A New Baby!

[craig333]

In that vein, dont forget to close the vent and the windows first also. And, roll down the flaps first. Don't forget to shut off the propane. Of course I still forget. Especially when its raining and you want to get going.

 

[mtn-high]

The first outing went well. A few paint fumes had to be exhausted here/there from the newness of it all...but everything works and I'm happy with what we ended up with as a "start". Like many others...we can see doing "something" different with the couch/bed set up @ some point in time. My son rolled over on that "back" cushion and said "WTF? Why is this part of the bed hard as a rock?"

I wanted to laugh, but held it back. (if you have teenagers you know what I mean)

Also impressed with the Tundra/supersprings/camper trilogy. A few clunks here/there as the springs bounce on speedbumps/etc..but no noticable sag/sway....and on my first 2 tanks I have averaged 17.2 mpg...all of which has been mountain driving above about 5K and most above 7K elevation. Keeping yer foot out of it definitely helps.... and I have to thank LQhikers here for the "slow down..the journey is the adventure" (if paraphrased, I apologize, lq) tag because many times I looked at the speedometer...was going right under the limit...and just held my ground as the rest of the chowderheads sped by me @ much higher speeds/sucking up more fuel than even I was with my dog-gone mini-house on my back.....

and she's rain-proof. No leaks. We deinitely got dumpeed on a few times over the weekend and stayed dry/warm.

I'm officially spoiled.

mtn

 

[DLN]

m-h,

Glad to here you enjoyed the camper so much, and yes, spoiled we are. I think that smell you're noticing is in the wood and vinyl and is present in every new camper. I've aired ours out constantly for the last 2 years and it's finally gone. Also, it's fairly novel to see clouds in the mountains since we've hardly seen any rain this summer. Thanks for the pix.

Going back to your thoughts on the photo-vinyl interior, I felt the same way about the fake wood and really still do but have just let go for now. The camper seems too new to be ripping it apart (any more than I already have). If it was a beater and needed renovation I'd be glad to replace the interior finish.

 

[mtn-high]

Nope..it was the smell of the new heater when I clicked it on Sat AM.... and the smell of the paint burning off the refrigerator guts/etc. that I'm referencing, DLN. Unmistakable..toxic smelling stuff. I left it on..hit the Fan in high..and ran.....but it still had the smell Sun AM when we hit oit again briefly. No biggie..just gonna have to air it out on a warmer day for an extended period and let it fully cure.

Nah..not gonna tear into the interior walls to re-do 'em here. The "white" is better (IMO) than the photo vinyl...and I've already decided to cover a bunch of spots with Velcro so I can affix things to the walls/etc. in camp and that will cover up a bit of it. The rest..well..the wife has an idea.

Enough said...huh?

We do have an idea for the couch that I've yet seen anyone try. Gotta dig a bit deeper on this...but it could be a fairly easy mod if my eyes are seeing this correctly. Boy...if only I had access to my dad's machine shop nearby...

speaking of...is anyone here a machinist/own a machine shop/have a CNC machine?

more as we go and learn......

mtn

 

[DLN]

Yes, I forgot about the run in on the heater and don't really remember any on fridge, but glad you got it done. Now it's time to camp, camp, camp.

 

[mtn-high]

A couple of early AM shots....taken @ Water Canyon campground west of Socorro, NM.

coffee, anyone?

 

[mtn-high]

After almost 3 months and a few trips under our belt I thought I'd toss in a small update about a minor modification we made.

From the first night out...my son...regulated to sleeping on the flip-down bed/couch, complained about the difference in the densities of the foam used (or it's the frame in the couch back) as well as the fact that the ledge by the window was wasted space he wished he had and that it was damn hard when you rolled over into it. In general, he hasn't sleep very well in the FWC and it's made for a few grumpy days...thus *something* had to be done...

On top of that, the design just plain sucks as a couch or a seat. LOTS of camper room is obviously wasted as the couch back is a foot from the window. You know the drill!

Lots of "fixes" were tossed around...most of which conflicted with something else in the camper or didn't offer more sleeping space. When it's just the wife and I we will probably rip the entire couch out and bolt in some captain's chairs (LOL)....

In the end we figured out what might be a good fix/sacrifice and I found a place here in CO on the Net that makes custom foam pads in zippered covers. I bought 2 pads...the first is 22" wide x 76.5" long x 2.5" thick. This goes on the couch seat and raises the foam to the same level of the carpeted ledge by the window. The second pad is 34 x 76.5 x 2" and goes over the top of the two lower pads. This offers a full 34" wide x 76+ sleeping area on the lower bed and makes the etire surface one density of foam.

We sacrificed any "seating"...but we bought a few throw pillows and decided that don't mind sitting cross-legged or lounging out on the bed and by doing so no one's legs are in the teeny-tiny aisle....

the other benefit...without the couch back I CAN SEE TO BACK UP out the sliding window/the large passenger window on the side of the camper... something I'm AGAIN glad I went with over the smaller window in the newer units.

The other minor mod (sorry Stan) was to remover the HUGE FWC sticker from the rear door before things faded and it left a permanent mark. I would entertain a smaller sticker..but that thing was huge and the wife wanted it gone. You can see what I put in it's place....

 

[craig333]

I've put some stickers on mine, and the only one that still looks new? The FWC stickers. They use some good stuff for those.

 

[mtn-high]

After a few knocked knees and sore backs from lifting dogs, we found this

http://www.ottostep.com/

This unit is made from a sturdy plastic and is rated for 200 pounds. I'm 190'ish and while it flexes a bit if you don't step directly in the center/middle of the step, it feel sturdy under foot. The entire top surface is covered in "grip tape" like a skateboard deck so there's no chance of slipping off.

$70 or so....and of course, the dogs love it!

mtn

 

[mtn-high]

Heya folks.

We've had about 15 nights in the camper by now.... most of which were uneventful....

however, Saturday night was an exception. We had cruised south again to socorro, NM to see our son and had positioned ourselves on a small bluff above an area known as "Box Canyon" (BLM land). The wind was blowing fairly hard and steady when we arrived @ about 8Pm.(20-25 or so)..but soon after that it intensified...and intensified..and intensified. This wind was incredibly strong with some major gust thrown in and it lasted all night long. I had no way to measure it but the wife and I both guessed 50 mph with gusts somewhere above that.

All I know is that the 4-door Tundra and the Hawk were being tossed around fairly good for the majority of the night and there are times where I found myself holding onto the lift mechanism above the bed and seriously wondering if I'd be hearing the solar panel... or worse... the top of the camper being ripped off. Believe me..this was a severe test for the FWC Hawk! About 3 AM I got up and opened the two rear windows slightly to allow the wind to cruise through rather than buffet the dside of the tenting. This seemed to work a bit. Fortunately it was about 50 degrees outside/not-too-cold.

definitely a memorable night....

mtn