rideordie

That would be awesome...thanks in advance :)

Thanks for the replies guys, the more info I have the better :)

The camper is made of fiberglass and is quite rigid, but yes, the meeting point is where I'm struggling with my vision a bit. First with the camper clearing the cab accordingly without some crazy gap inbetween the top of the cab and the bottom section of the 'over cab' area on the camper. And I've considered leaving a slight gap inbetween the camper and the cab so that it has some room to flex a bit. On the hilux it originally was on, it was just bolted directly to the cab and had four bolts holding it to the frame and it was super rigid given the circumstances, even with the truck rusted to hell and made of surprisingly thin steel.

Yeah this is basically what I was thinking, thanks for the photo!

Yeah you're right, just want to make sure I cover all bases up front before putting in a lot of effort and $$. And I'd only be keeping some of the back panel just to give me more material to build support off of, so my cuts would basically just allow access to the cab in between the seats. A mini-hallway if you will haha

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Hey guys, does anybody have the measurement from the top of the frame the bed sits on to the top of the cab? Looking to put a camper on a Comanche and need that measurement to figure out if this project is realistic or not. Thanks in advance :)

Also, does anybody have a measurement from the bed frame to the top of the cab?

Yup, that was my initial thoughts as well. As of now I'm thinking of axle swapping a 9" in the rear and maybe a Dana 44 up front with beefier suspension all around. Also what I was thinking, I would only be cutting sections of minimal structural bracing and would probably reinforce it regardless just to be on the safe side.

bump for more opinions...

here's how the shell is looking currently while it awaits its new home...

Yeah you can, its kind of a squeeze but its definitely convenient. My friends and I are big skateboarders and we travel all over to skate so my main reasoning for having the cab flow to the camper is mostly just so we can all hang out and talk while were on the road for long periods of time

And to be honest, I really didnt know a whole lot about these trucks until I started researching them heavily for this project so thats another reason why I'm looking for other opinions.

Hard to say, I was talking to him on instagram but he was saying hes had a comanche and he builds out these campers all the time (and in a way that I'm intending on doing so as well) so thats why I'm actually taking his opinion into serious consideration...

Yeah that makes sense. I would assume I would be reinforcing the cab around that rear wall where the camper and cab meet just for more structural stability as well. I was bummed when this guy was telling me this cus not only would it be so frickin cool but the comanche just seems like such a good candidate as well. Thanks for the info man, greatly appreciated

Yeah I definitely have put so much thought into it but I don't have a ton of money and certainly don't want to put myself or my riders in a dangerous situation. Any and all opinions welcomed please and thank you

The purist in me would prefer not to cut out the back of the cab but for its intended use I kind of have to. I was thinking of just removing the rear window and (maybe) cutting a vertical section that would be about 2.5-3' in width. Would that be too much compromise in the cabs structural integrity? And yeah, your 1800 lbs estimate is a safe number to be working with. My intention was to of course beef up the suspension and axles on the comanche when married to the Sunrader.

Hey guys, just wanted to give you a quick update. I have the Sunrader Camper totally gutted and have been on the hunt for a Comanche. I don't see too many around my area of Florida, most seem to be up North so its been a process. I recently was talking with a guy that rebuilds these Sunraders and he has been telling me to stay away from a Comanche because of the uni-body / frame design. Would you guys agree with that? The shell weighs about 700lbs gutted so am I looking at major structural flaws once I have it mounted / built out? I honestly was so set on getting a comanche for this project but now I'm having second thoughts

What do you guys think of this Comanche? Seems like a good candidate for the build but wanted to get you guys' opinion... https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/367313697201332/

Okay...crazy conceptual idea but figured I'd hit you guys with it. I've been finding some J10's pretty close to where I live for surprisingly cheap. Those clunky v8's arent really what I'm looking for given the low gas mileage but with the weight the truck will have to support once I build out the Sunrader portion the beefier axles and what not are appealing as I will likely need to upgrade those anyways should I go with a Comanche. I also have a buddy who has a solid running Mercedes with a OM617 turbo diesel which I know is a pretty popular conversion I could swap into the (conceptual) J10. My questions - Does anybody have the rear of cab to center of rear wheel measurement or at least a close guestimate of what it may be? Has anybody done this conversion and how do they feel about the outcome? What would the cost be to swap the engine if I were to have somebody with a bit more knowledge do it? Sorry for all the questions but not the easiest info to find apparently. Just trying to weigh out all my options for the best outcome :)

Okay, I figured as much. I'll hold out then

Hey Guys, Just a quick update, I got the shell off the truck and am in the process of rebuilding the clutch on the Hilux before turning it into a flatbed and the shell is patiently awaits its new home. I found an '86 2.8L Comanche that looks like a great candidate for the build, but I wanted to ask, is it worth it to hold out for a 4.0L? Are there any benefits to having the 2.8L such as gas mileage advantages? Thanks in advance :)

Very cool man, I dig this a lot! Yeah not too much info on Comanche campers out there although I did find a chinook one that looked really rad. But ultimately I think the sunrader shell would look so good sitting on a Comanche :)

Great info man, thanks for the tip(s) excuse my ignorance but this is a whole new ball game to me...do you mean I can adjust the back axle to fit is where it will line up correctly? The purist in me says no but for the purpose I want to use it for that would make a ton of sense. My skateboard buddies and I take trips all over and its nice to not section it off from the rest of the crew for those longer drives. If I were to do it I would probably still keep the sections behind the driver / passenger seats and just have a little doorway type of deal. Funny enough, the bracing on the current '78 Hilux it currently sits on just has a steel bar that hooks into two brackets on either side above the driver / passenger doors. Ahh, the simplicity Yeah I've seen a good amount of Chinook swaps but not too many Sunraders. As much as I like the Chinook's I feel like the over-cap area is kind of dead space since its not really enough room for a bed unless it were to pull out into the space...thats just me though. These videos provide good info for the swap process if you havent seen them...