chemist) who worked for one of the above companies for an astounding 53 years, remembers intimately the US Paint/Bayer/Monsanto venture and 1st Alumigrip aircraft trial (an Douglas DC-9, the 1st DC-9 made, painted in 1964, then delvered to Ozark Air). I inherited the extensive coatings library (thousands of books, and other hitoria) and have just started shelving these early and ancient coatings chemistry industry trade books (it may be one of the largest collection of early trade industrial coatings materials) in our new 45-foot long ceiling to floor library [emoticon]

The OP:

IMO, the absolutely best way to proceed here is to use ether TPO (my favorite, for many reasons) or, the EPDM rubber sheet product out there at the moment. Fiberglass, or aluminum, or any advanced coatings will cost you a fortune, and will be an absolute nightmare to maintain (aluminum is very dynamic, and keeping the caulk integrity will be absolutely crucial (Steve's solution of welding the aluminum is the only way to go, if you go the aluminum roof method!)....

Good luck with it,
Silver-

* This post was last edited 08/01/13 06:12am by silversand *

Silver
2004 Chevy Silverado 2500HD 4x4 6.0L Ext/LB Tow Package 4L80E Michelin AT2s| Outfitter Caribou

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