Rookie vs. 1990 Casita (Project Thread)

[Borrego Dave]

Originally Posted by Ellpea in CA

I'm just trying to imagine how I'd handle this situation if there are simply NO square surfaces to go by. Would the answer be to just make certain you are level and plumb, and let the curved areas be danged?
I can imagine I'd need the front and sides of a cabinet to be plumb, and the top to be level... And that whatever had to happen to make things connect to the curved shell was less important?
(Asking because I'm still needing to build out that missing closet in Lil Bigfoot)

Hi Ellpea, not sure where your missing closet is supposed to be. If it's next to an existing cabinet, that's your starting point and square it up as close as you can and build out from there. Nothing in any of these molded TTs is square and nobody ever sees it until they're doing a mod . Just yell "starboard tac" and sail on .

[k corbin]

People with OCD will have a very hard time of it when renovating an old FGRV.

[k corbin]

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...-74938-13.html

Originally Posted by Ellpea in CA

I'm just trying to imagine how I'd handle this situation if there are simply NO square surfaces to go by. Would the answer be to just make certain you are level and plumb, and let the curved areas be danged?

I can imagine I'd need the front and sides of a cabinet to be plumb, and the top to be level... And that whatever had to happen to make things connect to the curved shell was less important?

(Asking because I'm still needing to build out that missing closet in Lil Bigfoot)

Why not start a thread on that missing closet? I am sure you will get lots of input. But do post lots of photos and some measurements too.

As to how one goes about it when you have nothing square to start with, that is a subject I started talking about in post #171 on Friday in my Campster renovation thread. It will be an ongoing subject for the next month as I show it progessing by stages.

[Borrego Dave]

Originally Posted by k corbin

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...-74938-13.html
Why not start a thread on that missing closet? I am sure you will get lots of input. But do post lots of photos and some measurements too.
As to how one goes about it when you have nothing square to start with, that is a subject I started talking about in post #171 on Friday in my Campster renovation thread. It will be an ongoing subject for the next month as I show it progessing by stages.

KC, your info in post #171 is fine for a "height" reference for a total interior rebuild for new counter tops. That may help folks doing that, but Ellpea is only replacing a closet that will be from floor to ceiling and an addition to an existing interior, different animal. She's not doing a full reno like you are. A separate thread with some pics may help some but her concern was about square, which, as you know is only an accident with RVs.

[EllPea in CA]

Originally Posted by Borrego Dave

Hi Ellpea, not sure where your missing closet is supposed to be. If it's next to an existing cabinet, that's your starting point and square it up as close as you can and build out from there. Nothing in any of these molded TTs is square and nobody ever sees it until they're doing a mod . Just yell "starboard tac" and sail on .

Dave, it's the standard closet/cabinet you find to the left of the door in many 13's. Mine is completely gone except for a remining strip of wood right next to the door (there's detail of it in the little video I did under "Ellpea's Corner Curtain Hack.")

No kidding about the "sailing on." When I threw that little frame together, the front is very nice and square and plumb. The backside (next to the window and on the curve of the shell) is about as awful as you can imagine. Think determined female with jigsaw and weak wrists. AND OCD -- so everything has to line up (at least in front)!

[shaggydoink]

Originally Posted by Ellpea in CA

I'm just trying to imagine how I'd handle this situation if there are simply NO square surfaces to go by.

I struggled with this for a while, and in fact made some cuts based on what I thought was square, yet wasn't. In the end the solution came down to finding what I guess you might call a "relative square," that is, angles that are reasonably square, yet within an overall structure that has no precise squares at all.

As KC noted, nothing is square on these fiberglass campers. At the same time, things are relatively square to each other, so if you come up with some angle that's a blend of square to the various objects around it, theoretically you'll end up with something that looks right.

........................... that makes perfect sense in my head, yet have a feeling it makes no sense at all! LOL!!

As for my little project, I did indeed gain some clarity this morning as I drank my coffee and thought about what I should do next which led me to... can you guess?



Yep, another trip to Lowe's!

The project I decided to focus on was the doors to the various cabinets, which seemed fairly logical as they wouldn't really be all that useful if stuff would just fly out of them. I had saved all of the original doors thinking that I'd reuse them, although upon inspection I determined that they were in much worse shape than they seemed when I first got the camper... the material was Masonite and many of the doors had puffed out in spots due to water damage, they also had a lot of holes that needed to get filled in, and at the end of the day they were really heavy so I decided to toss them and make ones from scratch.

I opted to go with sort of a Shaker look, since I didn't have or want to spend the money on a router I built the main frame out of two sizes of lattice:



This allowed me to set in some 1/4" luan plywood for then center area:



Fast forward to the end of the day........... new cabinet doors ready for paint!



Jonathan

[Patricia D.]

You never cease to amaze me with the things you get done in a day and you are so modest with it.
Oh, what shall I do today? I know, I'll just make a few cabinet doors.
I would plan and measure for days before I even thought of going out to Lowe's (if we even had Lowe's). Explains why I am still doing my ceiling and you are almost finished your cabinets.
Great day's work, as usual. I like the shaker style and they must be quite light.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Patricia D.

You never cease to amaze me with the things you get done in a day and you are so modest with it.

I know, RIGHT? I think... oh, I think I'll vacuum the trailer (a big stretch is to mop the floor). Whew done.

[WaltP]

I agree with Pat. You continuously amaze me.

Walt

[k corbin]

Good thinking Johathan!

Those overlaps of the lattice and plywood layers mean it won't come apart on bumpy roads. In some ways that framing is acting as another layer in the plywood because plywood often has cross grain layers. It is all in how you put it together when you think outside of the standard (cabinets) box. This one works nicely and it looks nice too

I have seen that plywood underlayment at Lowes and thought it had a nice grain to it and was well put together. I am pretty sure from the color and grain of that veneer layer that it is Meranti which is also used as a veneer on some of the marine cabinetry plywoods.

[Patricia D.]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

I know, RIGHT? I think... oh, I think I'll vacuum the trailer (a big stretch is to mop the floor). Whew done.

If only, Donna, I am out working on my trailer everyday but don't seem to be making much headway. I love reading this thread though, he gives me hope (and inspiration).

[shaggydoink]

I suspect at some point everyone will get sick of me saying this, but I am very appreciative of the kind posts, I feel very thankful to have such a wonderful group of people to share my crazy adventure with.

My progress today was impacted by my need to mow the lawn, but I was able to get the first coat of paint on the cabinet door fronts:



Since dry time is involved it will probably take me most of the week to get multiple coats slathered on both sides, if I have time I'll do more work on the new fridge unit and get a door built for the bathroom.

And this just in... a friend asked me to help guide a group on a trail ride this Saturday, so unless I chicken out, the camper will make its first trip out of the driveway since I bought it on Friday!

Jonathan

[k corbin]

Wait a darned minute there Jonathan, how are all of us going to get by without our weekend dose of your remodel madness when you go off and play? Not that supervisors get to play but ...you know.

What kind of ride? mountain bikes, horsies, dirt bikes, ATVs, camels?

[Burro Bill]

This Jonsthan guy is pretty talented I think he made dirt bikes
from camels and duct tape of course!
Get out there and have fun with it Jonathan.

[shaggydoink]

Exploring and trail riding in the old ISUZU Trooper I restored is perhaps my greatest passion. No camels, but definitely duct tape at times.



Jonathan

[shaggydoink]

OK. I won't bore anyone with the additional layers of paint I managed to sneak in on the cabinets, but I *will* bore everyone with the hinge project for said cabinets.

The hinges were all pretty roached and rusted out and I was tempted to just toss them:



But then I figured I'd take a stab at trying to salvage them which I'm glad I did, they ended up with a clean, yet still farm fresh look which should go well with the overall Woolrich lodge-style vibe the camper is taking on:



This, however, snowballed fairly quickly as I realized that the replacement screws/bolts stood out like a sore thumb:



I entertained the thought of just letting it go, but ultimately concluded that it would drive my overly sensitive brain nuts every time I used the camper, so back out I went to........................ oh c'mon, I really don't need to say where do I?

I ended up doing a dusting with a metallic flavor of Rust-o-leum:



The price was a little excessive, but the results were well worth it:



After that ordeal I spent a little time framing out the bathroom shell in preparation for the door:



This opened up another can of worms which I'll need to deal with whenever I get to finishing off the interior of the bathroom, but that can wait until I get there.

Jonathan

[shaggydoink]

Quick update for today, I don't have latches so the cabinet doors are a little loose and floppy, but they're at least installed which is a step in the right direction:



I spent the rest of the short bit of time I had this evening clearing out all of the tools and materials, tomorrow after work I'll get things loaded up, then off to Uwharrie National Forest on Friday.

Jonathan

[flowman]

Have fun Jonathan, you've earned it!

[DonnaMarie]

Originally Posted by Mary F

What Steve said. I agree completely. Great project. Great thread. THANK YOU FOR SHARING! You are helping more people than you can possibly know...

DITTO!!!

[shaggydoink]

I didn't chicken out today, I just came to the conclusion that dragging the camper out into the woods in the middle of a tropical storm where I wouldn't be able to enjoy any time at camp didn't make much sense. This gave me a little time to work on a few odds and ends, make yet another trip to Lowe's, then get started on framing the cabinet on the opposite wall from the kitchen:



I flip-flopped a while on how tall to make the unit, and ultimately landed on making it the same height as the kitchen unit - the top I envision will match whatever I put over the fridge so should theoretically create some consistency in terms of its look.

Despite the nasty weather I'm still off to help guide a group of trucks on a trail ride tomorrow... all 30 of them... with no idea how capable any of them are... should be interesting!

Jonathan