Modular cargo conversion

[deagle]

I would definitely do windows and a roof vent. Otherwise your just paying time and money to travel around in a giant oven box

I'm also doing a cargo conversion and one thing you gotta figure is that even in the worst case and you do get a leak (unlikely) the materials your trailer is made of are far more accepting of some temporary water and aren't likely to be destroyed immediately like fiberglass insulation and cheap wood laminates that an RV would have. That's one of the chief advantages of going with a cargo conversion: the trailer itself is going to be pretty tough to destroy.

As far as e track goes, that's what I am doing with my build but if I was to start over I would consider some of the smaller track solutions that get used in aircraft and camper vans. I'm finding that most of the hardware for e track has a lot of "play" in it so mounting things that I want to be rock steady like my television has been less straightforward than I hoped.It's not really a bad thing though, just depends on preference and what your goals are.
Cheers

 

[grubworm]

I would definitely do windows and a roof vent. Otherwise your just paying time and money to travel around in a giant oven box

I'm also doing a cargo conversion and one thing you gotta figure is that even in the worst case and you do get a leak (unlikely) the materials your trailer is made of are far more accepting of some temporary water and aren't likely to be destroyed immediately like fiberglass insulation and cheap wood laminates that an RV would have. That's one of the chief advantages of going with a cargo conversion: the trailer itself is going to be pretty tough to destroy.

As far as e track goes, that's what I am doing with my build but if I was to start over I would consider some of the smaller track solutions that get used in aircraft and camper vans. I'm finding that most of the hardware for e track has a lot of "play" in it so mounting things that I want to be rock steady like my television has been less straightforward than I hoped.It's not really a bad thing though, just depends on preference and what your goals are.
Cheers

love the post...you definitely have a very good understanding of whats going on concerning a conversion.
i live in south louisiana, so the oven reference couldnt be any more correct. the trailer just sitting here with the heat and humidity is stiffling, so ventilation is very important. my old cargo trailer has a vent on the roof and it helps a little, but a vent fan, like mr. fantastic, would be better. since i dont want to penetrate the roof (yet) i decided to just install a bilge blower to suck in air thru one of the existing 3" vent holes on the side. suck in air from the bottom rear vent and then let it naturally push out warmer air out of the front upper vent. should serve to the same effect of having a roof vent? can only find out by trying it out and seeing.

very good point about any leaks. when i bought the trailer, the distributor for cargo mate had a plaque in their sales room showing a cut away section of the trailer walls. this one is a composite material kind of waffle shaped and sandwiched between two metal panels. the panels do not have any rivets or fasteners, so it should be pretty much bullet proof concerning water leaks. i bought a small toy hauler new in 2019 and it also had the composite sides which are bullet proof...but then it was cut out for windows and doors and that is where i am having problems. windows are leaking and one of the entry doors is all warped and weird and you can see a big bunch of light come thru around the seals where the door is crooked and wont close right. i sent it back to the manufacturer and 6 months later received it in worse shape than i sent it and then they tell me the warranty is expired now. i'm a decent builder for the most part so even if i install a window properly, i still might get leaks and have issues because the actual windows and doors are jacked up from the start.

the way the wife and i travel, we basically get up and do coffee/breakfast and out the door. we generally get back at dark and then take a shower and go to bed. we did 10 days in north georgia a while back and we always got back at dark, so windows really arent a deal for us since we are really just in the trailer to sleep. i am looking at the 2-hose portable ac unit for cooling. basically suck in outside air to cool the condenser with one hose and then blow out the hot air thru the other hose...a better design than the single hose units. that should cool us off nicely and can be ducted thru the floor instead of a roof mount ac.

some of this might not work that great, i dont know until i do it. but, by being modular, i can change things easily. if i decide i want a drop in stove, i can easily remove the kitchen module and take it to the shop and make my mods and easily bring it back in. i dont like RV build outs because they use luan and furring strips with staples to build everything, so i really hate going in behind what the manufacturers do.

this conversion is going to be very unique for the way we travel, so i really wouldnt expect the average folk to like it. most people would want windows and other items normally found on RVs. hell, i might even want that myself further down the road. as long as i keep things simple and modular, i can always make changes without much hassle.

really appreciate your insight @deagle and hopefully you will be glancing at this thread ever now and then and offering any advice/ideas. since youre doing a build out as well, hopefully we can be of help to each other. might run across a really cool idea or piece of gear that will be helpful.
and yeah, you are right on about the play in e-track and it could be a problem using the e-track brackets...since mine came with the e-track and i dont want to have to change it, i just found that if you take a 1/2" carriage bolt and grind down two opposing sides, you end up with a T-bolt that you can insert and rotate 90 degrees and it will lock in flush to the e-track and not rotate since the square shoulder of the bolt fits into the slot of the e-track and will tighten up really snug with no movement. cheap and easy and only takes a grinder to make.

 

[deagle]

love the post...you definitely have a very good understanding of whats going on concerning a conversion.
i live in south louisiana, so the oven reference couldnt be any more correct. the trailer just sitting here with the heat and humidity is stiffling, so ventilation is very important. my old cargo trailer has a vent on the roof and it helps a little, but a vent fan, like mr. fantastic, would be better. since i dont want to penetrate the roof (yet) i decided to just install a bilge blower to suck in air thru one of the existing 3" vent holes on the side. suck in air from the bottom rear vent and then let it naturally push out warmer air out of the front upper vent. should serve to the same effect of having a roof vent? can only find out by trying it out and seeing.

very good point about any leaks. when i bought the trailer, the distributor for cargo mate had a plaque in their sales room showing a cut away section of the trailer walls. this one is a composite material kind of waffle shaped and sandwiched between two metal panels. the panels do not have any rivets or fasteners, so it should be pretty much bullet proof concerning water leaks. i bought a small toy hauler new in 2019 and it also had the composite sides which are bullet proof...but then it was cut out for windows and doors and that is where i am having problems. windows are leaking and one of the entry doors is all warped and weird and you can see a big bunch of light come thru around the seals where the door is crooked and wont close right. i sent it back to the manufacturer and 6 months later received it in worse shape than i sent it and then they tell me the warranty is expired now. i'm a decent builder for the most part so even if i install a window properly, i still might get leaks and have issues because the actual windows and doors are jacked up from the start.

the way the wife and i travel, we basically get up and do coffee/breakfast and out the door. we generally get back at dark and then take a shower and go to bed. we did 10 days in north georgia a while back and we always got back at dark, so windows really arent a deal for us since we are really just in the trailer to sleep. i am looking at the 2-hose portable ac unit for cooling. basically suck in outside air to cool the condenser with one hose and then blow out the hot air thru the other hose...a better design than the single hose units. that should cool us off nicely and can be ducted thru the floor instead of a roof mount ac.

some of this might not work that great, i dont know until i do it. but, by being modular, i can change things easily. if i decide i want a drop in stove, i can easily remove the kitchen module and take it to the shop and make my mods and easily bring it back in. i dont like RV build outs because they use luan and furring strips with staples to build everything, so i really hate going in behind what the manufacturers do.

this conversion is going to be very unique for the way we travel, so i really wouldnt expect the average folk to like it. most people would want windows and other items normally found on RVs. hell, i might even want that myself further down the road. as long as i keep things simple and modular, i can always make changes without much hassle.

really appreciate your insight @deagle and hopefully you will be glancing at this thread ever now and then and offering any advice/ideas. since youre doing a build out as well, hopefully we can be of help to each other. might run across a really cool idea or piece of gear that will be helpful.
and yeah, you are right on about the play in e-track and it could be a problem using the e-track brackets...since mine came with the e-track and i dont want to have to change it, i just found that if you take a 1/2" carriage bolt and grind down two opposing sides, you end up with a T-bolt that you can insert and rotate 90 degrees and it will lock in flush to the e-track and not rotate since the square shoulder of the bolt fits into the slot of the e-track and will tighten up really snug with no movement. chap and easy and only takes a grinder to make.

I hear you about the fears of things leaking. I haven't mounted my solar to the roof yet because I'm afraid I won't seal the holes correctly and it will leak.

Your idea with making your own t nuts for the e track is brilliant. I have the same stud bolt hardware you bought and had the same issue with the mounting surface not having enough clearance to lay a board over it and have it mount flat. I may just try your solution next. I ended up using some spare tire mounts that just have a threaded rod and nut on the end for bolting things down, but those can get expensive if you need a lot of them. I discovered today that Milwaukee makes some brackets for their line of modular cases that hook into e track... Tempted to look into that for storage but it would be costly to go all in on that stuff.

Right now I'm trying to decide what materials to build my cabinetry out of. I want something very light but decent looking.

Cheers, looking forward to seeing your build progress

 

[Viking1204]

@grubworm I hear you on the lack of windows but just remember we can get all day rains here in South where you might be stuck inside for most of the day. Just something to think about. If you do windows right they shouldn't leak but I understand your concern!

 

[grubworm]

@grubworm I hear you on the lack of windows but just remember we can get all day rains here in South where you might be stuck inside for most of the day. Just something to think about. If you do windows right they shouldn't leak but I understand your concern!

i have a feeling i will have to address the window issue here soon...being on submarines, i'm used to being inside of something that i cant get out of, however, the wife brought up a good point about a story she heard on TikTok where a couple had a cargo trailer they camped in and one night someone came along and locked them in and stole their vehicle. might have to install a window that doubles as a fire escape. i figured i'd end up cutting my beautiful factory finished walls...

 

[Ubiety]

just remember we can get all day rains here in South

I'll take that over the multi-month long rains that we get in the PNW! Hahahaha

 

[grubworm]

I may just try your solution next. I ended up using some spare tire mounts that just have a threaded rod and nut on the end for bolting things down, but those can get expensive if you need a lot of them.

Right now I'm trying to decide what materials to build my cabinetry out of. I want something very light but decent looking.

here is what i was able to do for the roof mount. like i had said, a 1/2" carriage bolt is to big to fit thru the slot, so grind the sides to make T-bolt and then grind down some of the domed head otherwise it bottoms out before you can go in far enough to get the square shoulder past the bracket slot and rotate 90 degrees and then pull up to engage the square shoulder. that also acts as a back-up when tightening the nut. (you can click on the pics and it'll zoom in a better view) i'll probably go with 2" aluminium angle since i have a lot left over in my shop. mount the angle and set the panels in the angle and screw to hold them in place.



for cabinets, i'd just go with birch plywood. i used 3/4" because i plan on moving the modules in and out and i also like a bit of overkill, but i'm sure 1/2" birch would do equally well.

 

[grubworm]

I'll take that over the multi-month long rains that we get in the PNW! Hahahaha

ha! we have had rain everyday for the last month. its rained so much the ditches are over flowing and we actually had a gator in our backyard pond last week. it must have washed in from the nearby swamps.
well, at least you have a GREAT area to see right in your backyard. all we have here is swamp and new orleans...

 

[Sparksalot]

i have a feeling i will have to address the window issue here soon...being on submarines, i'm used to being inside of something that i cant get out of, however, the wife brought up a good point about a story she heard on TikTok where a couple had a cargo trailer they camped in and one night someone came along and locked them in and stole their vehicle. might have to install a window that doubles as a fire escape. i figured i'd end up cutting my beautiful factory finished walls...

The external lock is the biggest negative I see for the cargo conversation campers.

 

[OTH Overland]

@grubworm I hear you on the lack of windows but just remember we can get all day rains here in South where you might be stuck inside for most of the day. Just something to think about. If you do windows right they shouldn't leak but I understand your concern!

i have a feeling i will have to address the window issue here soon...being on submarines, i'm used to being inside of something that i cant get out of, however, the wife brought up a good point about a story she heard on TikTok where a couple had a cargo trailer they camped in and one night someone came along and locked them in and stole their vehicle. might have to install a window that doubles as a fire escape. i figured i'd end up cutting my beautiful factory finished walls...

Its only the first hole thats hard, kind of like the first dent or scratch in a rig. Just run a drill bit thru the wall where you want the window, then your level of commitment gets much stronger lol. Had the same problem drilling 10 holes thru the hardtop on my Jeep for a roof rack and lighting, now its done and I am glad I did it.

Another quesrion, did your wife spend time locked in a submarine too? Might not be as content as you to experience spending time in a box..lol

 

[grubworm]

Its only the first hole thats hard, kind of like the first dent or scratch in a rig. Just run a drill bit thru the wall where you want the window, then your level of commitment gets much stronger lol. Had the same problem drilling 10 holes thru the hardtop on my Jeep for a roof rack and lighting, now its done and I am glad I did it.

Another quesrion, did your wife spend time locked in a submarine too? Might not be as content as you to experience spending time in a box..lol

love it! yeah, you are spot on about that first hole! i have done a lot of mods on new things in the past and basically did the same thing...close my eyes and just punch that hole. after that, its all about the mod. i did a gooseneck install years back on a new ford 350 i just bought. hole sawing into the bed had me puckered up until i got far enough along to realize i did have the measurements right. its like getting into a pool of cold water...just jump in and get that initial shock over with.

the wife wasnt subs, but she was air force and was part of a refueling tanker crew.
her biggest thing is listening to murder mystery podcasts and then seeing if any of those scenerios match with anything we are doing...

 

[Ubiety]

at least you have a GREAT area to see right in your backyard

Should close today. Bittersweet

 

[Ubiety]

a story she heard on TikTok where a couple had a cargo trailer they camped in and one night someone came along and locked them in and stole their vehicle.

Doubles as an awesome emergency escape hatch!

 

[grubworm]

Doubles as an awesome emergency escape hatch!
View attachment 237113

or if we were ever camping around portland and needed to go into town for groceries....

 

[deagle]

The external lock is the biggest negative I see for the cargo conversation campers.

The one on my trailer bolts on with some "security" bolts. May just buy the bit I need and remove it, or find a way to make it unboltable from the inside. The door has an RV style lock on it so the exterior lock isn't as vital

 

[grubworm]

The one on my trailer bolts on with some "security" bolts. May just buy the bit I need and remove it, or find a way to make it unboltable from the inside. The door has an RV style lock on it so the exterior lock isn't as vital

not to make this overly complex, but these are GREAT posts and really could be an important thing to address. i have the cam action lever lock on my side door as well as the lockable RV type door lock. if i remove the bar lock, the door wont seal right. i closed the door the other night and didnt use the cam bar lock and the door was still secured with the RV lock, BUT the door can only be shut tight by the bar lock. it rained and a lot of water went in because the door was secure, but not tight against the weather seal.

i considered opening the bar lock and then drilling a hole thru the hinge where i could pin it in the open position for the night while im in there. i like the idea of being able to unbolt from the inside, but this appears to be a self tapping fastener? there is not a nut on the inside to get to.
i dont know...after the wife mentioned that, i do feel that i need to address this. even if i end up doing an egress window later, i still need a fix for the interim.

it definitely would suck to get locked in the trailer and even WAY worse would to be locked in there with my redheaded wife hollering "I TOLD YOU SO" for endless hours until help arrived. i dont think i could chew thru metal, but....

 

[grubworm]

i'll admit...there are some very high end RVs out there, but i doubt any of them will have matching pillow cases, seat cushions and shower curtains...
the wife was wanting to go shopping for a nature themed fabric this weekend...but amazon prime beat her to it!

 

[Sparksalot]

i'll admit...there are some very high end RVs out there, but i doubt any of them will have matching pillow cases, seat cushions and shower curtains...

I need new curtains for my teardrop. Those would be perfect.

 

[grubworm]

I need new curtains for my teardrop. Those would be perfect.

 

[Ubiety]

i'll admit...there are some very high end RVs out there, but i doubt any of them will have matching pillow cases, seat cushions and shower curtains...
the wife was wanting to go shopping for a nature themed fabric this weekend...but amazon prime beat her to it!

I'll bet she LOVES those ;)