Conversion of Canvas top to Hard walls

[FloresSierra]

This is a Frankenstein style question, has anyone if ever considered gutting the canvas material and framing actual walls on their camper?
Is that even possible? Keeping the same height, roof, and possibly changing the design of the front end?
Ive had this thought for a long time, after messing around with the idea of deleting my right hand windows.

Thank you for entertaining the crazy ideas

 

[DavidGraves]

Howdy
Crazy ideas can also be creative.

Do you have in mind retaining the fold down feature ?

There were many "hard sided" pop up campers.

David Graves

 

[FloresSierra]

I didn’t even think of that that’s another great idea!
I’ll have to look into the hard pop ups to get some inspiration

Originally i thought of simply framing hard walls with aluminum framing or another light metal, i even considered wood framing although the concept of making it that top heavy worries me

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

This is a Frankenstein style question, has anyone if ever considered gutting the canvas material and framing actual walls on their camper?
Is that even possible? Keeping the same height, roof, and possibly changing the design of the front end?
Ive had this thought for a long time, after messing around with the idea of deleting my right hand windows.

Thank you for entertaining the crazy ideas

Welcome to the cult. All ideas are crazy at some point and time. You could get some how-to help from either ATC/FWC .
I would think having the hard side walls as a pop up might be a stretch.
Who knows,you might be on to something.

Good luck with your project.
Frank

 

[Ted]

I believe Alaskan campers are hard sided popups. You could check them out for inspiration. Otherwise, I would consider just selling the FWC and buying a used hard sided camper. The FWCs hold their value well, so you could probably sell it for more than what a hard sided camper of similar age would cost.

 

[camelracer]

There's a woman here in Goleta that has a FWC with hard walls instead of fabric. She said she needed the fabric replaced and found someone to do the conversion. It looks like it was well done but she lost the low profile of the pop up camper. I see this camper often at the beach and will get a picture next time I see it.

 

[ski3pin]

FWC, for awhile, offered their campers in a hard side version.

 

[57Pan]

Checkout Hiatus Campers for a pop up hardside camper idea.

 

[ckent323]

57pan,

Thanks for posting the reference to Hiatus Campers. I just sent them an email asking if they can replace the pop-up portion of my FWC camper with their hard side pop up top.

The rigid, composite panels they use for the folding walls are made out of fiberglass and plastic. These are by nature waterproof. The core of these panels has a closed-cell foam that has high insulative properties.

I anxiously await their response.

I am motivated by the following.

Our 2007 FWC Keystone has one plastic window in the pop up sideliner portion that has aged, embrittled and cracked. I contacted FWC about repair/replacement of the window and they replied that do not replace just the clear windows on the sideliner, the cost to replace the sideliner is $5572.00 and since one of my front plywood panel is degraded they recommend replacing both of the folding panels, if I replace the folding panels with the sideliner I would not pay any labor for removing and installing the end panels, only the parts. The cost for the two end panels is $1200.00.

Bottom line, a new sideliner with two new end panels installed would cost $6772 plus tax.

I do not know how much the cost is to replace just the end panels since the labor is buried in the sideliner replacement.

I could simply bond a piece of clear vinyl repair material over the cracked window, which won't look great but will solve the problem cheaply and then pay for installation of new lift panels which I will estimate at 2x the cost of the panels themselves which would be $2400.

It will be interesting to find out if Hiatus Campers can create a hard sided pop up retrofit and how that cost will compare (assuming they would do it).


I will post what I learn here.

 

[BBZ]

Checkout Hiatus Campers for a pop up hardside camper idea.

another overpriced truck shell with a place to sleep.. wow.. pricey!

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

57pan,

Thanks for posting the reference to Hiatus Campers. I just sent them an email asking if they can replace the pop-up portion of my FWC camper with their hard side pop up top.

The rigid, composite panels they use for the folding walls are made out of fiberglass and plastic. These are by nature waterproof. The core of these panels has a closed-cell foam that has high insulative properties.

I anxiously await their response.

I am motivated by the following.

Our 2007 FWC Keystone has one plastic window in the pop up sideliner portion that has aged, embrittled and cracked. I contacted FWC about repair/replacement of the window and they replied that do not replace just the clear windows on the sideliner, the cost to replace the sideliner is $5572.00 and since one of my front plywood panel is degraded they recommend replacing both of the folding panels, if I replace the folding panels with the sideliner I would not pay any labor for removing and installing the end panels, only the parts. The cost for the two end panels is $1200.00.

Bottom line, a new sideliner with two new end panels installed would cost $6772 plus tax.

I do not know how much the cost is to replace just the end panels since the labor is buried in the sideliner replacement.

I could simply bond a piece of clear vinyl repair material over the cracked window, which won't look great but will solve the problem cheaply and then pay for installation of new lift panels which I will estimate at 2x the cost of the panels themselves which would be $2400.

It will be interesting to find out if Hiatus Campers can create a hard sided pop up retrofit and how that cost will compare (assuming they would do it).


I will post what I learn here.

Have you talked to Marty at ATC? I know he works on FWC campers just not sure the years.
That's a lot of bucks,WOW.
Frank

 

[ckent323]

Frank,

I plan to check with ATC. I would be glad to get rid of the plywood end panels. I don't know if ATC does the stitching required for the interior sideliner window flaps, I need to find out. I strongly prefer the interior flaps.

Thanks for the suggestion/remoinder.

Craig

 

[ramblinChet]

Craig, you may also wish to stop by a nearby sailmaker for a quote. I would not mention what FWC estimated. They have many materials available and they would have no problem with the size.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Craig, I think you will be pleasantly surprised when you talk to Marty @ ATC. They still use ply for the lifting boards, but you got 16 years out of the originals.

 

[FloresSierra]

I originally called as well and your right about the price, its insane. You can buy a used one for that amount. They recommended I also replace the roof material and for entertainment I asked the price. Well over $9000 for lifting panels, canvas replacement, and roof. So im getting my hands dirty and as of now I began the process of replacing the panels. I work for a sprinter van conversion company and I have the tools to get the job done myself.

Update on the build. I replaced the cabover platform. It was completely rotted from water. My own negligence of not inspecting it originally and choosing to not take everything apart made the problem worse. The rot and mold was unbelievable. But today i demoed everything and began the process to install a new platform.

 

[kmcintyre]

A few thoughts.

I had ATC replace my vinyl at one point on my older Eagle. Did great work, quickly too.

The one thing to consider is how the windows and flaps are done now. I had issues w/ the seams on the ATC (this was 10 years ago) around the windows channeling water along the seams and into the camper. I sealed everything over time trying to figure out how water was getting in... eventually I figured it out. They might have changed the design now and the design they were using with external window flaps was nice since you don't use them that often but you do have to plan ahead if you suspect bad weather. The old style was permanently attached on the top seam and you'd just roll them down. The new ones had all 4 sides w/ velcro.

Since we were replacing the vinyl due to the old velcro deteriorating and other age related issues, we replaced the push boards too. Easy at the time.

I always thought it'd be a good design if they had everything "modular" so you could replace the windows, velcro, etc. as individual components (and no sewn).

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

I originally called as well and your right about the price, its insane. You can buy a used one for that amount. They recommended I also replace the roof material and for entertainment I asked the price. Well over $9000 for lifting panels, canvas replacement, and roof. So im getting my hands dirty and as of now I began the process of replacing the panels. I work for a sprinter van conversion company and I have the tools to get the job done myself.

Update on the build. I replaced the cabover platform. It was completely rotted from water. My own negligence of not inspecting it originally and choosing to not take everything apart made the problem worse. The rot and mold was unbelievable. But today i demoed everything and began the process to install a new platform.

Welcome to the cult.
When you have a chance post some photos of your job.
They would be helpful to other members.
Frank

 

[ckent323]

57pan, et. al.,

I contacted Hiatus Campers about replacing the sidewalls of my camper with their fold up solid sidewalls.
Not surprisingly they politely replied as follows:


Unfortunately we don't offer the service to retrofit our pop tops on another company's lower unit. Since we wouldn't know the construction of the other frame, there wouldn't be a way for us to tell if it could handle the additional weight (our frames/walls are a lot heavier than the canvas pop tops). We wouldn't feel comfortable taking on a project like this, mostly due to liability concerns with loading a frame that might not be able to handle it. It is our top most priority to keep our customers safe as well as providing a product that is well built.

Sorry we can't be of more help at this time!

Best,

Erin"


However, for the DIY crowd their fold up hard side approach is intriguing. Probably not for me due to the design and engineering time needed but someone younger may be interested doing a DIY fold up hard side retrofit to their Aluminum framed FWC or ATC camper.

;-)


I hope this is helpful,

Craig