OutbacKamper Mark II: 2013 Hawk

[OutbacKamper]

Picking Up The Camper:

We just returned from a 3 day trip to pick up our "new" (to us) 2013 Four Wheel Hawk Camper. The Camper was located in Winnipeg and we are in Kelowna, however the seller was nice enough to meet us more than 1/2 way, in Calgary, to exchange the camper in the parking lot of a shopping mall.

I didn't think to take any photos in the parking lot, but snapped this at our first camping spot, that night, in Bow Valley Provincial Park (just East of Canmore, Alberta).

This is us leaving the campground the next morning:

After a day of exploring the Rockies and Mount Revelstoke, our next 2 nights were spent at Mable Lake Provincial Park:

First Impressions:

Having owned a 2003 Hawk Shell previously (2003-2007) some things were familiar and some were quite different. I was impressed with the better quality materials and lighter, more modern, colours of this camper interior. The interior cabinets and hardware are better quality than I have seen in some older campers.The rear awning is a great feature. The roll over couch is a very nice option. LED lights are a huge improvement. Generally we were very pleased with the camper and got to test it in some very windy and wet conditions.

Initial To Do List (subject to change):

I will update this thread as these items get addressed, but for now my goal is to add the following:

• swing out extensions and drill adapter for jacks
• extension cord to hook up new camper electrical plug (front left corner) to existing truck plug (front right corner)
• drawer and cabinet organizers, towel racks, etc.
• additional "outside" storage
• some type of side awning
• roof rack tracks & gas struts to carry 2 kayaks

Cheers
Mark

 

[MarkBC]

Cool -- congratulations!

 

[Cal]

Nice camping spot! Hope you enjoy your new hawk.


Sent from my iPhone using Wander The West

 

[OutbacKamper]

Thanks guys!

 

[Ronanmd1]

Nice rig

 

[wuck]

Nice way to pick up a new rig, go camping!

Previous owner of my hawk fabbed up some extender plates for the jacks, something to think about instead of $wing out brackets. On my super duty, I really only needed the front pair for good clearance. Speaking of clearance, how much of a gap do you have over the cab? I set mine at 1.5 inches using 2x4's under the camper.

Tell us about your truck - bumper looks nice!

 

[OutbacKamper]

Nice way to pick up a new rig, go camping! I thought so too
Previous owner of my hawk fabbed up some extender plates for the jacks, something to think about instead of $wing out brackets. That is a very good idea, I had the factory swing out brackets on my previous camper, so was thinking to duplicate that set-up, but since I will be removing the jacks for regular use, front extender plates would be perfect. I also remember seeing a thread where someone attached a small folding table to the jack brackets, I may try to incorporate something like that into the extender plate design.

On my super duty, I really only needed the front pair for good clearance. Yes that is what I had in mind too.

Speaking of clearance, how much of a gap do you have over the cab? I set mine at 1.5 inches using 2x4's under the camper. I have a heavy rubber bed mat that is about 3/4" thick, and with no other spacer I have 1 1/4" clearance from the bottom of the front cabover trim to the top of the highest truck roof rib. I think this is about the minimum clearance that would be advisable.

Tell us about your truck - bumper looks nice! Thanks, the truck was originally outfitted for a year long trip around Australia (2004-2005), so it really is more off-road capable than I need for North American camping trips, but it is still nice to have the extra capability. The truck is a 2003 F350 with 7.3 litre diesel, automatic trans, Bocar front bumper (sold by Ute Ltd in North America), front "x" springs (F450), 2" front and rear lift, Warn winch, front and rear air lockers, 12v compressor, 5 gal air tank, 55 gal fuel tank, snorkel, Espar heater, etc. The truck currently has 130,000km (80,000 miles), of which 45,000km (28,000 miles) were in Oz.

OutbacKamper Mark I, in action Northern Australia, 2004:

 

[OutbacKamper]

Nice rig

Thank you sir!

 

[OutbacKamper]

Making some progress:

• interior storage boxes and organizers in progress (Canadian Tire had some very inexpensive plastic boxes and trays that fit really well)
• plugs ordered for camper hook-up extension
• speaker lift ordered
• 6' folding step ladder ordered (for loading kayaks)
• 
• gas struts and hardware ordered http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/2974-roof-lifting-helper-shocks-thingys/page-33
• jack drill adapter ordered
• Sink: I have always liked the SpinFlo sink with its built in removable second plastic bowl, drain rack and cutting boards:
  

so I tried to make my own very low-tech version, unfortunately I could not find a plastic bowl that would fit into the sink (any hints gladly accepted), but here is the result:

I added some rubber feet to the cutting board to (hopefully) keep it in place.

 

[OutbacKamper]

OUTSIDE STORAGE:
I was originally planning to add an outside access storage area behind the couch backrest, as explained in this thread: http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/12986-hawk-side-storage-compartment/ , however I can now see that there is just not enough room to make this a practical modification. Part of the available space is lost to the pull out bed extension, also, the space is already used for a fire extinguisher, rear awning, table leg, table top, table base and 2 bed extension cushions. I am determined to keep the interior floor of the camper free of storage this time, so will have to put more thought into outside storage options for a 6' folding ladder (maybe on rear bumper ?), shovel ( maybe camper side or rear with Quick Fist clamps?), folding chairs ( jam them into the truck cab as usual?), kayak paddles, leveling blocks, etc.

 

[Timothy McGowen]

Congratulations on the upgrade!

 

[wuck]

Nicely outfitted truck to carry that camper around. Australian adventure sounds pretty cool!

While doing some mods/repairs to my Hawk recently, I noticed a lot of extra wire length between the truck and camper battery, both located on the right side of the rig. Rather than move both batteries(!), I decided to move the camper pigtail and truck connection over to the right side. In the process, I removed about 14' of that pesky charging cable. 6 feet came out of the truck wiring - no longer need to cross over truck, and another 8 feet out of the camper - from the left corner, a couple of feet back to separator, then back up to front of camper and 4 feet across camper to battery. I also relocated the separator to reside next to the battery. Something to think about . . .

 

[OutbacKamper]

Congratulations on the upgrade!

Thanks Timothy.

Nicely outfitted truck to carry that camper around. Australian adventure sounds pretty cool!

While doing some mods/repairs to my Hawk recently, I noticed a lot of extra wire length between the truck and camper battery, both located on the right side of the rig. Rather than move both batteries(!), I decided to move the camper pigtail and truck connection over to the right side. In the process, I removed about 14' of that pesky charging cable. 6 feet came out of the truck wiring - no longer need to cross over truck, and another 8 feet out of the camper - from the left corner, a couple of feet back to separator, then back up to front of camper and 4 feet across camper to battery. I also relocated the separator to reside next to the battery. Something to think about . . .

Thanks, that is very useful to information. I will check out my camper to see if I can reroute the existing wire.
Cheers
Mark

 

[OutbacKamper]

I took the camper off the truck yesterday and put it into its new home for the first time. I think I will buildup the camper dolly so it is closer to the same height as the truck, eventually. However having it at this lower height should be handy for installing my Proline roof rack tracks that will hopefully be arriving soon.

Cheers
Mark

 

[longhorn1]

Nice, Congrats. jd

 

[lzpup]

congrats! love the bow valley, hope to get my truck up there someday.

 

[Timothy McGowen]

This is awesome. Congratulations.

 

[OutbacKamper]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Roof Rack Tracks:

I have an update on my roof rack tracks, although it is not good news at this stage. I went to pick up my Proline roof rack tracks from the post office today, however the box is showing obvious signs of significant damage:

The last 8" or so of the tracks appear to be bent almost 90 degrees. Proline shipped the package by USPS it then went through Canadian Customs and was then delivered by Canada Post - this could get complicated. I have contacted Proline to see if I should accept the package or refuse it. So I will not be installing the tracks this weekend as hoped

 

[OutbacKamper]

Ladder:

I was expecting to have to find an exterior location to store my folding step ladder, but luckily it seems to fit perfectly behind the back of the folding couch:


This speaker lift also fits back there for now, but I hope to mount it under the cabinet above the couch with some rubber pole storage clips:
click on a thumbnail to enlarge

One of the left over tripod legs form the speaker lift is going to be modified to attach to the ladder to form a spreader bar like this:

Hopefully this will make the ladder more stable and minimize damage to the camper siding.

Other misc items have arrived including parts for the gas struts (that I don't actually have yet):



Tie Downs:

The front tie downs on my truck are too far forward for my 2013 Hawk, so I have some simple extensions that allow me to use the turnbuckles that came with the camper. In the second photo you can see the original style of camper plug that will need to be replaced with the new style (on its way from amazon).

 

[OutbacKamper]

Roof Rack Tracks -Update:

I tried contacting Proline several times regarding the damaged tracks but have not had a response in over a week. I will not be ordering from them again. The tracks were not well packaged and appear to have poked out of the end of a very thin cardboard box and gotten bent as a result. I will contact Canada Post, but I doubt they will take responsibility given that USPS and Canada Customs were also involved.

Moving on: I cut the tracks down to eliminate the damaged parts. I ended up with one pair 48" long and one pair 39" long (they started out as 2 pairs of 60" tracks.




With the tracks and Yakima bars installed I can just barely raise and lower the roof manually. Next up is the installation of the new Gemini gas struts. Unfortunately the gas strut end fittings are slightly too thick for the quick release bimini brackets I have, so I will either need to modify the fittings or get different brackets. I did make up some 1/8" thick aluminum mounting plates for the strut brackets today and painted them with spray on bed liner.