work and wandering

Continuing with the 2018 Chrysler Pacifica "minivamper" build, I'm now on my third iteration of the plan. The problem with Youtube is there is always another build, another idea to process, and that explains version 2, which just didn't do it for me. For comic relief, here is a picture of stillborn version 2. The frame just took took much of the height away needed for the kitchen pull out.  Luckily, my 3am brain is alive and functional, so version 3 is explained a little bit below... The main bedframe structure consists of two boxes, the passenger side is 20x55, and the driver side is 28x33. The driver side box is shorter front to back than the passenger side to allow clearance for the Yeti 45 that we will keep in the back. The height of the boxes is 8", which is to accommodate our Coleman Eventemp 3-burner camp stove. I didn't want to go any higher than 8", because, once leveled, the top of the boxes is roughly 16" high off the floor. The distance ...

  One common theme I've found in van building is Youtube videos showing the plans, the clean slate, the build, and the finished product. If you are new to van building as we are, it's a lot like those instructional videos on how to draw an owl, but they skip over the important stuff. If you bought a van like a Sprinter or Promaster, there are hundreds of plans to chose from. With the Chrysler Pacifica, not so much. We've entered into the envisioning phase of the build.  What do we need to carry? Where does it fit? How quickly can we access commonly accessed items? Where is the pantry? Where is the cooler? As you can see, there are a lot of "circles" for building this "owl!" The middle front-to-back 2x2 is the level bar. Our driveway is on a slope, so I premeasured the floor slope from front to back, and by having a leveling bar, I can quickly see clearances and what may or may not fit. The front starts out at 13", which is the height of the center c...

Maybe it's being cooped up because of COVID-19, or maybe it's a little bit of a mid-life crisis, but I miss road trips. Who knows when we will get back to normal, but in the meantime, I thought it would be a fun distraction to build a road-tripping vehicle, so we can travel and have a place to sleep along the way. The van life appeals to me, but panel type vans are generally big and bulky and not the best as daily drivers. So based on that, a minivan seems just the ticket! Introducing "Chrissy", our new to us 2018 Chrysler Pacific Touring L, S Edition. Never thought I'd be driving a "minivan" but the Pacifica just seemed to have a bit more style than all the others with its blacked-out trim and eighteen-inch black alloy wheels. About that clean slate... Like most of the other minivans on the market, the Pacifica can fit a full 4x8 sheet of plywood when all the "stow-n-go" (henceforth SnG seats) seats are folded down into the floor. As we won...