On Wed, 21 Jan 2009 17:54:45 -0800 (PST), Frogwatch
wrote:

Looked at slide in campers this past weekend and found there is really
nothing available for my Nissan (at least for what I will pay). I
have been looking over the Glen-L site (homebuilt boat and camper
plans and such) and have decided to build the "Importer" because it is
less weight than my payload capacity.
Since well before getting married (since Fall of 1976) have been
camping with my wife in tents. We have gone through three different
tents and I am simply tired of setting it up every time we want to
stay overnight somewhere. I also want a hard sided shelter for areas
with bears, cougars etc. In my younger days, I had run-ins with both
while camping and have the still torn up pack to show for it. Trying
to lie deathly still (sleeping without a tent) while a bear keeps
walking right beside me and then proceeds to tear up a stump by my
head really ruined my sleep one night.
A camper may be like sleeping on our sailboat, yes, its primitive but
is luxurious by comparison to sleeping on the ground in the tent.
Am going to go for simple and basic, not even any cooking stuff aboard
or even running water or toilet (thats what god made trees for). Hope
to finish in just 4 months but am prob wrong. Hopefully, my boat
building experience will be helpful.

Can't you get a cap for the bed? That's what I put on my '66 Ford
F-100, and we camped in the bed. Only two babies then, and plenty of
room. After wasting time looking at used stuff, I drove down to the
cap company in Indiana and they laid some caulk down and screw-gunned
the cap right down. Can't remember the company name. It was an
aluminum cap, side jalousie windows, flush with the cab top.
Maybe you're too old to walk bent over in there.
Couple hundred bucks and it never leaked or had a hardware issue for
the 6-7 years I had it.
Was in a campground in Iowa or Nebraska on the way to Yellowstone
one night when a Porsche with a young couple pulled in to the spot
next to us. We were face to a stiff wind and had the back open, as we
normally had it. Just relaxing before sleep time.
Watched them put up a small tent and go inside. Fast.
I was a bit jealous. Hot car and a hot lady. Traveling light.
About 5 minutes later the wind roared and the skies opened.
Tent went flat. They untangled themselves and got soaked putting it
back up. Went down again a few minutes later, and they repeated.
About half hour later it was dark and the Porsche doors shutting woke
me up.
Tent was flat and they were in that little car, where they slept
sitting up until about dawn. Sad sight. They picked up the tent just
before dawn and pulled out, hopefully to a motel to get some decent
sleep and sex.
Most that weather did to the F-100 was rock it a bit.
Later when I had more kids we used a 9' 12' two-room tent when
camping. Always took close to half an hour to put the thing up, but
it never failed. Did break a lot of stakes getting it tied to hard
ground though.

--Vic