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Topic ClosedFirst few mods to 179 - this is fun!

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Ben Herman View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: First few mods to 179 - this is fun!
    Posted: 08 May 2018 at 2:18pm
Hi all - finished my first few mods to new (to me) 179. The first thing that I did was to resize the drawers to maximum depth; plenty of other posts about that mod, so no photos here unless anyone want to see them. Used 3/8" plywood for sides and 3/16" underlay plywood for drawer bottoms. Reused all original hardware and drawer faces.

First up is a replacement for the sink insert. It's a cutting board made from a 1/2" hdpe cutting board I purchased at the local restaurant supply store for $12. I used the formica insert as a template, using double-sided tape to hold the two together, than a router template bit w/bearing to cut out the shape. Used a rounding-over bit to profile the edge on both sides, and shes done!


Second mod was a small shelf above the sink. Used similar material but 3/8" thick. Cut to size on table saw (3 1/4" width), secured the edge to a small mounting board of the same material using Loctite Plastic Bonding Glue; attached to wall with an anchor on one side and into a 1x2 next to the sink on the other side. Sorry for the bad photo; light coming in through the skylight makes it tough to manage.


Last one was the biggest, and one that I'm most excited about. I built a shelf above the bed, and partitioned it to hold plastic storage bind that we purchased from Kohls. They look like this:


They're 11x13x8" high, and the shelf unit holds 6 of them. We use them to hold our clothes. Its a simple but effective system; take the baskets in the house, load them up, stack them and carry them out to the trailer. 

I built the shelf using 3/16" lauan underlayment plywood and 1/2" hemlock lumber, both from Lowes. Plywood is inset into grooves in the hemlock, glued and pin-nailed. The unit is attached to the walls on each end with 3 - 1" molly bolts. I removed the valances and mounted them just above the mini blinds. Finished with a coat of shellac and 3 coats of satin finish polyurethane. Thought about trying to match the trim stain but decide to go with natural wood look. 


I'll try to take better photos when the light is better. On to the next project!

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Ben Herman View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 May 2018 at 2:23pm
Forgot to mention - I purchased two 4 1/2" LED puck lights to match the others in the pod from Amazon:


Wired them into the light above the bed. I put one on each end as reading lights.
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Leo B View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 May 2018 at 2:38pm
Nice work! It is really fun doing projects!  
Leo & Melissa Bachand
2017 Ford F150
2021 Vista Cruiser 19 csk
Previously owned
2015 Rpod 179
2010 Rpod 171
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DavMar View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 May 2018 at 8:50pm
Ben Herman, one word....impressive! Great job but I'd really like to see a detail photo or drawing on how you attached the shelf over the bed. Also did you use contact cement to glue the lauan to the plywood? Again very nice!
Dave & Marlene J with Zoey the
wonder dog.
2017 Rpod 180
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Ben Herman View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 May 2018 at 9:06pm
Originally posted by DavMar

Ben Herman, one word....impressive! Great job but I'd really like to see a detail photo or drawing on how you attached the shelf over the bed. Also did you use contact cement to glue the lauan to the plywood? Again very nice!

thx, pretty happy with it. For glue, I just used Titebond wood glue (my go-to for all things wood). I'll post a photo of how I attach the plywood to the frame; basically, I cut a 3/16" groove into the sides of the frame and the plywood is recessed into it. Pretty easy to do with a table saw. I'll also post close-ups of wall attachment tomorrow, with better light. 

With 3 mollys on each side, its pretty darn sturdy; already bonked my head on it once (when getting underneath the mattress to check the water heater) and it didn't budge it a bit. Made a pretty good gash in my head, though...
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DavMar View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 May 2018 at 9:25pm
Sorry about the head bump Ben Herman. Look forward to more detailed photos and if I may ask how did you wire up the puck lights, where did you find a 12 Vdc wire to splice in for power? 
Dave & Marlene J with Zoey the
wonder dog.
2017 Rpod 180
2016 Toyota Tacoma SR5 4x4
Lexington, NC
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Ben Herman View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 May 2018 at 9:29pm
Originally posted by DavMar

Sorry about the head bump Ben Herman. Look forward to more detailed photos and if I may ask how did you wire up the puck lights, where did you find a 12 Vdc wire to splice in for power? 

I pulled the led light above the bed and ran a wire from it in a plastic channel along the ceiling to the back of the shelf. Word to the wise - if planning to do this, install the lights and wiring on the shelf before installing the shelf; unless you enjoy working on your back on the bed, that is.
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Ben Herman View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 May 2018 at 10:43am
DavMar - here's a few more photos to show you how I attached the sides to the RPod walls. Basically three 1 inch molly bolts (made for hollow-core doors) per side. It was definitely a 2-person job; got my son to help. Pre-drilled the holes in the shelf ends, got it into position and marked the holes with an awl. Then removed the shelf, drilled pilot holes and installed the anchors into the walls. Removed bolts from anchors, re-positioned shelf, then got bolts into anchors. Yes, there were some choice 4-letter words involved in the process, getting everything lined up. Once the anchors are in, there's very little tolerance.



here are some images showing how the plywood is inserted into the shelf frame. Basically, its a groove that is just a hair wider than the plywood. Just like drawer construction. I only use glue on the fame pieces and let the plywood float. Just a 1/2" pin brad every 6 inches to keep the plywood from pulling out of the groove.


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Subzilla View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 May 2018 at 2:55pm
Very nice!  Never thought about doing something with the sink insert.  Cool idea!
Mark
Concord, NC
2017 RP 179 "Podzilla"
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DavMar View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 May 2018 at 10:20pm
Ben Herman, thanks for the photos and explanations I really like seeing how you did your shelf and ran the wiring. I have some questions though like what is a "molly bolt" for hallow core doors? Also I believe our Pod walls are only about 1" thick and you said you used these molly bolts that are 1" long so it makes me wonder how you avoid punching through the wall? I know these might be stupid questions but it has me scratching my head because I believe when I used a 1 1/8" screw to replace the awning support bracket screws the tips poked through the wall into the interior and I had to replace them with 1" screws if I remember correctly.

   
Dave & Marlene J with Zoey the
wonder dog.
2017 Rpod 180
2016 Toyota Tacoma SR5 4x4
Lexington, NC
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