Popping my top

[Vegasrandall]

Everytime I read one of your new project articles I feel more sloth-like. Anybody else?

[arctictraveller]

Great thread with lots of good ideas. I like the drop down propane mount, to lower it you could carry a small battery powered drill, and it's usefull for a lot of other things too. What prevents the screws from loosening due to vibration?
I'm surprised about your 12v water heater though. Seems like it will draw a lot of current so obviously you would only run it while driving, that is unless you have a monster electrical system, but I didn't read the whole thread as I'm on the road with limited internet, so perhaps you do.
Otherwise, That's a good trick, drilling a hole through a no. 10 screw too. Finally, I just installed a sub between the seats, but I'm a bit baffled by all the possible adjustments, care to expand a bit on your design and settings? Thanks

[kstarrr]

Nice craftsmanship Boywonder!
I have a Savana cargo with windows and rear, floor mounted heater/ac unit that I'm trying to figure out how to convert. I'm on the fence as to whether I should install a fixed bed that goes above the ac/heater or set up a folding couch bed combo in between the wheel wells.
1)How wide is your lower combo when opened for sleeping?
2)Did you remove your ac/heater to accommodate driver side wheel well cabinet?
Thanks!

[boywonder]

Originally Posted by kstarrr

1)How wide is your lower combo when opened for sleeping?

My seat/bed is 39.5" wide......for a very important reason.....that's the width of the Penthouse rails to support a bed up in the Penthouse....I can move the support panels and cushions up top and sleep up there. Without that constraint, I would make the bed as wide as practical.

Originally Posted by kstarrr

2)Did you remove your ac/heater to accommodate driver side wheel well cabinet?
Thanks!

Nope...I love having the rear heat/AC.....many here would retrofit this into cargo vans if it wasn't such a big undertaking.

[boywonder]

Originally Posted by arctictraveller

Great thread with lots of good ideas. I like the drop down propane mount, to lower it you could carry a small battery powered drill, and it's usefull for a lot of other things too. What prevents the screws from loosening due to vibration?

Torque and locktite....same as a static propane tank mount.....

Originally Posted by arctictraveller

I'm surprised about your 12v water heater though. Seems like it will draw a lot of current so obviously you would only run it while driving, that is unless you have a monster electrical system, but I didn't read the whole thread as I'm on the road with limited internet, so perhaps you do.

I don't have a monster electrical system, so yes mostly run it when driving and maybe keep it on a bit in camp if it's already heated.....the 300W element draws about 25 amps. I need to further insulate the tank. Member 1der has a Kid solar controller...that has a nice feature that when your batteries are topped off it can divert the excess juice into a dummy load like a water heater element. I have a basic Samlex PWM controller...doing it again I would have considered the Kid Controller, and more solar panel watts.

If you are interested, here is the thread about converting the heater to 12V, with a few thermodynamic calcs, and a few thread derailments but ultimately some OK data....

http://sportsmobileforum.com/viewtopic. ... 2&start=15

Originally Posted by arctictraveller

Finally, I just installed a sub between the seats, but I'm a bit baffled by all the possible adjustments, care to expand a bit on your design and settings? Thanks

Are you referring to the adjustments in your head unit or power amp for subwoofer outputs?

The basic adjustment is the crossover frequency that you want the sub to stop outputting at and the main speakers to start outputting.....these don't have to be the same.....they are typically labeled LPF (low pass filter) for the sub and HPF (high pass filter) for the main speakers.

The sub setting is a low pass filter...the filter attenuates the sub output at the crossover freq....the crossover freq is not an absolute cutoff.....the sub still outputs above this freq with a slope of degrading volume, typically 6db/octave (1st order crossover) 12db/octave (2nd order), 24db/octave (4th order crossover) and so on.

The high pass filter works the same way but passes high freqs only....so the output of the main speakers will be attenuated below the crossover freq that you set at some slope...same as above depending on the order of the crossover.

For smaller subs (like 6"-8") you can choose a somewhat higher crossover point for the low pass filter like 125, 200 Hz etc.

Larger subs are typically crossed over at 63-80-100 Hz.....suit to taste...try to get a good blend of bass without the sub sticking out......volume-wise...unless you are into that sort of thing

There sometimes is a sub polarity setting...normal or reverse....again suit to taste. One of these typically provides more sub output than the other...this is sometimes used to tame room/cabinet resonance modes (bass boomyness)....and you may also have a sub output level setting....adjust this up and down to taste....it will be minimally impacted by bass/treble tone controls or other EQ settings typically.

[boywonder]

Originally Posted by Vegasrandall

Everytime I read one of your new project articles I feel more sloth-like. Anybody else?

I recently watched a nature show about sloths.....they get a bad rap!

[JWA]

Originally Posted by Vegasrandall

Everytime I read one of your new project articles I feel more sloth-like. Anybody else?

Don't read or follow along with any of MGMetalworks projects then!

Overall I've yet to adopt or "borrow" so many of the fantastic ideas here on SMB but that's only because I run cargo-only work vans, nothing related to camping etc. Still I'm able to see a similar idea I have being executed and most times re-thinking my design to the eventual improvement of the end result---at least in theory.

Most workable ideas here are elegantly simple and yet nearly perfect for their intended use.

Nice to be a part of SMB even as a lurker.

[boywonder]

Next up.....trimming out the passenger swivel seat base.

My van is a 2008, and as such has a SRS module under the passenger seat that I previously relocated to the swivel seat base. If I didn't have this module, I would have made the seat base trim a tray both front and rear. I ended up making a cover for the majority of the base with a small tray behind the seat. I will probably further beautify the base by adding some cherry trim around the tray portion to cover up seams.


I used 1/8" 6061-T6 aluminum plate for the bottom, and leftover 3/4" import birch for the sides. If I had leftover baltic 3/4" pieces I would have used that since the Chinese import birch veneers delaminate easy but the import stuff is lighter.





Covering with Nautilex Decko Dot




Covered and fuzzy trunk liner added to tray bottom




Bottom installed under seat






Top covers fabricated and installed. I would have preferred to cover the tops with the bumpy green nautilex decko dot but that material is not stretchable so it would not work with the rounded corners. The Sherry pleather is slightly stretchable and takes some work to get a clean rounded corner......a good example of a compromise based on what you've got to work with.....

[86Scotty]

[JWA]

Excellent adaptation to the RSC module---love the extinguisher nest.

Nice fit and finish too!