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A little fish camp

Started by tule peak timber, July 07, 2022, 03:33:28 PM

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tule peak timber

So, after running around all over Idaho, Montana and Wyoming looking for the ultimate fishing spot, I ended up in Kodiak, AK. Lots of hunting and fishing maniacs around whom I feel at home. Bought some land and eventually will set up a small spread. In the meantime, I want to start visiting more often and the 2 main expenses in AK are car rental and hotel. 

 In order to mitigate costs I am taking what I have, with some compromises, and putting together a little mobile fish camp. I have never owned a camper, or even been in one so this is all one off building specifically for my needs. Some of my criteria include 1. self containment for 4-5 days, which is about as much fish fillet that I can drag through the airport at one time. 2. paramount is the ability to quality freeze the fish 3. have a decent shower 4. toilet 5. and a decent galley and 6. I want to be able to crab, clam, fish on a come and go basis frequently during the year. 

 I started by taking my old logging truck, removing most of the steel frame and tried to figure out how to squash my needs into the bed of an F250 Ford. This will be an ongoing blog; something I began 7 months ago and may need about 7 more to finish. Those of you who own nice, comfortable, cushy beautifu

 

 l campers and motorhomes; this is not the blog for you. LOL!
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

sprucebunny

I am looking forward to seeing what you create !

I've had several truck campers. They would do everything but freeze fish... I imagine a 12 volt cooler/freezer and a generator will fix that.... but the campers a person can buy and what an inspired person ( like you) can build are a world apart estheticaly . ( i can't spell)
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

Resonator

One suggestion for building it from scratch would be to remove to pickup box all together, and build it on the truck frame. Could gain a little room and lower the floor height. Ford pickup cab - chassis were used for many years for RV's.
Under bark there's boards and beams, somewhere in between.
Cuttin' while its green, through a steady sawdust stream.
I'm chasing the sawdust dream.

Proud owner of a Wood-Mizer 2017 LT28G19

WV Sawmiller

   I first thought you were building a fish camp open to the public and I was checking my dates to go to Alaska. My BIL is in Anchorage. 

   Are you going to leave the camp in Kodiak year round? I wonder if you can rent it out when you are not there or maybe I missed that part. You may have hit on an untapped market and start making them and rent them to other idiots tourists passing through. You'd just need an op-site partner or helper to handle the paperwork and get them prepped between users.

   I'm also looking forward to more progress pix. If you'd like I can contact the design committee for ideas/suggestions. ;D
Howard Green
WM LT35HDG25(2015) , 2011 4WD F150 Ford Lariat PU, Kawasaki 650 ATV, Stihl 440 Chainsaw, homemade logging arch (w/custom built rear log dolly), JD 750 w/4' wide Bushhog brand FEL

Dad always said "You can shear a sheep a bunch of times but you can only skin him once

tule peak timber

Sprucebunny: The camper is really centered around the freezer and its ability to quickly freeze a couple of day's worth of catch (about 100 lbs. of fillet) and have the ability to be stuffed in a hole with no side, back or top clearances. I spoke with several medical freezer people, but their prices were crazy expensive, so I ended up with a True commercial freezer, more on this later. There is no point in fishing unless you can properly process the fish !

Resonator: My own truck is not the optimum choice. Here in CA there are a lot of inexpensive used F450s, F650s, but they are illegal to drive in this state. This thing I am building actually has a smaller footprint than the truck itself, height that will allow me on Alaska marine ferries and basically looks like a small slide-in camper. I should have no trouble bypassing any truck scales or parking anywhere. Again, it's a compromise; cramped oh yeah. More on this later.

WV Sawmiller: We are going to build eventually, a rental and very small vacation cabin for our use. But at this juncture, at least, I don't see myself building another camper...perhaps ever! But one never knows. We are zoned for large lot and can build to rent and will need to for the running costs. This little camper will stay on the go and I hope to fish/crab/clam all over the place to include the Aleutians chain using it as a moveable little fish camp. A couple of pics below of Monashka Bay, where I will be in a couple of days. One pic from up on the cliff and another from water's edge; almost the same spot. And yes, my fishing rod is always with me.

 

 
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

sawguy21

What an adventure! You will have to be careful, that old truck will be overloaded in no time. Are you planning to drive the whole way or take the Washington State Ferry from Fairhaven? 
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

samandothers

Seems like you are well on your way to a useable solution for your piece of heaven.  I was looking at the map and wondered how big something could be and still fit on a ferry.  I was thinking if you had something you could haul it on/in you could put together a modular solution to assemble when there.  Now I understand it needs to be mobile to allow you to hit up all the fishing or hunting locations you desire. 

I will thoroughly enjoy your thread on the 'little fish camp'.

tule peak timber

Sawguy 21: Weight is definitely my enemy. If I calculate it correctly, with my tanks empty (not the fuel of course), I should be street legal GVWR in case I get stopped on the way north. I am robbing Peter to pay Paul at every juncture; weight wise. My plan is drive to Bellingham and get on the Alaska Marine Highway there.

samandothers: Lots of friends I have made on the island are talking to me about containerizing house kits, building material, etc. Still looking into this for our construction as well as other potential construction projects. This mobile fish camp is the first step in getting established on the island. 
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

21incher

I hadn't seen you on here in such a long time that I thought you had retired and moved off grid to your new property in Alaska and were enjoying fishing. This will be a fun thread to watch and learn from. Glad to hear you are doing well and making the news with your incredible works of art. When I was a kid I rebuilt a truck camper that had been hit on one side by a tractor trailer and it was 2k pounds to heavy for the truck when done using real lumber :o. Took it cross country and found the easiest way to avoid weight stations was get on the outside of a grayhound buss when you saw the sign. That way they couldn't see me if I tracked right and busses didn't have to stop. But that was before cameras.
Hudson HFE-21 on a custom trailer, Deere 4100, Kubota BX 2360, Echo CS590 & CS310, home built wood splitter, home built log arch, a logrite cant hook and a bread machine. And a Kubota Sidekick with a Defective Subaru motor.

tule peak timber

No, not retired and still cranking out plenty of wood. This fish camp project is fun for me and I'm teaching myself as I go. The only wood used is a little walnut trim, 1/2 sheet of ply and a thin skin of MDF in the bed trying to keep the weight down. Playing some real games to save weight. :)
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

Ljohnsaw

John Sawicky

Just North-East of Sacramento...

SkyTrak 9038, Ford 545D FEL, Davis Little Monster backhoe, Case 16+4 Trencher, Home Built 42" capacity/36" cut Bandmill up to 54' long - using it all to build a timber frame cabin.

Nebraska

I too had the thought you had maybe hung it up and gone to Alaska full time. 
Building a fish camp up there eh... You might need a saw mill....Some thing smaller and more compact....


WV Sawmiller

   Maybe he can tow the mill behind the camper like OJH Eric? ;)
Howard Green
WM LT35HDG25(2015) , 2011 4WD F150 Ford Lariat PU, Kawasaki 650 ATV, Stihl 440 Chainsaw, homemade logging arch (w/custom built rear log dolly), JD 750 w/4' wide Bushhog brand FEL

Dad always said "You can shear a sheep a bunch of times but you can only skin him once

nativewolf

Well my $0.02 and worth what you paid for it:

Stop.  Sell the f250 truck.


  • Buy used 4wd 450 something illegal to register in CA and thus cheap.  Use that as a base.  
  • Tag it in Maine or Alaska.
  • Stop cutting corners on weight- good freezer, fuel, tools, etc are going to weigh something.  Tools & basic parts should be along for the ride.  Real spare tire.  Etc
  • Do it right because fixing it in Alaska when you want to fish..will suck.
  • Learn to kayak and put Kayak racks on
  • Fish more, compromise less
  • Read "Tip of the Iceberg"  good history of Alaska and its role in inspiring conservation- easy read but if you like fishing and will be taking ferries it's a worthwhile.  
  • Send me 200 lbs of steelhead fillets for consulting fees



Liking Walnut

tule peak timber

After some layout planning, I started with the blackwater and fuel tanks. I was able to get 49 gallons into the spare tire /rear fuel tank space and 29 gallons of fuel in the front of the bed. Water tank/system will come later on the inside of the cab. Both tanks are foam/ glass/ epoxy layups. I split the fuel manifold separately for the truck engine and generator to avoid possible air suction issues.  

 

 

 
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

tule peak timber

Quote from: nativewolf on July 08, 2022, 09:20:33 AM
Well my $0.02 and worth what you paid for it:

Stop.  Sell the f250 truck.


  • Buy used 4wd 450 something illegal to register in CA and thus cheap.  Use that as a base.  
  • Tag it in Maine or Alaska.
  • Stop cutting corners on weight- good freezer, fuel, tools, etc are going to weigh something.  Tools & basic parts should be along for the ride.  Real spare tire.  Etc
  • Do it right because fixing it in Alaska when you want to fish..will suck.
  • Learn to kayak and put Kayak racks on
  • Fish more, compromise less
  • Read "Tip of the Iceberg"  good history of Alaska and its role in inspiring conservation- easy read but if you like fishing and will be taking ferries it's a worthwhile.  
  • Send me 200 lbs of steelhead fillets for consulting fees
Bless you,,,,all good advice,,,, all too late. Looked long and hard at a Hobie kayak mounted inside the camper in a missile tube cocoon arrangement but decided on a welded aluminum jonboat roof mounted instead.   
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

doc henderson

Timber king 2000, 277c track loader, PJ 32 foot gooseneck, 1976 F700 state dump truck, JD 850 tractor.  2007 Chevy 3500HD dually, home built log splitter 18 horse 28 gpm with 5 inch cylinder and 32 inch split range with conveyor powered by a 12 volt tarp motor

Andries

TPT:
So good to hear from you again.
This thread is similar to watching a neighbour build a small aircraft in his garage/shop. It's all seems to be about the centre of gravity and weight.
Your PhD. in epoxies is serving you well for the tanks builds. 😉
A suggestion for the Jon boat. You have one (maybe two) batteries under the hood. A Minnkota trolling motor might be enough power to get you clear of the shore?
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

scsmith42

Rob, it's great to see you posting again!  I'll look forward to watching your progress.
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

nativewolf

Quote from: tule peak timber on July 08, 2022, 09:27:37 AM
Quote from: nativewolf on July 08, 2022, 09:20:33 AM
Well my $0.02 and worth what you paid for it:

Stop.  Sell the f250 truck.


  • Buy used 4wd 450 something illegal to register in CA and thus cheap.  Use that as a base.  
  • Tag it in Maine or Alaska.
  • Stop cutting corners on weight- good freezer, fuel, tools, etc are going to weigh something.  Tools & basic parts should be along for the ride.  Real spare tire.  Etc
  • Do it right because fixing it in Alaska when you want to fish..will suck.
  • Learn to kayak and put Kayak racks on
  • Fish more, compromise less
  • Read "Tip of the Iceberg"  good history of Alaska and its role in inspiring conservation- easy read but if you like fishing and will be taking ferries it's a worthwhile.  
  • Send me 200 lbs of steelhead fillets for consulting fees
Bless you,,,,all good advice,,,, all too late. Looked long and hard at a Hobie kayak mounted inside the camper in a missile tube cocoon arrangement but decided on a welded aluminum jonboat roof mounted instead.  
Ah well.  Jonboat on the roof is going to need a little motor and oars.  Hmm.  Electric motor or a little gas job?  
Never too late for 200 lbs of steelhead  :D.  
Really glad we get to see the saga unfold, should be good for us stuck in the woods folk.
Liking Walnut

tule peak timber

Good Morning Andries: 
I looked hard at the Hobie kayak, then considered the age of my legs to paddle the thing. I went 29 rounds with the various electric motor people and it boiled down to a couple of lithium batteries that may or may not perform that well in the cooler Alaskan climes. There are some guys with kayaks who actually have small gas outboards and I ended up buying a little welded jonboat that I am going to rig with rollers and a winch system to get it up on the camper roof. The aluminum boat is sun, snow and ice resistant, weighs the same as a hobie pro 14 and the motor will be an 8 hp Merc. There's a whole lot of hoo haw right now on green energy, but it boils down to the concentration of energy that you can get from a gallon of gas and the lithium batteries are just not going to cut it. 

Good to hear from you too!
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

tule peak timber

I welded the bed to reinforcements then again to the truck frame. Next I foamed the bed channels and put a paper thin MDF skin on top to level things out. The MDF was saturated with penetrating epoxy and glassed over for a steel/foam/glass sandwich as the cabin sole.

 Layout for the head/shower area. I picked a 110 VAC marine toilet that macerates and pressure pumps to the black tank. Trim, cut, fit, over and over again.

 Installing the fuel tank and starting to loft up some shell/hull lines. 

   
persistence personified - never let up , never let down

Walnut Beast

Looks good! That was a nice fabricated log loader you took out of the truck that looked like it worked really well. Are you welding any aluminum frame work or outer skin or going all wood and fiberglass 

tule peak timber

Only a half sheet of plywood, a floor skin of MDF, and some walnut trim - basically no wood at all. No frame, no outer skin. Due to weight concerns all composite construction with different foams, carbon, Kevlar, glass and epoxy.

persistence personified - never let up , never let down

samandothers

As always, interesting design and construction technic.  Foam insulation for those chilly nights?

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