The Cargo Condo

[CLynn85]

Or whatever else we decide to name it.......

Backstory - we [stupidly] sold our ambo-camper, the Belafonte, this winter to pursue version 5 (or is it 6, I'm losing count) of our 'permanent' camping setup in the form of a trailer. First we bought this

But it sucked, old leaky, moldy, no side door, etc. So I flipped it for a tidy profit and bought this!

Which is only two years old and barely used, for basically the same price that I sold the first one for.

It's a 5x10 v-nose with a 5'9" ceiling and side entry door built by local mfr Holmes in Richmond.

Edit - a bit more about the reason for the change and our new requirements.

1. Ability to basecamp. The ambo required us to pack up camp daily to go out anywhere. Original plans called for hauling the klr for this, but the wife wasn't keen on it at the time. Now that I have a cruiser though, she's changing her mind...

2. Stealth. Last camper was an old ambulance with red stripes, enough said.

3. Modularity. The goal is for the bed setup to easily fold or remove and store against the wall somthe trailer can double as a toyhauler of sorts.

4. Maintenance. A newish cargo trailer is considerably less maintenence intensive than a 20+ year old ford, and I already have way too many other vehicles.

5. Mobility. Should be self explanatory. Some mods to make the trailer a bit more trail friendly are also in the works.

6. ADHD. In the past couple years...SQURREL!

 

[CLynn85]

Since we had a ridiculous winter for this area this year, I dragged it into the shop for disassembly.

Pulled the walls and added 1" polystyrene foam in the walls and ceiling.

And framed out an opening for the roof vent.

While the walls were out we painted them a neutral gray and then reinstalled them.

We also experimented with some layout mockups, liked this one but moving the large panels around was too clunky.

Installed a window from vintage teardrops. The size/ location aren't optimized, but we wanted to keep everything basic and flexible while we experiment with it and see what works. Didn't want to take up a whole wall when we didn't know what our needs were going to be.

- - - Updated - - -

Hmmm, some formatting issues with doing this on the tablet, will have to fix on a real computer at some point.

 

[CLynn85]

Also got around to installing the vent fan over the holiday weekend. I loved the maxxair deluxe we put in the ambo, and stupidly left in when we sold it, but the budget wont allow it on the trailer, so a regular old fantastic fan went in instead.

And finally tonight after years of relying on friends, relatives, crowswing R&D, and ripping things by hand, I broke down and bought a table saw of my own.

Maybe this will improve the quality of my builds a little. Nah, probably not...

 

[Al Swope]

Awesome! Can't wait to see yur progress

 

[CLynn85]

Got a little bit more work done this weekend on the trailer. A lot of little stuff inside, paneling, wiring etc, not much to see there.


Mounted the tongue box that will house most of the electrical, best harbor freight had to offer

I've had these Yakima racks laying around since we sold our four wheel camper 6 years ago, figured it was time to put them to use. Only problem? No rain gutters, so I made some.

This also provided a convenient place to mount our arb awning that we had on our skamper and has been put to use more recently on a friend's Synchro.

 

[DirtRoadTrip]

Looking good, have anymore interior shots?

 

[CLynn85]

Not yet, will try to get some this weekend, not a whole lot to see at the moment, going to use it a couple nights to get a feel for how we want to lay it out.

 

[DirtRoadTrip]

Awesome. Looking forward to the build.

 

[Scott]

Loving this. Great idea. Seriously considering something similar...

 

[Borrego60]

Looks like it's comming along great.

 

[CLynn85]

Wow, way behind on this. So far we've spent 6 nights it and improve a little between each trip, will probably make a lot of changes this winter based on what we've learned.

Not too much to update, too busy working to accomplish much, but we have managed to spend a couple more weekends in it. I haven't posted many interior shots because, well, it's not done yet, but here's what I have done to date.

Installed a NORCOLD 60qt fridge in a temporary spot until we get our front counter/cabinets installed.

Picked up some closeout 12x36" cabinets from lowes for some storage above the bed.

We were upgrading one of our beds in the house so the old full size mattress replaced the air mattress in the back. Still a temp solution but works for now until I get a fold-up bed designed. Also has lots of room for storage underneath and is perfect for a pair of roughneck tote bins side by side.

 

[CLynn85]

So my camper ADD strikes again, because we just brought home a new-to-us 2004 Sportsmobile. Unfortunately, that means the trailer has to go . So if anyone is looking for a 5x10 trailer with a window, insulated walls, and roof vent, pm me.

 

[Scott]

Nice pickup on the smb! I've been considering a build similar to the cargo condo for a, while now...