That's The Way I Want To Rock n Roll

Right then!!  This is where the conversion of the van takes a massive leap forward - the rock n roll bed.

I've done lots of research. 

I've done lots of pricing comparisons in spreadsheets - followed by more research. 

I've read a significant amount of forum posts about beds, belts, headrests and seat position/height. 

One thing was an absolute nailed on requirement - the bed absolutely had to be M1 safety tested!!  This is the safety testing and certification of the seat sometimes referred to as pull testing.  That's because the test consists of a very hard pull on the seat belts using a massive machine to simulate a crash at 30mph into a concrete wall - whilst measuring the level of distortion in the frame. 

A few other things on my requirements list - 

1.  3/4 width bed

2.  Keep some storage area behind the seat. 

3.  Leather as an option.

4.  Custom pattern stitching (yes, it's gonna be orange - of course).

The shortlist was Titan beds, Smartbed Evolution and the Cambee bed. 

The winner is...   ... Cambee!  Really like their stuff. Good price. Good design for how I want it to work and an occasional lap belt to seat 3. This means if I went for a pair of captains seats up front, I could still seat 5 in the van if I really needed to.

Not being one to shy away from a bit of graft (hopefully you're getting that from this blog), I also liked that Cambee can supply a subframe option to allow self install. This particularly appealed to the DIY seeking sense of achievement, trying to do as much as possible myself side of things. 

So, a couple of chats with Matthew at Cambee and a fair few emails too and the bed was ordered. Now, just sit and wait 6 weeks.            Here's a sneaky peak of a very rough drawing of what I wanted that I sent to Matthew. 

Oh and while you're waiting, LOTS to do!!!  (Apart from anything else, Nicole and I are getting married in 2 weeks!!).

Adding some trimmings

Leather gear lever gaitor (with orange stitching of course).

Cheap mod but something which I think adds a nice touch to the cab area - not the easiest thing in the world to fit though. There were a few brief moments when having a third hand would have been very handy. It reminded me of the angst of trying to adjust the brakes on my old BMX.

Next up -
No, it's not a Punch and Judy show, just some curtains to make things a little more convenient when wanting some privacy in the back. These are a lot easier and quicker to draw than putting the thermal blinds up. 

There are many types of curtains on the market and after a little bit of reading I saw no reason to look any further than the ones made by Kiravans

If you're going to fit these, a couple of things to keep in mind...

1.  The curtains themselves come fitted with press-studs that are designed to clip onto studs that you screw on on the sides of the window frames.  On the sliding door, one of these won't have anywhere to go as it positions right where the plastic housing for the sliding door handle is.

2.  When you're driving around, keep the press studs done up or the little rattle from the press studs will drive you crazy. 

Doesn't stop these being a really great mod that's really easy to fit.