Part Twelve: "Interior Design"

December 28, 2016

Here we are at the end of 2016 and we hope you all had a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! This will be our last post for the 2016 year as we look forward to 2017 and more camper building!

We finally have the exterior buttoned up and all the exterior lighting is wired and functional.  One of the last bits we finished was the porch light over the door.  The LED's are bright and it looks like it will do the job perfectly!



Next we move on to the interior.  

Since the bed is at the back of the coach, everything builds off of it. So we started with the bed and the framing.  












The space under the bed will provide a lot of storage and has access from both the interior and through the exterior hatch. 

The finishing piece is the Birch for the face.  After quite a bit of indicision and research, it was decided we would go with old school Lacquer for the finish.  The reasons for going with Lacquer were:  
a.) We wanted to be able to spray the finish rather than brush it
b.) We wanted a finish that would age gracefully and naturally to a beautiful amber color just like the vintage coaches 
c.) We like the way Lacquer can be sanded and buffed to perfection.

Here is the final piece after the Lacquer has been applied, sanded and buffed.  It looks like a piece of furniture.






Here it is installed:



Now that the bed is in place, it is time to start designing the walls. We began with the floorplan that Carrie scaled to size



And we transfered the lines onto the floor with tape so we know where the walls go





If you think the lines look angled you're correct!  We have decided on angled walls and lines to optimize space and create something a bit less "conventional."  We're hoping in the end it will be fabulous! Now we're ready to start installing "cleats" or attachment points on the floor, walls and ceiling.  We're not quite there yet, but in the meantime, here's a couple pictures of the new interior lighting that we installed...



And lit...



And the pendant for over the dinette...



That's about all the time we have for now!  See you again after the first of the year!

Until then, Happy Creations!

Michael and Carrie

Part Eleven: "All Sealed Up"

November 15, 2016

Up until this post, we have been trying to catch our blog up to the actual build.  Well, here we are.  All caught up and blogging in real time.

We would like to take this time to thank the people who follow this blog and find it interesting.  As of this moment we currently have over 48,000 views on our build journal and blog followers from at least 18 different countries!  That's pretty exciting to us!  The Countries currently represented are:  The United States, Canada, (Hi Oleg!) Belgium, New Zealand, (Hey Sheddie!) The United Kingdom, Korea, Russia, Australia, (Hello Dale!) France, Romania, Brazil, Norway,  Ireland, (Hi Larry!) Turkey, Philippines, Chili and Singapore! Thank you all again for your interest and inspiration!  We had no idea this build would connect us to so many amazing people and places! Wow!

When we left off the coach was in primer.  What a great feeling to have the fiberglass work finished up and the shell looking complete!  We had originally planned to do all the paint work at the very end to protect it from any boo-boo's.  At this stage in the game we are tying up Matt's shop with a camper that cannot be pulled outside for lack of being weather tight.  If something doesn't change we fear we will wear out our welcome.  Therefore, the decision has been made to lay down a coat of base, protect it with some intercoat clear and go ahead with the installation of all the windows, doors, hatches, fans, lights and so on.  This way, there will be paint under all the bits and pieces and the coach will be sealed up and weather tight so it can go outside no matter what the weather.  

Let's lay down some silver base and intercoat clear...











The roof of the coach will be wrapped in a vinyl wrap so it doesn't get painted.  The wrap will complement the rest of the coach and have a vintage vibe.  More on that to come...

Next, we began to install all the parts.  Little by little she's really beginning to look like a real camper!

Front window...





Side Window...







Rear windows...



Hatches and Marker Lights...



Taillights...





So yeah, go ahead and check this out!

Rear Side Window, Water Hook Up's, Electrical Hook Up, Shower and Fenders...



Entry Door...



Roof Vents and Fans...



Now that she is all sealed up, the coach can safely sit outside regardless of the weather with no worry, instead of just taking up shop space.

Here's what the coach looks like now:









We're all caught up in real time... So stay tuned for more updates, follow us and feel free to ask questions or comment!  Until next time...

Happy Creations!

Michael and Carrie