Flat bed side door entry-Dream camper

[hangster]

I would go to an event in arizona..
I'll look for you, you'll be easy to spot.

 

[SER]

With regards to cost. As we know they rise periodically with all the brands.

The NEW base cost of an Alaskan is about 2000$ more than a Four Wheel. Built quite a bit differently with different standard features. Dry weight comparing the Hawk Flat bed with the 7' AK Flat bed cab over..the AK is about 200# heavier. But the wet weight and adding all the extras changes of course to whatever you add on. I didn't have trouble with the push up panels on my Granby, but some folks did...So, I really like the electric hydraulic lift. It makes a difference. Some people I camp with have old injuries and we may not stay as strong as we get older.

For this new Flat bed I paid a little extra for my special design and build out. But I was able to save in doing some of the work myself.(solar and batteries wiring).

I think this one fits my wants and so far, only having it 2 months and camping in it over 2 weeks,I hope its my last. I know AK campers last and keep value.

 

[SER]

Thanks for the comments, nice info and link to SA AK camper blog. A great read. A little update testing the tilt factor and showing a beautiful trip to Bosque in NM. We camped near the Refuge on BLM land and it was a bit chilly in the morning (~20F). The solar, heater, insulated curtains, did the job. No condensation. It was pleasant waking up turning on the heater from bed and making coffee before daylight in order to see thousands of snow geese and sand hill cranes burst out for their morning flight.
It's now a couple weeks after Bosque trip and the last of the electronic gadget installs was the Morningstar pure sine inverter 300 W. Solid state and no fan noise. I had to mount it upside down in order to fit in the cabinet and so the wires would flow easily to their end spot. All went well and for the next trip it will be much easier charging the camera equipment.

 

[Wango]

Put me in the fan club as well. Looked at Alaskan campers for a long time, before I went the way I did. Had this been an option, I might have gone in a different direction. Very cool rig you got there.

 

[Rusty]

I like too....

nothing tells more about an owner than tidy electrical work....well done....I hate smoke tests...voluntary or involuntary

 

[Happyjax]

That's a really fine rig ya got there 2nd the nice wiring job

 

[Captm]

Very nice build! I have a few questions if you will. How is the camper mounted to the flatbed? How are the solar panels mounted? Does the alternator charge the house batteries? How is the storage under the seats accessed? I notice that the overhead storage and the galley drawers do not have a positive latch system, have you found this to be a problem?
Love your choice of Lifeline batteries.
Cheers!

 

[SER]

Thanks for the comments and the Lifelines have been doing the job. It has been 20 degrees a few nights. Here are some photos to help answer the questions. AK camper bolted to the flat bed(4- 3/8 bolts) seems to be sturdy enough. I have been checking them and still tight and staying put after 5k miles on pavement and rough roads mix. The floor is insulated with 2" foam/plywood. There are 4 strips of wood across the bed spread under the camper floor to let air and water flow out.

The solar panels are mounted with homemade brackets and it was done at the factory. I sent my panels up to Bryan so they could mount on studs while building the roof. The also drilled the hole for me to run the wires to my batteries, which I provided.

The truck alternator does charge the camper batteries when running. AK has this standard set up with an converter IOTA 45 amp internal IQ4. It is rare that I even worry about the truck charger the system. Even on 3 cloudy days and not moving using heater, fridge the batteries haven't gone below 90%.

Storage under the seats have a side hatch and the one that has the hydraulic pump has a front door and side. Easy peesy and alot of room. The other under seat has less room because the furnace duct work, propane box fill most of it. More storage behind the seats when they are in upright position(great for the pillows and snap in blackout warm window curtains).

The overhead drawers have a spring loaded hinge that keeps the doors in the down position. They are tough and we have not had any problem with them opening. You have to pull them up to open. Also the bins are bigger than they look. Huge we have more space than we know what to with so far so good.

 

[SER]

the solar panels and mount pics

 

[SER]

Shelf and storage above battery compartment, 110 outlet with on/off switch to inverter, and truck (wires could be bigger, but so far the time to charge hasn't mattered).

 

[Captm]

Thanks for the reply and pic's! Now that you have been able to spend a bit of time with your camper have you any mods in mind?
Cheers!

 

[SER]

Everything so far with regard to the AK camper for size and function is great, especially now with the solar and inverter dialed in.

On an AK as you know there is no screen door. I have sewn up a screen that hangs on a rod that pops in the doorway. It has been colder on our trips so far and nothing has been flying in yet, so we will see if this idea works later. It may not be a good design to keep out skeeters if we are in the Yukon. Altho I am not sure there are any of those. Thought of a snap in type screen, but the draw back is: If we go in and out a bunch. We are mostly out so I hope the hanging with rod/velcro type of screen works.

Another outside thing is I am going to put a storage box on the back of the truck. It won't bolt to the camper, but secure it with a bracket in the back stake pockets of the flatbed and bolt it to the camper corner jack mounting brackets. 60" wide(so not to block propane access) 12' deep (wont stick out rear of truck much) 17' tall (so doesn't interfere with the top going up/down). It can hold our outdoor table/kitchen, pack rafts, extra water or fuel or more stuff. I did install another receiver hitch in the front to hold our Mtn. bikes and/or ?. In case we are in full gear mode(storage box in back and bikes in front). The tool box will be removable like the bike rack in case we don't need more stuff for short trips.
Super fun getting out and about thanks for the encouragement and replys. I will send pics when it is together.

Salud!

 

[jackattack]

This has really piqued my interest. I think Alaskan could really capitalize on this market.

I may have missed it, but can you remove the camper? I don't see any jacks or tie-down points.

 

[SER]

Yes I can remove the camper. I take the jacks( rieco titan) off when travelling. They are out of the way for rougher dirt roads, hitting rocks and ditches and smoother driving. I feel it creates less drag and weight, and maybe equals better gas mileage. The camper is bolted down through the 2" insulated floor to the flat bed with bolts in each 4 corners. So far all is staying strong, tight and stable. Bryan felt very comfortable in this method of securing. I check every so often on bolts, the same you would do with turn buckles. Here is a pic of corner brackets. I'm going to make extension plates for ease of backing under the camper to put on flatbed. Also here is a pic of bolt in cabinet storage area. All the bolts are easy enough to access under the bed and in the cabinets to remove camper if need be.

 

[David Gendron]

Really nice camper, I won't comment not he truck lol, I'm a diesel fan. If I could afford a new Alaskan, I would get one made like with a similar layout with he side door and the back dinette, make a lot of sense!! It would need to be a bit larger than 7' but some thing like 9' would be great!! I also leave the jacks at home when the camper is on the truck, takes only a few minutes to take off and put on and don't need them while on the road!

Really nice set up you have there. If you ever drive through the Yukon on your way somewhere let me know, we live in Whitehorse!!

Cheers

 

[SER]

AK campers is bringing the second flatbed ever made by AK to the Overland Expo in Flagstaff. It will be a 8 1/2 ft long on his truck. Mine is 7 ft. His flatbed was made by Protech a great aluminum company for boxes and beds. I couldn't afford one so we made our own here with steel but it was still a light weight design with protech boxes. Their boxes are made well and seal well.

Aww yes diesel was in our thoughts, liked it for sure... but a long story short after talking to diesel mechanics and I don't tow heavy things, no need to rush, and we may put the truck on a boat to somewhere where diesel is like chicken grease, I choose a gasser. lol

An update: with regards to rain/water. I have not had any water get in while driving through rain and snow at highway speeds. What has occurred is bug splatter(as usual) on the outside of the cabover. When it is on the sides(see pics) and you raise it up to make the overhead bed it sticks and is on the inside when bed is made. I wipe off the bug splatter (easy) now that it is on the inside and all ok.

I choose to have as few as possible outside storage cutouts. So the camper is well insulated for cold or hot weather camping. We use a solar shower. There are 2 outside access doors with a little room in the fridge and propane bottle areas. I am going to build a bracket and bolt an outside tool box in the rear that will be removable. It can hold more stuff, extra fuel, water, folding stairs, inflatable kayaks, long items etc. If I had a longer truck the under bed tool boxes would be longer and hold the folding stairs. I also installed a front receiver hitch so we can put the mtn. bikes on front or back. There is more than enuf storage for us with the camper and boxes under the flatbed to get all outside items in their place when we plan a long trip taking it all.

Love the Yukon and Whitehorse area maybe next year. We were up in the are and on the Tatshensheni July 2017.