goldneagle's M923 plus M109 Camper hybrid mod thread...

[goldneagle]

As some of you are aware I recently purchased MDMORGAN's M109 camper project. I also just purchased a M923 Cargo truck from GL last week. I had Jeff Davis recover it for me. I hope to go get it from his location this week.

I plan to remove the cargo bed and replace it with the M109 box I bought from MDMORGAN. I have already started gutting out the interior down to bare walls. I plan to do a more upgraded interior mod on it. All the half-tents are gone. The framing of the shower and the two counters are gone. All that remains is the bed platform and shower pan. The shower pan will be replaced with a toilet/shower combo pan.

I plan to have a queen size bed, shower/toilet in bathroom, sink and stove, microwave, fridge, dining area. Bamboo floors, paneling or FRP on the walls, Wood cabinets, LED TV and stereo. A/C and heat. Solar Panels stay.

I am adding some preliminary pictures.




Here are some inside shots from today.

 

[Farmallmilitary]

This is going to be cool! Its going to be the ultimate camping machine!

 

[papabear]

Outstanding GE!! So now you can come to the GA Rally this year and camp in style!!

 

[FUBIJAR]

Don't forget the sauna, champagne fountain and cappuccino machine. lol looking foward to watching it all come together!

 

[moving chicane]

Excellent! Subscribed

 

[goldneagle]

Outstanding GE!! So now you can come to the GA Rally this year and camp in style!!

Donations are welcome! Seriously: Does anyone know where I can get a good deal on a Shower/Toilet combo? Been looking on Google and getting nowhere.

Any recommendations on appliances and other RV stuff is welcome. I am not familiar with RVs and need all the help I can get.

 

[papabear]

Don't forget the sauna, champagne fountain and cappuccino machine. lol looking foward to watching it all come together!

Hey...don't tempt him!! GE is capable of some pretty heavy stuff!!

 

[goldneagle]

Hey...don't tempt him!! GE is capable of some pretty heavy stuff!!

Remember it's only 12 foot by 8 foot not a M146 trailer.

 

[ECR CUCV]

Can't wait to see the process!

 

[goldneagle]

Can't wait to see the process!

It's going to be slow process since I have more urgent project ahead of it. But I will get it done!

 

[Danger Ranger]

Sweet! Another build from GE. Im in. Lets get this show on the road!

 

[goldneagle]

Here are some recovery pictures I took of the truck today. Truck has a stuck valve on the 2ndary air system. Jeff had to shut off the valve on top of the 2ndary tank so I would not loose air every time I depressed the brake petal. I also need to replace the boots on the front axles.

The truck ran great on the way home. I really enjoyed the ride!

Enjoy the pictures.




I also picked up a nice hardtop from Jeff while I was there. Great guy to deal with! (Thanks bud!)

 

[RAYZER]

Im looking forward to this build GE! Nice looking truck by the way! Will you be able to keep the spare tire rack?

 

[goldneagle]

Im looking forward to this build GE! Nice looking truck by the way! Will you be able to keep the spare tire rack?

Thank you. From you that means a lot! The M109 box is 12 foot long. The cargo bed is 14 foot long. There will actually be 2 feet of extra space between the M109 shelter and the tire rack. A good place for A/C and propane tanks. I may install a window style heat pump back there instead of the roof unit. I am open to any suggestions and recommendations on appliances and fixtures. (I have never owned a camper or RV nor have i used one except for the FEMA trailer for a short time .)

I already have an ONAN Emerald 4000 generator that I am thinking of using with the RV. I also have an aluminum boat fuel tank for it. I will post pictures of both soon.

 

[Danger Ranger]

That 2' or so of space between the cab and box would be great for LP tanks, water heater, ac unit, spare tire, steps, or cooler space. Whatever you put there will be awesome. With a truck that big, and therefore tall, with the box, I would not put anything high on the roof. Just not really necessary. Maybe solar panels though

Oh, and are you running super singles or keeping the current setup? Just curious.

 

[goldneagle]

That 2' or so of space between the cab and box would be great for LP tanks, water heater, ac unit, spare tire, steps, or cooler space. Whatever you put there will be awesome. With a truck that big, and therefore tall, with the box, I would not put anything high on the roof. Just not really necessary. Maybe solar panels though

Oh, and are you running super singles or keeping the current setup? Just curious.

Staying with current tire setup. They are in like-new condition. Correction: There will be approximately 4 feet of space behind the cab. (the existing space plus 2 feet) Already have solar panels on the roof. They came with the camper.

 

[ECR CUCV]

****, a 109 shelter on the back of your 923, (with a couple of extra feet for goodies)!

Very happy for you.
And a little jealous.
Excited to see end result.
Still jealous.

Well, all of the above. Kidding, looks like a great project. Good luck!

 

[srodocker]

cant wait to see this build!

 

[goldneagle]

Well the repairs began today. I just did a bunch of small quick repairs. Temperature was a chilly 75 degrees. Got frostbite (sunburn) on the back of my neck.

I noticed yesterday that the hood closed too tight against the cab edge when i checked the engine yesterday. Jeff Davis mentioned there were some bolts loose on the support bracket when i lowered the hood. I found the loose bolts and tightened them. That helped a bit but the alignment gap on one side was too wide and the other was narrow. I loosened the 4 bolts under the mount bracket and adjusted the hood for a better fit. Then I tightened the bots and lowered the hood. It fit real nice now.




When i climbed up to check top of the engine I noticed the bracket that held the antifreeze reservoir tank was broken. Took the pieces off. Found a piece of flat stock left from the stairs build on the other M923. I bent it to match the bend on the original bracket. Ground one side to fit inside the original bracket. Once I got the right angle bent I drilled (4) 5/16" holes through both pieces so I can splice them together. Once everything fit properly I primed and painted the brackets. Then I reinstalled them. Looking good!



Another small repair was the plastic vent tube on the fuel tank. I saw it was broken in 2 yesterday. I tried to re-splice it with a quick connect coupling. It broke a short time later. Someone used the wrong plastic tubing. Looks like ice-maker water tubing. Its not UV resistant (that is why it broke) I had a piece of proper plastic tubing on the spare tank I purchased from Jeff Davis a few months ago- so I borrowed it for the truck. I cut the clear plastic tubing further in under the bed where it was not effected by sunlight. I used the quick connect coupling to join the two tubes. I will probably replace the entire tube later when I get some 1/4" plastic brake line from NAPA.



Another repair was to the window crank handle on the driver's side. The knob was missing when i drove the truck yesterday. I found the piece next to the emergency brake handle this morning. When I looked at it i noticed the rivet was never pressed flat. So I inserted it into the handle and used a punch to spread the end of the rivet flat. Now the knob was attached to the window crank handle. Works good now.

Antifreeze was low. Took 2 gallons of mix to fill it. Oil level was within range. I replaced some white/clear Ty-wraps that were holding some unused wires with UV resistant black ones. I filled the windshield washer bottle with water. The top is too large and won't screw on. Found out the get on the driver's side is missing too. This is the 2nd truck that was missing the small jet to the windshield washer nozzle. I also replaced the wheel well rubber shield with a good takeoff. The frame on the replacement was rusty so I just used the rubber piece and the original frame. Original frame was OK but the rubber was torn.




I think i got everything i did today. More to come when I have time.

 

[RAYZER]

Thank you. From you that means a lot! The M109 box is 12 foot long. The cargo bed is 14 foot long. There will actually be 2 feet of extra space between the M109 shelter and the tire rack. A good place for A/C and propane tanks. I may install a window style heat pump back there instead of the roof unit. I am open to any suggestions and recommendations on appliances and fixtures. (I have never owned a camper or RV nor have i used one except for the FEMA trailer for a short time .)

I already have an ONAN Emerald 4000 generator that I am thinking of using with the RV. I also have an aluminum boat fuel tank for it. I will post pictures of both soon.

My pleasure goldeneagle!
Welcome to the next phase of your mv addiction!
I know when I started my build, there was more time spent laboring over what and where everything was going to go and how it was going to work, than time spent actually working on it.
There is a lot of design on the fly prosses that goes into a man cave camper!
Concerning the air conditioner, if I might suggest, a window shaker with heat usally starts around 12k btu, that requires a much larger hole to mount and may be way overkill for the qubic feet.
Since your using propane, a small rv furnace would work nice for heat,and you could use a smaller ac unit, say 6k to 8k btu.