AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

GRIFFIN · 2019-05-28 01:55:13

This may be of interest to members with a camper conversion.

I decided that I wanted to have a simple awning/canopy on the side of my scudo but at a couple of hundred quid for a folding one and the thought of lugging it round everywhere attached to the van, there must be a better alternative.

After a little research I found this
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Caravan-Moto … 2635260866?

and this
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sun-canopy-a … 3197102485?

All I had to do was devise a way of fitting them onto my scudo. It was never going to be rocket science, with the brackets already fitted to the van roof, I just made some angled spacers then screwed a piece of 50 x 25 mm rectangular aluminium tubing along the full length of the van in order to give me something to mount the awning rail onto. Then I decided that if I made two and added some cross bars I would have a roof rack as well.

I'm in the fortunate position of having my own little workshop with a couple of lathes and a milling machine as well as a bench top and freestanding pedestal drill. I calculated the angle on the bottom of the spacers needed to be 12.5 degrees with a notch cut out to accommodate the lip on the roof brackets on the van. Then rather annoyingly I discovered that the roof brackets were not all at the same height, so the spacers were going to have be different thicknesses. After a few hours of calculating, cutting and milling; I drilled some holes in the aluminium tube to correspond with the mounting brackets on the van and mounted the side rails onto the van roof.

They are quite low for minimum wind resistance so now I just have to fit the awning rail to one side and some cross bars, then I'll have my dual purpose awning mount and roof rack.

I'll post more photos when I get the cross rails, and awning fitted, Cheers, Griff.

Last edited by GRIFFIN (2021-03-08 23:32:09)

Casper · 2019-05-28 07:11:08

When i had mine i put the tracking along the side of my roof bars. More of less the same height as what yours are then i got a awning with sides. It worked well but was designed for a taller van.

As for canopy i was looking to make one before getting an awning. You can buy the beeding (Making sure its 6mm)

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-CARAVAN- … ctupt=true

Get a cheap tarp

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_osac … p&_sacat=0

Then adjustable poles

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-x-CARAVAN- … SwzhVWr8XC

Decided the awning was better for that extra room at night. Big enough for a table and two chairs plus an area to feed the dog.

GRIFFIN · 2019-05-29 00:23:07

Hahaha yeah I've got one almost Identical for the back of the van but it has a zip on both sides so you can drive away and leave it standing. I wanted a side canopy as well though, so I could just pull up and have a shelter by the roadside or wherever in minutes and that's where the Idea came from.

vaz2121 · 2019-05-29 05:37:47

I'll not go into the nitty details why/how..... But as you can see I've got The two fiamma rails that my roofbox sits on ....... an Awning rail and as I no longer use the Rhino roof bars I fitted those Large screw in "O" ring things (Can't remember their name) and although not been used that much a tent like fabric that I got from eB** for some sun shade......... modified it slightly with those eyelet repair things and use a couple marquee type poles proping it up and secured to van with bungy cord loop things and the last eyelet tensioned over the front part of van with a length of bungy and hooked (plastic) on front wheel.......... looped round bonnet hinge is a bit better although neither entirely satisfactory IMHO............
If that makes any sence to you

Has given us some much needed shade as found out on a trip to Spain ........... (A bit Parasol like and ok for a little drizzle but so far ok)
(Not clever I admit if the wind really gets up........... (Never left it up over night)

Casper · 2019-05-29 08:12:44

You dont happen to know the paint code colour name for that blue Griffin do you? For some reason my rear hinges are all paint less.

vaz2121 · 2019-05-29 11:27:38

Have a look here on drivers door Casper see if that stickers still there it contains paint code............ In my case "KJF" (As visible {Rouge Ardent}) is my paint code

For some reason the hinges on my rear doors are loosing their paint also but got much worse with using the pressure washer............
They take on that Alloy fur ....... I thought etch primer and rattle can spray either red or black but as yet never got round to it

GRIFFIN · 2019-05-29 15:21:17

Hi Casper, The panel on my scudo drivers door says KPVB which is the colour BLEU LINE-GIUDIZIOSO 479A for a CITROEN vehicle.

Must say it looks a little lighter than yours does though but could be just camera difference I suppose.

Cheers, Griff.

Casper · 2019-05-29 17:39:22

GRIFFIN wrote:

Hi Casper, The panel on my scudo drivers door says KPVB which is the colour BLEU LINE-GIUDIZIOSO 479A for a CITROEN vehicle.
Must say it looks a little lighter than yours does though but could be just camera difference I suppose.
Cheers, Griff.

I thought they looked the same. That will be why i am not working in a paint shop then big_smile I was talking about my Citroen not the Pug in them pictures but it seems you are correct

KNPB is apparently Blu Imperial. Ill search for rattle can later as the hinges are doing my head in.

k_wyndham_t · 2019-05-30 08:09:42

This is all very posh, to be honest I just screwed mine to the side of the vans roof with little o rings behind the screw heads.

GRIFFIN · 2019-06-04 23:28:54

As promised here is the next step. Managed to get the awning rail fitted at last and the 2.4 x 3 metre canopy fits a treat, although I have only slid it into position and held it by hand, I'll get it pitched properly on grass with the poles as soon as I can.

Next step will be the cross bars for the roof rack. Will post more pictures soon.

Cheers, Griff.

GRIFFIN · 2019-10-14 00:50:59

Just back from the bike racing at East Fortune in Scotland and as promised, more photos of the finished awning rails in action (transferred from my Scudo after it blew up) on the Dispatch. The grey and black awning is an Outhouse Handi & is from eBay, it has an awning strip stitched into it and I think it was around seventy quid about five years ago. The green one was actually a tent extension by Trespass (model:455/9100) and I got it from Argos clearance shop. It was a real bargain at thirty five quid and doesn't have any special attaching points but it's just like it was made to measure for our vans, although I used it initially on my Fiat Multipla.

If you check out the thread about the meet up in Scotland, you will see more photos where I also have a flat sheet awning on the other side of the van as well.

I've also made some crossbars that attach to the rails, making them into a lightweight roof rack. I don't have them fitted all the time, as they make quite a bit of wind noise but next time I have them on I will take some photos and post them. I am in the process of trying to reduce the wind noise by adding a kind of aerofoil to the front to redirect the air but I also intend adding a roof box which may introduce more wind noise anyway, which will of course defeat the object.

Just a thought but has anyone on the forum fitted a caravan type of electric hook-up to there van? I do have a little generator but it's not always possible to use it and hook-ups are handy to have. I've fitted one to a caravan before and know how to do the work, it's just that there may be a handy place to fit the external socket and a simple way to bring the cable inside the van that someone has already discovered.

Last edited by GRIFFIN (2019-10-14 01:09:39)

kenbw2 · 2019-10-14 01:27:54

GRIFFIN wrote:

Just a thought but has anyone on the forum fitted a caravan type of electric hook-up to there van? I do have a little generator but it's not always possible to use it and hook-ups are handy to have. I've fitted one to a caravan before and know how to do the work, it's just that there may be a handy place to fit the external socket and a simple way to bring the cable inside the van that someone has already discovered.

If like me you don't want to cut any holes there's a grommet just behind the front wing that goes into the van, or you could just use the vent at the back left of the van

My brother (Firemoth) has set up a hookup in his, he'll be able to say where he wired his in.

Last edited by kenbw2 (2019-10-14 01:29:04)

Firemoth · 2019-10-14 03:45:33

I've got the same. Synergie, but same difference.

Plug on bumper, wire up through the corner vent behind the bumper, trip switch box thingy in the side compartment behind the wheel arch, then feed to what you want. Mine has a 6amp smart charger I've wired in (considering upgrading a bit to about 10) and 2 x 3 pin sockets in the car

This is the only pic I've got that gives an idea sorry

vaz2121 · 2019-10-14 10:53:05

Not a very clear photo but you can see the white cap for hookup

Thats soon to be changed again but a black one this time as my neighbours boy knocked the lid off it while turning a car trailer round and scuffing up the plastic rubbing strip as well...........
It comes in behind here and connects to this black magic with charger, 12v fuses and 240v hook up circuit breaker.............

There is a void left under cupboard where battery lives and that gubbins wiring is and up to control panel

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CBE-PC100-CO … 1438.l2649

Eb** link ...Not the cheapest option .... But this is the kit that was fitted

OAT · 2019-10-14 17:17:47

If you are using the standard external socket and cover, the cable goes straight through the hole you cut for the socket???

Have I misunderstood?

Those awnings actualy fit like made to measure Griff. Is the rear green one drive away?

GRIFFIN · 2019-10-15 18:23:04

Hi Oat,

No, that makes sense it was more about where to put it on the van but I'll probably make a bracket to protect it from road spray and put it round about where Firemoth has his. Then bring the cable up through the vent like he did.

Unfortunately the green one isn't drive away but If you folded the top down, where it goes over the van roof and brought the side flaps round by 90 degrees and pegged them down, I reckon it would just about do the job. Even so if it didn't, a cheap tarpaulin pegged down to the ground with the aid of a couple of market stall clips for the top and I'm sure it would be fine. Next time I use it, I'll give it a try and take a couple of photos to show you how it looks.

GRIFFIN · 2021-03-08 23:54:19

A few updates since last posting. I fitted an electric hook-up and consumer unit to the van so I can make use of electric power other than from my leisure battery and I can also plug my little generator into the van too. I did similar to Firemoth by attaching to the rear bumper and feeding cable up through the breather vent behind the kerbside wheel arch.

Fitted Socket to underside of rear bumper with piece of aluminium behind, to spread weight and prevent bumper from tearing.
Also a piece of aluminium angle to prevent water ingress from heavy road spray. Then ran cable into consumer unit to protect the system from faults/overloading. Oh yes and before someone tells me, I know the double socket is upside down, that is because it is now behind my storage unit and I need to access it from the top.

GRIFFIN · 2021-03-09 00:21:10

One of the reasons I got this van, was to take my bike (Honda Fireblade RRW) from place to place and use the van to sleep in. To this end I considered making a folding bed type thingy and after looking at many van life videos on YouTube, I couldn't find one that would leave room for my bike up the middle of the van. After a lot of thought, I decided to design my own and to include some storage units into the bargain. I decided to follow the basic design of most small caravans, which have seats on each side and a table that slides into the gap to make a bed. I did a little drawing, took some measurements and made a couple of frames out of 1' x 2' sawn timber to go onto the floor at each side.

The piece of 12mm plywood on the floor will take the place of the table to make it into a bed and it is a stock size (2' x 6') which is also the size of the space I need for my bike :-)

I used a Kreg Jointer to connect all the pieces of the frame and used wood glue to help with strength.

After this, I added some 2' x 2' planed timber uprights to support the 6' lengths of the frames for the storage/seat units.

Then I made some end doors from 9mm ply and fixed them with piano hinges and magnetic catches and lined the sides with 6mm ply to prevent flexing and retain all the shite that I am liable to place in the seat/storage units. I also made lids for the storage units out of 9mm ply and tacked some strips of 8mm planed timber round the edges to keep them in place.

To this I added a 6' strip of 1' square timber to the top of each side to support the 12mm plywood for the bed and after removing my bike, I will simply slide out the plywood place it on top and we have a double bed.

Last edited by GRIFFIN (2021-03-09 00:44:57)

scotchjoe · 2021-03-12 08:41:51

You'll need to sleep with your head at the back door, or all your blood will run into your head smile
There's quite a severe slope to the back of these vans.

GRIFFIN · 2021-03-12 13:56:54

Yes very true, I noticed this already. When I've gone away in the van in the past, I've just slept on the floor on exercise mats and it took me a while to realise why it felt so strange. I did consider making it higher at one end to flatten it out but decided against it as my joinery skills don't go that far. I am very pleased with the results though and when I need the whole load space, they just lift out as they aren't tied down.
Also, my belongings were just spread around the van and I had to sleep among them, whereas now they can all be stowed away tidily under the seats.

Last edited by GRIFFIN (2021-03-12 14:02:28)

kenbw2 · 2021-03-12 16:43:51

I briefly considered getting lowering springs for the rear, but realised you'd have to have quite a drop for that to work. I think 9cm? Also, for some reason there aren't exactly a glut of chavvy lowering springs for DispatchExpertScudos tongue

GRIFFIN · 2021-03-12 18:21:02

No problem at all Ken, we can make our own. Bring the van round to my workshop and we'll set about them with the angle grinder and dress them off with the belt sander. lol
anything for a good nights sleep.

OAT · 2021-03-12 22:08:26

Do you all live in Holland?

I never seem to find flat parkups so the tilting floor isn't usualy a problem. I do tend to visit hills and mountains a lot though so can't realy complain. If sloping the "wrong" way, I sleep the other way round.

My fridge is more fussy than I am though so in summer I too do the leveling shuffle and resort to ramps.

kenbw2 · 2021-03-12 23:49:01

Yea I have my van set up so I can sleep both ways, I feel more cosy at the back though smile

I rarely find flat ground too, god knows my OCD with my levelling ramps knows that

GRIFFIN · 2022-01-02 01:01:23

I've been out and about stealth camping in the van over the last few months and I've signed up to a couple of free websites that help you find Park-ups. One is called Campy and the other is park4night, you just enter where you want to go and they give you a range of on street, free and also pay to park/camp sights. I found an RSPB nature reserve in Cambridge last week and it was only £2.00 for a ticket.

I've also found a couple of my own which even have toilets open overnight. One is Ambleside, Great Langdale, Stickle Ghyle National trust car park £7.50 for a ticket and the other is Silloth RNLI carpark which is free. One thing to watch out for though, is that the parking tickets run out at 23.59 no matter what time you pay, so buy your ticket after midnight or you may get a knock if they come round to check in the morning.

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#1 2019-05-28 01:55:13

AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#2 2019-05-28 07:11:08

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#3 2019-05-29 00:23:07

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#4 2019-05-29 05:37:47

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#5 2019-05-29 08:12:44

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#6 2019-05-29 11:27:38

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#7 2019-05-29 15:21:17

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#8 2019-05-29 17:39:22

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#9 2019-05-30 08:09:42

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#10 2019-06-04 23:28:54

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#11 2019-10-14 00:50:59

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#12 2019-10-14 01:27:54

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#13 2019-10-14 03:45:33

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#14 2019-10-14 10:53:05

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#15 2019-10-14 17:17:47

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#16 2019-10-15 18:23:04

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#17 2021-03-08 23:54:19

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#18 2021-03-09 00:21:10

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#19 2021-03-12 08:41:51

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#20 2021-03-12 13:56:54

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#21 2021-03-12 16:43:51

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#22 2021-03-12 18:21:02

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#23 2021-03-12 22:08:26

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#24 2021-03-12 23:49:01

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

#25 2022-01-02 01:01:23

Re: AWNING RAIL, LOW LINE ROOF RACK, STEALTH CAMPER - a work in progress.

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