Back Seat / Bed Build

Essential to every #motovan build is the back seat / bed combo. My goal with this build was to have a place to sleep with all the toys safely locked up inside. Say we're road tripping somewhere and want to pull over to sleep. The last thing I want to do is unload everything just to set up a bed. And yes I know bike racks are a thing, but I really wanted the stealth camper look as well as the added security.

Having a "no-wall build" was another requirement. Sorry Donald, but for this traveling circus I wanted to be able to move about the van in case something fell over, was rattling, etc. You never know what could happen on a road trip.

After spending hours drooling over motovans online, I took to the depths of Facebook Marketplace to find a folding RV couch. I figured this would be the best bet as far as fit and function were concerned. I found one in one day from a fellow moto rider as he was remodeling his trailer with a custom bed setup. $100 later and we were ready to start fabbing a frame.

Building a van is definitely a team effort. I enlisted the help of my dad and friend for this project alone. Greg is a welder by trade and is one of the frequent co-pilots of the Man Van. We purchased three sticks of 1/4" Angle Iron from Industrial Metal Supply that would make up the rectangular frame.

Measure twice, cut once. Ain't that the truth. Turns out our initial measurements were way off and we had to re-adjust before our first cuts. The frame itself measures 64" wide, 20" deep, and is 10.5" tall; sitting flush with the step on the passenger side butting up against the wall on the driver side. The seat tops the frame with the cushions hanging over an inch or so on either side.

Once the welds were cooled off, we drilled mounting holes and spray painted the frame black. We matched the mounting holes to the van floor and secured the frame with some heavy-duty hardware. When all was said and done, this thing was beefier than I envisioned, but ready for anything we throw it's way. Now it's time for some seat belts and to put this thing to the test!