So last weekend I acquired a 1988 Fleet that needed a lot of TLC. My wife and I decided fairly recently that we wanted a FWC and a couple weeks later this gem popped up for sale so we jumped. Probably paid too much for it knowing how much it needed but didn't want to wait around forever and ski season is already here and we need a place for our almost 2 year old to take a nap while one of us makes some turns. Now that I've torn into it, I figure I've paid $900 for the aluminum frame and windows as that's probably all I intend to keep original.
We spared no time tearing into it. Plans are to make a new floor pack that fits the Tundra Crewmax. This will make for about 5.5" more headroom and about a foot wider footprint before and cabinetry, etc. Also plan on re-siding using 0.025" aluminum. Interior panels will be fabric covered plywood and loncoin flooring.
I plan on a running a fairly bare-bones electrical system with a few LED lights and a new Fan-Tastic fan. Heating will be done by a Wave-6 to make things simple and not draw any of the electrical power. My thoughts are to install a flush mount sink with a 7 gallon aqua-tainer for water storage as it's cheap and replaceable if for some reason it gets nasty. Still haven't decided if I want an electric water pump or just put a foot pump in.
The purchase price included a really awesome old school Singer sewing machine as well as new popup material and clear window material. After a lot of himming and hawing we decided that sewing up our own popup wasn't time conducive. In the end we found the best option for us was to have ATC fabricate the new popup for us. This would guarantee us a quality, dry canvas and ATC was about $1,100 less than FWC. For reference, ATC is charging $1,050 for the canvas plus $495 for the arctic pack. FWC wants $2,200-2,400 and the camper is required to be at their facility.
Another idea is to make a pullout bed like the newer models. I'm thinking this will take a bit of reinforcing for this older model's frame. One question I have is: how are the pullout beds constructed? Are they simply a plywood pullout on top of the cabover that slides out? I've trying looking to find picture of how FWC constructs the pullout bed with no luck. I'd love some pics of the bed without cushions both tucked in and pulled out if someone can help!
The other question I have is the front bulb seal between the roof and the cabover that is used on the newer models. Does someone have a source for this seal?
We spared no time tearing into it. Plans are to make a new floor pack that fits the Tundra Crewmax. This will make for about 5.5" more headroom and about a foot wider footprint before and cabinetry, etc. Also plan on re-siding using 0.025" aluminum. Interior panels will be fabric covered plywood and loncoin flooring.
I plan on a running a fairly bare-bones electrical system with a few LED lights and a new Fan-Tastic fan. Heating will be done by a Wave-6 to make things simple and not draw any of the electrical power. My thoughts are to install a flush mount sink with a 7 gallon aqua-tainer for water storage as it's cheap and replaceable if for some reason it gets nasty. Still haven't decided if I want an electric water pump or just put a foot pump in.
The purchase price included a really awesome old school Singer sewing machine as well as new popup material and clear window material. After a lot of himming and hawing we decided that sewing up our own popup wasn't time conducive. In the end we found the best option for us was to have ATC fabricate the new popup for us. This would guarantee us a quality, dry canvas and ATC was about $1,100 less than FWC. For reference, ATC is charging $1,050 for the canvas plus $495 for the arctic pack. FWC wants $2,200-2,400 and the camper is required to be at their facility.
Another idea is to make a pullout bed like the newer models. I'm thinking this will take a bit of reinforcing for this older model's frame. One question I have is: how are the pullout beds constructed? Are they simply a plywood pullout on top of the cabover that slides out? I've trying looking to find picture of how FWC constructs the pullout bed with no luck. I'd love some pics of the bed without cushions both tucked in and pulled out if someone can help!
The other question I have is the front bulb seal between the roof and the cabover that is used on the newer models. Does someone have a source for this seal?
