23 replies to this topic

[Hodakaguy]

We just picked up our new to us Raven camper from the original owner.  He only used it a couple times and it's like brand new, even has that new smell inside still :-).  My father, my son and I all left WA state and headed to Reno NV to pick the camper up.   
 
It's a modified shell version with a few extra add on accessories (Heater/propane tanks, Artic Pack, Fiamma Awning, Solar plug, Single batt setup, Jacks with aluminum mounts, extra left side opening window, Opening front window, Screen door, Fantastic Fan, Yakima Racks on top, forward mounted bench seat/bed with under bed storage bays).  I really wanted a full camper version with silver spur package (Minus the sink as we've found we never use it and would rather have the space than the 20 gallon water tank) but we saved a TON on this one vs a new one so we decided to snag this one and build it to our liking :-)
 
We plan on building up the truck (Lift, bumpers, lights, etc) and adding a few more modifications to the camper...Stove, custom table, etc.  I added air bags to the truck before we left to snag the camper, once the camper was installed we used them to level the truck back to factory ride height.  The truck handled great on the way home and you really couldn't even tell the camper was on there! 
 
I forgot to remove the tailgate before we left so we had a porch on this trip :-)  Here are a few pictures from the trip home.
 
 
Loading the camper at the original owners house.  We removed the wiring harness from his Ford Raptor and did a temporary install on our Tundra, I'll redo the wiring later using a heavier gauge wire and paying attention to protecting abrasion points etc. 
 

 
 
We stopped at Reno to let my son play at the Children's discovery museum and check out the Reno auto museum.  Waiting for the discovery center to open.
 

 
 
Stopped to check out the shoe tree. 
 

 
 
Camp in the middle of no where :-).  Snapped this shot late at night with a full moon shining.  The heater had never been used so we broke it in on this trip...worked great!  The heater kept us toasty warm all night, it was 27 deg outside when we woke up. 
 

 
 
Waking up :-)
 

 
 
Very nice sunrise the next morning.
 

 

 

 
 
Stopped to check out a cool old church and school.
 

 

 

 
 
And home sweet home.
 

 

 
 
Lots more to come.  I'm going to tweak the interior a little and we have several mods to the truck that are planned.  I'll post up the progress here as it happens.
 
Hodakaguy

Edited by Hodakaguy, 09 November 2014 - 03:26 AM.

[BobM]

Welcome to the Raven owners club!

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Wander The West mobile app

[billharr]

Congrats on the camper. Nice to find a used one almost like new. Looking forward to your build making it just like you want. Take lots of photos of your modifications.

 

Bill

Edited by billharr, 09 November 2014 - 02:47 PM.

[takesiteasy]

Congrats on the camper. Nice to find a used one almost like new. Looking forward to your build making it just like you want. Take lots op photos of your modifications.

 

Bill

 

 x2! Nice looking rig.

[DanT]

Very cool, especially doing it with your dad and son.

Congrats and let the mods begin...

Don't forget to post photos and have a blast !

[longhorn1]

Congrats.  You will have a great time.  Looking forward to seeing more interior pictures and the modifications.

 

jd

[craig333]

Good looking rig. Funny how our needs vary so much. I use my sink constantly and can't imagine not having it. Loved your lightning pics but wheres the Hodaka?

[rotti]

.......wheres the Hodaka?

 

Yeah.

I have fond memories of my first two dirt bikes, a Combat Wombat and 250 Super Dog.

[Hodakaguy]

Thanks guys, we're looking forward to future trips with the camper.

On the sink...the last several outings in our Syncro haven't even bothered filling the fresh water tank up and we find that bottled water or fresh water in jugs are what we tend to use instead. I don't drink out of the onboard water tank and usually clean dishes etc outside of the vehicle. If I was to order a new unit I would have asked them to skip the sink and just had more counter space.

I used to collect Hodaka's years ago and only have one Ace 100 left awaiting restoration, I would like to find a nice clean Wombat and Super Combat again though :-)

A few pictures of the interior.

Initial Thoughts..... The build quality of the camper seems very good, the camper is very sturdy and for the most part fit and finish is very nice. The front bench is deeper than it needs to be and although it allows a lot of under seat storage space (three separate large bays) and a large lower bed it makes the storage space hard to access and takes up valuable floor space in the process (FWC could have added a couple small doors under the front of the bench to help out the accessibility problem, as it sits now you have to remove the large couch cushions then a wooden access panel to gain access to the storage area). The small corner Island that FWC built to house the heater and the propane tanks could have been designed better as well to utilize space and allow more storage. The roof (Especially the front) is very heavy and difficult to raise...I will be adding pop top shocks to help address this problem.

I'm not totally sure yet how I will be re-arranging the interior to suit our needs, I will defiantly be adding a stove and may eventually change the entire interior layout as I would like more counter space as well...time will tell :-) I'll also be adding a 220W flex panel solar setup, relocating the battery and adding a second battery as well. LED flood lights are on the list as well as a few other small options.

Why used and not New.....I liked the full FWC camper layout and we came real close to ordering a new silver spur Raven camper (Would match our truck nicely!) but the unwillingness of FWC to accomidate non standard changes got me to looking at used units more closely. I asked them to Install a Dinette option (I realize space is small but they flat refused to build a new one with that option any longer and this was the option that fit our needs the best), the inability to change small options like a black Fiamma awning to match the black/grey Silver Spur Exterior (This option is available from Fiamma and really should be standard on the Silver Spur packages) and small lack of choice items such as the new (what I consider ugly/busy dog bone fabric pattern) silver spur interior fabric are all reasons that drove us away from a new model. I know I know kind of a rant here but on a camper that cost over $20K new (For a small slide in camper!) these options should be available! For the money saved buying used I'm more willing to deal with these short comings.


Here's a few interior pics of our setup in it's current as purchased configuration.

Bench in the upright position.






The corner area currently housing the battery, heater and propane tanks. More thought could have went into this area from the factory. There is a ton of room to house the batteries under the bench and all the way forward, this would free up valuable easily accessible storage space and keep the center of gravity lower and further forward. I'll be installing dual batt banks in the forward section. The space is small but this configuration doesn't seem to be ideal....maybe a reason their web site no longer shows a heater as an option on a shell unit.




Bottom bed way larger than it needs to be.




More to come....

Hodakaguy

Edited by Hodakaguy, 09 November 2014 - 07:43 PM.

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Congratulations on the Raven! It looks very nice, and I bet it will be even better with your mods!