Still More Framing

Those of you reading this who are beginning to get a little tired of pictures of pine framing, I can sympathise. This weekend there has been more of the same. I had to wait for about a month from agreeing to buy the bus until I got to pick it up (bank stuff) and during that time I drew plans, went over everything and had it all worked out, or so I thought.


It turns out that the most challenging thing is creating this project as I go along. I have been lucky in that I haven't made any major stuff-ups, but in order to avoid them, I have spent what seems like hours just sitting and looking at the framing pondering how that what I am currently doing will affect what's to come. I have think ahead to accommodate plumbing, electrical, the 12volt solar system, gas installation and a myriad of other things. So if it looks like I haven't done much this weekend, my excuse is I've been thinking.





The 'bed/lounge' is about ready to be lined with plywood on the interior and to have some 10-12mm ply across the top. What I've decided to do here is make 3 'lift-up' sections, one of which is shown in the pic above. To accommodate this, I've widened the areas of the frame that will support the opening sections and put a frame across where the plywood cover doors will be hinged. The other sections that are not accessed by the lift up doors, I will fit the plywood to the frames and cut 'man holes' in them through the plywood.

Before Starting the framing for the main cupboards, I unpacked the fridge and located it approximately where I want it to end up. I figured that the best place to have it was opposite the door given that when you are out camping, you can get to it without going all of the way inside, and because it is opposite the steps, it means that I will be able to see into it without having to grovel around on the floor. The fridge is a Waeco MDC-90 litre model, (new but superseded). It is light and compact and I wonder where all of the money is. This model was $1499 RRP. I got it for $800 from the factory, still you have to wonder why they are so expensive. Made in Germany to last, I hope. The front panel is removable so you can replace it with whatever blends in best colour wise. Don't know it I'll bother at the moment. I will have to swap the door around so it opens from the right side. They provide instructions and bits to do this. Later.

So, here is what I've done this weekend. Actually what you see here was all done on Sunday. At 9.00am Sunday, I hadn't even started the main cupboards. As you can see they're not finished by along shot, but well on the way. I had to accommodate the wheels arch and work out how they cupboard were going to sit in relation to the windows etc. It had turned out OK, but there are still a few linger doubts about hinges for doors etc. All will become clear immediately before I go to do that part of the job. That's it for this week. The weather is warming up and the days getting longer, so I may be able to get the odd bits and pieces done after work. We'll see. Thanks for reading.

Shower Framing Completed

A reasonably productive weekend with one of the most difficult areas to frame completed. As mentioned in a previous post, I was dreading the shower/toilet area because of the need to extend from floor to roof and take into account the waterproofing and the angle of the roof etc.

At the end of last weekend, I'd started the frame and it took me a week of pondering to sort out how I was going to do it, and after all that, when I went to put it into practice it had to change.

The idea is to use the wheel arch over as a support for the toilet and provide enough room so that a person can not only get into the cubicle, but also have a reasonable shower.

I started off with the cubicle being a planned 1300mm x 700mm, but when I marked it out and saw the size I decided that it was too big. As you can see pfrom the photos, I have decided to make the back part of the shower into a floor to roof storage cupboard. To leave it as shower would just be a waste of valuable space. Anyway its done now. Have a look at the finished product, well the framing anyway.

The first frame to go in was this side one, probably the easiest of all of them.

The finished job, a bit a battle and 2 days work but at least its solid and won't move.

This is the space for the cupboard behind the shower cubicle. You can see the benefit of the pocket hole joinery here.  It makes life so much simpler.  You can construct alot of the frames on the bench,  but being able to add in supports etc as you go is great, and the joints are always accessible.

This is the base for the toilet built on top of the wheel arch  There is storage space under too.  I intent to line oout the bottom of the shower with exterior grade plywood, seal it then cover it with fibreglass to make the base.  That's the plan.  If you have any other suggestions I would love to hear them.

The Framing

Well, some real progress this weekend, the framing has started. I decided to use 42mm x 19mm pine for the framing for a couple of reasons, the main being that it is light and the other reason is that it is comparably inexpensive. The pine cost $1.57 per metre from a company called Timber Wholesale in Glenorchy. I am pleased to say that when I paid for 'clear' timber it was in fact free of knots and sap marks. If you buy the cheaper grade you can end up with quite a bit of waste.

The timber is straight, true and free of imperfections and is just what I needed to ensure good straight frames.
I also purchased a quantity of the lining boards that I will be using once the frames are completed. I did this because I thought that I may need some to fill in spots that I won't be able to get to when I move onto the next piece of furniture.

The Joining System
For a long time prior to purchasing the vehicle, I was searching for a joining system that would allow for butt joints without having to use biscuit joinery which although faster than many jointing systems still takes a long time because each joint has to be glued and cramped until the glue is dry. Finally I discovered the Kreg Pocket Hole System. What a fantastic method of joining timber which is both strong and fast. If you want to see how the system works there are many videos on YouTube, just type in 'Kreg' into the search window. You'll be amazed how quick and easy this method is. All you need is a saw that will cut square and of course the pocket hole jig. Without a straight cutting saw, you're wasting your time.

This pic shows the Kreg Jig ready to use. I screwed it to a small table and I found it works just as it was supposed to. In the kit is a dust extraction cover that you connect to a vacuum cleaner to remove the dust and I found that this was a real asset. It prevented the drill clogging and made the job faster and cleaner. The pic below is an example of the pocket holes. Clean and square.

I decided to start at the back of the bus and work forward, using the 42 x 19 pine on its edge for strength and also to reduce the amount of room that it took up. When you only have a small amount of space in the vehicle, you want to use what you have as effectively as possible.

The framing in the pic below is for the 'U' shaped lounge which doubles as a bed. You can see that at the end of this weekend, I've basically completed the frame and started the shower/toilet frames.

Can't wait to get going on it again. I will continue to move foward in the bus and complete the shower/toilet. This will pose some problems because as you can see the roof slopes in toward the middle. I can see some creativity being required here. I intend lining the shower with waterproof plywood and Lamipanel. Until next time.