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Another 80's Granby rebuild


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#1 algiordino

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Posted 04 September 2020 - 04:04 AM

Thought I'd make a post as this forum has been a great resource prior to getting into this. I had the time, the lead time for a new camper is 11-13 months, and it seemed like a fun project.

 

Here's the profile of the new acquisitionZF1DVJrAHc9eu5kww2L6mlu8ryzL34dKHx5ROY2v

 

Took a fair amount of work to gut it, list of things that was wrong:

- Floor is rotted, whole pack needs to be replaced

- Fitted to a 64" tailgate, needs to be narrowed to 58"

- Canvas is toast

- Interior smells like a few decades of healthy herbal essences

- Half of the escape window was replaced with plexi, they threw out the frame

- A variety of fasteners have been used

- New metal trim

- Vent fan, electric, propane....

- Couple of holes to patch

- Many more things I haven't thought of.

 

 

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Back R weld taken in 3"

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Front R weld taken in 3"

O9xlj30jrabyHMEks8m6Jgx4toFniUOaq_VYrctYBack L weld taken in 3"

7ubFEex3OmA9j_1Ub4S6NuZBJ4sPWeQuQbWWFLceFront L weld taken in 3"


Edited by algiordino, 04 September 2020 - 03:29 PM.

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#2 algiordino

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Posted 04 September 2020 - 04:12 AM

Unfortunately the three central pillars in the front were broken at the top; rewelded and ready to go!jwbGzxdPxnrZ9EY7ZReFYaAHFZSSEyJhwf6zbg_Z

Then on to replacing the floor pack; did this one side at a time, leaving the 4' x ~8' floor in until i assembled both sides; then jacked it up, set it down on a freshly painted piece of plywood and arranged appropriately to attach. YmJptd46Ghv6qOizcGAtITrMwpPbFLhSsObtgjzDR side first

wSKasx57fdx9IvrEmuWKkTb_hrP9lhcfw8GI-pOPL side next!

8JeLIfd5rVToV3ZP5IZimB6_2jgndKJb1Hh4NgibFloor dropped into place via jacks.

 

Working on cleaning the exterior, replacing broken edging with material I found heavily discounted at a local RV shop from decades ago going forward.

 

Have ordered quite a few bits for the final product, including:

- Propex 2800 furnace

- fantastic fan w/ exhaust mode

- Scepter/LCI 5 gallon can water system

- Material to sew the canvas

- Lift assist struts and the new plate mounting hardware from FWC.

 

Been fun so far, taken about 4 days of work to get here. Getting close to pulling the roof next week.


Edited by algiordino, 04 September 2020 - 03:34 PM.

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#3 BBZ

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Posted 04 September 2020 - 02:23 PM

Pics don't load for me??

 

I did one a couple years back, good luck with the project.. my build thread is in my signature if you need something to look at.. 

 

Obviously this forum was huge in helping me.. 


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2023 F-150 Scab HDPP + 2013 Grandby Shell +

 

https://www.wanderth...ect-90s-granby/

 

 


#4 algiordino

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Posted 04 September 2020 - 03:34 PM

Should work BBZ, thanks for the heads up. Have definitely looked at your thread!


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#5 Vic Harder

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Posted 04 September 2020 - 08:16 PM

Since you can weld..... Have you thought of extending the overhead bed area?  These early campers had very small overhangs, and more up there is better because it means less of a pull out is needed.


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#6 algiordino

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Posted 04 September 2020 - 08:36 PM

Can't say I considered it too deeply, the main consideration being that the roof is already sized. Don't want to reskin the aluminum on the roof. My Mrs is trying to keep me from tearing the whole thing down and building it from nothing.

 

I did consider shortening it in the front underneath the overhand to fit a 6.5' bed, but decided that moving windows and such was going to be a big hassle. May regret that, but time will tell!


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#7 BBZ

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Posted 05 September 2020 - 01:41 PM

This is eerily familiar..haha

 

Looking good! Pull that roof and canvas off! Makes life easier while rebuilding the interior!


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2023 F-150 Scab HDPP + 2013 Grandby Shell +

 

https://www.wanderth...ect-90s-granby/

 

 


#8 Vic Harder

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Posted 05 September 2020 - 05:45 PM

Can't say I considered it too deeply, the main consideration being that the roof is already sized. Don't want to reskin the aluminum on the roof. My Mrs is trying to keep me from tearing the whole thing down and building it from nothing.

 

I did consider shortening it in the front underneath the overhand to fit a 6.5' bed, but decided that moving windows and such was going to be a big hassle. May regret that, but time will tell!

Did sorta the same thing with my PUMA/Grandby build, but by building the inside out with cabinets at the front.  The outside cab over is still only 4', but inside it is 5'.  Make sense?  We love not having a pull out bed anymore.  


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#9 BBZ

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Posted 05 September 2020 - 06:42 PM

Did sorta the same thing with my PUMA/Grandby build, but by building the inside out with cabinets at the front.  The outside cab over is still only 4', but inside it is 5'.  Make sense?  We love not having a pull out bed anymore.  

 

My least favorite part about the older camper is the cabover being small and having to put the bed away to set up table.. I ended up using two piano hinges so that it folds up quick and easy..big improvement over slide out, but still always looking for a newer one to remodel that has the longer cabover...


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2023 F-150 Scab HDPP + 2013 Grandby Shell +

 

https://www.wanderth...ect-90s-granby/

 

 


#10 algiordino

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Posted 22 September 2020 - 04:05 PM

Been a long time since I've had the energy to update this, but quite a bit has been accomplished!

 

Popped out the two piece overcab ply that was thoroughly rotted at the edges

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That was replaced with some fresh wood and marine grade 4200 caulk. From there I figured it was time to see if it fits in the truck and to devise some mounting options. I originally had ordered the new mounts from FWC, but after 2 weeks with a few callbacks assuring that they would eventually ship them, I just went the DIY approach with some U ties and 3" plate steel drilled to shape. Went on a spin around the block, worked great.

yJ-qZxTejBwxf1RfOop1s54bfLSBuzYpeyKQ8Hb3BLEJqBjoO4iCegBGPBm8jO9Iu_J5Imy-gDSUgow1

4AWa47WtYO7MiZNUORFZ7fMQFCl3JkSQDxyUB0zWAfter one spin around the block over some huge speed bumps, roof immediately came off and the canvas taken down to use as a rough template.

XCt0EcmoXAhdKXvCQAARKSE2OyZtcsfcDJsqvEh1Didn't take a ton of photos of the process of making the canvas, but in a nutshell I attempted to copy their two piece design with a seam in the front and back. It ultimately was just too much for my "heavy duty" singer sewing machine to move the material forward and back, so settled on a 4 piece design. Sewed both window panels together for rigidity and uniformity, then joined the front, and left on back seam with plenty of extra fabric (or so I thought!). Opted to make the screens velcro rather than sew them in, I always feel like screens are the first thing to get damaged and I'd rather make a new one than patch.

 

LI5r0Ior1JfjSYe5eSO1TRsXWW08KijdLyFlVdp0

Two full sheets of ply created a work station... my recommendation is to not use exterior splinterfest ply unless you already have it in your shed as I do.

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Turns out the cats love vinyl coated polyester

vArs5yxbOhz-pIbc-9DOUGob16HCdnjLHhEKdUos

Roof wiring run, decided to insulate with press fit XPS panels and run appropriate wire for 200w solar, fan, and lights.

DJTZNxhpt090ZJGEmtV__SwaGCtvY1rciAZ7Y6lb

Wanted to tuck it all underneath the roof sheet to put up canvas and such, but trying to remove the staples was quickly damaging the roof so I settled on oldschool exterior style. Here's the liner velcro strips tacked with adhesive...

YgDIvLVvnLxk9u0fDzQoMaBbwjgs2xVF0btULFrX

Then the "canvas"...

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It's a three person minimum to put these up effectively. In the future I probably would have saved a week of my time and paid ATC 1300 for a fresh "canvas". Couldn't appropriately swing a trip to Sacramento during COVID and my work and feel good about it though.

7JVLcJ0yGwXlAuyIaK1--D5fbYlZ5JIU1bdrRAm0

Bottom trim attached. Decided on overwindows because eventually I'll move back east. That said it has only rained once since starting this project, so much for monsoon season in the four corners.

 

Rear lift panels were changed to conduit to minimize condensation for winter ski camping. 2" aluminum bar welded to provide some support where late cracks were identified prior to attaching the bottom of the "canvas". Experimenting with two different types of lift mount as you can see.

LYjUBegwUaScWYbRn-wiolxkBKeGMu4qBH5R7To5

2-kyokkV0l5-GPItfQqObOn1ms8Giito0G6Oj4xi

 

 

Excited to get to the fun parts, structure and tent has been pretty brutal. Have quite a few things to figure out going forward, but the hard stuff is mostly done at this point!

 

Have to figure out the escape window still... Someone is selling a completely deconstructed granby in colorado springs, but I really don't want to bring home all of that stuff just to put it in a dumpster when what I really need is a window replacement. Thanks for reading, this forum has been pretty critical to minimizing trial and error!

 


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