I slept in the van last night for the first time. I slept on the lower bunk, and it was comfortable, but firm. I learned a few things that I want to do with the setup of the van, but for another day. I was focused today on building and installing the cabinet doors for the storage behind the galley.
There were six doors and I had cut them to size earlier in the week. Today, I drilled out the holes for the European hinges (two per door), drilled out the 2″ hole for the slam latch and installed it, and secured the L-bracket to the aluminum extrusion for the slam latch to grab onto. I got the bottom three doors completed within the first two hours of work, and the last three after a break for lunch. Here is what they look like.
On the bottom door closest to the refrigerator, you’ll notice two slam latches on that door. This was the first door, and I drilled the hole for the slam latch in the wrong location. I didn’t have it in me to build a new door today, with my trip to Utah less than a week away. I probably will at a later date. Fortunately, I had an extra slam latch, so I just put two into this door. I’ll need to come up with a good story to tell people who ask….
The top middle door gave me fits, as it didn’t hang straight. I spent a lot of time fiddling with it and finally took it down and used the circular saw to square it up. I took the picture above before I fixed it.
After the doors were hung, I worked on making the shelves that go inside. I had made three previously, and this afternoon I made five more. This involved cutting them to size with the circular saw and notching out for any aluminum extrusions that interfere with them. I have five more to make, which will be on the agenda for tomorrow.
Once those final shelves are built, that is pretty much a wrap on the van build. There are a few small things to do, like hang curtains and line shelves with non-slip material, but not much. Maybe one more good day of work will be all.