VW DIY CAMPER INTERIORS
Testimonials
" Fred of SJS Campers could not of been more helpful with our interior for our Late Bay, quality design and finish and delivered quickly, would not hesitate to recommend t..."
Michael Murphy
Recommended
"The finish is top quality & lightweight.Fred could not have been a more helpful supplier and made us some extra units away from his standard design for our Late bay.cant wait to..."
Mike & Val
"A very satisfied customer"
Recent Photos
In the beginning
My name is Fred Seddon, I started a Carpentry and Joinery Apprenticeship in the sixties when I was 15, I could have stayed on at school because I had worked my way up to the top class, but that did not sit well with me at all. Thinking I would be free of school forever I took up the Apprenticeship. Well I was in for a big surprise, I had to go one full day a week to College, and also two nights, this was compulsory under the Indentured Apprenticeship agreement. I did well in College and could have gone a lot further, maybe into teaching if I had wanted. I do teaching work now, but thankfully not in a school, I may tell you about it sometime. After my apprenticeship when I was 20 I decided to go Freelance into the Building-Trade, I did Sub Contract work for a period of time to other Subcontractors and Main Contractors. I had a number of offers to join Companies as a Site Manager on a permanent basis, but I always declined. I did agree to work as a Sub Contracting Manager on a number of occasions, with the proviso that I would be left to run the job in my own way. This worked out quite well for a time, I would also be asked to go to sites that had more or less come to a standstill. In time I formed my own company building extensions to houses and contract work on factories, after this I settled in to doing refurbish work on private homes, as well as PVCU windows and doors, of which I am not a great fan.
Time for a change, in about 1997 I met Simon he was nuts about VW camper vans. I asked him to give me a lift with a Fiat TC engine I was going to fit in my SKODA Estelle. We picked it up in a Camper he had at the time. After we had a brew at my flat. Simon liked the way I had done my flat and he mentioned getting involved with camper van interiors on VW's, but at the time I was not interested.
In March 2007 I started to think about doing something else work-wise, I had something in mind, so I started to look around for a workshop I could rent. I was not having too much success at finding a place, so I contacted Simon to see if he knew of anywhere. When I called down to see him, he had an area in his large workshop I could use to get the project off the ground. It is worth adding at this point that Simon was immersed in his passion, the restoration of VW Camper vans. Needless to say he mentioned me getting involved in designing and making of an interior for the VW T2."The rest is history" so they say, well not quite, I had a long hard think about it and decided I would give it a go. Many days and hours were spent looking at various ways we could improve, maybe a little on the original designs, Simons input was invaluable as he had much experience with VW T2s. Templates were made and tried until at last I was happy to make a set of units to trial fit, and they fitted really well, so this was the start.
We do not sit back and rest on our laurels at SJS so to speak, we look to improve and better, both the design and quality of the Interiors. Just recently we decided to look at ways the top of the Base Unit could be improved on the T2.The idea of a one piece top to cover the Side Unit as well was appealing. The SMEV 9123 combination unit gave us part of the answer. By fitting this unit it meant we would have to increase both the width and length of the Base Unit. This was done, and it was found that we still had a roomy interior. A spin off benefit was that now we had more room to fit the excellent Vitrifrigo fridge, if anyone wanted that option. The R & R Bed was looked at also and it was decided that 25mm base boards would be an improvement, so they are now what you get. You will find that our R & R bed is quite wide compared to others on the market, this was one of the areas we looked at closely when designing the new interior. We will always aim for further improvement as time goes by, so keep on accessing the website to see what's happening. As we are able to edit and update it ourselves.
I have added a couple of pictures of things I have made. This will hopefully give you confidence that when you purchase an Interior from SJS VW Camper Interiors you can be sure it will be well crafted.
These are a few things I made out of scrap wood
This is a miniature grand piano I made in 1998/99, in a very small shed at the back of my flat. As you can see it is a table/ storage box. It does'nt play by the way, the keyboard is authentic though. In the shot below this one you will notice a lamp I made also. It is made from a Red Deer's antler and an oak base.
My Gibson Les Paul copy
The only peice of wood I had to buy to make this guitar was the Maple Top. I was in Grange Over Sands a while ago, I called in at a large wood yard, the guy who owned it was only to happy to provide me with a book matched top, he charged me just £9.00. The rest of the wood came from skips round and about were I live. ("I love rootin in bins").
" Me Child "
"Stop bein serious"
This is me child with his axe, he will play mine one day.
I always wear my best clothes for work
" I love rootin in bins "
I was wandering the streets the other day, and what do you know, I spotted a skip with a nice chair in it. I called at the house and asked the man could I have the chair in the skip. He said "take it". I went to get my car, he said I could pull in the drive. When I got there he had taken it out for me, (wasnt he kind). This will go in my office for my wife. "I love rootin in bins".
Another thing I love is reverse street cred, can you tell?
Do you think this guy is one of the Shadows?
Do you like the Tiger skin seat covers?
Finished at last 17/12 13
It plays really well, my son said its got a nice action
Its been a really long time from start to finish. I am quite pleased with the results. When I heard my son play those first notes with it plugged into the amp, I was quite relieved. It works, I said. A long time ago someone said to me that I would have to know a lot about music to make a guitar. How much do I know about music now? some sounds good and some doesn't.
