The red stripe went on easily. it's amazing how easy it is when you use a decent masking tape.
Have sourced plastic windows that will be tinted and cut to size for $350 from Wangara. Not bad when you compare it to the $2500 for new windows!

We were guarenteed that the Mob in Wangara, knew some mob in Malaga that could supply the window sealing rubber. no they couldn't. Got hold of Martins Northside in Wangara. Talk about Aladdins cave, only a small place, but theres all kinds of stuff for the refitter. The windows went in fairly easily, all except 1. There is always bloody 1. The frame was slightly bigger so the plastic just popped out when i tried to put the window back on the van. luckily i had some galvanised strapping that i could rivet onto the frame to make it bigger. Starting to look pretty good

frig is a no go

frig is a no go. using deep cycle with inverter according to battery world, simply wont work. so plan 'b'. we cannot afford an engle or waco, but have discovered 'gear up'

its a 55l, 3 way cooler, that doesn't seem too bad for $500. especially for the amount of use it's gonna get, we cant justify an extra $1000. besides, i have been informed that these things work best on gas, which is how it will be powered most. apparently 9kgs of gas will last 28days. there are the usual * included, but hey, that will suit our use perfectly.

thing we really did like was the amount of insulation. so hopefully the unit will be perfect.
cos it runs on gas the misses is not too keen on running it inside the van. so have put a board on a stand so it can sit outside in the annex.





Have checked out the perspex windows, gonna be about $350 + the rubber holding thingos. however they are gonna take about 2 weeks to create. gonna try to put the red stripes on today...could be interesting

12 volt lights

this was gonna be where i said i had fixed the 12v system to work off the car... pigs arse.... haven't had time. this working full time has got knobs on it.

did get hold of a spare wheel holder. mind you i have to mount the wheel backwards so i can fit the stabliser bars. but for $40 bucks its gonna be fine.
just have to organise the deep cell batery and the inverter and the windows and the.......
but watch this space.....

front of the van

the front of the van has slotted in nicely. the girls are sitting on an ikea bed that doubles as a sofa. the draws under the sink was got street shopping across the road. the shelves at the foot of the bed was an old bookcase that i cut in half. mind you attaching it to the van was a pain in the arse cos there's no room to get any tools into the gap. dont know what to do about the gap above the drawers under the sink!
maybe i could make some kind of storage box. cut down a drawer. but we'll see, i suppose i should leave it until we start filling the van with gear and see what kind of extra storage we will need.
mind you there is still a lot of work that needs doing. and i have just been informed that 'we' will be needing fly screens on the windows...only slight problem, there are only 4 full frames for the 9 that are needed. as they are light weight frames, i dont suppose we'll be able to street shop for those...but you never know

looking pretty good

flooring is in, painting done, though i have to find the missing drawer handle. windows still have to be done. now thats it has stopped raining, i supose i now have no excuse.

frig and what will be the kitchen bench are in. they fit with room to spare - 280mm, in the area that used to be the single bunks. our bed just needs a base and matress and that is all ready to go,  gonna do some more street shopping to find a double bed base. got power from the kitchen via an extension cord, through the cupboard, under the bed and up around the back. bed size will allow a cabnet/shelf or what ever at the foot of the bed.

flooring

Pretty crappy photo, but had to take it through the back window. putting in a 2.8 x 4 metre roll in a van is a pain in the arse. cramped, no room and buggered knees. took the misses an i an hour and a half. but the finished product looks bloody good, so it should for $350 worth of vinyl.

photo taken from the door, mind you, you cant really see the darker dots that are on the vinyl.
now that the vinyl is down, i've covered it with sheets and blankets and an old idadown that was purchased in 1962 or 3.

taking form

what a difference a lick of paint makes! the microwave is bolted in - the one the previous owner gave us wasn't and is now dead. the oven is also bolted down. just have to put some fancier's on the drawers- no idea why they were off in the first place!! and find a chest of drawers to go in the frig space. its bulk rubbish in our area so could be lucky, although it pissed down with rain last night. once the vinyl arrives it shouldn't take too long to complete the interior. the main bed should only take an hour or 2 to complete. aiden's bed is coming from ikea and only needs putting together and bolting down - with a few adjustments to allow for the curve at the end. the preparation area is from ikea, need to bolt it down and somehow bolt down the frig. haven't worried about that yet, but now its starting to come together i suppose i had better!