Yeah ideally I would’ve built it mounted on it’s side, but I couldn’t understand what the manual said. So the video I watched said these cheap Chinese ones can only run horizontal with the exhaust pointing down. But that’s my issue with my custom case, I’ve ended up usually leaving the lid off to avoid that negative pressure. But maybe I’ll re-investigate rebuilding this and mounting it on its side to get the exhaust connections external. It is kinda based on the All-in-one versions which are somewhat similar in design.
I did a little walk through video of what I received yesterday. Then went through some of my install to this point. If anyone has any thought or criticism I welcome them. I will make another one when I get my platform bed back in.
I wouldn’t reuse that the back door. aluminum weakens quickly every time it’s bent. you might also end up with alignment issues after it’s put back on. It seems like it could have been shipped Ikea style and assembled later with less damage. this just sucks
I have faith GFC will take care of you if you ever get a hold of them
That’s what I was thinking, for anyone considering shipping in this method. I would ask that all panels be removed and packaged. I’m not overly concerned with the door at this point because I too have faith that it will be replaced. So it’ll just be a temporary solution so I can put my platform and electrical back in.
You can mount these in their side but you just have to make sure the glow plug is facing upward. In theory there is only 2 ways you can mount a heater since the glow plug is located on a corner. (Only two ways it would be in the upper position if that makes sense)
So today I had some time to put some work in. Got the window back in the seal after a lot of swearing. Seemed like the issue was that I needed to eat. Then it was all good.
Now comes the things I hoped wouldn’t happen. But there is a lot of water getting in the tent when it’s closed. Also looks like I need to re-do my bulb seal. So I’m a little bummed about that and will have to talk to gfc about it. To see if they think it’s from the damage during shipment.
Whew…been a flurry of activity around the house. My gosh, my kids LOVE this thing. It’s like their own driveway treehouse! Been super busy with the excitement, so I’ve gotten quite a few things done.
Put the bed in yesterday…you’ve all seen the finished product of that above.
Then this morning (after I finished the trim for the window in the studio) I used @howcox Universal Bracket ‘Hack’ for my 48” ARB awning. Now the one thing I will note that I had to move the awning up the the 3rd hole on the bracket so it doesn’t interfere with the rear door. Also it does hit the lip on the top of the tent, so I may need to find a thicker cutting board.
Installed some Quick Fist clamps for my Shovel on one side and Axe on the other. These would usually be inside the truck tied up with the paddles in the summer. So this is going to be a game changer.
Then finally after an attempt to use these $20 LED wireless Dimmers from Canadian Tire, I reverted back to the normal light set up. Those dimmers were crap, the option switch broke in five minutes. Bought a second one today and the same thing happened. So back to having landing strip powered LED lights. I’m sure I could rig up a 1Meg potentiometer from the lab with some form of Bakelite knob. But that sounds like a future project; in the meantime…we’re ready to camp!!!
I have the same tent gap (two) on the campers top drivers side corners. The gap occurs on the front and rear. Others have been advised to shut the camper enough to adjust the tent position along the guide rails. I have done this successfully on the passenger side but there is not enough material on the drivers side to close the gap on both corners. I adjusted the drivers side so the gap is the same on the front and rear, the gaps are small but enough that you can see sunlight. I live in California (no rain) so I have yet to test the campers ability to avoid rain intrusion. I noticed the inside corners do get wet during camper washing when I spray water perpendicular to the camper top when it is closed.
I have those same tiny tent holes at the corners in the small part of wedge (cab side of tent). GFC Support told me they were intentional to avoid the material being too taught and potentially ripping in the wind…but that doesn’t make sense to me, especially with water intrusion. Waiting to hear back.
Here’s my ongoing experience with rain: last May or so I found the front two corners got wet through the holes described by @bbeyota (small but can see light). My truck was parked facing downhill in a crazy rain storm (2"+ in 2 days). Since then I have driven through a similar rain storm at 80 MPH for 3 hours and just last night we got an inch or so of rain but my truck was parked level. Everything stayed dry this time. So my thoughts for now are A) the camper was obviously designed to stay dry when driving. B) Don’t park facing downhill (I’m not sure if this was actually the cause). C) take out all the cushions in the winter and “pop the top” whenever you get a dry day.
Living in a wet environment has its challenges but I am happy with the campers performance so far. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Totally, they told me the same thing with regards to those holes when I asked for pictures prior to shipment (which I never received). I know somewhere someone answers the question as to why they don’t have some kind of weather seal along the edge of the extrusion.
I also question why the bulb seal isn’t placed on the camper instead? In all the years of owning canopies you always put the bulb seal on the cap, not the bed rails. That would make it infinitely easier to line up, thus avoiding having to re-jig aside from squaring.
Yeah Ben, I think that’s my issue, because our driveway is slanted and I always back in (to avoid running anyone over trying to back out) I think that’s why I’m getting that intrusion. I plan on using the camper quite a bit int he winter for ski touring. I do think you’re right though. I should take the cushions out when it’s not being used to avoid them getting soaked.
Additionally, if my truck is going to be parked for a week or more I am planning on taking all the floor pieces out (so the tent hangs down into the bed) and putting a couple moisture absorbers in the bed. I hate the rain…
So if anyone was interested, the weight of this XL platform camper is 374.8lbs.
Also, just weighed the truck with the plywood platform, battery, and electrical and that portion is 220.5lbs
In the end in ends up being lighter than a 4wc camper, which is the goal. Obviously there would likely be another 200 - 300lbs added with gear when it’s all ready for a weekend of camping.
Empty truck weight = 2750kg
GFC on truck weight = 2920kg
Platform bed, GFC, and truck = 3020kg
I can’t remember how much it was with my leer canopy, but it was definitely close to the same.
Got everything buttoned up and ready to go camping. Doing everything in my power to not let the lack of communication from GFC bother me. Regardless, here’s a video I put together showcasing the buildout in a step by step format. It’s a little rough, but that’s what you get when you use your phone. Basically did vids of each part of the install.
Hope you all enjoy and I appreciate feedback. Cheers
I’m sad to report that I’ve fallen victim to GFC’s lack of customer service. I’m super bummed and feel that I’ve been nothing but open about my decision and am laying no blame on them. Regardless I’m feeling ignored as a customer who just invested heavily. This is the last correspondence Monday morning.
I’m now finally starting to get upset about how I’m being treated as a customer. I’m not one to voice my opinion online, but I feel it’s important that other users and potential customers get a true picture of some customers experiences.
Just like I made the decision to ship the camper independently you can make the decision on how you feel about this post.
I don’t anticipate any support moving forward from GFC.
You’re totally right, I’ve been wasting energy on speculating as to why they’re not responding. In the end, my rig looks sick and I’m stoked to take my boys out on a maiden 1800’s goldrush trail drive Friday.
Not going to let this company bring me down and stop us from enjoying the fall.
I don’t think their support structure is setup for quick replies. I usually get a reply within a couple days, sometimes a week. My job has a similar support queue and emails become tickets, assigned a severity, and are prioritized by time since last reply. With thousands of customers its a lot. Staffing this kind of support role is really challenging as well- no idea if that’s the case for GFC but I guess I have more patience knowing a bit about support behind the scenes. I have never been completely ignored, though it does take time. I hope they get back to you soon though as it’s a bummer to wait when it’s such a major issue.
