Fiberglass exterior reviews needed

[Lobster]

Stoke, my truck is a 1/2 ton Tundra with an 8' bed. I did add ride rite air bags and load E tires.
Tried to keep the weight down and centered as much as possible.
Ordered with fiberglass, silver spur int, roof struts.
I put 2 AGM golf cart batteries and water tank under front window.
Front dinette seating/spare bed. ARB fridge. Cabinet with sink. Water pump.
Inverter with charger. Solar on roof. I built a custom mount for propane under the truck. Horizontal tank.
My latest mod was 5 dog beds from Costco. Inch and a half memory foam. Fit perfectly under the not so comfortable bed.

 

[Stokeme]

Lobster1, after I get back in a week or two from a tent camp/fishing trip. I will PM to you. You have exactly what I am looking to do, even the fridge. I have No build skills though. But I have a buddy who is connected. Have you put up a build thread here on WTW? Thanks for your response.

 

[rilcombs]

Lobster,

As a fellow fiberglass owner I thought I should offer some insight.

I live in the PNW and drive a lot of overgrown forest roads. I keep the fiberglass washed + polished, and after two years have had zero issues cleaning it up like new. I have never had the aluminum since this is my first FWC, but no regrets at all.

No weathering to speak of thus far, but I do keep my truck/camper garaged. That was a large part of the reason to buy a pop-up camper in the first place!

Regarding upkeep, I think a coat of wax or 303 every so often does the trick. Also makes it easier to clean.

No idea on the condensation / insulation comparison. I can say that I have camped in Baja on the beach, and Black Rock City in the desert in pretty high temps. Never had much of an issue keeping relatively cool with a single Fantastic Fan late into the morning. Really helps to open up a tiedown access door (covered by an air filter in BRC).

Hope that's helpful!

 

[Lobster]

Rilcombs,
thanks for the advice. I was thinking about waxing it soon. Unfortunately, it will have to come off the truck at the end of the month. I'm having some 14 gauge stainless bent into Z shape to hold my table under the overhang. I've got enough clearance and like a place for everything, everything in its place. The camper will winter ( embarrassed to use that term in So. Cal) in the garage. Wife retires end of the year. When lobster season ends (march) we will really get to hit the road and 'wander the west'.

Jim

 

[Stokeme]

rilcombs ..... thanks for your feedback after 2 years of fiberglass use. Glass appeals to me unless longevity is an issue. Can't wait to start driving my tent around!
Anymore fiberglass testimonials?

 

[Bombsight]

Well, surfboards are MUCH thinner in construction, taking much more abuse and we are still riding them (without them being water logged) built in the '60s .... so I can't see where longevity would even be considered.

 

[Roaming_Eagle]

Coming from a sailboat background, the years I've spent on fiberglass buffing and polishing the stuff holds up well. I bought my aluminum side Eagle from a guy who stored for just a year in Ocean Beach CA the paint has blistered and fallen off and I have holes in the roof from aluminum pitting. Wish I had fiberglass.

 

[Bill D]

Coming from a sailboat background, the years I've spent on fiberglass buffing and polishing the stuff holds up well. I bought my aluminum side Eagle from a guy who stored for just a year in Ocean Beach CA the paint has blistered and fallen off and I have holes in the roof from aluminum pitting. Wish I had fiberglass.

Do you have any pics of the pitting? I want to see if it is similar to what I am experiencing with my Hawk.

 

[Old Crow]

Please forgive me if I go astray here but this is my understanding of the fiberglass siding option on an FWC unit. Please note that I don't have any direct experience with fiberglass RV siding--- I'm just reading the internet and jumping to conclusions . If you see something incorrect, please don't hesitate to point it out.

- 'Fiberglass' in this case refers to a thin layer (about 1/16") of Filon-brand fiberglass-reinforced plastic (FRP) over 1/8" lauan plywood. I say this because of this Truck Camper Magazine article where Tom Hanagan says "We use a premium grade of Filon, laminated to a mahogany type plywood.."
(about halfway down the article) and then following that up with some searches for Filon.

- There are multiple grades of Filon and multiple grades of lauan plywood. I'd love to know exactly what product FWC uses as we see several interesting possibilities here at Crane Composites (the trademark holder of Filon). In any case, reading through the Technical Data Sheets give us some clues as to why there can be failures of the product--- such as gluing the FRP to a substrate with a higher than 12% moisture content, adding dark-colored paints or decals, or using a heat-gun to remove decals. Crane attempts to control the likelihood of warranty claims by requiring pre-approval of the substrate and paints. (Note: I'm not sure FWC is using Crane Composite's Filon, by the way. The term is capitalized in that quote above but the term 'filon' is also used more generically in some contexts.)

- It's easy to find reports of delamination of Filon panels on the web. It's an industry practice to laminate Filon to a lauan plywood for sidewalls and a cardboard-like product called Unicore where curved panels are required. This article explains the issue. I don't believe FWC uses any Unicore-- they don't need to --and Tom specifically calls the substrate a mahogany type plywood (which I take it means lauan).

- I'm guessing but I think FWC glues the Filon/lauan panels to the frame of the campers. If they were mechanically fastened, I'd think we'd see external evidence of it. That would also explain why they say its more difficult to repair. (Can anyone confirm?)

- A post above suggests it would be nice to have a fiberglass roof. I believe FWC fiberglass-sided units have the same aluminum roof as an aluminum-sided one. (Yes?)

I wouldn't hesitate to order a new FWC unit with fiberglass siding. For used, I'd be looking for delamination and would be hesitant to take a unit with evidence of water leaks or a moldy smell inside... just as I would be for an aluminum-sided unit.