Scamp 16' Modifications - Fiberglass RV
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Old 07-18-2003, 06:09 PM   #1
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Scamp 16' Modifications

Hello all,

Well I've finally had the time to sit down and edit all the pics I've taken of my Scamp mods. In case you don't remember, I'm the one who bought the "blank slate". No windows and no inards except for the closet next to the door. I'm a stay at home dad (Mr. Mom) with a 14 month old boy and a 31 month old girl so work on the egg has gone slow. Have to try to work during naps and I'm renovating our kitchen in the house at the same time so it's been a slow process.

Anyway here are a couple of before pics
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f187e6f7a130DriversSide1small.jpg/>
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f187f65ea614PassengerSide1small.jpg/>

First I tackled the "no windows problem" by putting in 3 windows. First I made a template the size of the opening needed and traced it onto the outside of the trailer.

<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188d1cd1f70Window01.jpg/>

Next I drilled a series of holes at the corners so I could see the location of the window from the inside.
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188d5483d74Window02.jpg/>


Next I made marks where I could see the light coming through the holes,
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f18841699d09Window03.jpg/>

and then I used the template to draw the opening on the inside.
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f18847c07547Window04.jpg/>

I then used a razor knife to cut through the fabric and then removed the fabric from the insullation.
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188539a876aWindow05.jpg/>
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188585c3513Window06.jpg/>

The next step was to cut out the fiberglass and the insullation using a jig saw with an 18 tooth per inch blade (As suggested by Scamp).
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f18865281669Window07.jpg/>

Wallah! A hole in my Egg. (by the way if you try to cut the fabric along with the rest, it catches on the blade and it pulls and stretches the fabric pretty badly. I tried this at first and only got about 2 inches before I stopped and used the above method to cut out the fabric first)
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188746e30eaWindow08.jpg/>

Next I applied some window putty to the frame (don't be stingy)...
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f1887fdaae77Window09.jpg/>

...And stuck the sucker in the hole.
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188839cf862Window10.jpg/>

And the last step was to screw the inside frame on from the inside.
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188895c0e05Window11.jpg/>

*The windows I bought were for a wall thichness of about 3/4" (I couldn't find any that were thinner), the scamp walls are about 3/8" once you compact the fabric and insullation against the fiberglass. Therefore if I screwed the inside frame on in the direction it was supposed to go I didn't get a good seal around the outside of the window. I fixed this by screwing the inside ring on "inside out". I also sealed around the outside of the window with sillicone caulk.

Here are a couple of pics of the egg with some ventalatin' and viewin' winders in it.
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188b437c935WindowsDone01.jpg/>
<img src=http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/uploads/3f188b5a50927WindowsDone02.jpg/>

Stay tuned for the Bed and bunk beds, as well as the window A/C in the closet installs. :wave Dan the weary modifier



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Old 07-18-2003, 06:20 PM   #2
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Told ya I was weary!

You can tell how weary I am by the spellin' at the end of those two postings, I'm gonna go feed the kids and myself now, Bye, Dan



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Old 07-18-2003, 06:42 PM   #3
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Hi Dan

Good job---Keep at it and you will be happy when its finished.:wave



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Old 07-18-2003, 06:46 PM   #4
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Great job Dan!

Looks like you remembered to "measure twice and cut once!"

You must have nerves of steel! My hands would be shaking like crazy holding that jigsaw!

Look forward to your progress reports.



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Old 07-19-2003, 02:43 AM   #5
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Dan

we remember the "blank slate". Keep us up to date - very informative.



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Old 07-19-2003, 07:03 PM   #6
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Blank Slate

Oh, I remember it quite well (she says with a slight hint of jealousy in her voice). Other than the windows, I think it would be a lot of fun to be able to do it totally your way.

I admire what you did with the windows. Excellent idea on how to mark, cut and remove the carpet first.

I'm impressed!

Can't wait to see more.



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Old 07-20-2003, 02:03 PM   #7
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So is the floor plan to be a Scamp one, or are you doing your own thing?



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Old 07-20-2003, 04:41 PM   #8
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Doing my own thing!

I am doing my own thing. I have been tent camping since I was in the womb, literally. My mom and dad left florida on a trip in 1959. I was conceived in Pittsburg about a week into the trip (according to my mom) and they then camped their way all the way up into British Columbia and then down the Rockies to Las Crusces New Mexico where I was born about 2 weeks after they arrived (born March 9th). My dad started graduate school at N.M. State that summer.
We also lived in Bozeman Montana for three years and then back down to Alamogordo N.M. Moved to Florida when I was 16 (biggest mountains there are overpasses, Yuck). Anyway I got my wife into camping when I met her and we even camped on our honeymoon.

About seven years ago I ruptured a disk in my back and between that and entering my 40's air mattresses just weren't cutting it (might have something to do with me being 6'4" and 260 too). We tried hauling around some 6" foam to sleep on and that worked ok but what I really needed was a regular bed that I could take camping.

This past spring we were driving up by Highlands N.C. and I saw a Scamp for sale by the side of the road and stopped and looked at it. I said to my wife "ya know if I gutted this out I could build a full size bed in it for us and some bunk beds for the kids (14 mos. boy and 31 mos. girl) and instead of having all the camping stuff in the garage and having to load it up to go camping and unloading when we get back we could just keep everything in the trailer, hitch it up and go!" We called about the Scamp (a really nice 16') and they wanted $7,000.00. So I started looking for something old and cheep that I could gut and I found this website. About two weeks later I followed a link to a Scamp 16" in Orlando FL that "needed finishing" according to the guy who had it. I called Him and he said it was just a shell with no windows and nothing on the inside but a closet (had to be there to strengthen the door wall) and a full size Serta mattress. He bought it from a guy who used it to sleep in at a construction site where he worked at night and slept during the day(hence - no windows). I thought, well isn't this cosmic, a trailer I don't have to gut, and so we bought it and I have built the bed (1st owner had the mattress balanced on some boards, I built a platform with storage underneath) and bunk beds for the kids, put in three windows and have installed an air conditioner. (bed, bunks and A/C installs to be posted here soon.

Well that's one heck of a long way to say I'm doing my own thing and turning it into a rolling tent but what the heck it's Sunday and what better to do than tell a thousand people I don't know about when and where I was concieved. By the way I still have a working Coleman lantern that my parents bought for what turned out to be my first and longest camping trip. I do, however, hope and dream to break that record some day, maybe in our little egg.

If you found this story fascinating and just have to know more scintillating details about my camping experiences just give me a holler.

Bye for now, Dan



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Old 07-20-2003, 04:47 PM   #9
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Well, Dan. I don't know if I'd say ''fascinating'' but I did chuckle over your comment about telling 1000 people the when and where of your conception. :o

Good luck with your project. It's looking great!

:cblob



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Old 07-20-2003, 06:45 PM   #10
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>>This past spring we were driving up by Highlands N.C.

I used to love going there. I haven't been in about 12 years, but it was a frequent place to visit. Still have a bunch of those little clay critters they gave when you checked into that old hotel. I can't quite remember the name of that hotel at the moment, but it was a neat place.

First place I ever ate 'salmon' trout was in Highlands.

Also like to froze to death there one July 4th.

Pretty place.

:yep



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Old 07-20-2003, 06:59 PM   #11
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From Scratch

I am envious of your project. Creating. What fun! Good Luck!



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Old 06-10-2015, 09:11 AM   #12
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Dan,


I know this is an old post, but I am looking to gut our 16' 1983 scamp. I am ready to take everything out but the closet (support). I have been a tent camper all my life, and husband is tired of the "packing up". I love the tent on wheels idea, with little to no set up. I pretty much want the scamp just for sleeping. I don't want the stove, the sink, or the bathroom. I am worried about support. If I take the upper cabinets out first I hope I won't have a problem. I hate those twisted supports from the counter to the upper cabinets. Was wondering if your scamp has any other supports other than the closet now. With it being gutted, did anything start to sag? Learning so much on this site. Thanks for posting!!
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Old 06-10-2015, 09:36 AM   #13
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I'm SO glad someone else finally admitted to Scamp's UGLY and outdated "wrought-iron" supports under their cabinets. I've not liked these from the first time I've stepped a foot in a Scamp! (They dont use these on their "deluxe" models for what it's worth).

While it wasnt a deal-breaker, I DID have the determination to do something about them and here's my mod!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/503516...57625973805547

Quote:
Originally Posted by Em H View Post
Dan,

I hate those twisted supports from the counter to the upper cabinets. Was wondering if your scamp has any other supports other than the closet now. With it being gutted, did anything start to sag? Learning so much on this site. Thanks for posting!!
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Old 06-10-2015, 09:58 AM   #14
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Dan,

Those twisted steel supports are pretty clever. The twisting allows for some flex while still supporting the roof. You could cover them if they are "ugly" to you, but I would hesitate to remove them. While driving down the road I expect the fiberglass to shimmy in the wind and over potholes. Lack of support/stiffness would increase the shimmy leading to leaking window seals, cracks in the fiberglass at openings, and leaky gaps in the door frame, and other bad things. Also other folks have reported sagging roofs over time. All brands seem to address this issue with various supports. Be careful or your fiberglass "tent" may sag like a nylon tent. Imagine pitching a nylon tent atop your tow vehicle and consider how long it would last.

An unsupported fiberglass egg would need to have a much thicker wall thickness with additional reinforcement at openings if long life is expected. I expect this would double the weight of the shell.

One advantage to front bath model trailers is the bathroom wall spanning side to side and ceiling to floor. This wall is a shear structure and it substantially contributes to a trailer's stiffness and durability. Look for similar shear planes in houses, aircraft and ships. They are important.

John
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Old 06-10-2015, 10:18 AM   #15
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Ummm...guys.. "Dan" hasnt posted on this here in 12 yrs! (maybe longer!)
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Old 06-10-2015, 10:24 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Darral T. View Post
Ummm...guys.. "Dan" hasnt posted on this here in 12 yrs! (maybe longer!)
Didn't notice that. I wonder how his mods turned out.

John
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Old 06-10-2015, 10:30 AM   #17
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To be honest, it appears that the "Dan" guy's posts are gone! Not sure about this "Legacy Posts".

"Em" (Emily) is the one to whom I was suggesting a way to cover the wrought iron. It's not removed but just covered and intact exactly the way Scamp ships it.

(BEAUTIFUL toys you build!)

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Didn't notice that. I wonder how his mods turned out.

John
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Old 06-10-2015, 10:36 AM   #18
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My thought is that the wood cabinets screwed through the fiberglass into the wood structure gives better support than the few pop rivets in the fiberglass cabinets.
As I installed the wood cabinets in my 86 project I could feel the stiffening of the whole structure as I worked.
I cut away the insulation where the cabinets mounted and glued and screwed then in place and in my Scamper the overhead cabinets are form the bonded in wall front the rear and also across the back. The cabinets are also glued and screwed to each other. It is like having a 12" oak beam alon the roofline!




With this setupp I don't believe any additional bracing is necessary and the stiffness from the cabinets may be why there are no braces in the Scamp deluxe versions. I couldn't speak for that really since I have never seen one!
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Old 06-10-2015, 10:44 AM   #19
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That's going to BE a "Deluxe" when you get through JD. Looks really good. And I agree 100% with the stiffening with that type of mount. Just not sure why Scamp doesnt incorporate that into the "Standard" or all-fiberglass interior models! It would get rid of SO many of those blasted rivets. Oh...and while they're at it...put strips to mount the curtain rods to for crying out loud!
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Old 06-10-2015, 01:01 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Darral T. View Post
That's going to BE a "Deluxe" when you get through JD. Looks really good. And I agree 100% with the stiffening with that type of mount. Just not sure why Scamp doesnt incorporate that into the "Standard" or all-fiberglass interior models! It would get rid of SO many of those blasted rivets. Oh...and while they're at it...put strips to mount the curtain rods to for crying out loud!
Darral,

My 2014 Scamp came with thick aluminum window frames, nearly 2 inches. I suspect they are stock RV windows made for 1 ½ - 2 inch thick RV walls. The Scamp's thin wall leaves most of the window thickness protruding into the interior. I realized too late that this sturdy aluminum frame would make a great support for a wooden strip from which to hang the curtains, much better than Scamp's through hull rivets. I advise folks to ask Scamp to forget mounting the curtains and add the wood strip to their new Scamp themselves. More elegant, more sturdy, less chance of rivet leaks. It would even be easier and cheaper for Scamp to do it this way. This would also make mounting mini-blinds pretty easy too.

John

PS. Thanks for your kind words.
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