Man Vs Van..
- Thread starter kn0bby
- Start date
At the beach again..
Day out at the beach again, making the most of the van!
Popped the roof today!
That sand gets everywhere!
Day out at the beach again, making the most of the van!
Popped the roof today!
That sand gets everywhere!
Rock N Roll Time...
Back at Berkshire Campers.
Ordered a Smartbed Evolution R just after Christmas and its just turned up mid Feb, I thought it was going to be longer so nice surprise!
Pick up day! Richard at Berkshire Campers fitted the Smartbed, laid the wood effect floor and fitted my solar panel.
I went for the Evolution R as it comes on rails and you move the seat right forward so you can still use the back of the van and if you have passengers behind you can move them forward so they are not right at the back of the van.
Really pleased with the results..
The rails are not my favorite part but it is what it is..
You get a little seat at the back.. Great for me to sit the kids on and put on their shoes.
Also, storage for bedding and an awning when on the move.
Its certainly going to be snug on there!
Room underneath for a surfboard.. and maybe a Porta Potty.. I need to measure.
Back at Berkshire Campers.
Ordered a Smartbed Evolution R just after Christmas and its just turned up mid Feb, I thought it was going to be longer so nice surprise!
Pick up day! Richard at Berkshire Campers fitted the Smartbed, laid the wood effect floor and fitted my solar panel.
I went for the Evolution R as it comes on rails and you move the seat right forward so you can still use the back of the van and if you have passengers behind you can move them forward so they are not right at the back of the van.
Really pleased with the results..
The rails are not my favorite part but it is what it is..
You get a little seat at the back.. Great for me to sit the kids on and put on their shoes.
Also, storage for bedding and an awning when on the move.
Its certainly going to be snug on there!
Room underneath for a surfboard.. and maybe a Porta Potty.. I need to measure.
The seat in its most forward position.
Its a big old unit!! My one has grey sides.. Some of the ones I have seen have a mirror finish on the side. Like the plain colour.
Still loads of room to put stuff behind.
The cable is from the solar panel that I need to cable up.
Can't wait to get the furniture in now and start using it!
Looking great. Hope you find the Evolution R as flexible as we have.
Like it so far.
Couple of questions if you have one.
Recommended protective cover?
Recommended mattress topper?
Thanks.
Protective cover, we just use a faux fur throw that can be used when seated or as a bed
Topper wise, we use the same as the one we use in our pop top. Self inflates, but you can add air to adjust how firm it is. Light weight and it folds and compresses down. Different colours and thickness available and not expensive.
Trail 5cm Double Self-Inflating Camping Mat
There's some pics on these threads of how flexible the Evo R can be and how it can be used, if it helps for ideas.
Panadonkia - A Shuttle Conversion
T6 Shuttle Conversion
Topper wise, we use the same as the one we use in our pop top. Self inflates, but you can add air to adjust how firm it is. Light weight and it folds and compresses down. Different colours and thickness available and not expensive.
Trail 5cm Double Self-Inflating Camping Mat
There's some pics on these threads of how flexible the Evo R can be and how it can be used, if it helps for ideas.
Panadonkia - A Shuttle Conversion
T6 Shuttle Conversion
My seat cushions are custom made and weren't supplied by Smart Beds. But the box section that they're fixed to has four screw holes, so I'm sure it will just be a case of unscrewing them. I'm planning on making a sleeves to fit over the box section and fitted to the base if the seat, to make removing the buddy seat a quick operation. Your floor rails will be longer than mine as I have existing factory seat brackets still in place. So your seat will slide further forward. Even though yours is a SWB, you may get bikes in and have enough leg room for rear passengers. Time to get the measuring tape out.
I’ve just been out and had a look. Yep 4 bolts it looks like holds on the small seat.
Not a plate to go on it the mounts attached. I’m assuming that’s how you’ve done it on the first place.
Need to wash the mtb first and see how much room I have.
Solar Panel
I'll take some better pictures when I get a change..
Berkshire Campers fitted the solor panel when it was in having the Smartbed done.
Its a 130w all black panel with the connectors at the rear.
The ribs in the roof provide air flow under the panel, lets hope its enough!
Really pleased with the results. Really subtle, which is what I wanted.
It just needs wiring in now to see how it performs.
I'll take some better pictures when I get a change..
Berkshire Campers fitted the solor panel when it was in having the Smartbed done.
Its a 130w all black panel with the connectors at the rear.
The ribs in the roof provide air flow under the panel, lets hope its enough!
Really pleased with the results. Really subtle, which is what I wanted.
It just needs wiring in now to see how it performs.
Like the look of that. Is the connector block underneath the panel? Did you have to drill into the roof to locate the connector? Lastly, do you know what make the panel is that they've fitted.
Solar panel doing its thing...
It was a nice day so I managed to get the solar panel connected up.
Had some help from my assistant!
All connected the CTEK D250SA reported PV charging straight away.
The next day I wanted to see how much it would charge the battery.
At 9am my battery ready 77% in the shade.
Mid morning the panel was in full sunlight and charging well.
Before I disappeared for lunch it had reached 90%! Really pleased..
After a few days the battery is at 100% most of the time. Before with my dash cam constantly on and heater being used most mornings I was having the disconnected the dashcam to allow the battery to recover on the split charging.
It was a nice day so I managed to get the solar panel connected up.
Had some help from my assistant!
All connected the CTEK D250SA reported PV charging straight away.
The next day I wanted to see how much it would charge the battery.
At 9am my battery ready 77% in the shade.
Mid morning the panel was in full sunlight and charging well.
Before I disappeared for lunch it had reached 90%! Really pleased..
After a few days the battery is at 100% most of the time. Before with my dash cam constantly on and heater being used most mornings I was having the disconnected the dashcam to allow the battery to recover on the split charging.
Tried to buy kiravan swivel bases at the weekend for this weekends first camping trip, but they’re sold out till next month
I had the same problem.
Got mine from RIB Seat Swivels
Think they were cheaper from memory!
How you finding them? much modification? it says in the tips about cutting plastic and seat materials, and mentioned they may rock now... but not make any noise.
Also how fast was delivery? am i pushing it for friday...
