My Box Van Truck Conversion of Chevy P30 Grumman Olson to Tiny Home Camper Cruiser RV #VANLIFE OPEN ROAD FREEDOM

hot-burrito (28)in #travel • 6 years ago (edited)

Here are some pictures of my van conversion, done over the course of a year 2016-2017.

There seems to be an endless romance today with the idea of "van life" and the evoking sense of boundless freedom it brings. I'm not so sure now. Living in a van will never be romantic. Thats what I told my girlfriend anyway. She begged to differ.
And because I'm the type of guy that just needs to know but wants to keep everybody happy at the same time, I decided to build one myself. Yeah, straight in for the kill. The other niggle I had was the plethora of absolutely terrible van conversions plastered online. Yes, a rustic pallet wood bench with a Navajo blanket draped over it, subtly illuminated with fairy lights is cute, yeah, I get it. But have you tried to live or sit on that splintered ply sheet bed bench thing? Sleep with muddy boots and crispy socks inches from your face? Or find what vehicle orifice your phone charger fell into?

So yes, I have to admit I wanted to show "Millenial" America that you can do all those cute things and not have to live like a smelly student. By all means I also wanted "authentic". I'm as critical of plastic box Rv America driven by old farts, trust me.

We had a year in Oregon, USA to do this thing so I wasted no time.

Criteria was set. Budget was minimal. Must have ample space for a tall "gangly" clumsy couple. Check.

I will post a new blog on the actual build throughout separately. Literally everything in the van was fabricated myself. From the cedar wall shingles to the aluminum worktops. Everything. That was the criteria for this project.

We found one pretty quickly online. An exiled cookie delivery truck from Portland. I closed the deal as soon as I realized my dad and I would be able to drive this thing home over the mountain with the doors opened, an unfulfilled childhood fantasy of mine. Check.