I tore my truck camper apart (we're starting from scratch)

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This week I took apart my $60, 3-day truck camper build so I could start from scratch. This truck camper has served me sort of well over the last six months, but also is mostly nothing but trouble. The windows leak, the homemade door is a piece of crap, and getting into bed feels like crawling into my own coffin. Today I'm taking it down to an empty shell so I can start from scratch on the design and hopefully end up with a more functional version this time.
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Boat Build Series: • House Boat Build Serie...
About me: I decided to jump on an opportunity to buy a school bus for $1000. After 2.5 years of building and a couple summers doing bus life, I sold the bus and began building a tiny house boat from scratch. My hope is that with a couple years of practice building under my belt, I can do a bit better of a job this time and build something that actually floats 🤞
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Personal messages: [e-mail]
Instagram: / thebirbiebus
music: www.epidemicsound.com/referra...

[@patriciaharkin1571]

What's in it for us Emma, is pure entertainment and admiration of your skills and ingenuity. Rock on girl.

[@PM-lz5gs]

And to top it all off she’s super cute!

[@MrNerv]

​@EmmaBuildsBirbie ...Does anyone else just wanna give Miss E a hug...?!? New viewer from the UK says hi! 😃

[@user-lk2cj2qs1d]

They have nozzles for spray cans to direct the spray either verticle or horizontal About 6 for 7.00 Doing great One thing about silcone people use it too much Best to use what is right for the job Not sure ask those who know

[@mrmotofy]

FYI, with the uh style of construction we'll say, you'll probably have leaks occasionally. So one thing you can do is elevate front of truck so water runs out Tailgate end. Have some RV levelers with or 2x6 blocks etc to drive on to level side to side or front to back. Put some Racedeck tiles down in bed even 2 layers. They're really cool garage floor tiles that are like perforated plastic kinda. Available in many different colors. So water can flow on bed floor but bedding stays up off keeping it drier.

[@anthonyrstrawbridge]

Motivation+ The horror and fear felt when you do the Look- Pause-quiet wait for it .....I might explode thing - like mom when I was a kid. Hope that makes perfect sense.

[@Mekazas]

It's an awesome day when I see a new Emma video!

[@roberttorian9303]

When you reattach camper cover to truck, use aluminum clamps, 6 total, 3x each side, space evenly. Do not use bolts, pins, etc. Aluminum clamps work great and they don't corroid. I used them and two different trucks with ladder rack on top and no problems. Also insulate roof and side, it helps.

[@jimbruneau6769]

Hey, at lest you've got a Hi Top shell! A cab high shell roof where you have to crawl around inside on your hands and knees is REALLY like being in a coffin. When you remodel, think about NOT having the bed take up the whole area. Leave a narrow aisle where you can put your feet down on the floor, or sit on the side of the bed. I've got to replace a broken rear door glass on the used shell I just bought, I think I'm just going to use 1/4" plywood. I just use it for sleeping, so blocking the sunlight is good! No need to make up a curtain to fit on the door... Amazon has some really good camper shell sealing tape with dual sealing lips on it. Stick it to the truck bed and you can remove the shell several times and still maintain water tight. Happy Camping!

[@brulee3746]

Maybe women are not as strong as men. But their perseverance and inventivenes does it all. Very proud of you Emma! Nineke (Holland)

[@forumicebreaker]

I haven't done anything but while messing with my toppers I found that fiberglass boat category stuff and the camper shells had more in common than the camper shells had with anything automotive.

[@cyndib3587]

I'm fighting leaks in my camper shell too! Caulk is my friend!

[@mazdarx7887]

Sticking ply to fiberglass The fiberglass has a gel coat and adhesives don't stick to it very well Sand down the glass, mix resin normally, thoroughly wet out ply, if you allow the resin to dry on the ply, sand it well before using thickened epoxy/resin to glue the ply to glass It's like laminating ply to ply except it's ply to glass.

[@MichaelLynch-zs9mr]

This project just reinforces my belief that one day she will be on her house boat and be like ‘I want to go to Hawaii, I can buy a used boat, and rebuild it in no time’ 😂

[@EmmaBuildsBirbie]

I wouldn't put it past me 😅

[@user-lk2cj2qs1d]

@@EmmaBuildsBirbie Neither do we Like the backing with a trailer Can see you towing a barge Down the coast or towing 24 barges down the Mississippi We have seen your past accomplishments :)

[@scottswartz6619]

Bless you Emma

[@Theboreddubber]

Fair play for getting that cab off by yourself as they are not easy. Also when your painting you need to use etching primer underneath your paint if not it will come off again. Hope that helps

[@valeriefrench9405]

Butyl tape should seal well. It’s what is used to seal the fans they put on top of vans and RV’s

[@petefranghis738]

Emma, love you Can Do attitude, and your ability to learn as you go.

[@caughtafaygo]

And!! Bonus you can work on the shell and still have a vehicle to use and have fun in where as if u work on the bus or boat its stuck in place. 🤙 Very cool

[@hobartelam3799]

Can't wait for more of your boat build

[@joshhoman]

Not bad at all! A bit of a surprise that she was able to pick that heavy thing up by herself!

[@TheRealNighthawkBaby]

you are just the sweetest soul, love u girl, keep up the good work, you friend forever, John Nighthawk

[@robbyoliver4953]

My fav KZbinr Emma you never disappoint ! Love your videos and your cute expressions and funny things you say. You an are born to be entertainer. Keep up the good work I am looking forward to the next video. Stay safe and be well we Love you!

[@arthurdentau]

Emma, you should put the butyl tape on the truck around the edges & then put the camper on the truck. better seal.

[@racekrasser7869]

would make a big mess taking it off

[@vonheise]

Making fiberglass strong and watertight is a pretty important goal, regardless how much time or how many videos it takes. Love the solo accomplishments Emma keeps making! I have been married my entire adult life so while we do a lot of our own things, we are there to bounce ideas off of and have a second pair of hands when needed. We get in each other's way sometimes now that we are retired, but having an unpaid helper is great... 😎 I am amazed how Emma tackles most anything that she wants to accomplish and eventually accomplishes it.

[@RebelCowboysRVs]

I watched the whole thing so clearly I am getting something out of it. Hell if I know what that is either though. lol You are entertaining so lets go with that.

[@TheLotroNerd]

Dont focus on the end goal of a perfect camper. Focus on the process of learning new skills to become a better more capable person for the next protype!

[@davidtomlinson9465]

Great idea to remove the shell!

[@adriankung1625]

Glad *and rather amazed* you didn't injure yourself, or your truck bed, taking the canopy off by yourself! I'm starting to worry for you, lol. Nice work, btw!!! And it looks great so far. If you wanted an easy way to get more interior height, you could spend a few $$ on a Topper-Lyft system -- not really cheap, not too expensive either, but then you'd have a 'tent' section between the truck bed and the canopy. Not necessarily ideal, but might work well in some cases. Personally, I'd want to go all-in and make a frame around the inside of the roof, cut the roof out, and find a pop-top from an old VW Westfalia to mount and join to the top. Would be tricky with the sloped roofline on that canopy, but a little creativity (and hand-crafting, kinda like what you're doing with the houseboat) would get it done. Just some ideas to toss around. Lot more work though.... Cheers!...from North Vancouver

[@JP-qn3wt]

16:40 Aww… you are so cute in this sweater… I like the oversized fit 😊

[@Maxid1]

23:30 Oh yeah! I had the camper Dometic skylight deconstruct (or revenue insure as I like to call it). They run about $800. I'd been jury rigging it for over a year until the final parts broke and then the heat formed plexi broke. I capped the hole with a piece of 1/4 inch thick plexi and I think I paid about $80 bucks for that. But I didn't spend $800 so it's kind of a wash. I never really needed it and the skylight unit is designed, like most of things in an RV, to fail.

[@Niteskate1]

We all enjoy seeing you make progress and sometimes you actually teach us things. I have to tell you there are a lot of guys out there, myself included that couldnt take a camper shell like that off by ourselves. You keep rocking your projects Emma.

[@espnmk]

Designer extraordinaire, Emma! Thanks for Sharing...

[@geckopete]

Ive had 2 cars /trucks with canopies on them and both were taken off and on a few times.. Usually you put the weathershield tape on the top edge of the truck bed rather than on the bottom of the canopy. There is foam like rubber tape that's around the width of the top of the truck bed that you just apply and then cut holes for the securing bolts to go through.. Makes getting the canopy off alot easier .. The way you take the canopy off is lift one end and slide some timber under it from one side of the bed to the other.. then do the same at the other end... So the canopy is still on the bed but with wood between the bed edge and the canopy... You then just shimmy it off moving the rear piece of wood along till you go till you can tip it off the end.. Done my old 4Runner canopy by myself a few times that way and they are darn heavy, like 3 to 4 times heavier than a non lined canopy..

[@r8edrv4fun65]

Mixing it up!! Bus, boat, camper, boat.... busy!!

[@brockvagis1657]

Hi Emma Everytime I watch one of your videos I just wish I could help you because fiberglass is something I've done for years make sure you have a good fiberglass roller to get the air out 🥰

[@richardnwilson]

Great video thank you. Sometimes really thick caulking that is hard to get out of a tube can be heated and it will come out much easier. It does take a few hours in a warm place to heat all the way through to the center of the tube.

[@Bawkr]

Phone must have detected my activity, this is essentially exactly what I want to build. An old economic yota low profile build.

[@AstheMagpieFlies]

Don't think I missed that "it's almost motorcycle season" smile 😉

[@EmmaBuildsBirbie]

😏

[@zrx1100zz]

🛵☁️☁️☁️☁️😎🥃

[@jamesbeaman5944]

Love it. Great job removing shell!!

[@67shelbygt500]

Been really looking forward to the next video hope you're keeping well like I said before keep up the good work you're doing a great job❤

[@lauriewalker843]

I watched you build the bus, then the boat (which is not done yet), and this project. You come up with some fantastic ideas of how to do things like stepping on the tube of glue. You should be proud of yourself. Love watching your channel.

[@EmmaBuildsBirbie]

thank you so much 😊

[@Torsee]

They make double faced foam tape specially made for truck shell weather proofing.

[@petermiddo]

You are so lucky! I'm 6'2". I don't fit inthe bed of a truck, unless you're talking Dodge Ram or F350. One of those big, obnoxious trucks that don't fit down the tracks I enjoy. So please never complain about it feeling like a coffin. I've got to either roof top tent it or use a swag. Although, I'm getting a bit sooky and have been enjoying my hybrid camper more and more.

[@mrmotofy]

Nah you just need a 6.5' or an 8' bed

[@petermiddo]

@@mrmotofy none of the utes (australian for 'truck') here come with that long a bed. It's only getting worse because most of the new ones are dual cab , so you need to a 'Little Person' to sleep in one.

[@mrmotofy]

@@petermiddo Ah the ute's haha get you a real truck LOL you have GM, Dodge, Fords trucks. Them darn little people get all the options...but who do they call for reaching things eh...us normal sized people roflmao

[@petermiddo]

@mrmotofy our biggest trouble is that ALL our tracks are Land Cruiser width. Nissan make the Safari, sold here as the Patrol, are the ame width as the Cruiser (the latest iteration of your Armada is basically the latest edition of our Patrol, with some sooky, flash-o bits added. Both of these are a little wider than my series, the previous generation, of Patrol/Safari) When I go camping - and i'm not saying that Emma should follow suit in her Tacamo (which we call the HiLux) - I point to a spot along a creek and say "That's where I want to be, how many trees do I need to cut down, rocks to move, to get there.' Getting the size of truck I'd need to sleep in the bed would be a lot more work, just on the width alone, never mind the Queen Mary-esque turning circle required by something that size. Plus diesel is waaaaaaaay more expensive. My wish list 4x4 is a 110 Land Rover Defender purpose (and custom) built for the Australian Army, anyway. But for disability and discrimination, I'd have had one before they came to their current price of AU$35-40K (US$23-26K)

[@ScottSUP.]

Wow, what an adventure with your truck camper! It's fascinating to see your process and the challenges you encounter along the way. Your determination to improve and optimize each aspect is truly inspiring. Can't wait to see the final result!

[@DeAnnaG_KissingFrogsMedia]

Yay! A side quest! 🎉😂 I wondered how long it would be before you updated the camper a little. It's nice to be able to just grab some clothes and food and be able to just go camping and not have to worry about gathering all the camp stuff every time. Plus you get to update/upgrade the skill set a bit. Have you thought about putting a solar panel on the top to charge the power station? Keep up the inspired work/play! Stay safe and be blessed! 🎉 Keep moving forward! 😊

[@patrickbudrionis1491]

Thank You Very Much For Sharing 👍🇯🇲

[@WinL549]

Looking good Emma!

[@cyndib3587]

Heat the adhesive in your oven at low temp! Not kidding! I use Sika flex 252 industrial adhesive to glue solar panel to plastic brackets then to roof of my fiberglass shell!

[@cyndib3587]

Or set tube of adhesive in sun on a really warm day for few hours!

[@HannahEMathes]

I learned my lesson a harder way about using old silicone/caulking 😂 used some to seal a gap between my van floor and the metal step up for the cab and it never got solid and all the dirt and pet hair stuck to it 😂 and that was with Texas weather a couple years back. It’s on my to do list still 🫠😅

[@EmmaBuildsBirbie]

the worst 😬

[@truthdragon7719]

Impressed

[@eblast105]

Maybe some pulleys and rope from the roof rafters would help you reinstall it. 😁

[@bryans8656]

You're articulating just fine. You always do 🙂

[@flowerstone]

Look up Vulkum caulking. Sticks anything to anything. 😊

[@ronnievance6835]

I couldn’t believe you took that camper shell off by yourself. You keep proving over and over again that you’re not just a pretty face 😁

[@hobartelam3799]

I love watching you go at these projects, your awesome, love seeing you strong women do stuff ,I guess I'm not use to seeing girl do this kind of stuff, keep up the good work.

[@chuckrex5664]

Emma this is how I just found you so I'm going back to watch your bus build Journey then I'm going to watch your outer bus videos

[@jeffreynelson3294]

Construction adhesive would be a good choice for what you want to accomplish with attaching the plywood to your camper shell. Well it looks like you figured out the construction adhesive just as I sent this. Good luck.

[@worklessenjoylifemore]

Just found your channel and really enjoy it!!

[@michaelirizarry5037]

cool a two parter is always nice. doin awesome emma!

[@jasonjones5213]

Looks like a good job so far.A two parter is good.

[@Judy98814]

Great job

[@UTeeNye]

it’s good to know there are women like you out there who are very handy. a lot women don’t even know how to change a tire.

[@EmmaBuildsBirbie]

yes true, lots of men as well

[@charles-jd6rn]

good job emma

[@kristenwill57]

Sounds like green bay Wisconsin weather

[@numnumnum6743]

You sneezed, Bless You.

[@dougintothesunset]

I always enjoy your musical selections and I find it oddly satisfying to watch you work things out. Both those things make the videos very compelling, I also appreciate all the work you put in to shoot many angles. Nice work Emma! Thanks for sharing 😃

[@EmmaBuildsBirbie]

thank you 😊

[@joegaringan8363]

You are so amusing!

[@jeffhalligan1812]

you are a fun entertainer... LOVE your videos...

[@Jamesroberts98]

I know it is too late, but to glue wood to fiberglass use the rosin you would use to fiberglass with just like the boat you are glassing to wood CORRECT? maybe even put some fiberglass on it as well to strengthen it.

[@chadmutchler5062]

You rock!!

[@troz451]

I luv how even when you don’t know s#@t and still go for it. Keep it up. Imagine how professional you will eventually be. 😊

[@bmacd2112]

Looks like you next big project should be expanding the size of your garage! Give yourself more room for storage of future project materials and tools & equipment that you don't need for the project at hand. Thus, freeing up more workspace to work without having to juggle things around and squeeze around the sides to get work done.

[@mrmotofy]

I think she's renting so probably not an option

[@Cowboy-Trucking61]

Your next project, build a log cabin on the bed of your truck. And throw that shell away.

[@aaronriedel5372]

Good video! The stepping on the tube of adhesive made me 😂😂

[@mazdarx7887]

Too late now , but in the future when you have to do it again, if you don't want it to ever leak use 3M 4200. Since it's good enough for boats in the north atlantic and bearing sea, it'ss be killer on a little truck cap

[@RogueBohemian]

Imagine that. The same skills are now building a boat. What could possibly go wrong?

[@user-lk2cj2qs1d]

Does that mean part 2 in a day or two? :)

[@Steve-ub40]

Submerge the sikkaflex in warm water

[@olddriver55]

Try a piano hinge for your door

[@robinhoward9113]

entertainment

[@Jareddeluna89]

That song got me wanting to listen to some Weezer…😂

[@charles-jd6rn]

emma the lakes of arkansas are calling -emma bring the boat!-way to tackle that camper-charles from arkansas

[@RJ4381]

Intertainment is what in it for me, jk, enjoy watching

[@alancullings2896]

Your very entertaining

[@sixyonex7385]

Silicone sucks! Try OSI Quad Caulk . Well worth the money and cleans up with paint thinner.

[@rickharms1]

The paint not drying was probably caused by the surface was not compatible. Was that bondo I saw? Need to decontaminate.

[@charles-jd6rn]

arkansas lakes are calling emma

[@leslieservantofgod8601]

Now you are a carpenter now you can rebuild that camper shell to a real camper a stand-up camper yes now you're getting er done 👍👍👍 🙋😃💕💖👍

[@Maxid1]

26:27Obviously you have master cake decorating skills...

[@thetrashgoblin]

"this is probably kind of stupid" The best way to build stuff

[@tedpreston4155]

Thanks for the reminder that it's very, very nearly motorcycle season! 🏍

[@user-lk2cj2qs1d]

And sailing season :)

[@tedpreston4155]

@@user-lk2cj2qs1d That too! I guess maybe I should follow Emma's lead and build a boat!

[@user-lk2cj2qs1d]

@@tedpreston4155 Back when the Gougeon Brother's book first came out on Cold Molding using the West system I bought their plans for a pram bought a bunch of 1/8th inch cedar veneer and built a cold molded pram took 3 layers of veneer run diagonally to each other Due to money in between boats Have plans from the SMITH for a 37 x 12 foot V Bottom Gulf scow Schooner that looks similar to her hull

[@jamesdoyle6839]

have you selected which type of epoxy you will fiberglass the boat with ?? I myself after years have ended up using only one company's product MAS epoxy... great stuff.. hardens everytime.. cleanup with lacquer thinner not acetone...using epoxy over polyester>> polyester hardens too fast... epoxy gives you time to work with it... huge difference..

[@mscarlarn]

Emma- you are just to dangerous cute!!!

[@Maxid1]

3:59 Those are called "Weep holes". Do you think it's because you cry when you realize you put it in up side down?

[@paulekins9319]

silly question arnt you building a boat out of wood and fiber glass that seems to stick together quite well just a thought keep up with the great videos

[@the_dingo_show]

Yep I said years back that in the dictionary by the word Determination there is a picture of Emma

[@islandwitt1]

👍🏻😁🤣 if I had to choose one word to describe you it would be “Tenacious”. 👍🏻😁

[@hecklepig]

You know those shells aren't meant to be waterproof and its almost impossible to make them waterproof without redesigning it and putting in heavy duty seals. Even then they leak because they literally just sit on the truck bed and that needs sealing as well. You're supposed to coat both components in a layer of the adhesive let it get tacky before glueing it in or it won't make a strong bond. I know I sound like a Karen but its just how shit works.

[@karlanke]

Do you have a heat gun? I've found a lot of sealant/adhesives are pretty temperature dependant in terms of how hard they are to squeeze out.

[@timmypriddy8385]

❤