LFGSS Camper Van owners?

Phwoar that is cool. I have all the T25/T3 wants at the moment

we are more prone to get through a trader rather than a private seller.

for this sort of vehicle the vast majority will be sold privately

Particular reason for an older van? I get they are cool as chuff but you could Buy something 20 years newer for £10k?

My snowchains no longer fit my van wheels since I moved back to 16" steels. Does anyone need a pair of Maggi RAPID-MATIC V5 4x4 chains size MG118?

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WARNING: LONG POST,

Bought one of the ex BG maxi's a while ago and have been trying to do a minimal conversion on it. My brief was pretty simple: basically I still wanted to be able to use it as a van, but also have it ready for quick weekends climbing, hiking, cycling or surfing etc. I didn't need to connect a power source because I have a portable solar panel for camping anyway.

In effect I just wanted some storage that didn't interfere too much. I did a little search at what was available, and while I liked a lot of the standard modules on Ebay cut from ply, nothing seemed to be offering what I really wanted. some of my first drawings are shown below but they all were seeming too cramped and eventually I started to settled on a really simple design, which was basically just a false floor.

Once I settled on this I candle up with some simple designs. When I spoke to some mates I was eventually made aware of the similar thing made by Stitches and steel, which seemed roughly to fit the bill too - but they didn't make anything maxi related, and also cost the earth. Also wasn't a fan of their drawer configuration. SO, I decided to have a crack at my own design.

After removing the BG racking, I measured and CAD'd up the bare base of the van, taking note of the wheel arches, door spaces and any mounting points. Once I had this template I modelled the wheel arches in 3D so I knew how the profile changed, and I came up with an ideal height for the floor base, so that I could still sit up in the back, and had drawers that were actually a useful size. Then I figured out a couple of drawer spaces, one for shoes and one for longer term storage, and put in a little cutout near each side door so that I could reach into the shoe space and side drawer without opening the doors. Once I had all of this fitted I made a model of my design, and checked that I could slot it all together without anything colliding (much needed idiot check). A really important step here was getting it so all the bits could slide into the van... would've felt like such a muppet if id overlooked that. Results of this are below:

At this point it was just a case of sorting the model into files, and sending them off to be CNC'd. Once they arrived I spent about half an hour gently persuading the joints to fit with a rubber mallet, and the majority of the bed was up!

At this point I still needed to make the drawers, and put in the supports for the middle section so that it was flush with the rest of the bed top. Couple of detail shots:

• Mounting points example (turns out it was heavy enough that I didn't bother using these in the end)
  
  
  

-Shoe storage compartment - has a bit a the bottom to stop them spilling out when I open the door, like on a boat. (this is before I had knocked the top down fully)

• Central compartment space for longer term storage of stuff like a tent etc. (unfinished in this photo)
  
  
  
  

Once the bed was fully made I changed the wheels from the stock ones - in its current state:

I’m half tempted to refine the design slightly and see about selling the plans/files, if I could find a market for them

I'll be watching this with interest - I have a Maxi Life, so slightly different, plus I need to keep at least 4 seats for now.

My requirement is more for days out rather than camping: sitting and eating but not sleeping, and a toilet for occasional use - MrsE is quite certain this is a necessity, especially in mid Wales. Also room for a couple of bikes or a vintage moped - bikes will fit in the car, but I want to do away with needing a trailer.

Who did you use for the CNC cutting? I've only made the toilet storage so far - water resistant MDF cut with a jig saw and joined using aluminium extrusions, but having someone else do the cutting (with greater accuracy) would significantly speed things up.

Nice. Smart design too 👌

Would definitely follow a CP on this.

Any reason for not adding more insulation/sound deadening while your at it? Or is that in the pipeline?

Bought one of the ex BG maxi's

As did my daughters boyfriend, when I pointed out it had a BG reg number eg:- BG61*** he had never made the connection. He'd had it 2 years
/csb

This looks excellent. Please put as much detail and as many photos up as you can!

Hi,
Is anyone available to chat about an incoming buy with a private seller I am planning to do later this weekend?
I can MP my mobile!
I read lots of stuff online but I am feeling quite nervous being this is my first camper/car ever in the UK.
Thank you in advance!

Thanks

Got a link to it?

sent u a MP. thanks for help!

happy to provide any limited knowledge I can

sent u a MP too. many many thanks for the help guys

feel free to PM me too

thanks too!

heading into a meeting for the next 2 hours :()

upload it here

Keep a keen eye out for rust on the chassis, some look immaculate on the outside an internally but they are slowly rusting away.

all sorted thanks to everybody replied me in private,u so kind guys!

This looks great Flash! I'd advise you to use the mounting points... You'll want this assembly tied down securely in case of an accident or rollover.

Enjoying portugal at the moment:)

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Nice! Looks great

Posting pics like this is bloody unfair.

Dreamy

Soz:(