Low Cost Mods

[ETAV8R]

I'm a little slow at times so pardon me if you all already figured this out, but the bungee cord that must be stretched between the window coverings when you take the top down, also fits nicely across the back panels. I put a roll of paper towels up there and use some of those cheap carabiners to hold other stuff. That's about as cheap as it gets!

Too friggen awesome and simple. Definitely will be doing this on the next trip. Probably either hang a roll of TP or to dry towels after a soak if I don't want to leave it outside.

 

[munchmeister]

Continuing with the cheapest mods, I bought one of the relatively expensive speaker stand jacks to use in pushing up the top. Works well for this old dude and has been discussed in other threads here on WTW. My mod is simply to store the jack by placing it between the side benches on my Raven shell and cranking it out enough to press it-- and secure it-- between the sides. I do this to secure my gear boxes from sliding and it also secures the jack. Double duty. For free.

 

[PackRat]

I'm sure its been covered before but....nothing like having a handful of "footman loops" around the garage. You can probably find more than a few uses for them to secure things and using a canvas strap with a friction clasp on the end will work or you can go with a bungee cord. Especially handy if you have a cargo flat behind the truck plugged into your 2" receiver hitch. You can secure the cargo inside a waterproof cover and adjust to whatever size "cargo" you are hauling back there.

For those seeking a way to secure a sunshade over the side or the rear of the truck, you might be able to secure straps to the truck bed that way also.

They come in a couple different widths and the space/height for feeding a strap or two also.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

I'm sure its been covered before but....nothing like having a handful of "footman loops" around the garage. You can probably find more than a few uses for them to secure things and using a canvas strap with a friction clasp on the end will work or you can go with a bungee cord. Especially handy if you have a cargo flat behind the truck plugged into your 2" receiver hitch. You can secure the cargo inside a waterproof cover and adjust to whatever size "cargo" you are hauling back there.

For those seeking a way to secure a sunshade over the side or the rear of the truck, you might be able to secure straps to the truck bed that way also.

They come in a couple different widths and the space/height for feeding a strap or two also.

If you can’t find them locally, these folks are great! https://www.strapworks.com/default.asp

In Eugene, Oregon

 

[craig333]

Added an Axe to the camper. Well the axe itself might not be low cost the quick fist clamps count. Went with the fiskar for price, polymer handle (wood doesn't too well exposed) and price. I thought about the $200 scandinavian axe but I don't want to cry if its stolen. Besides it won't get used that much most likely.




I've always hated putting a plate in my lap, no longer.


This one qualifies if you don't count shipping.

 

[PackRat]

Maybe you have one of those 4' x 18" collapsible tables or something like that in your camping kit? Maybe when you have finished prepping the meal or cooking on it or doing the dishes or anything like that, your back is sore from bending over and you miss your Barcalounger beside the campfire?

Here is a tip... won't work for ALL collapsible tables but it would for many with round legs....you have to check yours out.
Measure the diameter of the legs....probably around 3/4" or 7/8" or so.
Set it up and stack up some boxes or books to get a good idea how tall you'd REALLY like that table to be.
Measure the height of the pile to achieve that.
Go to Home Depot and buy some PVC pipe in a diameter big enough to fit over the leg up to where it bends.
Make four of those lengths and if you want, glue on some end caps so they won't sink in some soft/muddy soil and make the table tippy.
Cut to the right length.
Set up the table, lift one end, slide the extensions on, repeat at the other end.

Voila!

Now you have the OPTION for a taller table for doing everything from the cooking to the dishes or other tasks.

Oh...you probably will have to remove the rubber/plastic caps the table legs came with so store them if you want to use the table in a LOW position.

 

[pvstoy]

Craig in our sayer kits crosscut or chainsaw with the Tahoe Rim Trail we have those axes. They work surprisly well for limbing and driving wedges. Seem to hold a edge well. Oil up the head to keep the rust down.

 

[Vic Harder]

Added an Axe to the camper. Well the axe itself might not be low cost the quick fist clamps count. Went with the fiskar for price, polymer handle (wood doesn't too well exposed) and price. I thought about the $200 scandinavian axe but I don't want to cry if its stolen. Besides it won't get used that much most likely.



https://craigruth.smugmug.com/Camper-stuff/i-7SqDDHS/A

I've always hated putting a plate in my lap, no longer.


This one qualifies if you don't count shipping.

any more details on that axe mount? looks sweet

 

[craig333]

https://www.quickfist.com/

 

[Lighthawk]

I gave my son one of the same Fiskar axes and he carries it in the back of his Subaru! I had a matching axe, which got too close to a campfire, so I've cut it down to a shorter length.

I like the https://www.quickfist.com/

 

[Moose Dog]

Not for everyone, but this LOVELY object is a wetsuit torso n' duct tape over a new ( duh ) gas can. Hot water in, cools off a bit but stays warm.



Of course chopping up my old wetsuits can also provide insulation for thermoses, yard-sprayer showers, etc...etc...make good rags too and they're sturdy and reusable. Shoot the wetsuits are more useful after they're too leaky for their original purpose...

Downside is I've become the chopped-up wetsuit pusher...one suit makes a LOT.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Not for everyone, but this LOVELY object is a wetsuit torso n' duct tape over a new ( duh ) gas can. Hot water in, cools off a bit but stays warm.

IMG_1442.JPG

Of course chopping up my old wetsuits can also provide insulation for thermoses, yard-sprayer showers, etc...etc...make good rags too and they're sturdy and reusable. Shoot the wetsuits are more useful after they're too leaky for their original purpose...

Downside is I've become the chopped-up wetsuit pusher...one suit makes a LOT.

Nice ideas!

 

[munchmeister]

I worry about drilling holes into the camper walls, interior or exterior and don't know how to find a "stud." Any tips on how you do that?

Added an Axe to the camper. Well the axe itself might not be low cost the quick fist clamps count. Went with the fiskar for price, polymer handle (wood doesn't too well exposed) and price. I thought about the $200 scandinavian axe but I don't want to cry if its stolen. Besides it won't get used that much most likely.



[img=https://photos.smugmug.com/Camper-stuff/i-7SqDDHS/0/0322185b/L/IMG_20171205_153257813[1]-L.jpg]
I've always hated putting a plate in my lap, no longer.

[img=https://photos.smugmug.com/Camper-stuff/i-JXq85q4/0/6ff2bd8b/L/IMG_20171205_180800570[1]-L.jpg]
This one qualifies if you don't count shipping.
[img=https://photos.smugmug.com/Camper-stuff/i-m7Mvgbg/0/c93a7b56/L/IMG_20171205_180828901[1]-L.jpg]

 

[craig333]

In this case its not holding a lot of weight so I wasn' t concerned about hitting a stud. Top screw went into the fairly wide long piece of aluminum that runs along the top.

 

[Vic Harder]

In this case its not holding a lot of weight so I wasn' t concerned about hitting a stud. Top screw went into the fairly wide long piece of aluminum that runs along the top.

that alum piece is in both sides of the door, and has a section of C-channel on the bottom to keep a piece of 5/8" wood held in place too, for extra meat to screw into.

 

[MattC]

.99 cent Heater protection from Wasps, Mud Daubers and the like.
MrW

I love this thread, because I save everything, and am constantly make whatever I need, out of whatever I have laying around.
plus I am all about saving a buck when possible, but more about form follows function.

I love this sink plug idea

 

[buckland]

Yup the ole Yankee saying "Use it up, wear it out... make it do, or do without" Reuse-ing is the way to go....one step before recycle. So many throw away so much. Rethinking what something could be used for is part of the fun.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Excellent. ^^

 

[PackRat]

My old Alaskan had no water heater, nor does my new/old one. What we back then was to carry one of those plastic showers you filled up and let the sun warm up all day. They really are not all that efficient in forested areas where you don't get all-day sun so I figured out how to help warm up the water. Leaving it out all day on a rock in the sun at 6000' in the Sierras didn't get it very warm.

I would fill up the bag at home before starting out and upon arrival at camp simply place it on the hood of the truck and let that residual engine heat do the rest. That gave the wife and I some pretty warm shower water for the afternoon. On subsequent days we just set a refilled bag on the hood of the truck and let the sun do its thing in heating up the hood and the bag.

The trick is to get your shower done as close to when the sun goes down before it cools off as possible.

 

[Escapepod]

Using jack brackets

I was looking for a place to hang my portable solar panel. $5 eye bolts fit the bottom hole in the jack brackets. 4 of them all around, and they make solid tie-down points.