XM813 W/W and solargizer - the start of a 'Rolling Home' project - I hope anyway!

[dburt]

After being absent from this site for a while after I sold my deuce, I finally dropped the hammer on this 1970 Kaiser Jeep XM813 W/W 5-ton. It has about 29K on the clock and close to 1100 hours on the meter. Nothing special or fancy, just a rock solid reliable truck! I wanted power steering and a heavier chassis that could pack alot of weight if my project leans to the heavy side, if you know what I mean.
Anyway, for years I have wanted to build a motorhome, or rolling home, or hippie motorhome, or 'bug out' survival shelter with a few luxury acommadations or whatever you want to call it. The deeper I get into senior citizen status I find the energy and drive for such a project going south without me, so I figured I better
get started if I will ever even have half a chance to finish it.
I have been heavily influenced by Rob Gray, the Aussie from down under and his awesome 'Gray Nomad' ex-military truck. And then there is Roger Beck's different 'house trucks' over the years, and Michael's old Cornbinder housetruck that has inspired me since the '70's when I first saw it in 'Rolling Homes'.
Now that the budget for this project has been zeroed out with the initial purchase and the addition of a NATO Solargizer kit, I will have to wait a spell until I can round up more $$ for construction materials to start the shelter on the back.
I'm torn between a log cabin look, or more utilitarian 'tactical' look, a combo of the two or even something else. Perhaps it's good I don't have the funds yet to dive into the build, it will force me to think it thru a little bit more?
Should I shuck the bed and build from the frame up, or leave the bed and build something that could be detached easily if I or someone else wants to return the truck to original configuration?
Ahhh, questions, questions!
Perhaps it's the journey and not so much the final destination that makes these ventures fun?

 

[212sparky]

Nice clean truck to start work with. :thumbup:

 

[plumkrazy]

Welcome back--Isn't it great to have all these choices and the time to decide on what you want? It's always good to smell the roses as you travel towards your decision. Keep us posted.

 

[dburt]

As I progress, I plan on posting pics with the progress report so if anyone else is thinking of a similar idea, they can share ideas and 'go to school' on my experience. I've been out this morning measuring and thinking- it occurs to me that if I could find a 14-16 ft box off of a commercial box truck and take my bed/box off, it might go a long ways towards giving me a
'platform' to start from because I would not have to fab walls, ends or roof. But I could cover the box with wood sheathing or some other type of covering to hide it's true origins, punch holes for windows etc and maby save alot of time and/or money on the initial construction.

 

[dburt]

A little progress as the budget allows. Have the rear porch pretty much done except for the decking and one rear step up from the deck level to the box/bed level where the camper/cabin will be. I have not taken off the tailgate yet, just in case I have to haul some building materials for the cabin/RV build. When opened up the rear porch is 8 feet wide by 6 feet long. When folded up, the porch is 8 feet wide by 3 feet long, and the rear porch railing stores in brackets on the bottom of the rear section when folded up as seen in the photos. Since I don't have an unlimited budget I have to work with what metal I can buy inexpensively or scrounge around for. I am thinking of using the type of decking as used on residential home decks that is made from 'synthetic' wood- it seems it is called Trex or something like that? Anyway, it can be painted or stained, and will not split, warp or twist like natural wood. I added a little whimsical artwork to the rear porch railing just for fun. When the budget allows, I will deck the porch and start on the cabin/RV.