I've been wanting an awning on my rig for ages, but it's hard to come up with that kind of coin, especially after buying 19.5" wheels and tires a couple months ago. So, I came up with my own design for an awning on the cheap, total cost: about 80 bucks.
The stay-poles are 8-feet long pieces of 1-inch aluminum tubing with the ends made in my shop. The outer frame tube, which the tarp is attached to with sheet-metal screws, is a ten-feet length of the same tubing. The brackets are made of 1/8" scrap sheet aluminum and MIG-welded. Handy to have the tools to do this sort of thing.
This is how the awning is attached to the top rail, which came installed from the factory. I turned three-inch long pieces of aluminum round rod to .375" diameter (3/8"), then cross-drilled each piece and tapped it #10-24. With the piece of rod slid into the awning channel, I installed and Loc-Tited a screw eye, and tightened it down so that the screw eye passed through the aluminum rod and pressed into the awning channel, preventing movement (like a set-screw). Double-ended brass snap-hooks secure a common 8'x10' green tarp to the screw eyes.
Detail of the stay-pole ends, inserted into the outer awning frame pole. The ends are cross-drilled and hitch pins inserted to prevent wind gusts from pulling the pieces apart.
Detail of the stay-pole brackets, secured to the jack bolts.
There is an extra stay-pole bracket mounted low on the front jack (with a simple hose clamp) so that I can lower one corner of the awning to shed rainwater.
It's entirely possible to put this thing together in a more simple manner than I did, but once I got going I kept revising the design to make it as sleek as possible.
Even rolled up, I don't think it's road-worthy, so I have to unclip the tarp from the camper and then roll the stay-poles up in the tarp. I think I might secure a 10-foot length of four-inch PVC pipe to the roof to store it in. It's a PITA to have it laying across the floor while you're on the road.
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1994 F-350 4x4 LB, SRW, CC, 7.5, E4OD. F & R sway bars, additional overload leafs, Ranchos. Goodyear G124's on Vision wheels. Tork-Lifts.
1997 Coachmen Ranger 100SD w/ extended cabover
Stretch67 wrote: I've been wanting an awning on my rig for ages, but it's hard to come up with that kind of coin, especially after buying 19.5" wheels and tires a couple months ago. So, I came up with my own design for an awning on the cheap, total cost: about 80 bucks.
The stay-poles are 8-feet long pieces of 1-inch aluminum tubing with the ends made in my shop. The outer frame tube, which the tarp is attached to with sheet-metal screws, is a ten-feet length of the same tubing. The brackets are made of 1/8" scrap sheet aluminum and MIG-welded. Handy to have the tools to do this sort of thing.
SNIP!.
Love your awning. You can also use an Overton's 10x10 white canopy cover instead of a gray or blue. It will be cooler and is guaranteed for 1 year. I use a 10x20 to cover my TC under Fl sun/rain/wind. It has survived Katrina and others. About 17 mos. old now.
Thanks for pics. Great Job!
04'Chev 2500HD 9200GVWR ExtCab LongBed 6L GAS tow pack
04' Lance 815, CP, AC, FF, MW, RE, ElectAtwoodjacs, loaded.
13.2mpg/w TC @ 55MPH tow'g 15' boat, 12 mpg @ 65-69 mph.
10@70mph. 8@75. Stock over 26k miles. All mileage before ethanol mandate in FL.
Stretch67 - You have done not only a great job (quality), but the creativity is also commendable. My guess is that you could build several more, and would discover better ways and improvements.
Wayne
blog.rv.net - Your daily guide to the Open Road. 96 Dodge (DSL), 2500 (6200#)
Great Job. Looks like about $300 worth of custom work there! For Rev 1, perhaps some of those telescoping twist lock poles so you could reduce the size for carrying. That should be no challenge for a man with your capabilities: poles that slide inside each other with an offset center bolt in a flat cylindrical solid piece attached to the inner pole.
The first revision will be to the stay-poles, as per VBH's recommendations for adjustable length. As they are, I believe they're about a foot too long, which makes the awning sit very flat. That's fine if the weather's nice and the sun is high.
But if the sun is low in that direction, having the outside edge of the awning a little lower will make more shade later in the day, and will also shed rainwater better.
Adjustable-length stay-poles will also eliminate the need for the third lower bracket used to lower one corner of the awning to shed rainwater.
Beautiful work Stretch67 -- your skills are envied!!! I started to make a similar awning one time, but ran out of motivation after collecting only some of the components. I had collected 2 telescoping fiberglass paint roller extension poles that extended to about 10', a tarp, and a few other parts of hardware. Then for some reason I ended up buying a Horizon A&E can awning. I should have finished the one I was starting to make.
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