Your favourite Camprite feature / modification

[Davids Prado]

Hi everyone,

I am thinking about making some changes to my camprite camper and that got me thinking as to what other people have done to there camprite campers. Some general information about my camper. It is an 09 model which I absolutely love. It has 12V / 240 power but not solar and have now found myself wanting a solar panel. I am also in the process of putting in LED lighting in the nose cone and on the inside of the camper as I am following other peoples ideas. There is also the stainless steel kitchen, but instead of the 80 litre Evakool fridge I went for a 32 Engel which gives me more floor space and spare room for storage. I must admit its great having easy access to the fridge for the road side stops as I have found having the 32 litre Engel in the camper plus the 40 litre Engel in the 4WD is enough at the moment but that might change.

What feature / modification is your favourite and what could you not live without?

Thanks everyone,

Dave

[Captain]

Do you have kids? For me the best mods were the bike racks and the kayak racks. Would not be without them, to the point that when I got my new Quantum, they did a custom 4 bike rack - it would have been a deal breaker otherwise (can carry the kayaks on the vehicle).

My other favorite mod was the bunk beds. We never used them as beds, but used to throw all our "stuff" on them and then the kids had their beds free.

A favorite cheap mod was the use of the Ikea shoe storage, you know the one that velco's to a coat rail (camper crossbar) and then you have ~8 shoebox sized pockets. i used to put 2 of these on each side of the door, was the best place to store things like shoes, phones, hats etc... and best of all they were like $10 each.

My other favorite mod, but not available on the TL8s was the side storage doors (above the wheels) could be accessed from either inside or outside the camprite, made them very practical for things like shoes etc...

Cheers

Captain

[Symon]

I don't think there is anything standard left on Broady's - http://myswag.org/forum/index.php?topic=1433.0

[Davids Prado]

Hi Captain,

Yes I have one very active 2 yr old and I was thinking about the bunk beds to use as storage and for when he wants to bring friends along on camping trips. Good way to introduce other kids to the great camping lifestyle we all enjoyed.

The bike carrier idea is a good one as he will soon be learning how to ride a bike. When don't a have kayak but I'm sure we will always carry some big that we can secure safely on the top of the camper.

Thanks for the Ikea show storage idea. I will get one next time I'm in there.

Thanks for the tips Captain, much appreciated.

I'm am still trolling through Broady's modifications and I now have the problem of trying to work out where to stop. Great problem to have 

Thanks Symon

Cheers Dave

[karrathaprado2]

I think it is the cover for my Camprite as it is the only thing I have been able to do.

[Diksta]

i love the full electrics and solar panel, i am yet to do any mods as i find it is pretty well set up straight off the shelf

[pumice]

We  took delivery of ours this week and have only put it up once. So we're also keen to see what others have done. Will probably have the gas permanently connected at some stage, as well as a water level gauge and lighting. Otherwise, there isn't much else it needs except for a bit of dirt.

[lov2getaway]

We  took delivery of ours this week and have only put it up once. So we're also keen to see what others have done. Will probably have the gas permanently connected at some stage, as well as a water level gauge and lighting. Otherwise, there isn't much else it needs except for a bit of dirt.

Hi pumice ...We are waiting for our Camprite due in June 2011. Love to see what yours looks like and what extras you went for.

[pumice]

I'll post up some photos soon. The camper arrived in the same week that the car goes in for a gearbox fix so it's stuck in the driveway for a few more days.
June will be here before you  know it.

[cm4x4nut]

My favourite part that I have done was the design of the quick awning that I got Reg to make up for me........such a good design that it is now on thier options list

Can now pack the awning up with the camper and it is nice and light for the quick stays

[V8TL8]

One of our mods, done by Camprite here in Perth, was based on an idea from Broady in one of the camper mags.

Replaced the old telescopic legs with these Alko's.

Much easier to use, adds stability, and clears the steps when open or closed and still clears the recovery hooks. Legs can be used at 90 degrees or out at around 270 degrees.



ChrisB

[V8TL8]

Added dual 12V outlets at the kitchen, not present on the older TL8.

Supplies from 12V shop in Perth except for internet order of Dual Cig Baintech surface mount fittings.

15 A fuse at the battery, 4.5 mm2  6m length of cable to rear of trailer, cable tied to existing underchassis wiring.
New 12 mm hole next to existing water hose, cable ties from there to rear of kitchen, new 12 mm hole next to the water pump hole, 3/8" grommet.

Biggest problem was how to split the wire to feed both outlets. Experimented with various junctions (see Symon's Electrical 101) suitably soldered up, but was not happy with any of these. In the end I just stripped off 6 cm of insulation, splitting the red and black cable, covered with shrink wrap and crimped on yellow spade terminals. Figured there won't be much voltage drop over 6 cm. With LEDs on I have only 0.1 volt drop from the battery. Will need to test voltage drop when we next hire a fridge!

Now just need need cig plug for the existing kitchen light which had T connector and had to be run all the way from the inside of the camper.

Need to waterproof this fitting?

First 12 V job: took me ages, many trips back to shops (there's always more stuff you need or you got the wrong size) but in the end it's all good.

ChrisB.

[V8TL8]

Here is another thing we did early on.

The main jockey wheel is a bit fragile if you ask me. When we got the camper it was listing a bit to starboard, so the guys at Camprite kindly tightened that for us.

I use a ratchet jockey wheel around the shed to make it easier to move the TL8 around.
When it is parked I have both jockey wheels taking the strain as it were. The ratchet wheel does weigh a bit so we don't take it camping, probably over 10 Kg.

I use a jockey stand that goes with us in the nose cone box, only weighs about 2 or 3 kg, and when we set up camp we just use the jockey stand in the same clamp, that shares the weight with the main jockey wheel.

Works for us. Sometimes we need to place a block / chuck under the jockey stand, should have bought the longer one.

ChrisB

[Captain]

Hi Chris,

Great to see the pics of the Camprite, I like your mods. The light cord socket outside was always something I was "going to do". As for waterproofing, fresh water will not conduct 12V  - but if dust gets in then it can become conductive when wet! I have seen what looks like cigarette lighter plugs that are just blanks that fit into the socket to keep dust out, would work fine for that purpose.

Cheers

[V8TL8]

Hi Mark

Good tip about the wet dust thing.

The mounts have rubber stoppers when not in use: see below. So when traveling with the kitchen closed I don't see any dust / water getting in.

Haven't got round to sealing the base of the mount with Sikaflex yet; I find this a bit messy to work with and am not sure how to get a neat finish: rubber glove with finger dipped in Turps?
Also if I Sikaflex this, is that a permanent glue, as in cannot remove the mount to fix or modify the electrical connection? Haven't soldered the wires spade connectors yet, will only do so if they come loose.

When are you back, hope you had a great time in the USA? did you have Xmas there?

ChrisB

[Captain]

Hi Chris,

Its better to NOT solder crimp joints, otherwise they can become brittle. Using a proper crimp tool (ratchet style) will give a proper joint connection without the issue of fatiuge failure down the track. I wouldn't worry too much about sealing the mount with sikalfex, will be very messy and there is as much chance of water getting in via the plugs and then it cannot drain out if fully sealed. The most likley chance of getting wet is rain during the night when you have the kitchen out and something plugged in. If its not too late, I would suggest pointing the connections downwards, will minimise any rain getting into them that way.

I get back to AUS in late January, hopefully we can catch up soon after. We went to New Orleans for Xmas, then up to Memphis, so the Mrs could see Gracelands (is a closet Elvis fan) and then across to the Smokey Mountains, North Carolina so the kids could experience snow, just got back a few hours ago from the 10 day road trip and some 2,700 miles. Just 2 weeks of work left before we return.

Cheers

Mark

[V8TL8]

Sounds like you had a great time in the old US of A but are itching to get the Quantum out for a run.

Yes, have properly crimped the connections, they should hold.
Didn't like the idea of the sockets pointing down, risk of plug coming loose was my reason.

Anyway will leave it as if for the moment and see how we go. Can always change it later if need be.

Safe trip back Mark.