My New Eagle Shell Finished (Photos)

Yukon

Senior Member
Joined
May 5, 2008
Messages
234
Location
Edmonds WA
After about 2 months of work, my Eagle shell interior work is finally done. Bought shell with only the furnace & battery…nothing else. Several photos will give you an overview of key elements that I built/installed myself. Photo1: stove, AC & DC power meters (switched to save power). DC auxillary outlet, sink and hand pump faucet. AC outlet. Formica counter; Oak panel doors that were planed thin to make light weight. Kept simple with desire for lots of space and minimum power usage.

Photo2: electrical panel hidden inside the counter. Dismanteled DC breaker that came with shell and added a single unit that has 3-stage battery charger, AC breaker, and DC circuit breakers with alarms. You can see AC power input line I added.

Photo3: Framing. You can see 10 gal water tank and battery. Weight in center of truck. All framing is screwed together and can be removed, or even re-designed if desired.

Photo4: Table and chair. Table is two piece. Frame is aluminum from camping store and folds up. Can be used outside. The top if separate and formica. I may later make a base and install as part of camper but like idea of moving it outside. Chair is fully hinged and folds down completely out of the way. I have cushions that fit on it and fit on bench on other side. People sit facing each other.

Photo5: Water tank & battery compartment. Hinged top for each access. Notice slit in the wood so you can easily see the water level. No fancy gages! Notice the chair that is folded down.

We will decide if we are going to add anything more after taking it for a spin. Have not taken her on a voyage yet. I don’t recommend doing this your self if your motive is saving money. It’s a LOT of work. I only did it because I wanted the design to be exactly the way I wanted it (I’m an Engineer). Next step is installing my homemade awning (mentioned in earlier posting) outside.

Hope to see you guys on the road!

Chris
PS: wish I had seen the neat DC outlet that was posted earlier.
 

Attachments

  • counter_final.jpg
    counter_final.jpg
    116.5 KB · Views: 3,011
  • Electrical4.jpg
    Electrical4.jpg
    122.7 KB · Views: 3,284
  • frame.JPG
    frame.JPG
    89.5 KB · Views: 3,250
  • table final.jpg
    table final.jpg
    109.8 KB · Views: 3,250
  • water battery final.JPG
    water battery final.JPG
    93.7 KB · Views: 2,877
Wow, very nice!

I just love how creative the WTW members are. :thumb:

I really like your water tank "gauge".

"AC & DC power meters"... What do they measure and how/where are they connected to? Do you have a better picture of them?

THANKS,
Mike
 
AC/DC Meters

Mike, Don't have close-up pics of meters. I bought them at a marine supplies store. AC just measure the power on the incoming AC power so I know what's going into my charger if plugged in at a campground or home. The DC is tied to the battery main voltage so I can see battery voltage easily and also see that my charger is working when I plug in to the AC outlet. I put a little toggle switch next to DC meter bacause a DC meter will draw a small amount of current from the battery so I keep it off when not in use. Cheers.
 
Mike, Don't have close-up pics of meters. I bought them at a marine supplies store. AC just measure the power on the incoming AC power so I know what's going into my charger if plugged in at a campground or home. The DC is tied to the battery main voltage so I can see battery voltage easily and also see that my charger is working when I plug in to the AC outlet.
OK

I put a little toggle switch next to DC meter bacause a DC meter will draw a small amount of current from the battery so I keep it off when not in use.
hmmm... current flow... do you have a battery separator? See this post "Battery separator ALWAYS has current flow?" => http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1400

Mike
 
Yukon,

Very nice work, I love all the storage you've created. Just curious, is the propane tank above the heater? Seems like the only spot left. And how do you access the turnbuckle ports? I'd love to see more pictures when you get a chance.
 
Chris,
Very nice, made just for you, the way you want it.
And if you want to make some changes, it's only a few screws.

Looks like a pretty big water tank, what size is it?
 
Beautiful!

I especially like the slit to allow you to see the water level. I've been thinking of adding a tube on the outside of my cabinets, or maybe behind a cabinet door to allow me see the actual water level, rather than rely on the "Full-2/3-1/3-Empty" LEDs on the monitor panel. I like the locations FWC placed the probes in the water tank, but that degree of accuracy isn't as high as I would like - especially when deciding to stay an extra day or two.
 
It is a 10 gallon tank. ;) About the water tank how do you fill it? Is there a filler on the exterior of the camper? Very nice work.

If I could do it again I would have bought a shell and designed exactly what I wanted. I didn't want to take the time to do that. :D

The only advice I can give is to keep things modular and removable to save space and weight.
 
Hi....yes, I have a battery seperator. I was talking about drawing current from house battery. Very small about (miliamps), but no need to waste it.
 
The propane tank, stove, and furnace are all in that one box. Propane tank cabinet and furnace work was done by 4-Wheel folks. I just added the stove on top. I have complete access to the turnbuckles. It's hard to see, but those little sliding doors are not covered up.
 
Water tank is only 10 (maybe 12) gallons. Only thing I am struggling with in my head is if I want to add water pump......hate to use power, but pumping faucet is funky.
 
I prefer the hand pump.
With only 10-12 gallons, it keeps HER from using any more water than required.

I have an external drain on the outside, I just use that when I need a pot of water. White one on the left side.

Drains.JPG
 
Nice work and looks great!:thumb:

I would use a metal sheild around the stove to keep the wall cool and to prevent fires.

The water faucet I use is the SureFlow with the smaller DC pump. You can let a very small stream or all the way to a full stream out and it saves water. The pump hardly uses any DC juice.
 
Patrick.. Thanks for the tips. I did make a metal sheild (not shown in photos) and protects left and rear sides. It's hinged and folds flat. I am thinking seriously about the pump. Some pumps need to be below the waterline which is a problem for me..but i will check out the Surflo.
 
The SureFlow pump that I have needs to be within 4 inchs of the height of the outlet. BUT, FWC have been putting them under the sink. The hose would have to go from the outlet at the tank up over the wall and then back down to the pump. This would cause a winter storage freeze up problem if stored in cold areas. Remember to drain the pump. Attached is a picture from FWC web page.

and a couple from my setup. I have my pump turned at an angle so when I want to drain the tank I leave the faucet open and water will drain all the way out to the tank. I'm also using the water pump rocker switch on the pannel to break power to the system. So I can open the faucet to drain system without the pump getting power.
 

Attachments

  • Elect_Water_Pump.jpg
    Elect_Water_Pump.jpg
    8.7 KB · Views: 726
  • Camper cover off1.jpg
    Camper cover off1.jpg
    51 KB · Views: 780
  • Camper Water tank outlet1.jpg
    Camper Water tank outlet1.jpg
    29.9 KB · Views: 789
  • WaterFaucet2.jpg
    WaterFaucet2.jpg
    42.3 KB · Views: 704
Thank you Patrick. You have given me some great ideas to consider as I move forward, and I appreicate your taking time to post photos.
 
yukon that is a very nice job.looks clean and simple.do you use a cover or shield for the stove.thanks for the pics,frank


gee i should have read more of the posts.my bad


Hi,
Yes. I bought two pieces of lightweight metal from Home Depot (approx 12"X18") and hinged them together. It folds flat and then I just put it in the corner where the stove is to prevent accidental burning of the sides of the camper.

Yukon
 
Water tank is only 10 (maybe 12) gallons. Only thing I am struggling with in my head is if I want to add water pump......hate to use power, but pumping faucet is funky.

I have solar and NEVER run low on power.
Great job!
 

Try RV LIFE Pro Free for 7 Days

  • New Ad-Free experience on this RV LIFE Community.
  • Plan the best RV Safe travel with RV LIFE Trip Wizard.
  • Navigate with our RV Safe GPS mobile app.
  • and much more...
Try RV Life Pro Today
Back
Top Bottom