4500 Camper/Jeep Hauler Build

[gprguy]

Made some good progress today, at least until my MIG bottle ran dry.

Crossmembers welded in to hold the battery:



Air compressor mounts tacked in with the pseudo-battery back in place:



Then the friendly FedEx guy dropped by. Hopefully the sticker did its job.



The battery was in great shape though, packed well and it fits right in its new home. It's a SOK 12v 280ah battery with a bluetooth BMS, built in heater and an aluminum case. I've seen these disassembled on YouTube and the interior bracing looks to be top quality.







And finally the battery tray about 90% done, just sitting in place since I ran out of gas.





I should be able to finish up this side tomorrow once I get my bottle swapped. With any luck the inverter will here later this week so I can make progress on the driver's side.

 

[jsalbre]

The SOK batteries are great. You really can’t beat the quality and price. You’ve made some really great choices on your build out. I’m excited to see it all coming together.

 

[gprguy]

The SOK batteries are great. You really can’t beat the quality and price. You’ve made some really great choices on your build out. I’m excited to see it all coming together.

Thanks - you and me both. We haven't been camping since April last year, I've got the itch to hit the road..

 

[oledirteh]

Ok, your ability to fab is amazing. just had to say that. Now you make me want a cab and chassis lol. thanks for that.

 

[Razzman]

I've had two SOK's in my trailer now for over two years without any issues. Only thing I wasn't a fan of is the terminal bolts, replaced them with M8x1.25 to M10x1.5 stainless studs. Does that battery have the internal heat pad?

 

[gprguy]

I've had two SOK's in my trailer now for over two years without any issues. Only thing I wasn't a fan of is the terminal bolts, replaced them with M8x1.25 to M10x1.5 stainless studs. Does that battery have the internal heat pad?

Glad to hear it. Our camper has 4 100ah Battleborns (circa 2021) because we needed the standard sized batteries to fit in it. It's amazing that one of these 280ah SOK's is only about $100 more than we paid for one of those Battleborns a few years ago - prices are dropping like a rock.

It does have the heat pad, it's this one below.

12V 280Ah Lithium Battery,Built-in heater and Bluetooth, Best for RV or Marine | SOK Battery

In stock, ready to ship!SOK 12V 280Ah lithium iron phosphate batteries.Aluminium box, best for RV or marine applications!Latest V8 version BMS,Bluetooth Function,self-heater pad built-in.Charge current 120Amps.Discharge current up to 200Amps.

www.us.sokbattery.com

 

[Razzman]

Glad to hear it. Our camper has 4 100ah Battleborns (circa 2021) because we needed the standard sized batteries to fit in it. It's amazing that one of these 280ah SOK's is only about $100 more than we paid for one of those Battleborns a few years ago - prices are dropping like a rock.

It does have the heat pad, it's this one below.

12V 280Ah Lithium Battery,Built-in heater and Bluetooth, Best for RV or Marine | SOK Battery

In stock, ready to ship!SOK 12V 280Ah lithium iron phosphate batteries.Aluminium box, best for RV or marine applications!Latest V8 version BMS,Bluetooth Function,self-heater pad built-in.Charge current 120Amps.Discharge current up to 200Amps.

www.us.sokbattery.com

Sweet! SOK has done a great job with these batteries and as you said the prices are crazy now. Just a few years ago $1000 was the norm. Mine are 1st gen without heat so I just put them inside.

 

[gprguy]

Ok, your ability to fab is amazing. just had to say that. Now you make me want a cab and chassis lol. thanks for that.

Thanks - I appreciate it but I'm just gluing metal together till I see what's in my mind. If you want to see a real wizard at work, check our JR over here:

If I'm ever 1/10th the fabricator JR is I'll be a happy man.

The cab and chassis is fantastic though - between the flat rails and the VSIM it's really a phenomenal platform to build off of.

 

[oledirteh]

Thanks - I appreciate it but I'm just gluing metal together till I see what's in my mind. If you want to see a real wizard at work, check our JR over here:

If I'm ever 1/10th the fabricator JR is I'll be a happy man.

The cab and chassis is fantastic though - between the flat rails and the VSIM it's really a phenomenal platform to build off of.

I tend to do any and all work myself, at least have since i bought a house and everything got exspensive and since the house came with a garage why not. I bought a welder a while back and still havnt had the nerve to fire the dang thing up yet. i really need to get into it so i can start building on some projects i have laying around. I have a jeep m38 i want to start melting stuff too for a rock crawler chassis i have in my mind. also want to build a rack setup for atv's in the bed of my 2500 cause my toyhauler cant fit my can am x3 and 2 atv's.

honestly, your confidence is everything. i did look at 4500's and a basic tradesman is more than a big born 3500 what the heck! lol.

 

[gprguy]

I tend to do any and all work myself, at least have since i bought a house and everything got exspensive and since the house came with a garage why not. I bought a welder a while back and still havnt had the nerve to fire the dang thing up yet. i really need to get into it so i can start building on some projects i have laying around. I have a jeep m38 i want to start melting stuff too for a rock crawler chassis i have in my mind. also want to build a rack setup for atv's in the bed of my 2500 cause my toyhauler cant fit my can am x3 and 2 atv's.

honestly, your confidence is everything. i did look at 4500's and a basic tradesman is more than a big born 3500 what the heck! lol.

That's fantastic - hope you get out there and start laying some beads. If I could give you a quick bit of advice, if you haven't already invest in the best helmet you can afford. The new Miller clear light 2.0 helmets are crazy good, light years ahead of helmets from a few years back. If you can't see what you're doing you can't learn to weld and it just leads to frustration. The cheap portable LED magnetic stick lights from harbor freight are super helpful as well, whenever I can I have one shining right where I am about to weld so I can clearly see what I am doing. All that goes triple if you get into TIG welding at some point.

 

[gprguy]

Back in business with a new bottle so the battery tray can be finished up. Next step was to add brackets and weld nuts for the eventual hold down strap.



Welded to the side of the tray with the weld nuts stuck on from below.



And again, I thought I took a picture of the tray set in place but it looks like I didn't. Anyway it's tacked in and here's the final setup for the passenger side.







Need to finish weld the brackets on this side and then start on the driver's side. Hopefully the inverter shows up soon so I can keep moving.

 

[gprguy]

Moving along at a good clip - if the inverter and a few other things show up this weekend I am getting pretty close to getting this sent off for powder coat.

I finish welded the passenger's side. The underside still needs finish welding, but I will flip it on it's side when I am done rather than weld overhead.





And then it was on to the driver's side. I'm trying to dance around the inverter since it's not scheduled to show up till Saturday, and I'd rather have the real thing vs. making brackets based on drawings. Here's the bracket for the air manifold.



And with the manifold installed.



Next the air dryer needs a home, and since it has a drain that goes through the bottom of the cabinet it might as well be down low.





Fits nice. So here's the overall picture on the driver's side so far.



I still need to make brackets for the inverter, the air compressor, the purge valve and the shore power connector. I'm waiting for half of that to show up so there may not be much more progress till the weekend.

 

[Great White North Eh]

You need to start a go-fund-me for wire and gas!!!

 

[gprguy]

A couple more brackets knocked out. I threw together a purge valve bracket out of some scrap.





Way overkill for that little solenoid but it looked interesting.

The air compressor brackets are built but not welded in until I get the inverter placed.

That's about all I can do until the inverter shows up. I'll be out by the mailbox waiting for the next few days if anyone needs me...

 

[gprguy]

The post office must have heard of my curbside vigil, because it showed up a day early.



Solid advice from the stickers there.

 

[gprguy]

Inverter is in, nearly done. A couple shots of making the crossbars for the "top" of the inverter:



It's a piece of 2x1" box with a piece of 2x1" angle plug welded to it. The feet of the inverter rest on the box, the bracket that comes with the inverter bolts through the angle.



Tacked up in place.



The bottom inverter crossmember is just another piece of 2x1" angle. Everything in place:



And the second compressor tacked in as well.







Everything fits really well. I added a couple of braces across the back wall of the compartment to mount other smaller components to - MPPT, Orion, etc.

I'll finish weld all of this as well as the underside tomorrow, and that just leaves one last piece before powder coating - the shore power inlet. That shows up Monday.

 

[gprguy]

It's off the table, that's a milestone.







I ended up flipping it the rest of the way over and then spent most of the day finish welding the bottom and grinding what was left. If my shore power plug shows up tomorrow the bracket for that is the last piece to add. Then I'm going to test fit it on the truck once more and it'll be off to powder coating.

 

[gprguy]

A question for the group - I don't have room on this truck for permanently mounted solar panels since the camper bunk shades the roof of the cabinet and truck cab. I've seen the flexible ones cut to match the hood lines but I'm not a fan of the idea. So my thought is to do some portable/folding panels that I can set out when boondocking somewhere. Does anyone have any favorite brands or models? I am thinking around 400w, a built in kick stand would be ideal and the thinner they fold up for storage the better. I have Renogy panels on our camper but thought I'd see if anyone has any advice on portables.

I'm thinking of having an SAE connector on each side of the truck so the panels can go where needed. I don't really like SAE connectors but dealing with a MC4 for something that gets disconnected frequently seems like a pain.

 

[MarkCO1]

Does anyone have any favorite brands or models?

I like Zamp solar. They have some "legacy" portables that might work for you.

One thing about portables. Make sure you have a cover for them and put that on before you disconnect and connect before you take it off. Even a little sun will give them a charge.

 

[buzzuti]

A question for the group - I don't have room on this truck for permanently mounted solar panels since the camper bunk shades the roof of the cabinet and truck cab. I've seen the flexible ones cut to match the hood lines but I'm not a fan of the idea. So my thought is to do some portable/folding panels that I can set out when boondocking somewhere. Does anyone have any favorite brands or models? I am thinking around 400w, a built in kick stand would be ideal and the thinner they fold up for storage the better. I have Renogy panels on our camper but thought I'd see if anyone has any advice on portables.

I'm thinking of having an SAE connector on each side of the truck so the panels can go where needed. I don't really like SAE connectors but dealing with a MC4 for something that gets disconnected frequently seems like a pain.

Rich Solar is pretty solid, they have deployable "suitcase" type panels that have a fairly respectable efficiency level.
I have 4 of their 200w panels on the roof of our AF and they have been fantastic.
You should get a dedicated MPPT Solar Charge Controller for the ground deployable "array" just make sure you get one that give you enough opportunity for a little expansion; like a 100|30 or 100|50 (Victron MPPT)