Buddy built an RV out of a fire truck!

[Tank]

Bitchen project. Buddy I grew up with has always been an amazing contractor, never got his license but he could do everything, plumbing, electrical, woodwork, metal, design etc. he became a chiropractor and just retired after 25 years and built this. Sold his house, cashed out and is moving to Utah.

But he built this first. Almost done. Just needs to paint it. He’s painting it himself a grey camo pattern. Picked this thing up in Colorado for $8500 with like 15k miles on a Detroit diesel. Did all work himself. Central vac, huge water storage, AC, heat. Even put in a mini wood stove. Lots of outdoor storage, outdoor fridge, BBQ, TV Things full on man RV. It the windows, cut the hole through the cab. Redid all electrical. I was seriously impressed. And he did it all on a tight budget. Legit. Thinks he’s gonna start doing these builds on a YouTube channel and sell them. Pretty bad ass.

Thinks when he’s done he can get 175k for them.

 

[H20 Toie]

Well that is sure in the hell different

 

[Tank]

Well that is sure in the hell different

It’s Fuckin rad in person. So much detail and thought put into it. As a single dude, he built it strictly for himself. But the next one will have drop down beds in the rear cab area like toy haulers have and another fold down bed in the living area as well as the fold out couch like it already has.

A lot of work, talent and ingenuity can get you a long way.

 

[Roosky01]

That is pretty neat!

It sure is going to be a rough and thirsty ride though...

 

[LHC Kirby]

Tight budget ???? With all that Diamond Plate…

 

[fat rat]

I love seeing projects like this….always ready to see what people can do.

 

[Tank]

Tight budget ???? With all that Diamond Plate…

I think most of it was already in there and he just kinda moved it around. Did a lot of moving stuff around, cutting cabinets short to expand inside area, etc.

 

[Tank]

That is pretty neat!

It sure is going to be a rough and thirsty ride though...

He said he put new shocks in it after the drive back from Colorado, said, and I quote, “it rides like a fat bitch on a waterbed”. he’s rather a character.

Didn’t mention How fuel mileage was.

The next one he’s looking at is a diesel
Pusher fire truck that was a command center.

 

[RiverDave]

Thing is pretty cool! I think mama bear might not like it though. Upside is it could tow just about anything

 

[Tank]

Thing is pretty cool! I think mama bear might not like it though. Upside is it could tow just about anything

Yeah, this one is definitely a single dudes off grid ride. He’s taking it this weekend to a 4 day shooter course in Az I believe. Same guys that trained Keanu reeves for John wick. It’s perfect for that type of stuff.

Have to waaaaaay soften it up for a family for sure. But could def be done.

He’s talking about buying the cab over and pulling the whole rear box off and building from scratch too.

 

[DLow]

He said he put new shocks in it after the drive back from Colorado, said, and I quote, “it rides like a fat bitch on a waterbed”. he’s rather a character.

Didn’t mention How fuel mileage was.

The next one he’s looking at is a diesel
Pusher fire truck that was a command center.

Fuel mileage will be gallons per mile!
In reality… 4-5 would be expected. No joke.

 

[pronstar]

Wow, that’s seriously one of the coolest things I’ve seen in a while

 

[Tank]

Fuel mileage will be gallons per mile!
In reality… 4-5 would be expected. No joke.

He said it gets 8-9

 

[Gonefishin5555]

Who is gonna polish all that Diamond plate?

 

[ChrisV]

Can't hide money. Sick af

 

[jetboatperformance]

Fukin EPIC !

 

[Caydens Cat]

Go straight Domer and rinse that rig out.

Dexter mobile service

 

[Backlash]

What's crazy, is how much a city paid for that rig when it was new! I would guesstimate it was over $500K when built.

 

[pronstar]

…huge water storage…

Quite the understatement, assuming this holds 300+ gallons

 

[Desert Whaler]

I dig the clean-out potential . . . broom, leaf blower, . . . hell you could hose that thing out . . . 'Party Proof' !!!

 

[stephenkatsea]

Likely big interest from some well retired FF?

 

[Hammer]

Pretty sweet Tank! My buddy did the same awhile back. You can see the build on IG.

 

[SKIDMARC]

Really cool. But my first thought is were do you sleep? Definitely a single man’s ride but still cool.

 

[Tank]

Really cool. But my first thought is were do you sleep? Definitely a single man’s ride but still cool.

The couch slides down into a bed. He’s a pretty big dude at 6’3” 245 and said there’s plenty of room for him and a chick.

 

[idk]

Bitchen project. Buddy I grew up with has always been an amazing contractor, never got his license but he could do everything, plumbing, electrical, woodwork, metal, design etc. he became a chiropractor and just retired after 25 years and built this. Sold his house, cashed out and is moving to Utah.

But he built this first. Almost done. Just needs to paint it. He’s painting it himself a grey camo pattern. Picked this thing up in Colorado for $8500 with like 15k miles on a Detroit diesel. Did all work himself. Central vac, huge water storage, AC, heat. Even put in a mini wood stove. Lots of outdoor storage, outdoor fridge, BBQ, TV Things full on man RV. It the windows, cut the hole through the cab. Redid all electrical. I was seriously impressed. And he did it all on a tight budget. Legit. Thinks he’s gonna start doing these builds on a YouTube channel and sell them. Pretty bad ass.

Thinks when he’s done he can get 175k for them. View attachment 1172912 View attachment 1172913 View attachment 1172915 View attachment 1172916 View attachment 1172917 View attachment 1172918 View attachment 1172919 View attachment 1172920 View attachment 1172921 View attachment 1172922 View attachment 1172923 View attachment 1172924 View attachment 1172925 View attachment 1172926 View attachment 1172927 View attachment 1172928

I camped with him up in Mammoth in July he towed his jeep with it, its a cool build. If you grew up with him then you probably know Mark that we camp with too.

 

[ka0tyk]

love the creativity! It’s funny you mentioned building a second one, I’d love to do a #2 as well.

 

[clarence]

I'm guessing the 15k miles were pretty rough ones.

And maybe geared for acceleration around town?

 

[rivrrts429]

That is bad ass!! Love the creativity!

 

[outboard_256]

Pretty cool. That's a lot of diamond plate work.

 

[JayBreww]

Fuel mileage will be gallons per mile!
In reality… 4-5 would be expected. No joke.

That’s about what our type 1’s get too.

 

[Spudsbud]

& of course,...... its for sale......

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

It’s a shame he didn’t post the build here to understand how he did it all wrong.

 

[wzuber]

That's badass Tank, very creative and unique. I bet he has a great time with that deal. He's a talented boy. I'll have to show this to my chiropractor, he'll dig it too. He too is very creative in them art realm. Tanks for sharing it with us.

 

[MPHSystems]

Clearly the guy is single because this fairy tale needs to be amended to include: “built an RV out of a fire truck“

 

[Tank]

I camped with him up in Mammoth in July he towed his jeep with it, its a cool build. If you grew up with him then you probably know Mark that we camp with too.

Ha! Small world (of course, 6 degrees of separation from RDP). Todd’s a cool cat. Known him since I was 14. He dated my sister in law for a couple years. He’s always been super creative. Some of his wood working pieces he’s built are nothing short of awe inspiring.

Says he’s looking for a 26ish eliminator now to tow behind this rig.

 

[Bails]

I think it's cool. Can you have to much diamond plate? this is pushing the limit in my humble opinion.

 

[ChiliPepperGarage]

Pretty cool build. I could see a market for this, albeit a limited one. The large size would be a deal killer for many people as well as price. As a fire fighter though, I'd rock that thing and leave it red and white. I think there is too much diamond plate on the interior. I know it makes for low maintenance and easy clean up but I'd opt for a more rustic wood interior for a warmer feel.

There's a place in Carson City that has an ex-forest service wildland buggy that I've been eyeballing for a while. I think a little larger than what I need though.

A lot of guys have built "campulances", ambo's converted to campers. They are quite a bit smaller than this rig so probably a bit more practical. We have two new ambo's on order arriving next year. We will be surplusing our current ones. One of them is a '97 Ford, 7.3, 4x4 and in pretty good condition. so hoping I can purchase it at a decent price. If so, I'll do a camper conversion on it and post a build thread. The cool thing about these is that I can tow my SxS, Harley, hot rod, or even my boat behind it.

There are a ton of these on YouTube. Here's a bas ass one:

Here's one with a bit warmer interior:

 

[liquid addiction]

I've always liked the shit, shower, and shave option.

 

[LhcBrad]

Here is a good place to buy a used Firetruck or Ambulance.
https://www.fentonfire.com/equipment-category/new-listings/

 

[yz450mm]

Pretty cool build. I could see a market for this, albeit a limited one. The large size would be a deal killer for many people as well as price. As a fire fighter though, I'd rock that thing and leave it red and white. I think there is too much diamond plate on the interior. I know it makes for low maintenance and easy clean up but I'd opt for a more rustic wood interior for a warmer feel.

There's a place in Carson City that has an ex-forest service wildland buggy that I've been eyeballing for a while. I think a little larger than what I need though.

A lot of guys have built "campulances", ambo's converted to campers. They are quite a bit smaller than this rig so probably a bit more practical. We have two new ambo's on order arriving next year. We will be surplusing our current ones. One of them is a '97 Ford, 7.3, 4x4 and in pretty good condition. so hoping I can purchase it at a decent price. If so, I'll do a camper conversion on it and post a build thread. The cool thing about these is that I can tow my SxS, Harley, hot rod, or even my boat behind it.

There are a ton of these on YouTube. Here's a bas ass one:

Here's one with a bit warmer interior:

If I had FU money I'd buy an older tower ladder just to trim the trees and clean the gutter...

 

[MissB]

So cool!! I want one!

 

[c_land]

Pretty cool build. I could see a market for this, albeit a limited one. The large size would be a deal killer for many people as well as price. As a fire fighter though, I'd rock that thing and leave it red and white. I think there is too much diamond plate on the interior. I know it makes for low maintenance and easy clean up but I'd opt for a more rustic wood interior for a warmer feel.

There's a place in Carson City that has an ex-forest service wildland buggy that I've been eyeballing for a while. I think a little larger than what I need though.

A lot of guys have built "campulances", ambo's converted to campers. They are quite a bit smaller than this rig so probably a bit more practical. We have two new ambo's on order arriving next year. We will be surplusing our current ones. One of them is a '97 Ford, 7.3, 4x4 and in pretty good condition. so hoping I can purchase it at a decent price. If so, I'll do a camper conversion on it and post a build thread. The cool thing about these is that I can tow my SxS, Harley, hot rod, or even my boat behind it.

There are a ton of these on YouTube. Here's a bas ass one:

Here's one with a bit warmer interior:

Some of my buddies are ex-medics that worked for AMR in SoCal. They have made comments on the ambulance conversion RV's. They say no effin way would they sleep/eat in one after the things they had seen happen in the back of those rigs.

Are they being pussies or do they have a valid concern??

 

[hallett21]

Some of my buddies are ex-medics that worked for AMR in SoCal. They have made comments on the ambulance conversion RV's. They say no effin way would they sleep/eat in one after the things they had seen happen in the back of those rigs.

Are they being pussies or do they have a valid concern??

My short stint as an emt says you’d have to fumigate, burn sage and get a priest in there before I laid down at night.

 

[ChiliPepperGarage]

Some of my buddies are ex-medics that worked for AMR in SoCal. They have made comments on the ambulance conversion RV's. They say no effin way would they sleep/eat in one after the things they had seen happen in the back of those rigs.

Are they being pussies or do they have a valid concern??

I hear a lot of people say that but I'm riding in the box quite often transporting patients to the med center and returning to district. Because we are rural and closest med center is over 30 miles it's always over an hour, sometimes two by the time we are done with everything so we often stop to grab something to eat. I've never actually slept in the back but definitely have eaten in the back.

We clean up after each call but I'm sure there is some BS (body secretions) left over. If I do a conversion I'm going to steam clean the inside and probably install new flooring but even if I didn't I don't think I'd worry too much about it. Plus, all that shit will dry up eventually.

Have you ever gone into the kitchen in a restaurant? If you did, you'd probably never eat in one again. How clean do you think a hotel room is? I'm sure there are lots of other places where you can catch germs. Heck, the hospital we take patients too is probably worse than the ambo!

I'm not super paranoid about germs but then, I don't wear a mask in public places either.

 

[c_land]

Have you ever gone into the kitchen in a restaurant? If you did, you'd probably never eat in one again.

Don't ruin China Buffet for me!

 

[wash11]

This thing makes me horny.