FWC Project M Project

The one closest to the tailgate is not tied in at all. There are only two that tie into the Project M shelf. One you have circled and another towards the front of the truck bed. I used rivnuts to bolt them to the aluminum frame of the shelf. Rivnuts are awesome and I used them for attaching to the walls both inside and out. As an example, the lights I installed on the outside rear use rivnuts to attach them.
As far as the 80/20 connectors, I used this technique.
https://youtu.be/LSwiJNrqgvU

https://www.tnutz.com/product/ef-010-1-4-20/
But I modified it. Instead of thread tapping the standoffs, I drilled them out so a 1/4” buttonhead goes through them and then screws into the rivenut. the plywood on top really holds it all together. You could probably get away with not even using the standoffs.
This is the only other pic I have.

 

We met another couple with a Project M this weekend at Great Basin National Park. They are fans of the thread and just getting started building out their Project M.
It was great to meet them. Meeting them reminded me that I haven’t posted in awhile.


I also got some great star pictures with the new iPhone 13 Pro


I am getting close to finishing off the build after over 1.5 years and close to 70 nights of camping. I am working on a rear bug screen and I remounted the diesel heater. I will post a write up on both in the next month or so. We have over 100 hours on the heater and I have learned a ton about them since installing it a year ago. I am working on installing a new 2gal diesel tank. More to come on that.

 

Yes, great to meet you too! Super cool to see your famous FWC Project M in person, and thanks for the suggestion to stop trying to skimp on adding some leaf springs and airbags!

A few things jumped out to me while I was ogling your truck:
- We got ours pre-wired for power, but they didn't put an SAE plug on the outside of the camper for easy panel deployment. I've just been running wires (GZ solar or GZ AC adapter) through the bit of a gap between the door and the tailgate... but seeing the plug made me want to just pop a hole in there myself so I can more thoroughly seal the back without removing my "shore power" ability.
- Your awning mounts and external lighting are really nicely done... the external lights that FWC installed on ours are great, but they don't leave room for the rear awning mounts like you've got.

I thanked you generally for documenting the work you've put into your Project M and for the quick tour at 10,000', but I didn't thank you specifically for that picture of the Project M's skeleton... it helped me get up the nerve to start drilling a few weeks ago, allowing me to mount the house battery on the shelf instead of halfheartedly strapping it down in the bed and hoping nothing knocked plugs loose. Thanks again for sharing all of this!

 

is it pretty easy to take the mechanical camper jacks on and off? would love to have one but need to be able to take it off to get the truck in the garage when i want to do maintenance on it

 

it is convenient to have the plug on the back. It was a fairly easy install.

Having the lights on the back are nice to have when you need them. I mostly use them while backing up out in the wild. I have them switchable up in the cab as well as the back of the truck. I prefer the low profile ones I installed over the larger factory lights. It would be a fairly easy switch over if you wanted to replace them. Having the ability to move the awning to the back has worked out nicely. We tend to hang out at the back of the truck most of the time. It would be nice to have a 270 awning, but they are expensive and heavy. We generally only roll with the awning during the summer so it is nice to be able to take it off the rest of the time.

Good luck with the rest of the build. Drilling the first few holes is the hardest.

 

Yeah. The jacks are easy to take on and off. Taking a project M on and off is a bit more work than a traditional FWC slide in. Aligning it when you put it back on could be a pain.

 

Could anyone tell me their rear door gas shock part number? Mine are already shot and will not hold the door open. I have the signature series SF.

 

These are the ones I have.

How old are yours? Did you reach out to FWC or one of their distributors. Seems awful fast to go out. Mine are 21 months old and still working fine.

 

Thanks for your response! I have had the camper for 11 months. I picked it up last November. Can't say I have been thrilled with the overall quality of the camper. More so having to wait a year to get it. A few original issues were.....
Metal shavings in the bed area, worn holes in all four corners of the thermal liner from transportation. Both windows that leak and a rear door that was misaligned. I installed spacers to assist with the door. The gas struts don't work at all, I have been using a push brush.

 

Yeah. That’s a bummer. You have a one year warranty. Consider making FWC fix the issues.

I definitely had fit and finish issues with mine but nothing I couldn’t easily fix. If you read through this thread I documented many of the issues. They where slammed with builds when yours was produced. There quality control was lacking for sure. Hopefully with their move to a new facility they have upped their game. There is way too much competition that has come out in the last year and a half for them to be phoning it in.

 

I have indeed followed this entire thread, thank you. FWC did send me a new thermal liner. I have fixed the door. Used silicone on the windows. I'll reach out to FWC on Monday about the struts. Thanks again.

 

The latest comment reminded me about an issue I noticed back in August. The plastic around the rear window warped in the sun and there was large gap ~ 1/4” between the glass and plastic. I removed the whole back window and resealed it. I used a heat gun to reshape the plastic. I was able to reduce the gap a little and filled it with black caulk. Pictured don’t do it justice. Since it was on the top of the glass I am not sure how long it was that way. In rainy conditions with the back door up, water would have poured right into the door.

 

Glad they came through on the thermal pack. Did you resolve the issue that causes the holes?

What did you do with the old thermal pack. It is probably repairable and you could sell it. Or did you have to give it back to FWC?

 

Thanks! I sent the old thermal liner back to them. The hinged plastic at either end of the camper were rough and had wore holes through the liner. I had the same issue with the rear window too. I am surprized by the amount of issues I have had. FWC have been around a long time and despite the project m being a new design, the overall quality is pretty poor. As a result my build out is on hold for now.

 

A few weeks ago I made a bug screen for the back door. Unfortunately I ordered the wrong zipper. I haven’t had a chance to finish the screen but figured I’d share the result so far. At some point I will sew in a zipper the full length top to bottom for getting in and out.




I used sticky back velcro to hold the screen to the inside. The velcro goes around the inside door frame. I used sew on velcro for the screen. The small zipper in the picture allows the drawer to open without having to move the screen out of the way. I will also add a couple velcro straps at the top to hold the screen when rolled up.

The screen is from Home Depot. It is pet friendly screen and is rubberized. This screen is similar to what I have seen in the Van space.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Phifer-48-in-x-84-in-Black-Pet-Screen-3004153/100565927

Distance between the top of the door jam and bed is less than 48” so a 48” wide roll worked great.

A standard sewing machine Can sew the velcro and zipper to the screen.

 

Water and dust getting inside are the two main annoyances that need mitigation with the Project M. The dust issues is so bad, even YouTubers who have borrowed the FWC demo units have complained about it. Recent videos by Bound for Nowhere, who took a Project M demo from FWC to Death Valley, mentioned the dust several times. Fortunately, if you solve the dust issue, you’ve also solved most of the water issues. (See above posts on resolving the dust) The remaining issues with water have to do with the outside rear and are mainly an annoyance. When the rear door is up, it acts like a water collector when it is raining. The water runs down the door and drips just inside the door frame and on the tailgate. Additionally, water running off the roof can come down the back adding to the problem. In a previous post I talked about a prototype 3D printed rain gutter I installed on the door. When the door is up, it catches the water and channels it to either side of the door. Unfortunately, with the door being narrow at the top, the water still drips down on the tailgate, but at least it is concentrated and less annoying. I also added the same gutters the the back of the truck just above the door frame and to the very top edge of the roof. This has worked well at channeling the water away from the tailgate area. I had to print them in 9” sections and then glue them together. I used 3M tape to hold them on the truck. I also ran a bead of caulk along the top edge for the roof gutter. I tested it out during a recent rainy day and it seemed to help.





Another issue I found out this summer, when I have the awning up on the back, there is a space between the rear of the truck and the awning. This allows water to get between the awning and rear wall. Again, a minor annoyance. The gutters should help with some of this. I sewed up a rain fly to go between the awning and top of the roof. This should help keep things dry at the rear of the truck. The fly velcros to the awning ( I sewed a strip of velcro to the awning) and snaps to the truck. I have not test the rain fly yet. It is made of rip stop nylon and is light weight and compact when folded up.

 

14 month wait. The Mule Expedition Outfitter folks in PDX did the install, excellent shop. The guys there go above and beyond. Jeff and Tom make it easy and will take care of you. 2017 access cab.

 

Access cab long bed. That’s a great set up. You will enjoy it. 14 months wait, ouch!!!

 

Finally getting around to mounting the 8020 in my AverageGuy knockoff build! Had to make my enclosure slightly bigger to accommodate a custom 230aH lithium battery pack a friend is building for me. Since my gap is bigger I'm going to mount a separate piece of 8020 flush to the camper and then just use 90 degree channel mounts to mount it to the rest. Need to order more 8020 and it takes forever to get it shipped.

 

Looking good!! Thought I was looking at one of my pictures. Looking forward to seeing your progress. 230ah lithium battery will be nice. Is it a DIY lithium or off the shelf?