We set out to look at vans for fun...

... thinking it would be cool to ditch the motorcycle trailer and go over 55phm. It was a quick search because we came home that day with a 2017 Ford Transit 350, high roof, extended.

Our build would not only need to carry motorcycles, we have two children in car seats, so space in this build is at a premium.

This was our first camper conversion, it took a long time, we learneed a lot and it was a blast.

Major Fatures

• Seats 4 with seatbelts
• Sleeps 4 two adults two kids
• Holds two dirtbikes
• Internal winch to load bikes
• Gally 1
  • 1 Drawer (Soft Close)
  • Refridgerator
  • Vertical Storage
• Gally 2
  • 5 Drawers (Soft Close)
  • 3 12v outlets
• House power 255ah
• Solar 200w
• Shore power hookup
• 2 Benches with storage
• 5 outlets with 110 and USB
• Cieling Fan
• Dimable under shelf lights
• RGB Mood Lights
• RGB Ground Effects
• Sound proofing throughout
• Wool insulated walls
• Cellular WiFi (in progress)

Stealth Bed

We knew the van was going to need a bed and we had lots of ideas, but as the build progressed, we kept putting it off. Initally we wanted bunk beds to fall out of the walls, but they were too thick to accomodate the motorcycles and compromised the bench storage. I am really happy to show you the solution we came up with.

No bed here

In order to fit the dirtbikes, we needed to maximize the space down the center of the van. We opted for two long benches that fit comfortably under the handlebars.

Support Storage

The bed is a bit of a transformer. The front edges of the benches become the support for the mattress (padding) and they also hide the seven bed supports while driving.

Supports

Each support has a kickstand that needs to be folded down. There are teflon feet on the supports so there is no floor damage. There are slots on the front edges of the benches where the supports drop into.

Ready for sleep

Once deployed, the bed is pretty cozy. I have never slept so well camping before. The van is really quiet.

Kid's Bed

Kids are small but you can't take their sleeping space for granted. Our first few outings, we had one kid strung up in the rafters in a hammock and the other was in a pack-n-play by the sliding door. As you may have imagined, this was less than ideal. Father's Day rolled around and my wife suprised me with spinning mounts for the front seats (more on that later). Woo hoo! A side effect of spinning seats is the ability to install a Cabbunk. We were taken by the price and decided to make our own.

The bedframe

Before a Cabbunk is an option, you will need spinning seats. Once installed, you extend your hangout space which is kind of rad. When bed time rolls around, you simply unroll the bunkbeds over the seats, push them back a bit and you are good to go.

Round 1

There was a lot of measuring in this project. We bolted some L-Track to the sides of the van and welded up some bar holders. We wound up using fiberglass rods our supports. I think we may have been able to get away with fiberglass tube.

Round 2

Our fabric choice for the first design was a perfect color match but a bit too stretchy. We reworked the design with canvas and this one is going to last. Our youngest is only a year old so we added a mesh curtain around the lower bunk to keep her on the bed throuhout the night.