Danielle from Fort Worth!

[dsotto]

Hi everyone!
I'm Danielle and am a transplant from Iowa to Texas. I'm a flight attendant and my husband and I do a lot of woodworking projects and we were hoping to build a camper trailer versus buying one.
I've done a bit of research and read some blogs but figured this forum would be the best source of information. I am leaning more towards a streamlined profile but I could be convinced on adding anything else. We are pretty handy and not really intimidated by much for projects so any recommendations for a good beginner build with any fun add on?
I'm still perusing the forum for good plans! Otherwise going to do the basic build I found on the wikibooks thing https://en.m.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_To_ ... g_the_Body

Thanks all! I look forward to getting started!

[friz]

I wouldn't rule out a kit. Reduces the amount of headscratching and a lot of the work is done for you. For a traditional TD check out Big Woody and for something non traditional Chesapeake Light Craft. I did the CLC TD and found it nice to be able to go into the shop and open a manual to know exactly what I needed to do next.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[tony.latham]

Hi everyone!
I'm Danielle and am a transplant from Iowa to Texas. I'm a flight attendant and my husband and I do a lot of woodworking projects and we were hoping to build a camper trailer versus buying one.
I've done a bit of research and read some blogs but figured this forum would be the best source of information. I am leaning more towards a streamlined profile but I could be convinced on adding anything else. We are pretty handy and not really intimidated by much for projects so any recommendations for a good beginner build with any fun add on?
I'm still perusing the forum for good plans! Otherwise going to do the basic build I found on the wikibooks thing https://en.m.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_To_ ... g_the_Body

Thanks all! I look forward to getting started!

And you might take a Google around here about Steve Fredrick's Teardrop Shop Manual. It's a great treatise on sandwiched walls, a dust/waterproof hatch, and building inside-out.









Tony

[pralfred]

Welcome, from San Antonio!

[Woodyperk6]

Hi everyone!
I'm Danielle and am a transplant from Iowa to Texas. I'm a flight attendant and my husband and I do a lot of woodworking projects and we were hoping to build a camper trailer versus buying one.
I've done a bit of research and read some blogs but figured this forum would be the best source of information. I am leaning more towards a streamlined profile but I could be convinced on adding anything else. We are pretty handy and not really intimidated by much for projects so any recommendations for a good beginner build with any fun add on?
I'm still perusing the forum for good plans! Otherwise going to do the basic build I found on the wikibooks thing https://en.m.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_To_ ... g_the_Body

Thanks all! I look forward to getting started!

Great to see someone else from Fort Worth. There are several of us in the area. Welcome!

[dsotto]

Hi everyone!
I'm Danielle and am a transplant from Iowa to Texas. I'm a flight attendant and my husband and I do a lot of woodworking projects and we were hoping to build a camper trailer versus buying one.
I've done a bit of research and read some blogs but figured this forum would be the best source of information. I am leaning more towards a streamlined profile but I could be convinced on adding anything else. We are pretty handy and not really intimidated by much for projects so any recommendations for a good beginner build with any fun add on?
I'm still perusing the forum for good plans! Otherwise going to do the basic build I found on the wikibooks thing https://en.m.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_To_ ... g_the_Body

Thanks all! I look forward to getting started!

Great to see someone else from Fort Worth. There are several of us in the area. Welcome!

That's great! I'm having a tough time getting started. I was going to get the northern tool 4x8 but do you have any recommendations to get one built in our area?
I can't find a plan I like so I was going to piece like five different ones together and wing a lot of it. Haha

[Esteban]

Have you decided what size camper trailer you want? That will have an influence on whether to buy a trailer like one of the Northern Tool 5' x 8' trailers, buy one from another supplier, or perhaps have one built to your specifications.

If you decide to build your own trailer, or have one built for you, look into using a Flexiride axle from southwestwheel.com/flexiride in Dallas, TX.

A quick Google search shows you have an abundance of local steel suppliers. Maybe one of them could recommend a good welding shop.

I favor building your own trailer. I designed my own and had a local welding shop fabricated it. The trailer was completed two days after I provided them my plans and the go ahead. The trailer was well built at very fair price.

[dsotto]

Have you decided what size camper trailer you want? That will have an influence on whether to buy a trailer like one of the Northern Tool 5' x 8' trailers, buy one from another supplier, or perhaps have one built to your specifications.

If you decide to build your own trailer, or have one built for you, look into using a Flexiride axle from southwestwheel.com/flexiride in Dallas, TX.

A quick Google search shows you have an abundance of local steel suppliers. Maybe one of them could recommend a good welding shop.

I favor building your own trailer. I designed my own and had a local welding shop fabricated it. The trailer was completed two days after I provided them my plans and the go ahead. The trailer was well built at very fair price.

I'm not knowledgeable in anything steel related and don't know how to design one. It's our first build and HF doesnt do trailers anymore so I'm looking at the 4x8 at northern tool for $400 and will upgrade the tires. Maybe I'll make some calls on getting a trailer built tomorrow but I just want some simple (that's going to be safe at 60mph on hwy) that isn't too overwhelming! Thank you for your recommendations!

[Esteban]

Many people prefer the comfort of a 5' wide trailer with enough room inside for a queen size bed so two people can sleep comfortably. A 4' wide trailer's cabin often is a too tight squeeze for two people to get a good night's rest. A good idea is mock up your cabin space with cardboard and lay down on cushions inside to see how well you two fit. It's wise to use two doors too.

The Perfect TD by Duane King which is linked to in Design Resources has good ideas for you to consider. About 10 years ago I met Duane and saw his well built & beautiful TD.

[Esteban]

I'm not knowledgeable in anything steel related and don't know how to design one. It's our first build and HF doesnt do trailers anymore so I'm looking at the 4x8 at northern tool for $400 and will upgrade the tires. Maybe I'll make some calls on getting a trailer built tomorrow but I just want some simple (that's going to be safe at 60mph on hwy) that isn't too overwhelming! Thank you for your recommendations!

I tried in vain to find a link to a particular trailer build with a good plan for a trailer frame. I'm frustrated that I couldn't find, and share, the particular one that has an excellent plan you could have used for inspiration. This Tongue Strength information can help. It's linked to from the Design Resources in the top header of tnttt.com. Either an A-Frame or a Composite tongue are stronger than a Single Tongue. A-Frame and Composite tongues also provide good support for a tongue box.

Briefly my trailer frame was built 61" wide by 117" long with a 48" long A-Frame tongue. The outside was made from 2" x 2" x 1/8" (11 gauge) square steel tubing with mitered corners. Interior cross supports on 2' center were made from 2" x 2" x 1/8" L shaped steel. The A-Frame tongue was (over)built with 3" x 2" x 1/8" rectangular steel tubing.

I used a Dexter #9 torsion axle with electric brakes. Currently I'd favor using a 2000# Flexiride axle derated to 1500 or 1750 lbs., with electric brakes.

Trailer Frame Building Tutorial (33 page pdf) Doug Hodder was one of the authors of this excellent tutorial.
Fort Worth metal fabricators Yelp links to Fort Worth area metal fabricators
Fort Worth metal suppliers
recstuff.com fenders (hard to find sizes that fit a teardrop trailer), tires, and wheels
southwestwheel.com trailer parts supplier
campingclassics.com Steve Frederick's teardrop trailer Builders Manual is very useful. His inside out method is a good back and time saver. campingclassics.com/Gallery
tnttt.com/Design_Library/Design_Library many profiles of teardrop trailers
Tongue Strength useful information for designing a trailer tongue
Simple Tongue Strength Table
Perfect TD by Duane King

[working on it]

• I'm also in the DFW area, and I sourced a lot of my steel, and other trailer parts a lot closer than Houston, where Esteban seems to be directing you! I started building it near Weatherford, and finished it in Mansfield, using parts suppliers from all over the Metroplex. At the time, I was working in Plano, travelling thru Dallas to get home, and travelling to Weatherford to work on the trailer, sometimes in the same day. I could have used one of your jet planes to help me travel! I got a lot of the steel, including my tongue replacement, from Metal Supermarket in Dallas, some other steel from another MS in Plano; and there's another in Fort Worth, you might try https://www.metalsupermarkets.com/fort-worth/. And there are other, independent sources nearby, as well, including some in N. Fort Worth .
• As for trailer parts in general, I bought a coupler, chains, wheels, and fenders & backing plates at Southwest Wheel in Dallas, another wheel later on, at Northern Tool, where I also bought new leaf springs and parts, when I replaced my original axle. I used four different Northern Tools, eventually, whichever was nearest to me as I was travelling at the time. As best as I can recall, I also got parts and supplies for my cabin build from 9 Home Depots, 6 Lowes, 4 Tractor Supply stores, E-trailer https://www.etrailer.com/, and Amazon.https://www.amazon.com.
• I bought the most expensive part (so far), the custom-built 3500 lb Dexter axle w/brakes, from Nuera Trailer Parts in Dallas http://www.nuera-transport.com/en/transport/, though I could've done the same at four other suppliers in Dallas, Azle, Arlington, and Rockwall that I had used for other projects. I used Nuera because their salesman (on the phone) was the first one to return my call, and they were located closest to my daily route home! He helped me order it online, while I was at work, and called me back several times to make sure it was right. I was given a delivery time after it was built in Oklahoma, and I picked it up three minutes after it arrived (I helped the forklift driver pick it off the flatbed - I knew how to unload it better than he did, after 50 years experience on forklifts, over the years, and running a receiving department at the time-.
• If you choose to buy a stock trailer as your base, there are a lot of dealers all around the Metroplex, and plenty of independent welders, too, but I used a small derelict trailer, and my friend (expert fabricator/welder) to reconstruct my frame. I later bought two welders and made my own mods when I added the new, improved axle, but I'm no expert, for a long time to come. Whichever way you plan to buy/build your TD or TTT (or Foamie or Cargo Conversion), there are lots of suppliers nearby to help you (except for windows...I bought mine from 'Lil Bear in California).