Gettin' started on the Orange Rat

I'm still kind of in the vague notion of an idea stage but with alot of the other guys working on them it gave me a kick to get rolling. Using steel studs as laterals, fairly cheap, super light and pretty tough, also no sawdust...... yet.

I just bedlinered the areas where I figured moisture may be a factor ( the spots on the panels were a stoopid idea about making the panel a little thicker) and I am not insulating. I dont figure on camping in it or toting people around. Also going to try to keep with my , Nothing permanent, philosophy.
On another note. Has anyone ever seen a van with the inside ceiling made flat ?? I'm kinda thinking it would look horrible but it crossed my mind.

Joe, I did see a 2nd Gen once back in the 70's. I looked ok, but not good. And it really steals the head space so if your planning on get in and out of the back it will be a real pain in the neck... Literally.

Dan

Here's a flat headliner in a 65 Econoline. I ran 4 1" X2" pine boards the length of the truck and attached 1/8 plywood panels that were upholsterered to them. The steel peices would give you more headroom, wasn't an issue though. I had to put a seam due to the length of the van, 11' but made a fabric covered molding to hide it. I could have put the plywood up first then padded it with the design and covered in place which would have eliminated the seams but doing it alone would have been difficult.
Fred

Thank you for the pics. That definately gives me a direction I think I can go to make the ceiling much easier. The steel is very easy to work with, nothing more than a good set of shears , pliers and a hammer and a box of band-aids. I will see what lengths I can get , I started out with 12' pieces here to have enough to make some short cuts. I only ordered enough for the sides so far, will see what it takes to go full length now. I spent a couple hours trying to figure out a way to keep the spare tire in its original spot. have a plan but thats next on the list.
Man you do nice work !

Putting a spacer and bolt in the bottom to help hold it plumb

Made a clip to keep it solid , it anchors to the existing tire support and rotates into place.



I dont know how common it is , but I scored some 1/8" ply type paneling today from a place that sells mobile home and RV supplies, It's 8' 7-1/2" long, will reach all the way to the front roof X-member from the back. Working on wiring and about ready to start some templates.

It's hard to see but there is a 12v power outlet there and the switch will be for a rear LED dome light. Also put a power tap towards the front. Plan is to have them exsposed thru the panel.

After my knees were already toast, a braincell kicked in,

Got the rear Blue LED accents working.

Added rewiring the rear portion of the chasis loom to the list, just not enough slack in the wires for me, Should have done it already but I wanted to drive it ,,lol. So more wiring before anything else.

lookin good!

M1D

Got the rear tail and brake turn lights rewired, got the front white LEDs wired and tested and found some fan fold styrofoam to hack out a couple patterns with.



wires hangin everywhere right now.

While I don't think I will do all of the aluminum supports like you have (looks like it will work great for you!) it does give me some ideas for a couple of problem areas in mine. Thanks for showing these pics!

Thats what it is all about is ideas, I'm not saying this is the way to do anything ,, just what Im trying for what I want to do, This is the first time for me using these steel studs, I have done a couple vans in the past but it has been using furring strips and panels with and without cloth type fabric. I'm learning as I go on this, It's one reason it takes me so long to get anything done.
I'm also open to any input or direction and tips. My plans change on a daily basis ! LOL

Finally been making some sawdust. Using this 1/4" styrofoam for the wierd patterns, works pretty good easy to add or trim away.



This is one of the main reasons Im using the extra side supports, trying these clips to make the panels snap on.


These are just backer panels so the fit isnt supposed to be tight at this point.

I'm held up to just cutting stuff out for now ,, The clips are ordered and about a week and a half out ,, I can get little bags , but I want a couple boxes of them at least.

Wheel well panels are next.

great work....................................

Love that paneling Joe. goes great with the orange!!!

Its all getting covered with vynil in the end.

Digz wrote:Its all getting covered with vynil in the end.

What color you going with?

Orange and an off white of somekind, floor is going to be simple indoor outdoor carpet in a gray that will pull the seats into it without having to recover them. I went and visited one of my customers who does upholstery and got another redder shade of orange figured out to use( saw it on some boat seats they had done last summer) think it will fit the bill, that and choices in that color seem limited anyway. Fred gave me some tips on what to look for ,like UV resistant and such. I have a plan Dan,, I hope I can make it all come together!

I'm with ya Joe. I have 3-5 plans at any given time and flip-flop back and forth between them. Often forgetting which van I planned on putting things in... Just wish the weather would let up! Errrr.....

Gaining... I dropped the 2 small panels next to the seats off at the upholsterers today ,but sounds like it might be a 2 week turn around on them ,, they got busy since my last visit.. and thats good for them! Getting those done first to make sure it will work out the way I want. In the meantime I can work on getting the rest of the panels ready.







How not to drill a hole thru your roof

Just got the clips today, so I can keep moving on setting them up.

Still moving on it,, Have had some success and some failure. The small door panels ,,piece of cake,, at least good enough for me ..





The cab roof panel ,,,another story, I am very happy with the set up for the install and fit using push in buttons, But I ran into issues with my adhesive pulling and the fact the panel curves in towards the vynil side and creates a bit of slack. This is vynil over 1/4" foam so I was sort of questioning my idea to start with.

The flash makes it look worse than it is but Im not happy with it. Fred I lost your number somewhere in this mess on my desk !!
Im going to continue with the vertical panels, but may have to rethink the roof panels a bit. Im learning as I go..

Joe did you glue the form to the vinyl first

No I didnt, I was working on the dining room table and it was just easier at the time to do it 1 layer at a time. Also the adhesive seems to mess with the vynil a little so I didnt overkill the application at that point. Hoping to get some tips from a pro on this panel, Its pretty wide and with that arch in it, it creates the potential to slack up, I have 1 other idea but I'll wait a bit, it's not going anywhere ,,lol

Digz wrote:Still moving on it,, Have had some success and some failure. The small door panels ,,piece of cake,, at least good enough for me ..





The cab roof panel ,,,another story, I am very happy with the set up for the install and fit using push in buttons, But I ran into issues with my adhesive pulling and the fact the panel curves in towards the vynil side and creates a bit of slack. This is vynil over 1/4" foam so I was sort of questioning my idea to start with.

The flash makes it look worse than it is but Im not happy with it. Fred I lost your number somewhere in this mess on my desk !!
Im going to continue with the vertical panels, but may have to rethink the roof panels a bit. Im learning as I go..

When you cover something that is curved like that you should try to curve it to the same shape on the bench, even a bit more wouldn't hurt.
Fred

Fred was kind enough to steer me in the right direction,, Great Guy,, I'll get back to this part after I get the rest caught up and will be trying some different materials and techniques !

that is realy coming out great, thanks for posting for us..................

Thanks Wylee, Theres plenty of room for improvement but Im gaining on it.



Im going to see about ordering some different foam for the roof panels tomorrow, right now Im using a polyfoam I think , its more of a padding and its not behaving like I would like, It works okay on the small stuff but I have my doubts on the large panels and it definately is not roof material the way Im going about it, see how it holds up in the long run !