SLO's 1990 Hawk Build/Refurb

[SLO_F-250]

Hey WTW Crew! New to this forum. I've spent most my time over at expeditionportal.com but a friend of mine said now that I am a FWC hawk owner this is the place I should be.

I've started a good thread regarding the rebuild of my 1990 Hawk. I'll post picts & the story so far. Looking forward to your advice, comments, etc.

Cheers,
Paul

 

[SLO_F-250]

Well Guys! I ended up running accross a 1990 FWC Hawk for sale here locally and just couldn't pass it up. The old Skamper is dialed and I had no reason to get it, but I couldn't resist!! :bike_rider: Sad to see the Skamper go and if you read through the thread I have had TONS of fun with my first budget build.

Time to start a NEW project I guess. Main reason I picked it up was because it was design for a full size. While I like all the storage in my last build I am looking forward to having more room inside the camper. Not to mention the Queen bed sold the girlfriend right then and there! HAHA

SO, here starts the refurbish and build of my 1990 Four Wheel Camper Hawk!!!! SO EXCITED! :wings:

Here are some pictures. Ill get to clean it out, build a base to clear the cab, and mount it properly to my truck this weekend. Im looking forward to digging into the project and wanted to say thanks to all the people on this forum who post pictures and describe their builds. A couple of years ago I was just a "lurker" and here I am now on my 2nd camper build! haha :snorkel:

On the truck Safe and Sound! WHEW! The previous owner was the 2nd owner and had owned it since 94'. Only reason he was selling it was because he ordered a brand new one from FWC!

Inside Shots. Not that great, but has a fridge, heater, stove, and sink. Folding bench and table as well. Its going to get a good ole SLO refurb for sure! Defiantly could use a little modification for better use of space like the newer FWC's.

Lastly I wanted to give a HUGE SHOUT OUT TO STAN! He answered my emails and gave me advice even though I was buying an old used FWC. I dont know where people get these "bad service" stories, but all I gotta say is when one day I go to buy a new one, Stan has got my business. Thank you STAN! :bowdown:

Hope Ya'll enjoy the build.
Paul

 

[SLO_F-250]

Thanks for the comments guys! We'll I got a chance to did into the camper a bit this weekend. My goals were to mainly clean it up, build a base for it to sit on so it clears my cab a bit more, and to seal the outside.

Got her off the truck and ready for some work!

I then took all the cushions out of the camper and threw the covers in the wash for a good long wash cylce. The ended up cleaning up nicely. Guess the old retro brown will stay.
Here are a few shots of the inside all cleaned up.

Feeling good, it was about 6:00pm and time for a BBQ and some beers.

That night it bothered me about how dirty the thing still felt. The previous owner had defiantly used it well and didn't exactly keep it up to my standards. Since this is going to be a camper I plan on keeping for a while, I was up at 6:30am the next morning with coffee and tools in hand. Time to start the real stuff!!!! :elkgrin:

I disassembled the bench which is really basic btw and then tore out the old side carpet and flooring. MUCH BETTER!

The old staple construction was pretty taxed so I predrilled holes all over. Filled them with gorilla glue and screwed treated decks screws everywhere, especially some extras around the bolt/turnbuckles. Now Im feeling good.

Unfortunately, I found a bit of dryrot in the upper corners of the plywood. You can see it in the picts above. Ill have to dig it out and fiberglass resin the void.
Also, the front lift panel is pretty much done. I saw this when I bought it, but didnt realize how much work they are to fix. Put a call into Terry at FWC yesterday. I'm going to buy one the last few remaining wood panel kits. They run about $200. The new composite panel kits are over $400! YIKES! Glad they have a couple wood kits left.

Sorry for the fuzzy pict.

Next up was a simple platform. I built it out of 2x3 studs. It raised the camper up just enough. About 1-1/2" over the cab. Looks great and fits just right!!!

I plan on sealing and painting all the exposed wood on the exterior of the camper a bit later. Just ran out of time.

Going to be able to get a little time to keep rocking and rolling on it again this weekend. Plan is to get the fridge out and give it a good cleaning and servicing. I want to add a drawer right below the sink and above the fridge as there is enough room. I also plan on taking out all of the sliding doors and I think they are cheesy. Ill add regular cabinet doors at all those locations. We'll see how it goes!

 

[SLO_F-250]

Since the first phase of the refurb is going to be FAST & FURIOUS I'll keep the picts coming!

Tore out the fridge last night. The PO never serviced it and said it didn't work too well. Usually they just need a really good cleaning and this is now the 2nd Dometic 2193 I've had I know what to do. WHEW! Left it on 120V last night and it was 35 degrees in the am. Electric stuff works! :wings:

Tearing more crap out!

Fridge Finally out. Its a tight fit back there. I like how FWC just has an outlet back there to plug the fridge in.

The heater. Apparently this is a fairly nice heater. All auto. No more lighting myself. Sweet. Lots of wiring so I will probably leave this in and vacume/clean the areas I can.

OK, so we all know that there is a 4" dead space above the fridge. Plenty of room for storage. In addition to my previous questions (Ya'll thought you were off the hook huh!) what should I do? Its pretty dang tight for a small drawer, but I measured and drew it up last night and think I can get it to work. My other option have part of the counter top flip up like my old skamper. Then just box in a storage space under the fold up counter portion. It was pretty slick, and would be easier to get in there than a drawer. Unfortunately I don't have a pict of it though.

So, what do you guys think?

Previous questions in case ya'll forgot.
Question #1
There are a few small rips/holes in the canvas. The biggest rip being 1" and hole being pencil sized. What would you "vets" recommend for patching?
1) Patch & Glue adhesive Kit?
2) Canvas Tape?

Doing an internet search there are plenty of options out there. Is there any certian type any of you have used and had good luck with. The tape seems to be a pretty sweet quick fix.

Question #2
What in the world did FWC put on the exposed aluminum in the camper. Its seems like a stick on foam that over time has deteriorated. Its all around the top of the walls where the lower canvas joins and in the front corners.
Any ideas on what to use to cover this up? Anyone messed with it or should I just turn my head.

Question #3
My dang canvas is pretty dirty & stained. See Pict Above. What is the best product to get the stains off and get it looking like new again?

Happy Friday!! :friday:

 

[SLO_F-250]

Alright, A little update from a long great day of work yesterday. I should be in my shop right now, but that extra hour of sleeping in and 2nd cup of coffee's got me relaxing still! :coffeedrink:

Started the morning off with an executive decision. Most all the particle board needs to go. The laminent is peeling everywhere and its just plan hammered. Plus as I am on my second older camper I am tired of all the old laminated wood look! Time to update this one a bit! Not tearing the inside panels out, but going to lighten up the interior. Im hoping it turns out! Kee your fingers crossed! :sombrero:

I had a big Hardware store run after work on Friday so I am ready to go in the shop all day.

Tearing more stuff out!

Next up I dug out all the dryrot from each passenger side corner I could. I bit scary, but had to be done. I cleaned it up the best I could and screwed the screws back in. I then put some wax paper over a board and taped it under each corner to catch the resin. A lot of fiberglass and resin later corners are looking good. I think that should last a while.

Finished

Underside ready for some sanding and paint.

Floor Holes patched up and ready for sanding.

Rocking and roll'n!!!! Here is a picture of the front counter panel. Tearing all the old out and using them as templates was great! Can you see some changes I made to the new front? Ive added a few things. :elkgrin:

The JUNK Pile! :snorkel:

All of the new counter pieces, minus cabinet doors. Gotta do that today. Ready for some painting! BTW, painting is SO SLOW! Not my favorite process. Beers help with this. :beer:

How I left my shop last night. Hoping to go down there this morn and see everything looking good!

Alright, Lots of work left still to do. Hopefully soon it starts going back together. Cheers,
Paul

 

[SLO_F-250]

Today started late, but good. I wanted to reinforce the turnbuckle bolts due to the fact you see people pulling them out every now and again. I had some scrap laying around so I just welded the bolts to a bigger plate. These bad boys "aint" pull'n out! :wings:

See my solution for a missing bolt and turnbuckle? Worked out great! Gotta love a little rattle can black!

Next up was to paint the interior. This was a time consuming process, but at the end of the day, 3 coats and it was looking good!
While the paint was drying I was building the box that goes under the counter.

Mocked up. See the notches so they slide over my new steel plate works.

Test Fit time.

Hummm.... Dead space between the counter and wall. Ill have to come back to that another day.

Paint is DRY! Sweet, I can actually start to reassemble some of this stuff!

Getting there!

I made the opening bigger hear so I can access wire and fuses much easier. You would have to snoop around to even see there is a fuse panel. I didnt know it was there till I took the original front off. I also labeled them for future. Water pump fuse was also blown. But it will be easy to replace now! :bike_rider:

Hum, how did I end up with an extra drawer? Oh well. haha

All the new doors cut out and drying in the shop. Time for a beer and cleanup!

Well, making progress. I should have it all reassembled soon and will move on to other stuff. I am mainly concerned about re-sealing to roof and patching canvas.... OH YEA, not to mention replacing the front lift panel. Dang!

Sorry for the multiple posts. Just wanted to get yall up to speed on where the project is at. Thanks again!

 

[Alley-Kat]

You're doing great.
And, welcome aboard to another Santa Barbarian.
Dick (camelracer) should say hi sometime soon.

 

[SLOJET]

About time you posted over here, ya slacker!



Hey WTW Crew! New to this forum. I've spent most my time over at expeditionportal.com but a friend of mine said now that I am a FWC hawk owner this is the place I should be.

I've started a good thread regarding the rebuild of my 1990 Hawk. I'll post picts & the story so far. Looking forward to your advice, comments, etc.

Cheers,
Paul

 

[Ted]

Hi Paul,

Welcome to WTW. Quite a few of us are on Expo's forum as well. This forum originally started around Four Wheel Campers but has evolved. We have members that have other types of rigs now. Still glad to have you chime in. Nice work on the build. Looking forward to seeing it finished.

 

[ski3pin]

Hi Paul,

Welcome to WTW. Quite a few of us are on Expo's forum as well. This forum originally started around Four Wheel Campers but has evolved. We have members that have other types of rigs now. Still glad to have you chime in. Nice work on the build. Looking forward to seeing it finished.


Yes SLO_F-250, welcome and thanks for sharing all your work. It brought back lots of memories.

 

[SLO_F-250]

You're doing great.
And, welcome aboard to another Santa Barbarian.
Dick (camelracer) should say hi sometime soon.


Thanks! I've actually been here about a month. Opened a satellite office for my structural engineering firm. Nice area! Moved from San Luis Obispo. Once the camper is finished Ill hit you up for some "local" areas to go explore!

Hi Paul,

Welcome to WTW. Quite a few of us are on Expo's forum as well. This forum originally started around Four Wheel Campers but has evolved. We have members that have other types of rigs now. Still glad to have you chime in. Nice work on the build. Looking forward to seeing it finished.


Thank you! Expedition Portal is great, but WTW has been better resource to learn more about my FWC specifically.


Yes SLO_F-250, welcome and thanks for sharing all your work. It brought back lots of memories.


No prob. Ill get the latest progress picts up soon!

 

[craig333]

Welcome to WTW. I've been following your build over on expo.

 

[SLO_F-250]

Welcome to WTW. I've been following your build over on expo.


Thanks Craig!

Well Guys, Project is coming along. Got a little time this evening getting the doors on. Few picts attached. Handles to come next and then new linoleum! :wings:

Open

Also gotta give that fridge a cleaning. 120V & 12V work fine, so I am hoping with a good cleaning, the propane will work too. Been "sprucing" the look of it up as well. Looking forward to showing ya'll!

 

[camelracer]

Welcome to the forum Paul. That makes at least 3 FWCs in the land of the Prius..

Dick

 

[ntsqd]

And a Phoenix + a couple more FWC's right down the road in Ventura.

FWIW some of that void above the fridge is to help it work more effectively and efficiently. There's a recent thread here that covers this a little.

 

[SLO_F-250]

Welcome to the forum Paul. That makes at least 3 FWCs in the land of the Prius..

Dick


Thanks Dick! "Land of the Prius" HILARIOUS! Driving my rig around town I feel like I stick out like a soar thumb! Luckily I got the little hatchback DD.


And a Phoenix + a couple more FWC's right down the road in Ventura.

FWIW some of that void above the fridge is to help it work more effectively and efficiently. There's a recent thread here that covers this a little.


"FWIW"?? Havent heard that one. Interesting on the void. I have no idea how that can help. Any link to that thread? I have not added the drawer there yet. My other camper had a storage compartment above which is where I got the idea. Also FWC now puts a slightly taller fridge in to use that space so less of a void.

 

[ntsqd]

I don't recall the thread's title, but what I do recall is that not all of the void is used, only the space at the rear. Has to do with getting the hot air out of the whole volume behind the fridge.

"FWIW": For What It's Worth.

 

[SLO_F-250]

I don't recall the thread's title, but what I do recall is that not all of the void is used, only the space at the rear. Has to do with getting the hot air out of the whole volume behind the fridge.

"FWIW": For What It's Worth.


Yes, you are correct. There needs to be a heat shield of sorts up in that void to deflect the heat out the vent. But that is about it. When I added a fridge in my last camper I made one and when I took the one out of the hawk there was a factory piece of sheet metal there to deflect the heat. Ill make sure to snap some photos for you guys when I re-install with my storage area above. Still debating on having the counter top hinge up or doing a thin drawer there.

 

[SLO_F-250]

Hi all. It was my Friday off. We switched to a 9/80 schedule at the office. YEE HAA! I got to make more progress on that camper!

Had to keep it quiet till about 9:00am so I prepped the plywood with Henrys last night so first thing this AM, new Laminent tiles! How do they look?

Done!

Finally decided on that space above the fridge..... Drawer is the way I’m going. Not the flip up panel like my skamper has. Main reason is it was easier to build and I can put a mirror on the rear lift panel like I have seen some of you do. Build picts......

Insulating the fridge area....

Now it was time to rebuild the bench seat. Piece of cake. Im going to modify how it looks at the door, but that will get finished for tomorrow. I am also going to add a storage area for 2 batteries in the front. That is mainly dead space IMO and now a days FWC puts the water take there. Wish I had time to do that. Maybe next year... GOTTA CAMP IN THIS THING SOON! :bike_rider:

Alright, while paint is drying it goes together. Its starting to look like the inside of a camper now!!!

This came earlier this week. Cant wait to get it in there! I sprung some greenbacks (for me) I know. :wings:

Bam, Great day. So during clean up I had a few brews.... :beer: So for a warning to all of you... Brews and amazon are a bad combo! Got some things on the way for next week…..

USB Charger Socket I have to thank Overland Hadley for posting that one. Thanks! :friday:

A fuse box to accommodate additional fuses and and will replace other one.

Been wanting this. Hope it works alright. We'll see.

One more thing.

 

[Mark W. Ingalls]

Nice. Keep on it!