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Well here we go again, Atl-atl gets another Blazer Four Wheel Camper
- Thread starter Atl-atl
- Start date
Restoration of a Blazer specific Four Wheel Camper
Just like the title says, here we go again! So a couple months ago @Capt Ron posted up that he was doing a bit of spring cleaning and people should ask if he has anything for sale that they might want. So I inquired about a Four Wheel Camper because a little birdie told me he might have had an extra one laying around. Turns out he did and we made a deal! Fast forward to this past Tuesday and I made the trip from Flagstaff to Lakewood CO and picked it up.
I do still have my yellow blazer with a four wheel camper and Im continuing to use it/work on it. Mostly just use it at this point because the weather is so nice in Flagstaff this time of year. I need to update that thread because a lot of cool stuff has happened recently, Ive just been super swamped.
Anyway, I got a uhaul trailer, loaded up my "custom"
Blazer camper dolly and bounced my way up to Colorado. I decided to take my RV and boondock along the way to make it there and back as comfortably as possible. $700 in gas later and I was back home.
This camper will be getting a full resto over the next few months. No plan yet for when its done. Maybe Ill find another Blazer to put it on, maybe Ill sell it, maybe Ill figure out how to stick it to the back of a Suburban!?! Either way its going to be brought back from near death for somebody to enjoy in the future. Im going to try to document the build on instagram, in addition to my normal forum posts. Please check out @darlington.adventures if you dont already follow me.
Dont worry, the dolly got a little "shoring up" before the trip home!
And safe at home, ready for me to tear into. Please excuse all the Furd content.
I do still have my yellow blazer with a four wheel camper and Im continuing to use it/work on it. Mostly just use it at this point because the weather is so nice in Flagstaff this time of year. I need to update that thread because a lot of cool stuff has happened recently, Ive just been super swamped.
Anyway, I got a uhaul trailer, loaded up my "custom"
Blazer camper dolly and bounced my way up to Colorado. I decided to take my RV and boondock along the way to make it there and back as comfortably as possible. $700 in gas later and I was back home.This camper will be getting a full resto over the next few months. No plan yet for when its done. Maybe Ill find another Blazer to put it on, maybe Ill sell it, maybe Ill figure out how to stick it to the back of a Suburban!?! Either way its going to be brought back from near death for somebody to enjoy in the future. Im going to try to document the build on instagram, in addition to my normal forum posts. Please check out @darlington.adventures if you dont already follow me.
Dont worry, the dolly got a little "shoring up" before the trip home!
And safe at home, ready for me to tear into. Please excuse all the Furd content.
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Awesome, cool pics. I just made a similar trip!Just like the title says, here we go again! So a couple months ago @Capt Ron posted up that he was doing a bit of spring cleaning and people should ask if he has anything for sale that they might want. So I inquired about a Four Wheel Camper because a little birdie told me he might have had an extra one laying around. Turns out he did and we made a deal! Fast forward to this past Tuesday and I made the trip from Flagstaff to Lakewood CO and picked it up.
I do still have my yellow blazer with a four wheel camper and Im continuing to use it/work on it. Mostly just use it at this point because the weather is so nice in Flagstaff this time of year. I need to update that thread because a lot of cool stuff has happened recently, Ive just been super swamped.
Anyway, I got a uhaul trailer, loaded up my "custom"
This camper will be getting a full resto over the next few months. No plan yet for when its done. Maybe Ill find another Blazer to put it on, maybe Ill sell it, maybe Ill figure out how to stick it to the back of a Suburban!?! Either way its going to be brought back from near death for somebody to enjoy in the future. Im going to try to document the build on instagram, in addition to my normal forum posts. Please check out @darlington.adventures if you dont already follow me.
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Dont worry, the dolly got a little "shoring up" before the trip home!
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And safe at home, ready for me to tear into. Please excuse all the Furd content.
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What a great find! I've recently learned about the FWC's and the differences to the Chalet. As I try and find one myself I've learned these are very rare to come by. I have a 79 K5 id love to throw one on.
I tore into the interior a little further this weekend. Im working on getting some better videos up as well but that might take a bit longer. Ive got the interior stripped to essentially just the paneling. There are a few spots that need to be replaced which unfortunately I think is going to mean replacing all the interior paneling. There is definitely some water damage and Im worried if I dont get behind the panels to see whats there I will regret it. The good news is that means this one will get modern closed cell foam insulation and I will be 100% sure there isnt any mold left when Im done.
There were multiple wasp and hornet nests throughout!!
The passenger side overhead storage had water damage, it basically fell off the wall and the screws that were holding it were getting eating by rust. Should be interesting to see whats behind the paneling, which is bowed out from water damage as well. Ill try to get a video up soon that shows this more clearly.
The counter top was completely trashed by water damage as well. It crumbled when I removed it and went straight to the trash can.
Here is an example of how the wiring was fastened back in the day. Just stapled into place. Many of these staples wear through the coating on the wires so they are live. Its only 12v but still.
There were multiple wasp and hornet nests throughout!!
The passenger side overhead storage had water damage, it basically fell off the wall and the screws that were holding it were getting eating by rust. Should be interesting to see whats behind the paneling, which is bowed out from water damage as well. Ill try to get a video up soon that shows this more clearly.
The counter top was completely trashed by water damage as well. It crumbled when I removed it and went straight to the trash can.
Here is an example of how the wiring was fastened back in the day. Just stapled into place. Many of these staples wear through the coating on the wires so they are live. Its only 12v but still.
Atl, if possible, would you mind showing a few pics of the how the roof is attached to the body (raising mechanism, struts, ?).
I've got a box that I'm thinking of chopping up to make a pop up camper and was wondering how they did it.
I've got a box that I'm thinking of chopping up to make a pop up camper and was wondering how they did it.
Sure, these are from my other camper but its the same on all Four Wheel Campers for the first 50 years of their existence. Its simply two wooden panels of different sizes that use spring loaded piano hinges at the top/middle/bottom. The middle hinge is at exactly the halfway point between the upper and lower hinges. If I were you I would not use this type of mechanism. There are pros and cons of the various styles. I recommend researching all the types of lift mechanisms before making a decision.
Here is the panel installed but no canvas in place. Gives a pretty good idea of what they look like.
The panels are riveted together and riveted to the frame of the roof at the upper hinge. They are screwed into the frame of the camper at the lower hinge. This is for ease of installation. I say ease with a grain of salt though, they are quite difficult to install and nearly impossible to replace with the canvas in place. Ive done it before but had to rig up a device to keep the piano hinges at 90 degrees using a bunch of ratchet straps. The sliding bolt goes through an eyelet either on the panel or on the ceiling to hold the panels in place.
Here is the aforementioned contraption. I used this on a homemade set of lift panels. I have since replaced that one with units from the guys at ATC Campers.
Great pics, write up and suggestions, thank you. 
Tore into the camper some more today. I should finally have some videos up in the next day or two. My computer decided it no longer wants to be able to edit videos so I went ahead and ordered a new one that arrives tomorrow. Trying to step up my documentation game a little.
Got all of the interior stripped, roof off, lift panels and canvas off, measurements taken for the new canvas etc. Im definitely going to replace the two pieces of wood that sit on the bed sides. Im still not sure if Im going to replace the front wall and cabover bed area. Im leaning towards yes just because I dont want to do all this work and then kick myself for not doing it, even thought theyve been replaced already. I want it all to be as new as possible.
Now the search is on for new interior paneling that is a close match to the original shade of brown. Ive been googling 1/4" plywood that has a veneer finish but its so hard to tell what it looks like that I might have to order some sample pieces to see what Im getting before paying to ship big sheets of stuff.
I cant believe these lift panels were able to hold up the roof!
Got all of the interior stripped, roof off, lift panels and canvas off, measurements taken for the new canvas etc. Im definitely going to replace the two pieces of wood that sit on the bed sides. Im still not sure if Im going to replace the front wall and cabover bed area. Im leaning towards yes just because I dont want to do all this work and then kick myself for not doing it, even thought theyve been replaced already. I want it all to be as new as possible.
Now the search is on for new interior paneling that is a close match to the original shade of brown. Ive been googling 1/4" plywood that has a veneer finish but its so hard to tell what it looks like that I might have to order some sample pieces to see what Im getting before paying to ship big sheets of stuff.
I cant believe these lift panels were able to hold up the roof!
Not a ton of progress here unfortunately. Ive been super busy, out of town and will be out of town again for 3 of the next 4 weeks. I do have a couple things to share. Got the hinges and misc. exterior brackets as well as all of the lower trim parts back from blast/powder. They turned out GREAT!! Now I want to pull all the exterior bits off my camper and get them refinished.
Lost one of the roof vent cap pieces so I guess Ill have to make a new one myself and get it finished with the next round of powder when I try to convince them to blast/powder the enormous 12 foot long roof trim pieces that wont fit inside their blasting booth hahaha. Good news is having these parts back will allow me to install the new wood pieces for the bedsides so I can get the camper off the jacks and back on the rolling dolly.
Also got the wood blocking removed which was a huge pain. This will allow me to finish cleaning up and repairing the frame and then Ill install blocking the full length of the sides of the camper to add rigidity to the cabover area.
Ive never welded aluminum, last time I needed a frame repaired I hired a mobile welder. So I grabbed a spool gun, a bottle of 100% argon and some scrap to start learning. I should probably learn to tig but I think the spool gun will work. Technique is way different, you have to move super fast because the aluminum is so soft. Also you need a ton of shielding gas flow or you get tons of black soot, as evidence in this pic ha. Still need practice before I move to the camper.
Lost one of the roof vent cap pieces so I guess Ill have to make a new one myself and get it finished with the next round of powder when I try to convince them to blast/powder the enormous 12 foot long roof trim pieces that wont fit inside their blasting booth hahaha. Good news is having these parts back will allow me to install the new wood pieces for the bedsides so I can get the camper off the jacks and back on the rolling dolly.
Also got the wood blocking removed which was a huge pain. This will allow me to finish cleaning up and repairing the frame and then Ill install blocking the full length of the sides of the camper to add rigidity to the cabover area.
Ive never welded aluminum, last time I needed a frame repaired I hired a mobile welder. So I grabbed a spool gun, a bottle of 100% argon and some scrap to start learning. I should probably learn to tig but I think the spool gun will work. Technique is way different, you have to move super fast because the aluminum is so soft. Also you need a ton of shielding gas flow or you get tons of black soot, as evidence in this pic ha. Still need practice before I move to the camper.
Well, progress has been slow this summer. Ive been super busy traveling and riding bikes so the camper project has taken a back seat. I did finally get past some major milestones though. I figured out how to make my welder and spool gun setup work on the ultra thin aluminum tubes that make up the frame of these old Four Wheel Campers. They are .040 wall thickness which is about 1mm. Without having a machine capable of AC tig welding I was unsure if Id be able to make it work. After picking up the thinnest aluminum I could find locally I wasnt super confident and was starting to shop for an AC tig machine. After some creative thinking I decided I was going to try using 1/8" filler pieces in some of the worst areas and this wound up working. It also helped me get enough of a hang with the material that I was able to repair all of the areas that needed it which now affords me the ability to move forward with essentially every other step of the process.
There were two areas that had cracked or even completely blown out welds. This first area was the vertical tubes that are on either side of the rear door, where they are welded to the header. Both welds in the top corners were cracked. I think there are a variety of reasons for this. The door slamming closed is the most obvious but then also there is a hole through the tube on either side for electrical conduit that runs through it. I was able to cut a small piece of 1/8" stock and stick it in there.
Unfortunately I had to grind the welds here, and all the other welds in these areas, because the way the interior paneling fastens onto the frame requires it to be almost completely flat or the walls will be wavy. I tried not to sacrifice too much material in hopes of maintaining some strength.
The other area where welds had failed was the front corners. On either side there are two pieces of tubing right next to each other that make up the supports for the cabover bed area. The forward most pieces had completely blown out and were no longer attached to the rest of the frame! I forgot to take a pic of this unfortunately.
Here is what the driver side looked like after being welded back together. Even with the best settings I could get to work on my machine I was still getting a little bit of black soot but nothing that was stopping the welds from being strong enough.
Here is the bottom where those same two tubes meet. The angled tube(the one on the right in this pic) was the one that was completely detached from the frame on both sides. It was a lot easier to attach the tubes at the bottom where there was much more material to weld the corners together.
In case anyone cares here are my settings. 18 gauge is the thinnest my machine will go so I had to adjust the wire feed and volts to make up for that. 100% argon. Wire is .035, 4043, in a Lincoln Magnum 100SG spool gun.
Last but not least. I got all of the new wood paneling sized, cut, primed and painted!! This is a huge task and was the only thing keeping me from being able to get the camper back on the dolly so I can move it around again. Unfortunately Im still waiting to hear from the seamstress about when my canvas will go into production. For a variety of reasons we will be back in Phoenix full time by October 1st so I might wind up having to assemble the wood paneling and then transport the camper down to Phoenix to finish it in my shop before Im able to install the canvas and lift panels. Working in my shop is much preferred over a two car garage but I was really hoping to be able to install the canvas and lift panels first when the bed floor is still out, simply for easy of access but I have to put the wood back in to be able to transport the camper. I really only want to install the wood once.
There were two areas that had cracked or even completely blown out welds. This first area was the vertical tubes that are on either side of the rear door, where they are welded to the header. Both welds in the top corners were cracked. I think there are a variety of reasons for this. The door slamming closed is the most obvious but then also there is a hole through the tube on either side for electrical conduit that runs through it. I was able to cut a small piece of 1/8" stock and stick it in there.
Unfortunately I had to grind the welds here, and all the other welds in these areas, because the way the interior paneling fastens onto the frame requires it to be almost completely flat or the walls will be wavy. I tried not to sacrifice too much material in hopes of maintaining some strength.
The other area where welds had failed was the front corners. On either side there are two pieces of tubing right next to each other that make up the supports for the cabover bed area. The forward most pieces had completely blown out and were no longer attached to the rest of the frame! I forgot to take a pic of this unfortunately.
Here is what the driver side looked like after being welded back together. Even with the best settings I could get to work on my machine I was still getting a little bit of black soot but nothing that was stopping the welds from being strong enough.
Here is the bottom where those same two tubes meet. The angled tube(the one on the right in this pic) was the one that was completely detached from the frame on both sides. It was a lot easier to attach the tubes at the bottom where there was much more material to weld the corners together.
In case anyone cares here are my settings. 18 gauge is the thinnest my machine will go so I had to adjust the wire feed and volts to make up for that. 100% argon. Wire is .035, 4043, in a Lincoln Magnum 100SG spool gun.
Last but not least. I got all of the new wood paneling sized, cut, primed and painted!! This is a huge task and was the only thing keeping me from being able to get the camper back on the dolly so I can move it around again. Unfortunately Im still waiting to hear from the seamstress about when my canvas will go into production. For a variety of reasons we will be back in Phoenix full time by October 1st so I might wind up having to assemble the wood paneling and then transport the camper down to Phoenix to finish it in my shop before Im able to install the canvas and lift panels. Working in my shop is much preferred over a two car garage but I was really hoping to be able to install the canvas and lift panels first when the bed floor is still out, simply for easy of access but I have to put the wood back in to be able to transport the camper. I really only want to install the wood once.
Huge progress this week! Got the entire frame cleaned up. Took a full day to remove all the old adhesive, gunk, corrosion etc. Looks really good now, not new but good haha. Also got all of the wood panel structure installed to the point where i was able to get the camper back on the dolly!! Cant tell you how happy I am about this. Ill now be able to get the camper back on the trailer and down to my shop in Phoenix so I can finish it there since its finally cooling off in the valley.
Here is a partial before and after of the front corners of the cabover area. There was tape residue, butyl, some kind of black mastic like goop, light corrosion of the aluminum, paint, silicone etc. Wire wheel took care of it all pretty easily.
On the underside of the cabover frame there was multiple layers of paint and also silicone and butyl residue. This was actually quite difficult to remove even with a wire wheel. The line between removed and not yet removed is pretty obvious.
I chose butyl tape to seal the bed platform. I seems to be the best combo of easy to work with, sealing capability and ease of cleanup/removal.
And here are all the wood panels installed
I chose to make the driver side panel 3" deeper than stock for added storage space, larger fridge and sink capacity etc. Having my other camper to use as a benchmark really helped to know how it will feel with some of these changes. The benefits far outweigh the drawbacks.
Most of the screws holding things in place are temporary because the trim is actually what holds everything together on these campers.
Here is a partial before and after of the front corners of the cabover area. There was tape residue, butyl, some kind of black mastic like goop, light corrosion of the aluminum, paint, silicone etc. Wire wheel took care of it all pretty easily.
On the underside of the cabover frame there was multiple layers of paint and also silicone and butyl residue. This was actually quite difficult to remove even with a wire wheel. The line between removed and not yet removed is pretty obvious.
I chose butyl tape to seal the bed platform. I seems to be the best combo of easy to work with, sealing capability and ease of cleanup/removal.
And here are all the wood panels installed
I chose to make the driver side panel 3" deeper than stock for added storage space, larger fridge and sink capacity etc. Having my other camper to use as a benchmark really helped to know how it will feel with some of these changes. The benefits far outweigh the drawbacks.
Most of the screws holding things in place are temporary because the trim is actually what holds everything together on these campers.
Nice work, looking good. Not sure I'd rather be working Phoenix than Flag, but if it's closer and can be tinkered with at will then do it.
Itll be a few weeks at best before the canvas is done so in that time Ill transport the camper down to my shop and the temps will be a lot more reasonable.
So I decided to try my hand at making videos for this project. If anyone wants to watch along Ive started a Darlington Adventures account on Youtube.
Video #2 is up. It doesnt quite catch up to where I am in this build thread but its close. Next week Ill finally be bringing the camper down to Phoenix to start the next phase. Please watch like and subscribe!!
Not cool yet, this October it's supposed to pleasant and nice, I mean wtf.
I know, Ive been in Phoenix for the last few days(against my better judgement) and its still unbelievably hot. Average high right now is 94 and we're running 107-109. Apparently we've broken two more heat records this week. First time ever hitting 110 in October and consecutive days above average temp. Phoenix is slated to hit 16 days in a row above the average high which will break the record for most days above average anywhere in the country, ever. And its happening at 10-15 degrees above average, not squeaking by at like 1 above hahaha. But I digress. Ill be waiting until next week to start bringing the rigs down.
Well, I cant believe its been three months since I last updated this thread. I have been working on the camper a lot but its been incredibly slow going. When you mix that with holidays and tons of house projects and tons of other vehicle projects, as well as trying to sneak in some "just the two of us" time with the wife before the birth of our first child, well, some things get put on simmer. Ive got some pretty big updates though! Ive moved the camper down to my shop in Phoenix where I will complete it over the winter. A 2 car garage in Flagstaff in the winter isnt ideal for a project like this ha. Ive taken a lot of video and timelapse that I need to put together into something watchable. For now itll just be a normal update.
I picked up a stock K5 fiberglass top thats in terrible condition to use as the "gasket" between the truck and camper. Same as I did on my other Blazer. And just like the last time I immediately cut it into pieces to salvage just the front 3/4"
Then I tore into the roof. Man has this been a project. Delicately restoring something that is ten feet long, eight feet wide, made out of paper thin aluminum, covered in gunk and various sealants, held together with screws and staples that break and snap and is 40 years old is a real chore. not to mention trying to move it around by myself ha!
It took me a full week to strip all the old goop off the roof.
Here is the "inside" or ceiling, before tearing it apart. The stains on the fabric are from the old canvas and lift panels. It was almost completely dry inside the ceiling which I was ecstatic to find out.
Here is the after, with the original insulation in place. Thankfully it was in nearly new condition inside. The roof of this camper only had one tiny pin hole leak that never even made it through the fiberglass to get into the camper. For a hot minute I was planning to reuse the fiberglass but decided against it for a variety of reasons.
I picked up a stock K5 fiberglass top thats in terrible condition to use as the "gasket" between the truck and camper. Same as I did on my other Blazer. And just like the last time I immediately cut it into pieces to salvage just the front 3/4"
Then I tore into the roof. Man has this been a project. Delicately restoring something that is ten feet long, eight feet wide, made out of paper thin aluminum, covered in gunk and various sealants, held together with screws and staples that break and snap and is 40 years old is a real chore. not to mention trying to move it around by myself ha!
It took me a full week to strip all the old goop off the roof.
Here is the "inside" or ceiling, before tearing it apart. The stains on the fabric are from the old canvas and lift panels. It was almost completely dry inside the ceiling which I was ecstatic to find out.
Here is the after, with the original insulation in place. Thankfully it was in nearly new condition inside. The roof of this camper only had one tiny pin hole leak that never even made it through the fiberglass to get into the camper. For a hot minute I was planning to reuse the fiberglass but decided against it for a variety of reasons.
But wait, THERES MORE!!
Once everything was cleaned out I got to rewiring. I used 10awg for the main wires which is overkill but I figured a little bigger than necessary isnt a bad thing. I also opted to use rubber grommets everywhere the wires go through the aluminum frame. A little lube helps a lot during this process. The holes are incredibly sharp, Im quite surprised none of the original wiring had been sliced and shorted, or worse.
I rerouted the entry point slightly so the wires hide behind the rear lift panel. Ive always disliked the way these campers were wired from the factory.
I soldered the connections for the two overhead lights and the fan. The original wiring used vampire clamps. Im even more surprised that these held up than I was about the wiring not getting cut by the frame. Final note, camper wiring is odd to me, black represents + and white negative. It was this was back in the 70s when FWC made these and its still this way today. The brand new MaxxFan that I bought is black + and white - , weird. In trailer wiring green is the hot for a 7 pin plug so I chose green for my long run from the ceiling down to where I will have a fuse block inside the camper. This way the future owner can run power off the trailer harness wiring if they want to and it will all be consistent. Or they can do whatever else they want ha.
Here it is empty, save for the wiring.
After much internal deliberation I wound up choosing to use aluminum backed 1" closed cell foam insulation instead of fiberglass batt insulation. For starters its nearly impossible to find 1" thick fiberglass batt. Also its a potential allergen(or worse) and since its going to be on the other side of perforated vinyl I decided against it.
I decided to use aluminum tape to seal up all the seams prior to installing the new vinyl. Then I fastened the first section of vinyl using the amazing HH-66 glue. Only going around the edges and only just laying the fabric flat, not pulling it too taught. The wood slat trim strips will hold the center of the vinyl in place.
Main was it a tedious project getting the vinyl in place but it turned out great.
Once everything was cleaned out I got to rewiring. I used 10awg for the main wires which is overkill but I figured a little bigger than necessary isnt a bad thing. I also opted to use rubber grommets everywhere the wires go through the aluminum frame. A little lube helps a lot during this process. The holes are incredibly sharp, Im quite surprised none of the original wiring had been sliced and shorted, or worse.
I rerouted the entry point slightly so the wires hide behind the rear lift panel. Ive always disliked the way these campers were wired from the factory.
I soldered the connections for the two overhead lights and the fan. The original wiring used vampire clamps. Im even more surprised that these held up than I was about the wiring not getting cut by the frame. Final note, camper wiring is odd to me, black represents + and white negative. It was this was back in the 70s when FWC made these and its still this way today. The brand new MaxxFan that I bought is black + and white - , weird. In trailer wiring green is the hot for a 7 pin plug so I chose green for my long run from the ceiling down to where I will have a fuse block inside the camper. This way the future owner can run power off the trailer harness wiring if they want to and it will all be consistent. Or they can do whatever else they want ha.
Here it is empty, save for the wiring.
After much internal deliberation I wound up choosing to use aluminum backed 1" closed cell foam insulation instead of fiberglass batt insulation. For starters its nearly impossible to find 1" thick fiberglass batt. Also its a potential allergen(or worse) and since its going to be on the other side of perforated vinyl I decided against it.
I decided to use aluminum tape to seal up all the seams prior to installing the new vinyl. Then I fastened the first section of vinyl using the amazing HH-66 glue. Only going around the edges and only just laying the fabric flat, not pulling it too taught. The wood slat trim strips will hold the center of the vinyl in place.
Main was it a tedious project getting the vinyl in place but it turned out great.
