Big Woody Build - St. Pete, FL

[toconnor602]

Very nice progress! (You appear to be very organized - something I am not.) Keep the pictures coming!

Thank You! I am definitely a "planner". Sometimes it looks like I am just staring of into space. My neighbors probably think I am crazy as I can sit and stare at this bare trailer for 5 minutes without moving

[Trickytrip]

Hey, congrats on taking the plunge! I will be down in Indian Shores in November, would love to come by and see your progress.

[toconnor602]

Tuesday, September 6, 2016 - Deck Work / Electric Prep

I was able to finish what I wanted to get done yesterday. Completed laying the spars and screwed them together. I ran 2 separate 12 gauge from the galley to the header. I made a 90 in the header at each location. the wires will be ran through the front bulkhead. The wire near the center spar will be ran up to the cabinet above the head of the bed and 1 exterior outlet (used to run the A/C Unit).

The other wire will be used to run to the battery on the tongue to the smart charger on the mighty mini that will be installed in the galley. All the DC wire will be ran through the ceiling.

Still trying to find a good video on the install of the PD 4045 but have not been able to find one. If anyone knows of one please share the link.

[KCStudly]

IIRC Noseoil does a pretty good job explaining with pictures (and perhaps links to other useful sources) how he installed the power center in his Tuscon Tortoise (or maybe it was a parallel post in the electrical forum. Look him up, it is a worthy build to study regardless.

[toconnor602]

IIRC Noseoil does a pretty good job explaining with pictures (and perhaps links to other useful sources) how he installed the power center in his Tuscon Tortoise (or maybe it was a parallel post in the electrical forum. Look him up, it is a worthy build to study regardless.

Thank You!

[toconnor602]

Wednesday, September 7, 2016 - Material Pickup

Made a trip to the lumber yard for my 1/2" marine grade plywood for my subfloor. Trip to Lowes for Insulation.

Thursday, September 8, 2016 - Insulating and Sub-Floor Contruction

Before i put down the insulation I decided to run another electrical line to the front. After reading through some previous posts I took m.colley's advice about running the A/C off a separate breaker. (Pic 1)

Finding 1.5" insulation was just not happening locally. I decided to go with separate sheets of 3/4". this actually worked out better. Instead of carving channels in the full 1.5" panels for the electrical wires as I planned, I put down the first layer in sections. (Pic 2)

I then used a 3M Heavy Duty spray adhesive and put down a full panel on top. (Pic 3)

After that I drilled hole locations where my wires will run through the subfloor and placed them on top to hold it all together. (pics to follow soon) I haven't secured it to the stringers yet. I still have to dress the rear edge and cut it to size.

[toconnor602]

Friday & Saturday, September 9 & 10, 2016 - "Off" Days

The wife and I took a few days off and headed to Ft. Myers. Went kayaking and a group of Manatees came right up to our Kayak...pretty cool. I brought my plans with me so I could do some planning. I decided I am going to fabricate all the parts and save the staining and sealing for last, right before I begin the construction.

Sunday, September 11, 2016 - Finishing the deck

I put the glue down and strapped the deck down. It is as square as possible. The top plywood will require a little sanding on the sides so the walls fit nicely bu only 1/16th" and inch at most.

Once the glue set, I countersunk and screwed the deck down.

My wife was nice enough to take a picture of me in action as well. I was able to listen to the Tigers game, unfortunately they lost and then the Lions game...Thankfully they were able to pull out a victory (I am a Detroit Sports fan even though I live in FL)

[toconnor602]

Sunday, September 11, 2016 - Bulkhead

The plans called for a single sheet of plywood 24" x 58.5" I did not have any remnants of the marine grade plywood available thats size & I did not want to buy another sheet, so I improvised and used (2) 12" x 58.5" pieces. I aligned my top and bottom spars, glued, clamped and once the glue set, countersunk the holes and screwed them in.

I then aligned the 2 pieces and glued on the side spars and cut the spars for the middle to create the channel for my electrical to go to the overhead cabin cabinet. The other 2 wires do not require a channel as they will be going a short way and will be run to exterior electrical boxes.

[aggie79]

Progress is good! You've got a great platform.

Still trying to find a good video on the install of the PD 4045 but have not been able to find one. If anyone knows of one please share the link.

Here is another good link for the PD 4045 install: http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=59874.

[toconnor602]

Wednesday, September 13, 2016 - Material Pickup

The Guys at C.H. Anderson lumber called and the wood I ordered came in!!! I went with 3/4" laminate plywood with a maple veneer. Really happy with the service from the guys at this lumberyard. Smaller place, a little more expensive than other places but I like the personal service.

Thursday, September 14, 2016 - Side work

I put both of my sides on top of work horses. I used the template provided to me from Big Woody Campers. Lined it all up and made sure the length was at 8'. Pic 1.

My wife is an artist and has all kinds of little tools. I used this spiked roller to trace along the lines on the template. (Pic 2)

I then took a black sharpie and traced over the lines. This left me with a nice connect the dot pattern underneath the template. My wife has a much more steady hand than I do so I had her connect all the dots for my outline.

Used my little Rigid jigsaw and changed the blade often, moving the workhorses underneath to either avoid the blade or support the cut edge from drooping down and jamming the blade.

I left about 1/8" off the line and used the belt sander with 80 grit to get in closer. I'm having a hard time getting the 2 edges square (switched to palm sander with 100grit). I posted a question in the general section about using a electric planer to square the edges. Anyone ever try that method?

[KCStudly]

One of the big things I have stuck to on my build is the theory that, "I can screw up so much faster with power tools." If it was me I would try a hand plane and then maybe switch to a hard sanding block for the final "perfection". But then again I may have more of a critical eye for the details than some (and my build has not been a quick one).

Another trick would be to keep a small combination square handy and check as you go.

I picture your walls laying down and you holding the sander sideways looking down at the profile edge. Have you tried standing your walls up and looking along the length while sanding? It is important to position your work (or yourself) so that you can see and control whatever tool you are using. This may seem obvious, but since you didn't mention it...

[noseoil]

The best tool would be a router with a flush-cut bit. A 1/2" flush-cut bit has a bearing on the bottom, which acts as a pilot for the cutter. Basically, clamp the two sides together with the larger side on top. Then set the depth of the bit so the bearing rides along the bottom side's edge (this is actually your pattern). The router will then take off the extra material & leave you with two perfectly matching sides. This would be the best, fastest & easiest way to do the job.

[KCStudly]

To elaborate on what noseoil said, I would agree on the router if you have taken the time to make a pattern and get that pattern exactly the profile you want. the pattern can be made from thinner, less expensive material and would be easier to sand accurately. Also would come in handy throughout the build as a reference.

However, like I said, you can screw up really fast with a router running freehand, and just matching one imperfect profile to the other doesn't necessarily get you to the line, or square on both sides.

[toconnor602]

One of the big things I have stuck to on my build is the theory that, "I can screw up so much faster with power tools." If it was me I would try a hand plane and then maybe switch to a hard sanding block for the final "perfection". But then again I may have more of a critical eye for the details than some (and my build has not been a quick one).

Another trick would be to keep a small combination square handy and check as you go.

I picture your walls laying down and you holding the sander sideways looking down at the profile edge. Have you tried standing your walls up and looking along the length while sanding? It is important to position your work (or yourself) so that you can see and control whatever tool you are using. This may seem obvious, but since you didn't mention it...

I started out standing and sanding exactly how you described. Once I got down to the palm sander I put my butt in a chair and got eye level with a combination square, but saw no signs of improvement on the areas I was working. I was too reluctant to go back to the belt sander sitting down since I dont want to remove too much material.

[cspearman]

Looking good! Excited to follow the progress!