Horsebox build.....our story!

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Farmer Chalk

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Maybe I need to find her a rich boyfriend......

Our journey started oh so innocently 12 years ago with Rocky.....

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Then it started.....:)
 
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tul214

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Well this thread has taken a bit of a handbrake turn into dads moaning about their little darlings but whilst we are sharing pics, here my Molly's first ride at 3, almost 9 years ago to the day!
 
Darbs

Darbs

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tul214 said:
Well this thread has taken a bit of a handbrake turn into dads moaning about their little darlings but whilst we are sharing pics
Click to expand...

I don't think its going the wrong direction, its a good place for the down trodden, wet from standing in the rain, penniless, cold, tired, bitten, barged (but happy) Dads to share their common woes as we await the next interesting horse box build update.
 
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Clannad48

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Darbs said:
I don't think its going the wrong direction, its a good place for the down trodden, wet from standing in the rain, penniless, cold, tired, bitten, barged (but happy) Dads to share their common woes as we await the next interesting horse box build update.
Click to expand...

Err, excuse me I'm not a dad, I'm a MUM - exactly as above but female, does this mean I can't join in :)
 
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Farmer Chalk

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Don't you worry...you have a special seat as an honourable member.....!!
Always a cup of tea ready for you..... Or a glass of chilled Pinot in the summer!
 
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Farmer Chalk

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Patience patience.....

The build is now seriously coming together, the rear ramp is now fully operational and covered and we are tweaking the speeds of the hydraulic ramp.....

Amusingly the first time we operated it it was so powerful it almost catapulted little Adam out through the roof! Hence it needed the hydraulic flow adjusted in order that the ramp rises and falls at a reasonable speed!

The rear aluminium floor is now going down... Much of the delay has been due to the immense amount of wiring that has to be plumbed along the chassis, from the new docking lights to the four reverse/rear loading lights, to the LED locker lights....

Every locker has been wired with built in LED lights that come on when you open a locker, so it now is starting to look like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise...

The granite work surface is down and looks absolutely stunning and the under counter sink is currently being plumbed and wired in.....

Any photos taken now could just not do it justice as we have boxes and boxes of equipment laying around and wires poking and hanging from every orifice....and so I'm going to delay posting more photos... There are men's legs hanging out underneath, legs hanging off the roof and legs akimbo everywhere whilst all the wires and pipes are being connected...

So stick with it and I'll get some photos up soon...

Needless to say I think it is looking seriously awesome and Joseph at Courcheval should be seriously proud of his team...I am astounded at just how much work goes on behind the scenes to finish a modern box nowadays..... There are currently miles and miles of wires to be completed but we are fairly confident it should be driving out in the next two weeks and then off to the paintshop for the next phase to begin...

A special thanks must go to Chris, whose seamstress skills are brilliant...she has been given a number of hides and is now making all of the seating and frames to fit the living area out....

A little teaser but the photo below shows just some of the leather panels currently being machined to fit around the base of the seat areas, some of the cab hatch surrounds... All are yet to be finished but the build is certainly better than I ever envisaged...
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Farmer Chalk

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This weekends updates....

The rear horse area floor has just gone down....which makes access in and out of the box less like a military obstacle course....

Still a huge amount of work to be done but mainly in the wiring section...the wires that you can see relate to the electricity sockets, the TV, the booster aerial, and a number of lighting circuits...

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We still have to run the plumbing for the shower to go in this hidden wall....


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The photo above highlights the work of Courcheval and their build ethic... This is a little piece of angle which they placed over the hdmi connectors to stop them coming apart within the hidden wall.

We have installed a hdmi socket in the living area so the girls can connect a PC to run through the tv... The computer sits on the work surface and you plug into the socket in the wall so they can stream and watch FEI tv whilst they are away...

The tv we have used is a Linsar tv /DVD combo so they can watch films also whilst they are away. It also has a sound bar which allows us to Bluetooth music through the speakers without having to invest in an additional stereo sound system....
 
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Farmer Chalk

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We have also tested the automatic awning on the side of the truck... It works simply by a remote control and extends quickly and easily.
Thanks to advice from people on here we have also placed work light LEDs underneath so we can see what we are doing at night!


The work surfaces have now gone down.... We await fitting the upstands that fit against the back walls...
The taps need to be fitted next. The hole at the front of the picture is for the pull up plug extensions and USB charging ports..


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So still lots and lots to do! But starting to come together nicely!
 
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Farmer Chalk

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Thanks peeps.... I would actually suggest that this has been one big joint effort in fairness... All of the ideas that have been put forward I have tried to incorporate into the build.... Thank you for everyone who has taken time out to suggest ideas and innovations....

Still lots to show in relation to the final build and some of the functions adopted....

It's booked in for painting at the end of the month .... Bonded Windows hopefully go in later this week!
 
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Farmer Chalk

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:):):)
Brilliant....but so so cruel posting this now! All those brilliant ideas....

Gutted! Especially love the hiding place for the Mini..... I wonder if the Missus we ever find that secret compartment......;);)
 
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Farmer Chalk

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Latest update....
The last week has really been a week under the lorry...well big Adam has been under the lorry at least....

The miles and miles of wires and cables running front to back of the lorry have now been routed behind cupboards and down and along the chassis....l've been in the backs of the cupboards poking them down the holes and Adam has been looming them up and running them along the outriggers....

But it has now starting moving forward again....the electric 240v mains circuits have been run together with the inverters and leisure batteries located...

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The photos above now show the battery venting panels located above the first locker together with the electric/gas water heater vent...

The rear horse area is also starting to be fitted out.... The window grills to the left of the lorry have been fitted... The innovative open window panel is about to be fitted with glass in the morning...
This panel allows the whole window area to be opened allowing cool fresh air into the lorry at shows....in bad weather the panel can remain closed but each of the three Windows comprising the panel can be opened individually..

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The horse area is soon also to be lined with the padding and the partition rails added.

The black box on the floor of the lorry is the airconditioning unit...this will provide cold or warm air to both the cabin and the horse area as directed thus if we are stuck in heavy traffic in the summer we can keep both the horses and ourselves cool!
 
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Farmer Chalk

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The openings for the saddle and tack store has now also been cut out of the right hand side....this cupboard mounted in the back right hand corner of the horse area will also be accessible from both inside the lorry and outside.... It will also house the aircon unit and the plumbing for the vents...
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The leather seats and trim panels are also nearing completion....forgive the colour as they are covered in dust at present... Getting ready for the Windows to be bonded into position tomorrow!
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Bernster

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Love all the little (and not so little) details in this build! What an epic box. I think you need to take it on a HHO road trip and we can come round and oggle it at various shows haha. We have def all been involved in the build virtually :)
 
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Farmer Chalk

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Thanks everyone for the lovely comments... Really been inspired by all the people and their suggestions on this forum...thanks must also go to the boys at Courcheval who have the patience of Saints putting up with me and my madcap ideas...
Take my hat off to them...and their absolute skill and precision putting it together....they have an amazing can do attitude and have not yet said no! ....yet....;)
 
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