VW Conversion Part 2. - Ready to Hit the Road!

Last time I wrote about "Project Oscar" - yes the name has stuck, it was pretty much a well developed idea and 100 bits of wood. That was 3 months ago. What have we been up to since? Well, pretty much finishing the van, and living in it!

It's all there, just needs assembly!

After getting Germany's finest DIY store, BAUHAUS to cut all the wood for us, the next step was to revisit the CAD model and make it a reality. I liked this part of it, as with the Transit, as things move really quicky...

Turning model into reality!

Next comes the detail. Keeping things simple the specs are as follows:

• "Sauna Style" wood paneling with pull out super-king bed
• Storage space with fold out doors
• Space for a cooker and gas bottle
• Nice thick Hippy curtain to replace the ugly bulkhead
• Carpeted walls and floor (shoes off van!)
• Super bright, super efficient LED strip lighting
• USB Charging point (phones etc.)
• Voltmeter for battery %

Of course, to use the cliche, the devil is very much in the detail. These things take time to get right, and the next few weeks involved a lot of varnishing, PVC-ing and cleaning. It's so hard to be patient when the idea of taking it travelling is just around the corner!

Extra storage space

Getting it all bolted down

Varnish!

4 Way switch of USB, Strip Lights, Voltmeter, and Master

LED's in action!

Next the soft furnishings! - really important to give the homely feeling

Carpet Cutting a'la'Opinel

Carpeted walls - just for Skelhon!

(Warming Up Outside too...)

And soon enough all the hard work comes to an end.... A couple of brand new foam mattresses from IKEA (50 EUR each) make for a comfy sleep. All in all the conversion came to about 400 EUR.

Just the bedding to come!

Makes for a sofa / rest spot during the day

Huge, comfy bed!

Travel time! (sleep time?)

And ready to hit the road....

Sit down cooking.... Jon's speciality!

Van in action!

We've certainly made the most out of the van over the last 3 months. Visiting Dreseden, a mega tour of south Germany, a brief visit to Austria, Poland, and lots of time down in the world famous Frankenjura.

A blog on the adventures to come!!!