We added a couple of interesting things to the camper recently. Both of them add something to the appearance, but also have important functional roles. There are many interesting modifications to our Northstar Arrow. You can read the list on the main page, or review a few posts back to see photos and details of some modifications.
One addition will help reinforce the screen door. It is a piece of decorative metal drilled in to the door frame. It is on the inside of the door, and provides strength to the screen frame. So far it has helped stop the dogs from pushing out through the door. 
From the inside they can still see out, but not as clearly as they could through just the plain screen. We found this for sale at the Tucson store of Industrial Metal Supply. Here is a link to the product we used. There is a similar product at the major home building supply chain-store. 
The other addition is the hanging of the sand ladders on the side of the truck. 
These sand ladders started their life as aircraft landing deck in WWII. We purchased them here , where you can also buy an airplane fuselage or a helicopter shell! They packaged them and shipped them to us quickly. The first thing we did was take them to the local metal shop in Puerto Penasco, MX to have them cut down. That saved weight and size! 
We attached L-brackets to the bottom of the aluminum frame. Then found large steel “flowers” to use as washers to hold the eye-bolts in the holes of the sand ladders. 
Later some painting took place and things really started to look sharp. Although we decided to stick with the “Mad Max” look of the rusty metal landing mats. They look pretty cool there. They will help reduce rocks being thrown from the back tires. And if we get stuck in sand or mud— they will help us get out! We could also use them to bridge a gap or even level the camper for parking. And that is the story of the sand ladders!
B.T.W. A good place to install a map is the ceiling above the bed (dream at night, unless it will give you noghtmsres) or like me my ceiling in the entore RV is covered with older large maps of every continent I plan to travel too (cutout around all the vents and lights, etc.) Just an idea.
Sand ladders for the wheels are a great addition for anyone Overlanding in Central and South America (a whinch may also come in handy.)
Looking forward to checking out all your adds to your vehicule. Trying to make sure I dont forget any renovations and additions before my long journey begins. Keep your great ideas coming!
Yes! They have done welding on the VW for us for years. Watch for the next post about the rear deck they built for this camper! El Chispazo has a cool VW hidden in a storage room, too!
Is that metal fabrication shop in PP the one that’s across the street from Michigan Market?