miniVan dogbox

[schnell]

I use a minivan for covering lotsa miles here in NM and often haul hounds with me. I was thinking about a modification, when all of a sudden fate hand me a lemon. I hit a pothole on a dirt road. Hard enough to goof up my front end - and hard enough to break the window latch on a rear window. Didn't notice the latch until I drove another mile down the road when the whole damn window just fell off the mounts.

Fortunately, I'd already been contemplating removing that particular window for the dogs. Now that it's gone they love it.



So, on to the lemonade. I want to make a panel with a couple of portholes, so they can't jump. I've seen a couple good ideas, using bucket lips, boat bulkhead fittings, and a few other things in previous threads. Has anyone made dog portholes in acrylic? I'd like to be able to see out through the panel to prevent blindspots and the transparent plastic would give me a "window" even with the portholes closed.

[B.B.BD]

Thats a good looking blue dog

[Marcel B&t]

your blue dog looks awsome! whats the breeding on him? i was thinking of doing the same thing with my van.

[schnell]

I got lots of compliments at the train station this morning, that goofy blue dog turns some heads. His name is Rope-A-Dope and he's mostly from Cameron lines.

People also thought I had deliberately removed the window for the dogs and comented on how clever it was. They'd seen me with a pile of em in there yesterday. I told one person it was a happy accident and she laughed.

I've been hauling 1 to 4 hounds at a time in the miniVan and they seem to love it. I don't have any seats in the back so it's a big compartment. The wheel well has some cup holders and other molded trays which seeem to work pretty good for positive footing. It also has AC in back but the open window doesn't keep it in for long.

I've thought about raising a platform to window level for storage underneath, but big and empty is the most versatile. I had a friend who built several school bus conversions who taught me that the "BEST" design was empty. Then configure at will. Rearrange at your liesure without getting locked into circumstance with a bunch of crap in the way.

Last week or so I measure, contemplated, and priced some parts. The shape concerns me if I make a window replacement it will have to have curves in X and Y dimensions. Plexiglass seems like what I'll need if I make a permanent cover.

Boat parts are available that give me a circular opening with screw in clear openings. These things are pretty cheap and might give me a little bit of weather protection when it does get cold. Here's a boatbuilders webpage that sells deckplates.

http://www.duckworksbbs.com/hardware/hatches/index.htm


Then again it works fine with no window or covering so far...