Club 80-90 Forums

Hi

Has anyone got a JK 3/4 width R&R bed?

Firstly, I am looking at getting one, they look good VFM. Any comments?

Secondly, if you have one, can you please measure the distance from the front of the base to the back of the front seat box for me, so I can plan my unit installation. Ta

Munnyella

I found the easiest way is to make a small four equal-sided box out of scrap chipboard, fit the brackets and small seat base and back accordingly so you understand the movement and can scale it up to suit your own needs. Thats what I did. Saves loads of serious blunders.

Hi Cov kid.

thats what I did in the last one, It worked a treat, but, for £100 it comes flat packed, with the rear under bed storage box and new hinges, to be honest, I wasn't far away from that last time, if you take into account time spent aswell , it'll probably cost me less (i'm self employed)

I re-read about 10 pages of `paint your van....' today, paint arrived Tuesday, gonna start with seams, door reveals, gutters and the like first, windows out, ready for the big push in the spring. Watch this space for advice!!

Thats pretty cheap isnt it? The wood isnt going to be far off that? plus the time faffing around!

Are the hinges up to much?

Chris

Long way off £100 unless you're buying your wood from the most expensive supplier in town. At most you want two sheets of 8' x 4' but the real saving is in time. Luckily I have access to an industrial saw bench and mine wasn't full width but if you're cutting at home with average power tools, it not easy to keep everything neat and pre-made may be the best option.

This might be useful though: http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=GB&hl=e ... re=related" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Hmmm

I've just bought one as its cheapppp.

I have not enough tools to my disposal to do a nice job, and if I would have done it i would have made a steel frame to mount it on an pre cut sheets of mdf, so I'd estimated around £70-80 include the storage thing, and lots of swearing!

Chris

The other issue wuth fitting anything inside is weight. It can add considerably to fuel consumption having to lug around loads of MDF or chipboard. A friend suggested aluminium box section all bolted together with some panels to keep things square and block off areas. A while back I described a way of making a buddy seat that was about a third of the weight of an equivalent MDF version using pine and hardboard and a mock woodgrain finish using a brush. That seemed to work quite well and looked great to be honest. My present rock n roll seat uses MDF mainly because of time constraints but I plan to replace that with lighter materials as soon as I can.

When I rebuilt my Leisuredrive hightop I discarded the squre section runner guides and simply used the hinges and side shoot bolts. I don't have any other mechanics such as scissor movements etc. About eight inches of my seat/bed panel projects over the edge of the front seat upright panel when in the bed position and exhibits no tendency to droop or pivot. I think those complicated mechanisms are an unecessary overkill and an excess weight. (K.I.S.S.)
Regards
Wolfie

Agree CS. Even the hinges weigh a fair bit. My first attempt at an interior (mine was a 7-seater Caravelle) was chipboard but the weight was unbelieveable. First time I drove it after fitting it all, I could feel the drag on pullaway. Even the pre-built campers don't make any real effort to keep weight down.

I looked at all kinds of things but most would have been too expensive so decided that any area that wasn't prone to abuse, kicks or sustained weight placed on it could be replaced with a pine frame with rebated hardboard panels. These are incredibly light and relatively easy to make. They can also be finished in a variety of ways including varnish, stain, paint or even vinyl.

Weight is now the number one factor when putting anything in it now. Its amazing how it all adds up and how much fuel you save.