Cornish camper conversion

[fletchyfletch]

Right, conversion attempt number three!

I've decided to downsize from the Mk6 high top because I've found that it's just not worth the hassle. Being able to stand up for a few minutes before bed just isn't justifiable for the inconvenience of the bigger van!
The last one was a lot of trial and a lot more error and ended up in a bit of a state so after a bit of forced servitude to French vans I finally have a worthy test subject for another conversion.

This one is ex-police so I've spent quite a bit of time filling in holes in the roof and removing unnecessary cables, obviously it comes with a few benefits too.

I've decided not to rush it this time and to get everything done properly and carefully. first off was a bit of sound deadening, using bitumen flashing applied directly to the panels.


I got distracted and decided to make myself a light panel.


Started installing the glass fibre insulation and vapour barrier


Then to fit the light panel and ceiling panels (sorry, no pictures for this.
I was in a rush to get back to London so a bit of quick cutting out of the ply and slapdash carpeting, which I'll be replacing at some point in the future)



So here's today's work. I've taken out all of the remaining panels and carpeted them in dark grey.



I'll get some photo's of the finished panels up in the morning.

A couple of questions for you guys though.. What have others done about the gap between the back doors and the floor? Theres a horrible draught coming through and I'd like to see what solutions everyone else has come up with.
Also, what about carpeting the metal on the back doors.. Where do you carpet to? Right up to the rubber?

[GnarlyDon]

Looking good mate. I live in Newquay and just brought a mk7 swb 115 trend yesterday. Flew up to Manchester to pick her up and just started work on it today ripping the bulk head out and giving it all a well deserved clean. Looking forward to seeing your progress.

[fletchyfletch]

Thanks Gnarly. Turning it in to a surf van I hope! I lived in Newquay a couple of years back. Great place for spotting custom vans

[ake]

You need to stop the carpet before the rubber door seal, other wise it pushes the rubber off the door and let's the rain in

[fletchyfletch]

Thanks Ake. Yeah, I've been keeping away from the seals while I decide whether to paint or carpet up to them.
I'll have more pictures this weekend. I've been busy with the van for the last few but been in such a rush to get everything finished before driving back to London on the Sunday nights that I haven't been able to take any decent photos.

[fletchyfletch]

It's about time I updated this!

So this finished panels looked a little like this. They were all fairly easy to carpet and I managed to get everything done in a couple of hours.


A bit of trimming around the edges before the panels go back in.


Next up was to replace my temporary wiring with something a bit more flexible and up to the job. I swapped this 13amp 3-core for some single core 30amp flexy cable bought from eBay.




Its amazing the difference a bit of carpet makes


I've been using this temporary bed. I've been telling myself that I'll have enough time to make the cabinets for the last six weeks but I've since discovered that the time I think it will take to do certain tasks is vastly different to the time it actually takes!

[fletchyfletch]

Ok, it's been a while. I finished the long job in London and I've been quite busy since!
I've done so much more to the van that I'm just going to put it all in this thread (The camper conversion will resume again soon).

I found out that I had the basic loom, I had no intention of adding anything else to the van at the time but it's always nice to have options.
Bought a high spec loom for £50 and fitted that in in an afternoon. The only difference I can make out is that a buzzer goes off when I open the door with the headlights on.

I've been pretty bad at the photo taking so this is from the girlfriend's snapchat.


A few weeks later I decided to do the dash conversion. My excuse was that it would be easier to get in and out of the back without that stick in the way ...
I did a little timelapse of the dash change...


I've had the dash in now for probably two months and it's still without a clock surround. This is why


I just can't get it to manipulate properly.

Nobody ever tells you that the getting hold of a Mk7 turret is one of the hardest parts of the dash change. It took me 6 weeks!
I've never seen a direct comparison between the Mk6 and Mk7 selector turrets either, so here you go.
Mk7 on the left and Mk6 on the right.




Don't forget to put some liquid gasket on the turret before you replace it!


When taking up the rubber mat to make the hole for the new linkage I found quite a lot of surface rust and badly treated rust from a previously bodged repair


So I took a wire brush, sandpaper and an angle grinder to it all, got it back to shiny and painted the lot in a decent layer of red Hammerite.

[fletchyfletch]

Ouch

This came back as a Cat C write off. I've been torn about whether to keep it or not but the insurance company offered a lot more than the van was worth and I got to buy it back for £75.
It kind of seems a bit pointless to do too much to it seeing as the Cat C will reduce the resale price. Otherwise I'd have seen it as a good excuse to do the Mk7 front end.


Not too much damage but it's exposed a lot of rust on the inner wing and wheel arch.



I blame it on this POS sponge..!

Lots more rust on the door sill as well. IS this an MOT failure?

[fletchyfletch]

I managed to get the new parts for £105
New wing from eBay £25
2nd hand slamp panel with lights for £20 from scrappy
New bumper from eBay £45
New grille £15

A bit of spray for the new wing


Whack the other parts on and it's almost good as new.

I'm missing both mount points for the sides of the bumper though. I'll have to weld those on when I repair all the holes!

In the mean time I completely finished the dash!

Well, apart from the steering wheel, steering controls, steering surround and clock surround

[stevo]

What does the gear change feel like now without the big gear stick?

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

[fletchyfletch]

What does the gear change feel like now without the big gear stick?

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

It actually feels smoother. I'm not sure if that to do with the arm on the turret being heavier or something else but it is smoother.
There's less effort because you're not waggling a big clumsy stick about.

If you're thinking of doing it then source the selector turret first. Then collect the rest from eBay or a scrappy afterwards.

[stevo]

What does the gear change feel like now without the big gear stick?

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

It actually feels smoother. I'm not sure if that to do with the arm on the turret being heavier or something else but it is smoother.
There's less effort because you're not waggling a big clumsy stick about.

If you're thinking of doing it then source the selector turret first. Then collect the rest from eBay or a scrappy afterwards.

I prefer the mk6 dash to be honest.
I bet the new turret would help it feel smoother though

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

[fletchyfletch]

What does the gear change feel like now without the big gear stick?

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

It actually feels smoother. I'm not sure if that to do with the arm on the turret being heavier or something else but it is smoother.
There's less effort because you're not waggling a big clumsy stick about.

If you're thinking of doing it then source the selector turret first. Then collect the rest from eBay or a scrappy afterwards.

I prefer the mk6 dash to be honest.
I bet the new turret would help it feel smoother though

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

I bet some fibreglass handywork and a bit of paint could get you a mk6 dash with a mk7 gear lever!

[stevo]

[quote="stevo"]What does the gear change feel like now without the big gear stick?

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

It actually feels smoother. I'm not sure if that to do with the arm on the turret being heavier or something else but it is smoother.
There's less effort because you're not waggling a big clumsy stick about.

If you're thinking of doing it then source the selector turret first. Then collect the rest from eBay or a scrappy afterwards.

I prefer the mk6 dash to be honest.
I bet the new turret would help it feel smoother though

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

I bet some fibreglass handywork and a bit of paint could get you a mk6 dash with a mk7 gear lever! [/quote]
I prefer the big old type

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

[robert1710]

could you tell me where to find the gearbox turret please for dash conversion