mahu Posted June 30, 2016 (edited) Conversion has begun. Rattletrap is in, foam board are going in and that *@$^$# fan is installed too. :-) So whoever said cutting that hole was "fun" and that it would "take 30min" is a darn liar or is way more adept with a jigsaw than me. :-) Damn metal shavings, glad I wore good googles and a face shield and long sleeve pants and shirt. Picked between the 1st and 2nd rib as a good place and boy was it a tight fit to get the Fantastic Vent in there. With prep work, the pilot holes in the 4 corners, cutting everything with jig saw, deburring, Por15, weather sealant and 3M VHB and Dicor self leveling sealant it took about 6 hours over two evenings. Glad the major hole cutting of the conversion is done. Now just a few small round ones for the solar panel cables and the Propex Heater inlet/outlet. Onwards to finishing the insulation on the walls, then ceiling and floor. Wife is taking care of all the electrical planning and once that is in onwards to wall and ceiling paneling, then bed platform and kitchen. Isotherm CR130, Atwood 21 inch stainless steel oven, and Propex have arrived. Waiting for solar panels but all the wiring and controllers are here. Should be all done by the end of August. I'll post an update in a few. Edited June 30, 2016 by mahu 2 Chris Dempsey and Bamps reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ASD Dad Posted June 30, 2016 Nice job! That looks like it will be a fun camper when all is finished up. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wollip Posted June 30, 2016 August!?!?!?!? - of which year? 2 andy_george and Chris Dempsey reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SilverNV Posted July 12, 2016 Looks good, I hear those fans make a big difference. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 15, 2016 Insulation is done, consisting of Rattletrap Xtreme and 2-4 inches of polyiso foam boards. Gaps filled with big gap spray foam. Electrical is next. Wanted to post photos but I can never figure out how to. Sometimes there is an "attach file" button somewhere but often it's not there and when I try to include a link to an external site like imgur the link gets blocked. Not very user friendly. If I can figure out how to post photos I'll put some up. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 15, 2016 I started a separate album and will put photos in there.http://nissannvforum.com/gallery/album/67-travels-with-charley/ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 17, 2016 Started working on the frames for cabinets. 1 Chris Dempsey reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 17, 2016 Chris asked how i attached the framing. "The middle beam uses the reinforced mounting points using m8x1.25 bolts. This is what will carry the majority of the weight of the cabinets. I put a 1.5x3 inch stud below those points into the recessed area and then used mending plates to connect it to the mounting points. On top of the 1.5x3 sits a 1.5x1.5 picket which provides the bottom support for the cabinets.The bottom beam is attached through existing holes in the inside part of the sheet metal using bolts, washers, lock washers and bolts. It'll be used to hold in place the bed platform and won't carry too much weight as it'll have support beams down onto the floor once the flooring is installed. Also there are 8 or so bolts so whatever weights rests on it will be distributed. There is also a m6x1 mounting point towards the sliding door i am using.The top beam uses the upper row of existing holes in the sheet metal. On the drivers side that meant rerouting the cable strand to make those holes accessible. It will go through the cabinets when it's done. Not sure if there was an easy way to remove those plastic clamps holding in place the cable strand but those were a pain in the behind to pry out. Securing the bolts in the top row was a pain as there is little room to work with but i got washers lock washers and nuts on them from behind so it should stay nice and tight. Happy to share more detailed pics if interested." 1 Chris Dempsey reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Carmen Posted July 19, 2016 Subscribed! Can the fan be opened to vent the rear while driving or is it too much drag/pressure on the lid when cranked up? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 19, 2016 Haven't tried it yet since we haven't installed electrical yet, but according to Fantastic the vent can be open while you drive. Maybe some folks here in the forum who have a Fantastic can weigh in about how stable it is open while driving. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris Dempsey Posted July 19, 2016 Subscribed! Can the fan be opened to vent the rear while driving or is it too much drag/pressure on the lid when cranked up? I’ve driven while it’s open many times at highway speed. No noticeable increase in wind noise and it appears to have no adverse affect on the fan itself. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Carmen Posted July 19, 2016 Thanks for the feedback. I need to add this to my project list! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
laharview Posted July 21, 2016 Looking good. Keep up on the photos. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 21, 2016 Finished the framing for the driver's side cabinets and connected it to the passenger's side, which provides the bottom for the rear cabinets. Should finish the framing for the rear cabinets tomorrow and then electrical will start feeding all the wires through the still-open cabinet framing to hide them. Floor install next week and then onwards from there. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 30, 2016 cabinet frames are all done. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
radin2son Posted July 30, 2016 Intresting placement of cabinets on both sides (no windows?). I've never see cabinets set high across the rear doors (no windows?) like that. Unlike other high top vans, NVs seem to have the same size windows for both models, so this is a good use of space for a least a single level of cabinets. When you get your bed platform in, will you have sufficient space to reach in from the back? Or do your plans envisage rarely using the rear doors except to get to storage under the bed platform? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted July 30, 2016 No window on the driver's side. we do have windows in the back and in the sliding door. the back cabinets are something david anderson has too. they align perfectly with the top of the windows so dont affect visibility. they are narrow at the bottom so dont affect the headroom when lying in bed and then get thicker a bit further up. the bottom part will be accessible from the back and top part from inside the cabin. yes only reason we ll be opening the back doors is to pull out drawers from underneath the bed or to get to cabinets across the back windows.side cabinets on both sides are not very deep, 8 inches for the ones over the bed and 11 inches for the kitchen, but are tall instead. asked around a lot and the drivers side window did not seem to provide that many benefits. it d be quite low and we want a very tall kitchen counter, 42 inch, so it d be blocked by the counter anyways mostly. with back and sliding door windows we got plenty of light coming in. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KMG Posted July 30, 2016 Nice build. I too like the above rear door window cabinets. I didn't think to use that area. Thanks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
radin2son Posted July 30, 2016 In our NV the drive side window is mostly obstructed but it does provide cross ventilation for the lower area. There will be times when this and the window on the other side are the only ones you can keep open. Your roof top fan also has to draw air from somewhere... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted August 2, 2016 (edited) Cabinet bottoms are in. one single u shape piece aligning with the back windows and covering the side and back cabinets. Edited August 2, 2016 by mahu Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted August 5, 2016 cabinet walls are going up and patched some gaps and screw holes with bondo. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thomas New Posted August 12, 2016 Looking good. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted August 16, 2016 Flooring is in! Latex leveler to even out the floor, rattletrap for sound dampening, plywood as underfloor and then luxury vinyl planks. Cut out vent hole for the future propane box and two smaller ones for air intake and exhaust for the propex heater.Wall panels are going in today and tomorrow and then bed frame and kitchen counter will go in. 1 laharview reacted to this Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mahu Posted August 19, 2016 Driver's side wall panels are in, bondoed and sanded and ready for primer tomorrow. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thomas New Posted August 20, 2016 Flooring is in!Latex leveler to even out the floor, rattletrap for sound dampening, plywood as underfloor and then luxury vinyl planks. Cut out vent hole for the future propane box and two smaller ones for air intake and exhaust for the propex heater.Wall panels are going in today and tomorrow and then bed frame and kitchen counter will go in.Did you put the plywood on top of the stock rubber floor cover or did you take it all out first? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
