RVs and Campers: Illustrated History Books & Guides

The Van Conversion Bible: The Ultimate Guide to Converting a Campervan

An all-encompassing manual for the strategic planning, creative design, and effective transformation of a standard van into a fully-equipped campervan.
Written by Charlie Low and Dale Comley, renowned as 'climbingvan,' this comprehensive resource provides answers to both anticipated and unforeseen questions, ensuring your campervan project realizes its full potential.

The book encompasses intricate diagrams for gas, water, and electrical systems, along with a comprehensive, step-by-step construction guide, facilitating the initiation of your journey towards mobile living.
Regardless of your proficiency level or financial constraints, the book imparts the knowledge and skills required to construct a customized campervan that aligns precisely with your unique requirements. Your very own mobile abode, ready for adventure, beckons within these pages.

Product details

Author:	Charlie Low, Dale Comley
Details:	333 pages, 10 x 7.7 x 1.42 in (25.5 x 19.5 x 3.6 cm), hardback
Illustrations:	many color photos
Language:	English
Publisher:	Hardie Grant Books (AUS, 2023)
ISBN:	9781784886042

Build Your Own Overland Camper Manual - Designing, building and kitting out vans and trucks for overland travel

If you have a passion for off-the-beaten-track adventure, being immersed in spectacular landscapes, witnessing exotic wildlife, and visiting diverse cultures - all at a pace set by you - an overland camper can turn your dreams into reality.
This manual gives clear and helpful advice on how to establish the kind of overlanding vehicle most appropriate to your own particular needs and, with clear step-by-step guidance, will help you through the process of designing, building and fitting-out your own ultimate overlanding companion.

Whether you decide you would be best served by a converted van, a converted off-the-peg-motorhome, or by what - for many - is the last word in overlanding vehicles: a truck based camper, you will find clear and concise advice on build techniques, plus guidance on the equipment and systems most suited to the demands of truly autonomous travel.

As well as sections covering installations of water supply and electrical systems, gas, heating, cooling, washrooms, kitchens and home-from-home luxuries, this essential manual clearly demystifies the 'black arts' of coping with chassis induced torsional stress and how to build your own bespoke habitation box from scratch.

Pages of the book "Build Your Own Overland Camper Manual - Designing, building and kitting out vans and trucks for overland travel"

Author Steven Wigglesworth has utilised his largely self-taught mechanical and engineering skills to create motor vehicles capable of facilitating self-contained overland travel and has modified a couple of mainstream motorcaravans and built a van based overland camper.
He is passionate about truck based overlanding vehicles in particular and as a result of countless hours of research plus empirical knowledge gained by years of hands-on work and spending time travelling in his own creations, he has the ability to write with authority on the subject.

Product details

Author:	Steven Wigglesworth
Details:	192 pages, 11 x 8.5 x 0.67 in (28 x 21.5 x 1.7 cm), hardback
Illustrations:	many color photos
Language:	English (technical dictionaries in 19 languages are available for free download here)
Publisher:	Haynes Publishing (GB, 2016)
ISBN:	9781785210761

Fitting a Camper Van Interior

A definitive guide to modifying or upgrading a camper van interior at home.

This book offers guidance and advice on how to maximise the interior space, style and functionality of any camper van model. It breaks down each task down into step-by-step photography and instructions, from the initial design stages, right through to expanding the camper van with awnings and elevating roofs.

With safety tips throughout, the book covers:
- Considerations when purchasing your camper van - classic or new model? How to assess an existing interior and determine what you need from your camper van
- Designing and planning a camper van interior - ideas and suggestions to help decide what you need to include inside a camper van
- Preparation - how to strip the inside of a camper van and prepare it for a new interior, including fitting insulation, sound proofing, rust protection, flooring and panelling
- Seats and sleeping - how to make your own seats and fit them, restore a rock and roll bed and fit a hammock
- Kitchen equipment - step-by-step instructions on making your own kitchen units and fitting equipment such as a fridge and stove
- Camper van electrics - hooking up at a campsite, running a leisure battery and other ideas for operating electrical equipment
- Expanding a camper van - how to make a canopy and fit an elevating roof.

Product details

Author:	Rob Hawkins
Details:	160 pages, 11.6 x 8.25 x 0.43 in (29.5 x 21 x 1.1 cm), paperback
Illustrations:	753 color photos
Language:	English
Publisher:	The Crowood Press Ltd (GB, 2014)
ISBN:	9781847976055

Build your own Motorcaravan (2nd Edition) - A practical manual for van conversions, coachbuilts and major renovation projects

Designing and building your own motorcaravan gives you the freedom to create a distinctive holiday home tailored to your needs - and also enables you to control the cost. Whether you want to fit out a van, renovate a camper, revive an old model or build one from scratch, this manual will take you every step of the way.
This new edition includes up-to-date information on electrical systems and water supplies, as well as sought-after storage options and weight-saving tips when working with wood. Armed with all the facts - and many step-by-step instructions - building your own motorcaravan quickly becomes achievable.

• Chapters on the chassis, refurbishing older campervans, converting vans, interior layout, materials, weight reduction, bodywork (including fitting additional roof windows), insulation, storage ideas, working with fibreglass and wood, electrical systems, water supply, gas systems, heating and toilets.
• Richly illustrated with 863 colour photographs.

Product details

Author:	John Wickersham
Details:	224 pages, 10.6 x 8.25 x 0.79 in (27 x 21 x 2 cm), hardback
Illustrations:	863 color photos and drawings
Language:	English (technical dictionaries in 19 languages are available for free download here)
Publisher:	Haynes Publishing (GB, 2013)
ISBN:	9780857332813

The Motorcaravan Manual - Choosing, using and maintaining your motorcaravanl (3rd Edition)

This radically updated third edition encompasses the very latest developments in motorcaravans. It is full of practical information for both new and experienced owners and includes an overview of models, maintenance and repairs on habitation elements, explanations of construction methods, practical advice concerning appliances, and detailed descriptions of motorcaravan supply systems.

Pages of the book "The Motorcaravan Manual - Choosing, using and maintaining your motorcaravanl (3rd Edition)"

The content is invaluable for owners of both leisure vehicles based on van conversions and coachbuilt models constructed on a separate chassis. Guidance is also given on accessories, weight restrictions, modifications, restoration work and self-build projects.

Product details

Author:	John Wickersham
Details:	216 pages, 11 x 8.7 x 0.79 in (28 x 22 x 2 cm), hardback
Illustrations:	760 color photos
Language:	English (technical dictionaries in 19 languages are available for free download here)
Publisher:	Haynes Publishing (GB, 2012)
ISBN:	9780857331243

Classic Dormobile Camper Vans - A Guide to the Camper Vans of Martin Walter and Dormobile

Dormobile, a name inescapably linked with camper vans, grew out of a Folkestone coachbuilding company called Martin Walter's. In 1957, the first really affordable camper van , the Dormobile, was introduced. It was a great success and within a couple of years, over 10,000 had been sold.

The factory produced camper vans in such huge numbers throughout the 1950s, 60s and 70s that they were by far the leading producer of motorcaravans within the UK. The pop-up, candy-striped roofs became a common sight at campsites and on beaches all over Britain and abroad.

Dormobile used a variety of base vehicles but perhaps the best known are the Bedford CA Romany, the Volkswagen split and bay vans and the Land Rover, all instantly recognisable with their pop-up roofs. The company also made a series of coach-built models including the Debonair and Newlander on Bedford and Toyota chassis.
Telling the Martin Walter and Dormobile story, this book is a complete guide to these camper vans.

Product details

Author:	Martin Watts
Details:	128 pages, 11.8 x 8.5 x 0.63 in (30 x 21.5 x 1.6 cm), hardback
Illustrations:	317 b&w and color photos
Language:	English
Publisher:	The Crowood Press Ltd (GB, 2009)
ISBN:	9781847970831

RVs & Campers 1900-2000 - An Illustrated History

Today, hundreds of thousands of people live in RVs permanently, and even more use campers and RVs for recreation. This is the first and only book to give an entertaining look at the history and evolution of this popular lifestyle and hobby.

Hundreds of nostalgic photographs show a wide variety of campers and RVs throughout the entire 20th century. See early auto tent-camping, converted buses, fold-out trailers, homemade campers, foreign exploration expeditions and even traveling chapels with living quarters for pastors!

Anyone who has ever enjoyed RVs and campers will be thrilled by this retrospective look at these vehicles and their predecessors throughout the 20th Century. Chapters broken down by decade with brief 2-3 page introductory material for each chapter.

Product details

Author:	Donald F. Wood
Details:	160 pages, 11 x 8.5 x 0.51 in (28 x 21.5 x 1.3 cm), paperback
Illustrations:	340 b&w photos
Language:	English
Publisher:	Iconografix (USA, 2002)
ISBN:	9781583880647

Campervans - Was man über den Kastenwagen als Wohnmobile wissen muss

Camper vans are popular: the converted vans are narrow enough to drive on narrow streets and yet spacious enough to transport bulky items.
In Germany, there are over 350 models from around 50 brands: short, medium or long, high or extra high vans with standard, GRP or pop-up roofs, based on Fiat, Citroën, Peugeot, Renault, Ford, Volkswagen or Mercedes-Benz. This selection is not only overwhelming for van newbies.

This book explains everything you need to know about vans - from the advantages and disadvantages of the various floor plans to the electricity, gas, water and heat supply on board to buying a used vehicle or renting your own vehicle.
Comprehensive checklists and numerous practical tips round off this standard work on camper vans.

Product details

Author:	Michael Allner
Details:	260 pages, 9 x 6.7 x 0.67 in (24 x 17 x 1.7 cm), paperback
Illustrations:	300 b&w and color photos
Language:	German
Publisher:	Motorbuch Verlag (D, 2022)
ISBN:	9783613044432

Das Busbastler Handbuch - Schritt für Schritt zum eigenen Campervan

Bed, kitchen, sanitary facilities. Gas, electricity, water. What sounds simple at first is often hidden in the details. Converting a camper requires careful planning and research, which often takes weeks until a suitable floor plan is developed.

The technical aspects can be particularly complex, but this guide from two experienced hobbyists offers practical tips and tricks for customizing your own campervan. This guide supports self-help and makes every camper conversion feasible.

Product details

Author:	Manuel Lemke, Christian Zahl
Details:	288 pages, 9.25 x 6.5 x 0.98 in (23.5 x 16.5 x 2.5 cm), paperback
Illustrations:	illustrated
Language:	German
Publisher:	Bruckmann Verlag (D, 2022)
ISBN:	9783734310645

Living off the Road - Wie du dein Reisemobil ausbaust und optimierst

If you want to equip and optimize your motorhome according to your own wishes at a reasonable price, this guide will provide you with the necessary know-how. The vehicle should be smart, practical and robust - and comfortable. The wish list is long, the number of possibilities even longer.

This book - a conversion guide for motorhomes, caravans and off-road vehicles - provides the necessary overview and uses checklists and DIY routes to show how the conversion can be successful.
From the right insulation, window types, heating systems, air conditioning, electricity and water supplies to the manufacture of furniture, it helps you make the right decisions and successfully implement the self-conversion.

Product details

Author:	Michael Scheler
Details:	320 pages, 9.7 x 6.9 x 0.98 in (24.5 x 17.5 x 2.5 cm), paperback
Illustrations:	500 b&w and color photos
Language:	German
Publisher:	Pietsch Verlag (D, 2021)
ISBN:	9783613509221

Made to Camp - So gelingt der Aus- und Umbau von Campingbus, Wohnwagen und Co.

Do you also dream of setting off for new shores in a camper van or caravan? Discovering other places, sleeping here today and there tomorrow, and simply staying the next day or driving on, as the mood takes you? All you need is the right van for it?

Pages of the book "Made to Camp - So gelingt der Aus- und Umbau von Campingbus, Wohnwagen und Co."

Then this book is just right for you: transform your van into a custom-designed home to take with you, easily, cost-effectively and with lots of fun!
The numerous tips and tricks for the various types of conversion and options for expansion make your project very easy: from the ideal floor covering to the cleverest way to lay the electricity to the kitchen equipment, all areas are taken into account. So that nothing stands in the way of your next adventure!

Product details

Author:	Katharina Maloun, Andreas Weiss
Details:	160 pages, 9.8 x 7.7 x 0.79 in (25 x 19.5 x 2 cm), paperback
Illustrations:	many color photos
Language:	German
Publisher:	Frech (D, 2021)
ISBN:	9783772445019

Der Weg zum eigenen Camper: Schritt für Schritt Anleitung zum Ausbau vom Kastenwagen zum Traumwohnmobil

You don't need much to build your dream motorhome: the urge for freedom and a good plan. This guide combines both, because it is a guide and a freedom enabler.
Ready for adventure? Then immerse yourself in the multifaceted world of the do-it-yourself camper.

Here you will learn step by step how the dream of your own camper can become a reality. The author himself converted an empty van into his own motorhome. He shares his tips, tricks and experiences with you in a profound and targeted way. In the form of instructions, the exciting chapters bring you closer to a motorhome that is as individual as you are.
You can look forward to the informative topics of interior design, furnishings and electrics, among others. Theory and practice are wonderfully complemented by the author's personal recommendations. And you can save time and money too.

- Step by step to your own dream motorhome
- Keep an overview: from planning to registration
- Various conversion options explained with advantages and disadvantages
- From practice for practice - Save money and time with valuable tips
- With lots of bonus material, clear pictures and sketches.

Product details

Author:	Camping Media
Details:	201 pages, 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.47 in (23 x 15.5 x 1.2 cm), paperback
Illustrations:	many photos and drawings
Language:	German
Publisher:	Independently Published (USA, 2020)
ISBN:	9798665887739