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DIY DESIGN / BUILD - NEWBIE & EXPERIENCED

1293 Views 40 Replies 17 Participants Last post by  Bromaster5, 
RV8R
So I am retired from my 4 decade construction career ( I have been a Building Contractor all of my adult life ), & I recently had lunch with an Architect Friend I have known since the early 90s. During this lunch, I told him very late in my career, I found an massive appreciation for the designers of our world. An Appreciation I never had for decades, an appreciation I was blind to, as my side of the fence ( building ) is focused more as an overviewer of design during the building phase of a project & getting the Consultants to rectify their errors of plenty. It is difficult to appreciate “The Design” when you are responsible for finding the pitfalls ahead of time & getting them diplomatically rectified. If you have ever worked in the Construction Industry, you fully understand the foregoing, and if you have no experience at all you might be puzzled & like Whhaaattt 🤷‍♂️.

Regardless; as a builder, I now realize “Design” is extremely important.



DIY DESIGN / BUILD - NEWBIE & EXPERIENCED:

If you are a newbie to DIY Design / Build, as I was in 2018, you have a steep learning curve & an education to take in. To confuse the process, you have to “believe” in information that you acquire. You should consider the source of the information, & your own relatable education & work experience ( your own strengths & weaknesses ).

The majority of what we glean from the internet are opinions ,,, not truths. Sometimes these opinions are presented with a commercial bias for profit. It is best to consider the source. The best way to parse thru the ocean of opinions to vet out a design is critical thought & digging for further information. I have faith in several Members on “The Forum” to provide good ( opinions ) & information & ideas. As I joined The Forum in mid 2019, I have some experience with these Members & appreciate & value their input ,,, there are many I value for their individual strengths & experience.

My First Van build was done during late 2018 & continued on into 2019. I floundered around due to lack of experience & believing in the wrong things “for me”. Second Van Build (early 2022), not so much floundering & a much better & more efficient design & everything I learned during the First Build ( the good, the bad, & the ugly ), was relied upon for the Second Build.

If I build a Third Van, I would hope it would be better than the first two builds.

There is no replacement for Knowledge & Experience - None.

If you are a Newbie, & you find yourself “spinning” with information overload & not knowing what to do, I would think this is a normal feeling. If you consider your design/build journey a self taught education “via internet teachers / mentors” & understand there are no perfect builds, hopefully you can enjoy the journey.

The First Van Design / Build you perform will be the hardest one you do & the one you learn the most from.

Further, depending upon your comfort level & ability & tools know there is always the option to hire out the labour for parts of the build you are not comfortable with performing yourself. Or hiring a Professional that is willing to work along side you & teach you. Acquiring Knowledge or Getting An Education is never free ,,, School of Hard Knocks or Otherwise.


Simplicity vs Complexity & The Newbie:

The Forever Van 🙄; I Suppose if I had the mindset I wanted to build my forever van then I would want it done right & once. The fact is these vans get old & mile out. The chance of a Newbie being able to design/build out a perfect complicated van the first time is zero. The more complicated you make it, the harder it will be to build it.

Simple is way easier for a first van than complicated ,,, especially when you lack knowledge & have to learn a lot.

I have seen it with inexperienced DIY Airplane Builders, when they get involved in complexed aircraft builds with little experience. Many times these builds are never finished & although heartbreaking that never flown build could have been the savior of the builder’s life.

You should build what you want, but if you have very limited knowledge, ability, or resources IMO it is best to build simple / basic to suit your needs.



These are my opinions, but I started This Thread to hear from the rest of you & your thoughts / opinions.
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puffcard
I had a background of 35 years elec engineering design, working on subs. Design and overbuilt a house on the beach. Did three houses, complete renovations, did everything. But cutting that first holes in a new van terrified me. Our build/design is simple done on graph paper, even though I had worked with 3D modeling over 30 years. Mocked it up with cardboard. Didn't have a electrical diagram till I was done and drew it up after the fact. Its a simple 200Ahr LiFePO4, 320W solar, dc-dc charger with integrated MPPT, 1,500w inverter, AD & DC pwr distribution panel and charger. We love whale foot pump w/jerry jugs and camp shower w/ bucket heater. Have portable potty. The bed is north and south, cause I'm 6-3. We love it and can stay out for a week. Don't think I would change a thing, maybe a small something.

The build took 5mos, longer than I expected. I had the feeling of being overwhelmed a couple times. Was working out of a shed with mostly hand tools. Did have small miter saw and table saw. But as they say you eat an elephant one bite at a time and stayed with it. I really worry about some of the newbies, with the questions they asked. Keep it simple, try to enjoy the process, ask for help. I'm always amazed at the technical help in this forum, don't ask on FB. My head is shaking just thinking about it. Remember that it's a process and you got to boil eggs to make egg salad.
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baitbegger44##
With the prices for new vehicles, repair paid for new vehicle is possible new normal.
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A
puffcard said:
I had a background of 35 years elec engineering design, working on subs. Design and overbuilt a house on the beach. Did three houses, complete renovations, did everything. But cutting that first holes in a new van terrified me. Our build/design is simple done on graph paper, even though I had worked with 3D modeling over 30 years. Mocked it up with cardboard. Didn't have a electrical diagram till I was done and drew it up after the fact. Its a simple 200Ahr LiFePO4, 320W solar, dc-dc charger with integrated MPPT, 1,500w inverter, AD & DC pwr distribution panel and charger. We love whale foot pump w/jerry jugs and camp shower w/ bucket heater. Have portable potty. The bed is north and south, cause I'm 6-3. We love it and can stay out for a week. Don't think I would change a thing, maybe a small something.

The build took 5mos, longer than I expected. I had the feeling of being overwhelmed a couple times. Was working out of a shed with mostly hand tools. Did have small miter saw and table saw. But as they say you eat an elephant one bite at a time and stayed with it. I really worry about some of the newbies, with the questions they asked. Keep it simple, try to enjoy the process, ask for help. I'm always amazed at the technical help in this forum, don't ask on FB. My head is shaking just thinking about it. Remember that it's a process and you got to boil eggs to make egg salad.
Click to expand...
Yep. I was very surprised, there were COUNTLESS times I ran across some design, research, or build issue that I just could. not. solve. And I'm usually pretty good at solving problems. That's my strength. So I do also worry about newbies, especially non-technical newbies, and why I do think it would benefit a lot of newbies to simplify as much as possible.

Regardless, all of those countless unsolvable problems eventually got solved. One bite at a time, as you say. It's a LONG process, but every time a new "unsolvable" problem came up, I had one more "unsolvable" problem in the rearview, solved. And each time, I had a bit more trust that I'd figure it out eventually, even if I felt deadlocked at the moment.
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83Grumman
Keeping it simple is a relative term. What is simple to some is not simple to others.
I like to "keep things simple" says the seamstress who has been sewing for 40 years while my mind is blown watching her work, watch a professional cabinet worker slap some stuff together, same thing. It's simple to them. If it's your first time building a deck, your idea of "keeping it simple" is light years away from a professional's idea of 'keeping it simple".
Installing under mount water tanks which required rerouting the exhaust and building my own electric actuated parking brake didn't seem complicated to me, I feel like I kept it simple. I like fabricating and have be building modifying things for over 40 years. We were (amateurly) modifying dirt bike suspensions back in high school, I don't know if we made things better but we had access to the welding shop in high school. I spent 10 years in the film industry and the things I saw that were simple to some departments are not simple to most observers.

In a forum like this the term "keeping it simple" barely applies because of the variety of backgrounds and levels of experience. I think avoiding over complicating things is a worthy goal, especially here, where you have so much collective experience about what already works and so many helpful people. That being said, to each his own, have fun, enjoy. :)
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larry barello
Uh, usage model should have a large impact on the priority list and items included in the build, then budget and skill set to further refine how far down the list one gets.

Ah, but how does one know their usage model?

I certainly was seduced by various on-line builds, but the reality is I use the van for camping and my house for living. I have been going, slowly, through a remodeling process, simplifying and complicating as i refine how the van is actually used

I also love to tinker which might have something to do with the remodels.

Something else I have noticed, a lot of the things I wish I had would impact things I really like and in the end the layout I have works pretty well for me. Therefore my initial design must have been relatively close.
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Lolaeliz
83Grumman said:
Keeping it simple is a relative term. What is simple to some is not simple to others.
Click to expand...
EXACTLY!!! I see my van as very simple, but I don't think everyone would think that. It's chaos/clutter-free. With efficient plumbing, electric, cooking & storage. And it's happy.😝
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RV8R
If I think back on my 2 builds, I really don’t think I could do it “Right Once” or “Ever”.

I think I can muster up “Good Enough” or “Well That Will Work”.

Both my builds have a similar layout, the 2nd just being a better version of the first for how we use the van (or at least how we use it now).

Here is a list of how the 2nd build is better in my mind that the 1st build;

More usable storage space under the bed
44 gals of potable water in wheel well tanks
No HWT
Under sink grey water tank (vs under chassis on the 1st)
Swing Door Fridge TF130
No always on blue lights so @ night totally dark
Factory Swivel Seats
Natures Head altered to a “separator toilet”
Under bed storage access from living space
More counter space & better cabinet design
Easy purge plumbing ( wintering is very east by draining all water out of the van ).
Using more screws & Les Rivnuts


Things I might change on a 3rd Build;

Lithium Batteries
Kisae 1250 DC2DC
Suburban Propane Furnace
Modular Removable Cabinets ( in order to utilize the Van for hauling cargo - might not be worth the hassle of it )
L Track or similar for uppers & maybe modular lowers
Ditch the 120vac altogether
Plastic Laminates rather than stain & clear coats
Possible anchor lower cabinets etc to the van metal floor & infill the floor with insulation & plywood for a floor rather than the “monolithic floor systems I have built in the past 2 builds”
Factory Slider Door Window


The more experience I get with this hobby, the more I am attracted to basic & simple designs for myself.

I would rather sell off my well used van & start a new build on a new Promaster than rebuild our current one. I guess judging from @aaronmcd poll I am not “the norm” here.
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RV8R said:
If I think back on my 2 builds, I really don’t think I could do it “Right Once” or “Ever”.

I think I can muster up “Good Enough” or “Well That Will Work”.

Both my builds have a similar layout, the 2nd just being a better version of the first for how we use the van (or at least how we use it now).

Here is a list of how the 2nd build is better in my mind that the 1st build;

More usable storage space under the bed
44 gals of potable water in wheel well tanks
No HWT
Under sink grey water tank (vs under chassis on the 1st)
Swing Door Fridge TF130
No always on blue lights so @ night totally dark
Factory Swivel Seats
Natures Head altered to a “separator toilet”
Under bed storage access from living space
More counter space & better cabinet design
Easy purge plumbing ( wintering is very east by draining all water out of the van ).
Using more screws & Les Rivnuts


Things I might change on a 3rd Build;

Lithium Batteries
Kisae 1250 DC2DC
Suburban Propane Furnace
Modular Removable Cabinets ( in order to utilize the Van for hauling cargo - might not be worth the hassle of it )
L Track or similar for uppers & maybe modular lowers
Ditch the 120vac altogether
Plastic Laminates rather than stain & clear coats
Possible anchor lower cabinets etc to the van metal floor & infill the floor with insulation & plywood for a floor rather than the “monolithic floor systems I have built in the past 2 builds”
Factory Slider Door Window


The more experience I get with this hobby, the more I am attracted to basic & simple designs for myself.

I would rather sell off my well used van & start a new build on a new Promaster than rebuild our current one. I guess judging from @aaronmcd poll I am not “the norm” here.
Click to expand...
Ha! I polled van life reddit, and while I didn't explicitly exclude weekenders or lurkers, I think my choice of answers pretty much did the job. Part timers are a different breed. They have a base to upgrade if they like, and the time to do so. It's not necessarily taking out of ones life like it is if the van is your home. It's more like upgrading a car, or building a shed, or buying a boat.

When I lived in an apartment, I was more likely to replace my bike or even my car. Because those were both tools for a short term fun that I could replace easily enough. When one buys a house they don't tend to plan for an upgrade in the near future, and I think that's what it's like to build a van you live in. Do overs are not something you plan for or want.
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Lolaeliz
@aaronmcd , What’s it like after 2 years ( I think you’ve been at it that long). do you still love it? What’s the hardest thing for you? How long do you stay in one place?
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puffcard
Couple simply things to think about, for us.
Ours is a camper van and we move most days. We do have solar (320w) and could go without. We did a 15k mile, 2 mo cross country trip and the gas savings without solar would be nice. Solar with the racks and controller adds cost and complexity.

Cooking we use a Swiss made Origo alcohol 2 burner stove, super safe and simple. We store the cooktop in a drawer and many times cook outside on a picnic table. Alcohol fire can be but out with water or what ever you're cooking with. The fuel is super easy the store. We carry 6 mos of fuel in the boat. Takes up the space of a case of beer. I have seen two boats and one garage blow up from propane, I'm very respectful and scared. we also have a backup induction burner.

Water, we're boaters and cruise the Bahamas for 6 months a year and use to limited water. We use two 6 gal jerry jugs in the van and that last us a week. Jugs are easy to keep clean, much easier to fill and winterize. We use the Whale foot pump...love it. I had foot pumps 50 years ago on boats, love them. If it falls, just pour the water out of the jerry jug. We run drinking water thru a Grayl press filter, very good product. Would drink water from Flint Mich thru it. Showers use a 3.5 garden sprayer with a hand shower, in a popup tent. We heat the water with a immersion water heater, 15 min ready to go. Gray water we catch in jerry jug or with a diverter valve can drain out.

The N/S bed is built up on 3in alum angle, nothing under the bed space. We carry a grill, two folding elec bikes, two inflatable kayaks, one inflatable SUP and safety gear. The bed lifts from foot and head, can get under from inside the van.

Our Elec system is a true install and forget about it, even keeps the van battery charge. Tip, make sure you can secure the batteries, without having to get in the van. Saw a van burn up, elec fire owner couldn't secure the battery. Also have a way to take any battery off line/disconnect switch, they can go bad. Also use distribution panels for DC loads, not just fuses.

With our systems we aren't design for full time. Could do it, but maybe not the best design. Think most are sold the dream, living off the grid, with sunsets and mountains and try to build to that goal. Love our Promaster.
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BEF081056
This is a great thread @RV8R. While I'm still in the end stages of my build out, l took it out for the first time last weekend for the Connecticut Meet Up. That experience confirmed most of my thinking, but also gave me appreciation for some additional things to focus on.

To me, design needs to start with your use case. When I started on this journey (probably 18 months before I actually ordered my van) the list of must haves far outnumbered the nice to haves. Note that our use case was (and still is) to use the van as a base for traveling the country for periods of 1 or 2 months, maybe twice a year. As I thought about the use case, many of the must haves became nice to haves and nice to haves dropped off the list. What resulted was a design that appears simpler from where we might have started, but much more focused on how we use it.

The other thing to keep in mind is that one key decision can have implications for everything else. In our case, I wanted a reasonably sized bed (queen or king) in a N-S orientation. That resulted in a fixed bed with "garage" that is about 25" from the floor, to facilitate easier access to the bed.of course that affected space available for the galley kitchen, toilet cabinet, and bench cabinet for the fridge-freezer.

So my perspective is to think long and hard about how you will be using the van and then design for that. And keep in mind that if your use case changes (or your initial design is somehow lacking) try to build things to accommodate changes in the future (such as not burying wires behind the wall or having individual panels that can be removed to provide access). It will be interesting to see if my perspective changes a year from now after taking a few extended trips.
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RV8R
aaronmcd said:
Ha! I polled van life reddit, and while I didn't explicitly exclude weekenders or lurkers, I think my choice of answers pretty much did the job. Part timers are a different breed. They have a base to upgrade if they like, and the time to do so. It's not necessarily taking out of ones life like it is if the van is your home. It's more like upgrading a car, or building a shed, or buying a boat.

When I lived in an apartment, I was more likely to replace my bike or even my car. Because those were both tools for a short term fun that I could replace easily enough. When one buys a house they don't tend to plan for an upgrade in the near future, and I think that's what it's like to build a van you live in. Do overs are not something you plan for or want.
Click to expand...
Van Lifers ,,, Thanks for reaffirming that as the pool of focus for the poll ,,, makes sense to me with that in focus. 👍

So we all have different needs, wants, & priorities - even amongst the same “breeds”. Thus all of our perspectives & what we think we want is different ,,, individually different. I suppose if you label yourself a Van Lifer, I would label myself a “Hobbyist”. I am by nature very curious, but the Van Hobby took me by surprise, as I was really pushed into it by Mrs RV8R after decades of pushing my stubborn ass (She has here methods & is quite good at it). So my Hobby Interest in DIY Van Design / Build is acquiring Knowledge & Designing a Better Van, which I believe can only come from Experience ( Using the Van / Designing / Building ). And that Experience is best acquired knowing what I have done in the past is imperfect & can be improved upon. One Build can not provide me with the Education I seek, neither could a focus of self praising or fooling myself that I “nailed it” ,,, I did no such thing 😳.

So as a Part Timer “Hobbyist”, I have the luxury of a workshop & place to live when I upgrade the van or build a new one. I remember you building yours & I was impressed as I know how difficult that process is without a workshop. Further I can understand now that you are living in the Van, you don’t have an apartment to crash @ while you work on your Van. A quite probably thang, for Van Lifers is repairs of build or vehicle. As vehicle repairs can take months, where do they live in the meantime? I have often thought about this, even in our case as a travel vanner, if we have a breakdown, now what - I have concluded I will have to risk using that fix-all tool I have ,,, My Wallet 💸💸💸. When I leave the house, I check for 3 things; Keys / prescription glasses & contacts / fix all tool. If I have those 3 things with me, I am good to go. What is “The Plan” for Van Lifers if a major van repair is needed - engine/transmission & months of BS shop time?

As a “Hobbyist”, I suppose “I have fun designing & building vans. I still consider this work, but hobby work as opposed to working for money. I still benefit economically from my hobby work, but the real gem is in the education. I think this is something that is lacking in young people these days “hands on trade experience & thus ability”. Not My Kids, as we would not have it for them & they are “handy”. Growing up in the era I did, with high school “Shop” classes along with science & other academics was somewhat balanced & setting up kids for “life”. Is there even “Shop” in schools these days? I am extremely grateful for the era I was born, made life easy & I can not imagine growing up not knowing how to build or repair stuff. I watched a video by “Mike Rowe” the “Dirty Jobs” guy, where he talks about the lack if “Shop” in the USA (same here in Canada) & his ideas on solving the problem.

I guess there is no rest for “The Wicked”, so I am probably self sentenced to several more Van Design/Builds if I live long enough to squeeze them out 🙄. Gotta mile out the current mule & then flog it on the open market 😁.

Well it is 7:43am here & I have a deck to build @ my Cabin ,,, so I better get at it. FYI this is what north of $ 1,000 of Pressure Treated 2x10s looks like 😳 💸💸;

w
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RV8R
BEF081056 said:
This is a great thread @RV8R. While I'm still in the end stages of my build out, l took it out for the first time last weekend for the Connecticut Meet Up. That experience confirmed most of my thinking, but also gave me appreciation for some additional things to focus on.

To me, design needs to start with your use case. When I started on this journey (probably 18 months before I actually ordered my van) the list of must haves far outnumbered the nice to haves. Note that our use case was (and still is) to use the van as a base for traveling the country for periods of 1 or 2 months, maybe twice a year. As I thought about the use case, many of the must haves became nice to haves and nice to haves dropped off the list. What resulted was a design that appears simpler from where we might have started, but much more focused on how we use it.

The other thing to keep in mind is that one key decision can have implications for everything else. In our case, I wanted a reasonably sized bed (queen or king) in a N-S orientation. That resulted in a fixed bed with "garage" that is about 25" from the floor, to facilitate easier access to the bed.of course that affected space available for the galley kitchen, toilet cabinet, and bench cabinet for the fridge-freezer.

So my perspective is to think long and hard about how you will be using the van and then design for that. And keep in mind that if your use case changes (or your initial design is somehow lacking) try to build things to accommodate changes in the future (such as not burying wires behind the wall or having individual panels that can be removed to provide access). It will be interesting to see if my perspective changes a year from now after taking a few extended trips.
Click to expand...
IMO @BEF081056 this post of yours is Excellent Advice & spells out what I believe most of use go thru as first time design/builders 👍. Your are smart to have attended the Connecticut, used your van for the “experience of use”, & I assume got some ideas & experiences from the other Members.

Your description in your post of the design/build process & simplifying things I think is very normal. I do not even have a HWT in my 2nd build (have a T ready to go & a space allocated - but have not & probably will not do it).

Van Design/Build seems to me just a long list of compromises that for me are easy to make with more & more experience.

Getting out there & using the Van as early on in the build as practical is the best way of vetting out the Design.
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Lolaeliz said:
@aaronmcd , What’s it like after 2 years ( I think you’ve been at it that long). do you still love it? What’s the hardest thing for you? How long do you stay in one place?
Click to expand...
Still love it, still have WAY too much to do and see. It's been 19 months. Nothing is super hard, but chore days can be annoying. We try not to stay in RV parks but a cheap RV park can be useful to get all the chores done in one locations (laundry, shower, trash, water fill, dump, sleep). Haven't had any major repairs except the one time we got hit on the back corner by a flatbed trailer and had to wait 6 months until we were back in AZ to get a hotel and get it fixed. I like to do maintenance in AZ cuz we have family here and somewhere to leave the cat. Otherwise I take the cat into the lobby and wait.

We don't usually stay in one spot long, usually one to four days. Up to 13 days at events where we arrive a few days early and leave a few days late. When we visit family in AZ or NM we will stay for a bit. Gonna leave the van and cat with family next week and fly to Austin for a week to visit friends and then Portugal for a couple months. We have an AirBNB reserved for the first month. It'll be weird having a building to live in that long. And weird to not have all our stuff with us all the time. Living in a van spoils us in that regard. Never have to pack to go anywhere, can't forget anything.

@RV8R repairs mentioned above. But bigger more catastrophic stuff would mean renting another vehicle for a while or getting an AirBNB or hotel. Or if the vehicle still runs one could go stay with friends or family for a bit.

A nomadic DJ I know just had to replace his rig, rented a uhaul, drove to phoenix, bought a new rig mostly built out already. Another friend, organizer of many of the meetups, his VW broke down on the way to the event so he rented a uhaul, then the uhaul broke down and he called a friend who was traveling in a converter ambulance at the time to backtrack, pick him up, and drive him to the event where he planned to sleep in a tent but ended up in the house of the hosts.
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GaryBIS
RV8R said:
IMO @BEF081056 this post of yours is Excellent Advice & spells out what I believe most of use go thru as first time design/builders 👍. Your are smart to have attended the Connecticut, used your van for the “experience of use”, & I assume got some ideas & experiences from the other Members.

Your description in your post of the design/build process & simplifying things I think is very normal. I do not even have a HWT in my 2nd build (have a T ready to go & a space allocated - but have not & probably will not do it).

Van Design/Build seems to me just a long list of compromises that for me are easy to make with more & more experience.

Getting out there & using the Van as early on in the build as practical is the best way of vetting out the Design.
Click to expand...

Maybe the ultimate van lifer is Foresty Forest who did his conversion in the Home Depot parking lot :)
He is still doing amazing mountain climbing videos, now with his dog Roko.

Gary
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GaryBIS said:
Maybe the ultimate van lifer is Foresty Forest who did his conversion in the Home Depot parking lot :)
He is still doing amazing mountain climbing videos, now with his dog Roko.

Gary
Click to expand...
We did most of our first build at a Home Depot in Denver next to the side of the store. They were especially accomodating with allowing us to use their electric. They tossed me an apron and said I spent more time in the store than most employees.

I setup the Green Mountain Davey Crocket and smoked ribs and pulled pork for three days to express our appreciation.
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Olaboss
el Jefe said:
We did most of our first build at a Home Depot in Denver next to the side of the store. They were especially accomodating with allowing us to use their electric. They tossed me an apron and said I spent more time in the store than most employees.

I setup the Green Mountain Davey Crocket and smoked ribs and pulled pork for three days to express our appreciation.
Click to expand...
Perhaps we saw you there? We saw a van always in the parking in the same area. We built our weekender van just before Covid hit and did re build and tweaks until we moved in April of 2022
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Olaboss said:
Perhaps we saw you there? We saw a van always in the parking in the same area. We built our weekender van just before Covid hit and did re build and tweaks until we moved in April of 2022
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I believe we did that build summer 2007. Was it a white van?:unsure:
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Olaboss
el Jefe said:
I believe we did that build summer 2007. Was it a white van?:unsure:
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No that was too long ago, we lived in Denver from 2015-22. I guess there must be many van builders outside the HomeDepot.
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Bromaster5
I bought my 2017 LR after doing little research. The van was a snappy, nearly new cpo and for the record it still is snappy and nearly new. I wanted something truck-like with decent mpg, a fwd van made the most sense. Doing a build/camper was not on the radar. We waited a couple years before doing "the build" and had used the van to move South, to build our homestead. Signs of the coming apocalypse were increasing and I had grew tired of New England.

After building my 2017 LR into a "weekender" as a fun challenge to myself and to show others you can get a lot of bang for the buck circa summer of 2020. ($800 spent and about a weeks time was the challenge)

My final thoughts.. Free time and geographic proximity are more important to good travel than the vehicle that gets you there. Nothing more done to my van would have made it better for me, not more money spent, more gear, more complexity.
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