Custom build - 1982 grandby ghost

I forgot how time consuming layer fiberglass layups are... and I'm a decade older than last time probably. Eeek! Well I put down 2 layers of 3.2oz glass and a later of peel ply over the exterior side of the cabover bottom. I'll probably suck it up and do a layer of glass over the interior surface but I'm only gonna do a single layer and call it good. For the exterior of the floor pack it has me debating just glassing the joints and epoxy coating the rest or sucking it up and doing a layer of glass over the whole thing (I am really not motivated to do two layers after the layup today...). A coat of epoxy is far less time consuming than glassing and working out the air, wrinkles, etc.

Doesn't look like much but here is that work. The skim layer over the nail holes/joints and also along the scarf I had wood flour mixed into the epoxy so that is where all the brown coloring is coming from. It'll get trimmed up after curing.

Vic Harder said:

ooh, sux about the hail. Nice work on the cabover bottom. Insulation is a VERY good idea. Remind me where the room is coming from to beef up the cabover section so much? You added C-Channel to make it "thicker/deeper?"

Click to expand...

At the moment I've already got (3) 1"x1" box tubes stacked and welded on the current C channel so there is 3" right there which accounts for the thicker and topside support of deeper, the bottom side support of the deeper is this 2" thick cabover bottom I'm making right now which is obviously substantially more stiff than 3/4" ply. I have the option to stack additional 1"x1" box tube up until I side the thing so I can add more depth if desired still.

That sounds VERY sturdy.

When you are camping out of state for the weekend and your across the street neighbor tells you the carport is in the next door neighbors yard…

Called a buddy to retrieve the parts and tarp it off till I get home. Good lord.

Camper should be fine, was a wind blast without rain but I wanted it covered in case of rain since the floorpack isn’t all sealed off yet.

Shocked the wind lifted that closed carport over a 6’ fence in one piece (vs partial and just folding it over). Normally my trailer is shielding it from the front but still impressive (in an unfortunate way). More weight on anchoring in the future!

wow

Home and got a replacement carport up, this time I have 8x70lb sand bags tied to the 8 vertical posts! (I had some concrete blocks on some perimeter boards, I removed some for squeezing that layup pictured earlier and also the wind bucking likely knocked the rest off).

The whole thing was rather bizarre and would have been interesting to witness as it was over into the neighbors yard in one piece generally speaking, it was bent and torn some but not like I'd have expected all considered, I'm shocked it didn't buckle going over the fence, damage the fence, etc. As noted I had the feet screwed into boards running the length of it which is likely why it stayed together vs folding.

Adding to the head scratching a ladder and buck folding pocket knife were on my side driveway (where this is) and introduced themselves into the mystery. They aren't the neighbors nor my buddies, etc. I'm not sure if someone showed up and tried to cut the canopy free or something. At the moment no one knows.

I've gotten a layer of epoxy and fiberglass cloth on the bottom and also the opposite side from this picture. I was gonna do the side shown in this picture to wrap things up with the fiberglass but its mid 90s here right now and I didn't want to fight the set time. I cut the wood stringers and coated the backsides in epoxy and let that cure prior to stapling down with construction adhesive. I want the slats to technically be able to pry bar off if ever needed without ripping the wood/glass off the main bottom, that is why I didn't epoxy them down. I'll brush epoxy over these too prior to top coating just to seal them up well too.

I have some good two part coatings left from the attempt at the composite camper build but I was worried they were too old. After tracking down some "good" solvent (thanks Colorado for banning easy access to things needed to work with two part coatings...) I tested out the high solids 2 part epoxy primer and also a tinted 2 part bedliner coating. The portions with solids in each respective coating took some stirring to reincorporate them after sitting for years but everything seemed to mix and react appropriately to set up.