I figured I would post a few pictures of my latest project, its a Four Wheel Camper that is made to replace the top on a "Big" Bronco. This particular camper was made for a 1978-79 Bronco but I am rebuilding it to fit a 1990 Bronco. I bought it out of Colorado last year on a trip on a whim as I thought it was cool but didn't have any plans for it. Here is the camper as purchased, not much there and a major project.
Once I got it back to Texas I realized that I did not have a Bronco to put it on! In true TexAgs fashion I had to buy a Bronco for the camper. I ended up finding a 1990 Bronco out of California from a friend of a friend. Here is a picture of it next to my 1967, this was the beginning of last year.
The real challenge now was to fit this old frame onto the newer body style of the Bronco. The first thing I had to do was learn how to tig weld aluminum so I could modify the frame. That was a slow process that I am still figuring out but I have gotten proficient enough to get the frame built.
I figured while I had the Bronco in the shop now would be a good time to go ahead and add some sound deadening inside the cab. All of the interior had to come out to do that.
With the interior back in I could focus on getting the frame built out on the body. I removed the top and here I am working on fitting the camper to the back end of the Bronco. The camper overhangs the back about 10" so the back end needs to be framed up. I am planning on boxing in the camper frame and sealing it to the body and hopefully use the existing tailgate seal to keep water/dust out. The tailgate will be removed as well once I get farther along. Most of these campers used particle board or plywood for the floor areas but I did not want any future rot or wood issues. I decided to use a composite fiberglass material called Thermo Lite board from Space Age Synthetics. This material is used a lot in the marine industry. I will also use this material in the overhang above the cab over bed area. Here are a few pictures as to where the project is currently at. I dont have much time to work on it so I fit it in where I can.
In the pictures above you can see the bulkhead where the camper and cab meet right behind the seats. I will be making a transition piece to go from the camper to cab, that will make a completely open area to pass through. There wont be much of that bulkhead left once the transition is done. The hard part is getting everything is seal and look good. Its been done before so I will figure it out.
I plan on going pretty minimal inside the camper but since we are in Texas I will be adding a small 5000but window unit as well as a cheap diesel heater. I still have to source new pop up fabric for the sides as well. The roof pops up approximately 30" when it is open. Here are a few pictures of a similar Bronco camper.
Once I got it back to Texas I realized that I did not have a Bronco to put it on! In true TexAgs fashion I had to buy a Bronco for the camper. I ended up finding a 1990 Bronco out of California from a friend of a friend. Here is a picture of it next to my 1967, this was the beginning of last year.
The real challenge now was to fit this old frame onto the newer body style of the Bronco. The first thing I had to do was learn how to tig weld aluminum so I could modify the frame. That was a slow process that I am still figuring out but I have gotten proficient enough to get the frame built.
I figured while I had the Bronco in the shop now would be a good time to go ahead and add some sound deadening inside the cab. All of the interior had to come out to do that.
With the interior back in I could focus on getting the frame built out on the body. I removed the top and here I am working on fitting the camper to the back end of the Bronco. The camper overhangs the back about 10" so the back end needs to be framed up. I am planning on boxing in the camper frame and sealing it to the body and hopefully use the existing tailgate seal to keep water/dust out. The tailgate will be removed as well once I get farther along. Most of these campers used particle board or plywood for the floor areas but I did not want any future rot or wood issues. I decided to use a composite fiberglass material called Thermo Lite board from Space Age Synthetics. This material is used a lot in the marine industry. I will also use this material in the overhang above the cab over bed area. Here are a few pictures as to where the project is currently at. I dont have much time to work on it so I fit it in where I can.
In the pictures above you can see the bulkhead where the camper and cab meet right behind the seats. I will be making a transition piece to go from the camper to cab, that will make a completely open area to pass through. There wont be much of that bulkhead left once the transition is done. The hard part is getting everything is seal and look good. Its been done before so I will figure it out.
I plan on going pretty minimal inside the camper but since we are in Texas I will be adding a small 5000but window unit as well as a cheap diesel heater. I still have to source new pop up fabric for the sides as well. The roof pops up approximately 30" when it is open. Here are a few pictures of a similar Bronco camper.
