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1995 3.4L 5sp 4x4 Bajarader (Put the sawzall down)


bajadulce

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... Maybe it's just a fix-it ticket and not a fine? Derek will prob know/find out. :)

Probably a case by case situation depending on how bored he is, how long since his last donut and if he got any nookie the night before!

Anyone ever own an older ford f100? ... I did some investigating and they are about 3.5K #'s w/o the bed...

The Ford's Curb Weight is 3.5k#. The Toyota C&C's GVWR is 6k#. Apples and Oranges.

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OK so time for stupid pet tricks. Put a small AGM battery under the solar panel and run wires to single LED marker lights. Sun goes down and lights come on via a cheap controller. :clown2:

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ahh the donuts and nookie factor.

Maybe more like apples, oranges, and pears smile.gif

I was just fooling around with the fact that the ford's cab and chassis curb weight was about the same as the Mercedes 300SD meaning the power train (om617 turbo diesel) could in theory push around that same "empty" vehicle.

The GVWR of the ford vs the toyota was also very interesting in that the smaller toyota pickup had a much bigger GVWR than the "bigger" truck. Toyota being heralded for their huge payload capabilities for small trucks. Tho to be fair the 1994 toyota has things like power assisted disk brakes, power steering, etc and the 1966 ford was only a F100 after all. The F250 I was looking at has a 7.5K GVWR. Just goofing with the idea of buying that old truck to "toy" around with. Tho space is a bit limited around here.

W:

That's a fun idea. I don't think the battery would have to be that big either. Those little solar garden lights for instance have pretty small batteries running them all night. Maybe just spray the lenses on those garden solar lights red, and call it good.

Off on vacation in 5,4,3,2,1.. smile.gif

Laters. Thnx for keeping me entertained.

Steve

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I wonder if a solution to your braking 'issue' might be to do away with the automatic valve (which won't work automatically) and replace it with a manual one.

http://frontrangeoff...&products_id=57

And IF your's worried about your rear axle:-

http://frontrangeoffroadfab.com/nfoscomm/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=27&products_id=94

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  • 2 weeks later...

Wendy:

Welcome to site. The Led4RV looks like a great resource. Thnx for sharing.

Derek:

Thnx for those resources as well. The axle conversion is an especially interesting read.

I've been doing a ton of web surfing in the evenings these past 2 weeks. It seems my mind, left unoccupied and free to wander, now has concluded that "we" need to build a 2nd vehicle. wacko.gif

I love the toyota truck, and together with the longbed wheelbase single cab plus the shortened sunrader shell, it excels in terms of overhang, departure angle, and axle position in regards to distributing weight.

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In the end, the camper feels a bit big for the little truck (don't know how you guys manage 21' on a pickup chassis). I thought about building a 2nd smaller camper shell for the truck, but I have put a lot of work into this shell and am really attached to the size/layout and want to keep it for years to come. The truck portion however, has always been expendable due to the portable nature of the project. And so I'm entertaining the idea to building a second full size truck as per my American heritage duty and see how it works out. laugh.gif

There's a 1966 F250 in original shape, with original paint and even original upholstery sitting in a garage in my neighborhood that I know the owner doesn't use anymore.

While it would be great for dump runs or picking up gravel or just cruising to the beach in, it has this huge 392cc V8 motor with an automatic trans and probably gets about 10 mpg at best! So this wouldn't be very practical for a base truck for the camper.

... but then I did a little investigation into engine swaps and found this:

Isuzu 4BD1T 3.9L mechanical 4 cylinder turbo diesel found in the NPR trucks.

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Some background:

This is a sleeved, easily rebuildable motor and is pretty easily located throughout the states. The motor is much quieter than the popular cummins 4bt with less vibration/shake. It's too big and too heavy to squeeze into a toyota, but this old Ford truck has a huge engine bay and probably is equivalent in weight to the current 392. A few ppl have done this swap into large vehicles with great results.

Isuzu 4BD1T/2T swaps @ 4BTSwaps.com

Here's a guy that hotrodded one with twin turbos into a 1967 F100 with a Crown Victoria police car front end and IRS rear axle. Interesting read:

Carcrafter's 67 F100

Gas Mileage:

The above 2wd reported upwards of 20mpg with an automatic and others have reported figures hovering around 25mpg and beyond for highway with a 5spd.

One of the problems with swaps is of course the California DMV. With an older ford chassis, one can get around the registration/smog issues as there are none for 1975 and older vehicles. So that's a huge plus.

... anywho this is what happens when idle minds have access to the internet while on vacation. :rolleyes:

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No internet last night so had to read a book :(

Going to dive into information that is online dealing with California DMV and frame swaps, smog, diesel, etc tonight just for kicks.

"If the Devil finds a Man idle, he'll set him at work." - (J. Kelly, "Scottish Proverbs," 1721)

:) That and and creative thoughts about dealing with this loud obnoxious gang of Canadian kids running around here. I didn't know Canadians were Mormons? Every Canadian family here seems to have 5 or more kids?

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All right, a new build thread in the works!

I've been pipe-dreaming about squeezing a diesel Sprinter engine into my Tundra; the current 13mpg w/ camper on really hurts.

Can't wait for this thing to start in earnest, good luck.

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Hey Kevin, This is all just speculation and for fun. There's a really cool 1966 Ford for sale in my neighborhood, and curiosity got me to doing some searching on the internet. So no build in any near future.... yet :lol:

I entertained the idea of a Tundra in the early stages of swap, but they didn't seem as easy to find for under 10K. And the ones I did find had the V8's and extra cabs. The 3.4L Tundra w/ single cab is almost non existent. What size motor do you have in your Tundra?

I did some searching for ppl who may have done either an Isuzu swaps or 4bt into a Tundra, but haven't come across a link where anyone has taken the plunge. Most of the diesel swaps for the Tundra I have read about are via Toyotadiesel.com or ih8mudd and use the toyota D-4D or the smaller 1Kzte.

Derek

Interesting stats. Wonder if that includes illegal immigrants and what the real breakdown of that average is.

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I'll have to look more closely at the toyotadiesel.com site. I didn't see anything about Tundra swaps there, although the site did show up in a "tundra diesel swap" google search. In fact, I haven't found anything about diesel swaps into Tundra's. Guess I'm not quite the searcher you and Derek are! Any links?

Had a thought about your emissions/crazy CA vehicle reg laws. don't know it would be any easier, or even how to go about it, but here goes.

Last year while in Baja I meet two people with Montana plates, neither of which had ever stepped foot in our state. One was from New Zealand. He bought his truck and camper in CA and had them registered in MT because - as he said- it was cheap and easy. The other fellow was from the states, but for some reason had his truck registered in MT.

The one thing they both had in common was they owned their own businesses.

MT has very lax vehicle registration laws, oooo, you can even register a four wheeler here; they pass me doing 70 down the road all too often! It is cheap here, and if your vehicle is 10yrs old you can get permanent registration.

Just a thought, maybe it'll give you something more to research...

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Wy has about the same laws for regerstration as MT. 4 wheelers can be licensed for street use. Into that wonderful and strange grouping, people import containers of the Japanese 4x4 micro pickups, usually 7 in a container, and license them as 4 wheelers. They keep a couple and sell the rest. So guess what we have zooming around all over town?

Instead of going through all the hassle of putting a Izuzu in a Ford, just buy a used NPR flatbed and put an 18ft Sunrader shell on it as a class C.

Heck you could just tie a complete Sunrader Camper on :clown2:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well California's strict vehicle laws are a love/hate relationship. We don't have as many junkers on the road that's for sure. I grew up in Southern Cal as a kid in the 70's and the air was horrible. It's considerably better these days. This may be attributed to industry leaving the state as much as cleaner cars tho.

Kevin:

Sounds like a good little loophole. I don't think I've owned a car newer than 10 years old, so I got that requirement down.

I'm sure there are all kinds of shady ways to get vehicles registered in this state that otherwise wouldn't be able to. Potentially getting into legal issues w/ your insurance company should you get into an accident might not be worth it tho.

W:

Ya, some of those NPR trucks have a whopping 12,000 GVWR so not out of the question.

I really like the little toyota I have, but could use something a little bigger for heavy duty stuff now and then. I think a wider full size truck might handle the camper a little better too.

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Fix the engine in the Yota and get a trailer for work. No matter what you do, it's the wrong thing some of the time so keep us posted on YOUR answer.

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Almost had to join a Ford site... Still might just buy that old truck just because the old man is the original owner and it's in original condition with original seats and paint.

I was on a trip to Reno, Nevada and ended up buying a car from a dealer of all things lol. A 1995 T100 3.4L 5speed 4x4. Miles are a little high and paid $2.5K for it but without any taxes in Nevada. Hopefully all the smog devices work and it won't be too much of a problem importing into California... fingers crossed.

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My buddies all laughed at how impulsive the buy was, but it is a nice truck, drove fantastic, has decent tires, and all the gauges work. Black isn't my 1st choice for a truck, but price was right. There's a lot of working room in the engine bay of the T100!

Shame to rip the bed off this truck. This time around would like to build a true flatbed without the wheel wells if the dimensions allow.

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Great site Derek. Ya those Germans are creative and it's been fun watching that company add new designs to their production. Hard to find anything negative to say about the concept. The "piggy back" design trumps the "slide-in" philosophy by allowing a lower CoG, less weight without bed, and the freedom of interior design thanks to the possibility of a side entrance. Also, without the truck bed, there exists the potential to build a pass through if desired.

Mostly tho, I really like their unique alignment system as shown in this video:

ortung.jpg

http://www.bimobil.com/website/wechselvorrichtung/start_e.php?diashow=animation

Their simple crank style aluminum jack stands are pretty nice too.

Also, I haven't been able to find a more detailed picture of how the wheel wells fit into the camper shell design? They must have a void space like my own setup. I hope to eliminate this with my 2nd truck design and just use a true flatbed without too many compromises in terms of cab height + wheel travel clearance.

I don't understand why Bimobil seem to use trucks with such short beds and huge extra cabs?

large_IMG_4651.jpg

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So how is the distance between the cab and the axle? Gonna need the Sawzall again?

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I've a feeling they use the bigger cabs because it doesn't make much sense having beds for 4 if there's only room in the cab for 2. I'm not sure about here (or there) but it might be illegal to carry passengers in a camper like you can in a motorhome.

I'm not sure if they have available the very long wheelbase pickups that we do.

I'm not sure why you feel the need for mega capacity tires. I not used to hearing you thinking of building something heavy.

BTW, those BiMobil units seem very heavy to me.

Different countries, different laws. I notice that MH in New Zealand have no clearance lights. I think they're a stupid idea. Lots of places for water ingress! If you check the pictures of Cary's 4x4 Sunrader (I think) it has none. Or the ones imported and made in Japan.

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Derek:

I couldn't find any information on weights. You think they look heavy? Looks like composite core construction which is lighter than fiberglass shot mold? They appear to be running single hub wheels on normal 1/2 ton axles too?

Ya seems most trucks these days have extra cabs and shorter beds. The "work" truck (single cab longbed)is pretty uncommon now.

Terry:

Yes, this truck is the same 122" wheelbase. The big difference is a 75" width vs. 66".

After some measuring, looks like the cab sits a bit "taller" off the frame and will be able to do away with the camper's wheel wells.

post-385-0-80798900-1326085988_thumb.jpg

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I couldn't find any information on weights.

Oops. Looks like I might be wrong. Their 230/Nissan combo shows a weight of 610kp (1345lb). Maybe there's another model that is heavy.

Weight of camper cabin incl. support legs:- 610kg (1345lb)

Weight reduction by removal of original cargo deck with interframe and platform: -45kg (99lb)

Source:- http://www.bimobil.com/website/pickup_h230/start_e.php?diashow=techn_daten

Still a bit high IF you were working with a 1/2 ton truck!

Easy way to calibrate? 2 cars same distance maybe?

Borrow a GPS and you can check all your cars.

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  • 3 months later...

Those Tonke flatbeds are nice. They seem really low to the frame and wonder how they manage to pull that off? Can't seem to find any closeup pictures of the flat bed and am curious how much wheel clearance they actually have. Hard to tell from just pictures, but those wheels almost look like they are rubbing with the thing parked on level ground? Still in the dark as to how much wheel well clearance one really needs?

Got around to building a similar flatbed on the new truck. This design has no wheel wells and is a whopping 6'6" wide or the full width of the Sunrader floor, but still only slightly wider than the cab itself. Maybe 3" on both sides with the pickets. The flatbed on the 94 pickup was a mere 5'3". There is just slightly more than 8" wheel travel clearance (will see if this is indeed sufficient for the intended application).

The cab however is a bit taller than the 94 in relation to the frame rails and so the deck is ~2" higher off the ground, but hopefully the much wider truck will compensate for this added height.

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Will need a new mounting system now that the flatbed is the same width as the camper's floor. WME had suggested a few pages ago that the camper be secured via the exterior walls. This seems like a good idea now that the 2 components are of the same width. Will try to post a closeup picture of camper on flatbed and see if any ideas pop up.

Ordered 2 more compartment doors on Ebay. A 27"x15" and a 15x15". Now that wheel wells won't be needed in camper, might as well take advantage of these soon to be voids.

So the 3rd generation of the camper is getting that much closer.... lots of dust collecting on the interior that's for sure.

thnx for the continued support/feedback.

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Soenke's rig is pretty amazing and admired by many. If you wanted a rig that could get you way out in the sticks, this would be it. One picture that really stands out is the rig on an extreme side hill. An overhead camper like my own might not be able to handle a situation like that very easily.

1521799.jpg

Hard to find a fault with his rig as it seems near perfect.... Maybe the shell portable/removable?

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Compartment doors from Ebay arrived and the wheel wells have been hacked out and boxed in with some leftover redwood 1x' fencing. Am really loving the newly acquired usable floor space especially on the passenger side.

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Wish you didn't need a key to latch the doors. Prob some kind of mod for that?

Looking to build 2 aluminum boxes for under the flatbed rails. Need ideas for collapsible steps to be incorporated into the passenger box. Maybe on a drawer?

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Take the locks apart, remove all the pins. OR just JB Weld a key in place

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Randy, those scissor steps look like they would work out... and the glowing tape would be fun. thnx for the link.

JBWeld is a good one! cool.gif I guess more expensive compartment doors have latches that can close with or without a key. I just don't want critters trying to paw open my doors and bending them all out of shape should I leave one side unlatched.

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My new coach has a twist to lock handle, with a key to lock. You can just close it without locking it.

Check out PPL web site for compartment locks, they make some that use a combo to lock

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Those combo locks are expensive!

Your JBWeld comment actually shed some light on a really simple and cheap solution; we will just make a few spares and leave them in a drawer inside the coach.

Looking at some different online 12v coolers. Any suggestions? I see my local Home Depot actually sells a brand called Whynter online for about $500 bucks that fits the above criteria. Anyone have any experience with this brand?

EDIT:

found this article at Expo A little short on details, but I do like that drain plug!

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Google peltier coolers.

I found a 52 qt Kooltron for $165 @ compactappliance .com

A peltier cooling module can shift the temp about 40 deg from ambient. Cool or heat by reversing the polarity of the 12v source

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