Hodakaguy's 4x4 Sprinter Conversion - Pic heavy!

[Hodakaguy]

Continued from above...

The Aluminum tabs squeeze the lock ring against the rear of the panel and pull the speaker in tight. Nice snug fit and no visible mounting hardware.

Mounted and looking great! The recessed speaker looks a lot more factory than the raised grills, gonna have to pull the other panels and do the same treatment to them now as well

No clearance issues on opening the door now.

Next up I need to start fabricating the rear bed mounts. These mounts will be vertical L-track sections to match the front bed mounts but I need to fabricate supports to bridge the rear windows before I can mount the track.

Here I'm holding up a straight section of L-track next to the forward bed mounts that are already installed in the van. The walls of the van here are curved and the mounted L-track is curved to match the walls. The rear mounts need to have this same curve so that the bed mounting bars will be even.

Starting to fabricate the rear L-track mounts by rolling a section of carbon C-channel to match the curve of the already installed forward vertical L-track.

One down and one to go.

Both pieces curved.

Here you can see how much the L-track has to curve to match the body lines.

More to come....

Hodakaguy

 

[Hodakaguy]

The rear vertical L-track sections will act as the rear bed mounts but they need to span the rear windows, they also need to be curved to match the forward sections of vertical track. Today's project....start fabricating braces.

I started by cutting some mounting tabs out of some flat stock.

With the tabs cut I used a washer to mark out a radius on the corners then used a disk sander to round the corners of the tabs.

Next I applied some double stick tape to the back side of the tabs and stuck them in place, once installed I can start measuring the distance of the curved C-channel.

Next up I decided to remove the mill scale from the tabs, should have just done this in the first place lol. Removing the mill scale allows for cleaner welds and a better paint finish. The Ez-Strip disks make very quick work of removing mill scale without removing any metal, very handy!

Lower and upper tabs taped in place.

Here I'm using the L-track to set the location of the upper tab, the outer edges of the track need to line up evenly. The lower track will be off slightly due to the plastic trim.

Trimming the C-channel to size

Marking out the angle so the C-channel will mate up with the tabs correctly. Used a square block on the tabs to mark the angle onto the C-channel higher than it needs to be, then copied the angle and moved it down to the bottom where the actual cut is required.

C-channel cut and mounting tabs tacked in place.

My dad welding out the mounting tabs Always fun watching my dad work his magic

Next up I drilled the 1/4" mounting holes in the L-track

Then I clamped the L-track onto the brace and used a drill bit to slightly mark the hole locations on the brace.

With the holes drilled I installed some temporary bolts and added some 1/4" stainless nuts on the back side, these nuts will be welded onto the brace.

Continued Below....

 

[Hodakaguy]

Continued from above....

As you tighten the bolts the Track will conform to the brace.

Nuts in place, then welded to the brace.

With the nuts welded in place I decided to add a piece of flat bar on the back side to close it out for a more finished look.

Counter sinking the bolt holes on the L-track.

L-track mounted to the brace. Almost finished, just need to drill the mounting holes on the tabs and paint the brace before install. I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.

And a quick picture with me holding the assembly in place. It started to rain and shut down my progress for the day.....lighting for pics was terrible but You get the idea

Now to replicate it again for the passenger side

Hodakaguy

 

[Hodakaguy]

Up early this morning to start work on the second brace. Not as many pics of the process today since it's a repeat of yesterday.

Dad welding the mounting tabs to the C-channel

Marking and drilling mounting holes in the brace.

Nuts being welded onto the back side of the brace and then welding on the rear cover.

Both braces complete minus the mounting holes on the tabs and paint.

Drilling the 1/4" mounting holes in the tabs

Painted with two coats of textured satin black paint and ready for install

Installing the track onto the braces. I'm using stainless hardware so I'm adding anti-seize to prevent the bolts from galling in place.

Assembled....ready to install.

I used 1/4" Steel Rivets to attach the assemblies to the van...nice and secure! Sorry only one shot of the install as I got busy

Continued Below......

 

[Hodakaguy]

And installed....should make for a nice clean bed mounting setup. Going to be nice to have the bed mounted in place and not have any legs sticking down and taking up room like last summer. I'll paint the rivet heads satin black to match.

Mike at Vanlab printing me out 3 more recessed speaker adapters.....will look a lot more "factory" once the adapters are installed, it means having to pull the lower panels once more but it will be worth it for the improved looks.

More to come.....

Hodakaguy

 

[hulagun]

Awesome build. Commenting so I'll see updates.

 

[wtofd]

A bit more progress today.....

I switched gears and decided to get the L-track mounted in place so work on the wall and ceiling panels can start, once the panels are finished I'll continue on brace fabrication and installation.

Here's the L-track all ready to be installed.


Will try and get the rest of the track installed tomorrow....

Hodakaguy

Excellent post, thank you. Do you think I could install the L-Track in my Cargo using the existing holes in the walls? They are about 10 1/2 inches apart. Seven of them at about 25 inches off the floor?

Also wondering if you worried about treating the holes with any rust preventative or that's not an issue because they are interior.

 

[eranrund]

Awesome work, this post is so much fun to follow!

How did you figure out the exact curve of the van wall for bending the steel channel?

 

[Hodakaguy]

Excellent post, thank you. Do you think I could install the L-Track in my Cargo using the existing holes in the walls? They are about 10 1/2 inches apart. Seven of them at about 25 inches off the floor?

Also wondering if you worried about treating the holes with any rust preventative or that's not an issue because they are interior.

Thanks. You could use existing holes but they often aren't the perfect size for plus nuts etc. I would recommend drilling holes to suite your exact needs. Coating the interior holes with primer/paint is always a great idea but not an absolute must.

Hodakaguy

 

[Hodakaguy]

Awesome work, this post is so much fun to follow!

How did you figure out the exact curve of the van wall for bending the steel channel?

Thanks, I enjoy typing up the posts and hope that it helps others in their conversions.

I just took deflection measurements of the front vertical L-track section and then rolled the C-channel to match, worked out nicely.

Hodakaguy

 

[Hodakaguy]

Time to get started on the bed frame.

The whole family decided to take a day trip with me to get out of the house and pick up some telescoping aluminum tubing for the bed frame fabrication. I picked up enough for myself and Mike as he is going to fabricate a frame for his van as well.

Supplies loaded up in the van....Sweet!

Starting to lay out the bed frame, I'm using a sheet of wood as a Jig. Since the walls of the van are curved the bed frame will need to extend and contract to allow mounting in different positions depending on the height of the items your carrying below the bed. I like the way the Adventure Wagon MOAB bed uses a gas strut to lock the bed into the side rails so I decided to add a strut to mine as well. The strut should also prevent any rattles while driving by keeping the entire assembly under tension.

I decided to make my bed frame in two panels, I'll be able to use one panel sideways as a single bed when traveling with the dirt bike or install both panels when the wife and I are both going.

Fabricating the mounts for the 20" x 20lb gas strut.

Miter saw with an aluminum blade is the only way to cut tubing...soooo quick and nice.

Coming together.

I'm installing a push button that will automatically lock the frame in the fully retracted position when the frame is collapsed. When removed the frames will store along the wall in a yet to be built storage rack, the button lock will keep the bed collapsed while in the rack. The button will be located on the inside of the tubing under the wood top, hidden and easy to access when you need to release the telescopic function to mount the bed.

Selecting the correct size drill bit with the help of some calipers.

Drilling the hole for the button through both the inner and outer tubing.

Recessing the outer hole so that your finger can depress the button easily.

Ready to install

The button installs by sliding the spring down the inner tubing until the button pops into the hole, a long piece of dowel works great as a push stick.

And button installation complete.

The button will be located here, hidden on the under side of the bed frame.

Getting closer...

Continued Below....

 

[Hodakaguy]

Continued from above....

Next up is to attach the 1.25" tubing to the inner 1" tubing on the telescoping end of the frame. Here I drilled holes in the outer tubing to weld the inner tubing to the outer tubing using rosette welds, this will allow me to eliminate the welds on the ends of the tubing and let the tubing have a nice flush mate up.

I'm doing the welding today, here I'm setting up the machine and welding some scrap as a test piece. Garage is a mess but I can't be bothered to clean right now

Filling in the rosette welds.

Welding on the inner strut mount. Always fun welding on the floor and having to use your knee on the pedal

I'll be using 1"x1" lock pins on the end of the frame to engage the yet to be fabricated side rail mounts. Here I'm using more rosette welds to keep the ends of the pins clean and free from welds that would interfere with a snug fit.

Getting there...

More to come....

Hodakaguy

 

[Hodakaguy]

Little more work on the bed frame today.

Unit is tacked and out of the jig for welding.

Adding the second strut mount.

Assembled with the strut temporarily in place. The unit slides harder than I would like as the tolerances between the tubing are very tight and there is very little allowance for any warping while welding. I'll look at it tomorrow and see what can be done, either way it's sliding and functional

More to come....

Hodakaguy

 

[Hodakaguy]

Not a ton of pics today but I knocked out the second half of the bed frame.

Cutting all the aluminum bits to size

In the jig and ready to tack up.

Welding in the mounting pegs using rosette welds.

Going together

The two bed frames next to each other. Still have some mounting tabs to weld on and a little sanding to make the units slide properly.

Next I need to start on the side mounting rails.

Hodakaguy

 

[OrioN]

 

[Hodakaguy]

Today's project...fabricate the side mounts and test fit the bed frames.

I'll be using aluminum tubing for the mounts.

Drilling the corners for the bed frame mounting holes

Transferring the marks over to the 2nd mount.

Capping the ends

Getting there

Welding on the mounting tabs.

Mounting rails installed.

Bed frames installed.

More to come...

Hodakaguy

 

[This Old Light]

Plus Nuts & Rivet Nuts. I made up a video showing the difference between a Rivet Nut & a Plus Nut...when to use each and an overview of the different installation tools.

Plus Nuts are super handy and I've been using a lot of them. I've been asked several times recently about the differences in a Plus Nut and a Rivet Nut so decided to make up a video and demonstrate the tools in action.

Note that the Pneumatic tool is now available under $200.

Astro 1450 Plus Nut Tool: CLICK HERE
Pneumatic Rivet/Plus Nut Tool: CLICK HERE
Standard Rivet Nut Tool: CLICK HERE
Plus Nuts: CLICK HERE

Hodakaguy

Thanks for the information. The video was very helpful!

 

[Hodakaguy]

Received my Mule Bags for the van. We will be using these soft overhead luggage bags to hold our cloths etc and help keep the floor free from clutter. I love that the bags are soft for when you bump your head on them and that they are easily removable if I need to take them out to haul something etc.


Ready to install.

Out of the box, bag is folded up and the internal stiffeners are folded flat.

Supplied Mounting Hardware

Installing the mounting studs on the ceiling L-track. The rubber washer helps hold the assembly in place during install.

Rear bag in place.

Installing the forward bags hardware.

And both bags installed. I spaced the bags so there is a slight gap between them so I can still place items into the elastic netting on the ends of the bags. The fit of the bags are spot on! The camera pics up more IR than the naked eye and makes the bags look purple, they are nice and black in person.

The opening flaps have built in magnets to hold them open when needed, nice touch.

Hodakaguy

 

[mk216v]

Such a clean build, loved all your builds, keep it going for us!

 

[wtofd]

Great tip on the soft bags not hurting when you bump your head.

1. What are those hooks on the right side by the doors?
2. Do you need to install the ceiling L Track at a certain distance from the wall to accommodate the bags or is there flexibility? Same question on L track on the wall.