AT Overland Dodge with FWC Flatbed Camper

[elcoyote]

Since we are purposely fitting a Hawk to an 8' bed truck that would normally go on a 6.5' truck, we are allowed the luxury of what we call a "Tunnel box". This fills the space between the camper and the truck cab. It will be large enough for our spare tire and a ton of other stuff that we haul to & fro events and long trips when we are supporting a group. Instead of compartmentalizing the tunnel box, we decided to build our box around 3 frames welded from commercial grade aircraft track. This will allow us to secure cargo and change the interior configuration to suit the needs of the trip. Single ring tie downs can be placed anywhere along the tracks in 1" increments to strap cargo in place. Threaded studs can be fit to the track to create adjustable shelving and walls in any configuration we choose. With the box being 20" x 44" x 80", there is nearly 40 cubic feet of space

 

[cchoc]

You could probably carry my Taco/Eagle as a spare in that big boy. :sombrero:

 

[Vegastoy]

This is going to be nice!

That ARB bumper is HUGE!!! :Wow1:

 

[Durango]

Since we are purposely fitting a Hawk to an 8' bed truck that would normally go on a 6.5' truck, we are allowed the luxury of what we call a "Tunnel box". This fills the space between the camper and the truck cab. It will be large enough for our spare tire and a ton of other stuff that we haul to & fro events and long trips when we are supporting a group. Instead of compartmentalizing the tunnel box, we decided to build our box around 3 frames welded from commercial grade aircraft track. This will allow us to secure cargo and change the interior configuration to suit the needs of the trip. Single ring tie downs can be placed anywhere along the tracks in 1" increments to strap cargo in place. Threaded studs can be fit to the track to create adjustable shelving and walls in any configuration we choose. With the box being 20" x 44" x 80", there is nearly 40 cubic feet of space View attachment 335753

View attachment 335751View attachment 335752

Mario, are you going to offer these composite boxes as an add-on to existing flatbeds? I'm thinking my next build may be a 2 door (Sioux and I travel without passengers) Ram chassis cab with an aluminum flatbed. The almost 9 1/2 foot length of the bed rails on the chassis cab would give me an 18" space for one of your tunnel boxes even if we mount a Grandby on back. And your composite underbed boxes look good too. Are they in standard sizes or will you do custom boxes? Thanks!

 

[elcoyote]

The boxes are not standard sizes, they are customized to the truck and to the flatbed. We're happy to build you a flatbed and boxes to suit. My tunnel box is big enough for my spare tire, sundries and my bicycle.

Mario, are you going to offer these composite boxes as an add-on to existing flatbeds? I'm thinking my next build may be a 2 door (Sioux and I travel without passengers) Ram chassis cab with an aluminum flatbed. The almost 9 1/2 foot length of the bed rails on the chassis cab would give me an 18" space for one of your tunnel boxes even if we mount a Grandby on back. And your composite underbed boxes look good too. Are they in standard sizes or will you do custom boxes? Thanks!
View attachment 337388

 

[elcoyote]

Comeup winch

Fitting the Comeup 16.5 rsi winch to the ARB bumper is not a straight forward affair however it is well worth the effort for the feature rich winch. We had to clock the engagement handle to face downwards, trimmed the underside of bumper to give access to the handle and trim a front cross member for winch body clearance. Everything we cut was re-enforced in some fashion to preserve the integrity of the ARB bumper.

 

[Keyne]

Great idea to use the aircraft track as a frame for the box. I thought it would be cool (no pun intended) to have a second fridge on a tumbo tux slide stored in a bed box. One fridge in the camper and one in the box passenger side for use in camp.

 

[adam88]

This - this I like. Bravo.

 

[ajn507]

Updates?

 

[Gizzard Stone]

This is a rad build. I want a similar setup for our family overland adventures, though we'd need the dual cab truck and the granby size camper.

Still pretty SWEET!

-M

 

[Regcabguy]

The "bits" you have mentioned will be "built to order" depending upon the application. What we have seen in our experience is a complex variation of component applications and client needs that are not conducive to an "off the shelf" model. As you watch this build unfold, it will become more apparent why.

Bumpers are a sticky scenario. Understood that the ARB bumper may be commonplace and perhaps aesthetically boring, it does comes with crash tested credentials. Safety outweighs vanity 100% of the time in our book. Because we travel big truck crushing animal territory (read: deer, elk & moose) we'll suffer the "under-bite". Besides, the ARB is proven to withstand the rigors of use with a 16.5 winch which we expect to get a work out given our propensity for extremely remote happy hour locations

If the ARB's are the same for the 3rd gens there's no skidplate protecting the radiator,intercooler or the ps cooler and lines. The F-250 model has just that. When I questioned ARB about it their reply was "It's never been brought up."

 

[Darwin]

How is the transmission holding up? Do you like it? I am looking to move up a few generations in the Ram likely cab and chassis, and was leaning towards the g56 manual. You say "global ready" I am assuming that means turning off the EGR etc?

 

[Jesse Ramsey]

Love the look of the flatbed

 

[SwamperAK]

Any updates on this build?

The write up so far is great; love the detail!