Tony's Sportsmobile Build / thoughts

[tonyvoudy]

As promised, here are a few pictures of loading two SUP boards on the side of a sprinter van high roof:

Step 1: Hullivator added to the top of the roof



Step 2: First board added to Hullivator



Step 3: Add the 2nd board. The 2nd is always a lot harder then the 1st to get on the Hullivator with one person.



Step 4: Even though it is rated to move a 60+ lbs kayak with ease onto the roof rack, it is still damn hard to walk up the ladder and move the SUP boards on top of the roof. I feel like a WWE wrestler climbing the top rope with a guy on my shoulders ready to power slam.



I added a misc picture of the two back racks, a versahaul scooter/motorcycle carrier and a storage rack.



The total weight on the hitch by my estimate is 297lbs scooter + 80lbs versa haul + 40lbs gear hauler = 417 lbs before I put a few crates on the back of the gear hauler. Of course, this does not account for the odd angle of weight distribution on the hitch itself.



Off to Florida to hit the beach for a week!

[100sqft]

Great pictures. That's some serious storage you've got on the back of the van.

I see you're using a telescoping ladder. In planning to be a full-timer, I'm thinking of bringing one along in the van for when I need to get up top. Seems more versatile than a ladder fixed to the van. What's your experience been in terms of stability, ruggedness, and compactness when stored?

[tonyvoudy]

Originally Posted by 100sqft

Great pictures. That's some serious storage you've got on the back of the van.

I see you're using a telescoping ladder. In planning to be a full-timer, I'm thinking of bringing one along in the van for when I need to get up top. Seems more versatile than a ladder fixed to the van. What's your experience been in terms of stability, ruggedness, and compactness when stored?

The compact ladder feels pretty darn rugged to me. (I weigh ~185) I added the storage bag and most importantly, the thick rubber attachment for the top rung so it won't scratch the van. The base of the ladder also has some thick, hard rubber grips that feels like it sticks to concrete.

Here are the parts as linked on Amazon:

Ladder Bag:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I got the 750P ladder which is 8.5 feet tall. There are a wide variety of them on Amazon from 10.5 to 15.5.

Ladder:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The top rung cover was not available on Amazon but I found it on build.com. If you are going to use this ladder for going up/down the side of your van, I would highly recommend it.

Top Rung Cover:
http://www.build.com/xtend-and-climb...ducts_p2143980

BTW, funny thing about the rear (fixed) ladder since you mention it, I have rarely even used the rear ladder since I added it on. I think besides the first time I added it to test it, there has been one other time to remove a tree branch that was in the way in the driveway.

I know the outside van I saw uses his fixed ladder a lot since he had a massive roof rack installed. He can walk anywhere on the roof so I suppose it has its benefits when you can walk around the top.

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[tonyvoudy]

Here are a few pictures of the scooter and the boards from the week we spent in Florida. I had to remove the 2nd rack as it was too low to the ground and was prone to scraping when pulling into parking lots, etc.

Van with Scooter:



2nd view:



Hope everyone has a great 4th of July! It is VERY soggy and wet here in Georgia. (3+ inches today alone, more expected for our Peachtree Road Race run tomorrow)

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[WestyToSMB]

Tony, thanks for all your information. Our van is on order, and we are figuring out the options, so your posts help a lot. Really like the look of your setup.

A few questions if you don't mind:
After using the Hullavator for a while for 2 SUPs, would you do the same thing again next time? Our Sprinter van will be a high-roof RB (+ a few inches for the factory 4x4), and we sometimes will carry 2 SUPs, sometimes 2 17' sea kayaks (about 40lbs each).We are considering 2 Hullavators (skip the awning I guess), and the telescoping ladder you have. We ordered the MBz tracks.

Also, you originally mentioned being able to hang stuff from the ceiling (not just SUPs (which did not work), but other stuff right?). I am thinking about ordering a bunch of D-rings in the ceiling that would allow for paddles, wet clothes, and other things to be hung. Thoughts?

Thanks,
D

[tonyvoudy]

Originally Posted by WestyToSMB

Tony, thanks for all your information. Our van is on order, and we are figuring out the options, so your posts help a lot. Really like the look of your setup.

A few questions if you don't mind:
After using the Hullavator for a while for 2 SUPs, would you do the same thing again next time? Our Sprinter van will be a high-roof RB (+ a few inches for the factory 4x4), and we sometimes will carry 2 SUPs, sometimes 2 17' sea kayaks (about 40lbs each).We are considering 2 Hullavators (skip the awning I guess), and the telescoping ladder you have. We ordered the MBz tracks.

I don't mind questions at all WTS! I am pretty envious of your 4x4 build and will be following along as it progresses. I do like the hullavator, even though lifting two SUP boards can often be a challenge. In fact, it happened to be the cause of my first dent in the van. I was anxious to get on the lake one day and as I was lowering the hullivator I missed the last step and the full weight of the boards came swinging down and put a small dent in the side of the van.

If you go the tracks/hullivator route, make sure you tell SMB that you want the tracks the entire length of the roof. SMB Indiana only did ½ my roof (using nuts/bolts) before I noticed and asked them to do the entire roof. Since they already installed the interior ceiling, they only screwed in the remaining tracks. The end result is the tracks in the front feel loose (I can wiggle them) and are not entirely secure imho.

Originally Posted by WestyToSMB

Also, you originally mentioned being able to hang stuff from the ceiling (not just SUPs (which did not work), but other stuff right?). I am thinking about ordering a bunch of D-rings in the ceiling that would allow for paddles, wet clothes, and other things to be hung. Thoughts?

I apparently was not able to properly articulate to SMB-I that I wanted bolts in the ceiling. It never happened. I would imagine SMB-Cali would be more apt to understand and engineer a solution for hanging gear inside. As far as gear goes, at the end of the day, we make every effort to leave dirty gear outside and keep a good separation between dirty/wet and clean/dry. All dirty/wet stuff gets placed in bins or hung outside and then placed on the back rack in bins.

If I had to do it all over again, I’d consider an EB van with a smaller “rear garage” for gear (paddles, caving gear, etc) to keep separation between living space and play space. I am still up in the air on having a fixed, “bombproof roof rack” versus the hullivator. When I am not hauling boards, I like to take all the cross bars / hullivator off the roof and store them in the garage to keep them out of the elements. I have heard of folks on the sprinter forums who have heavy duty roof racks develop roof leaks over time from walking on /weighting the rack on top of their vans.

An avid SUP boarder down in Florida has a pretty sweet Outside Van setup where he had a garage and full size roof rack installed on his van. I don’t have a lot of good pics of his interior, but here is the roof rack setup he has for his two SUPs:



Let me know if you have any other questions,

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