MyAway build - Updates for space usage & organization

[S. Heisley]

Thanks, Uncle Chan.

Sorry for another delay, here. It's just too darned hot right now. This afternoon, it was 105 degrees in the backyard and 95 in the garage and I'll admit I am a woos. Instead, I'm tackling house-type things that I've been putting off. (Besides, it air-conditioned in the house! )

I am taking the time to learn a little about 12volt electricity and plan things out for the trailer. Also, I managed to mess up my door frame when I tried to plan for a door latch that I decided would never work. It was much too big. Took the latch back and got a more traditional style today. So, I am still doing things; just nothing worth pictures or publication yet.

[S. Heisley]

Hi, Trailer fans! Here is my progress report and a couple pics for August:

Presently, I’m skinning the walls. Gluing in 100 degree weather can be difficult; but, I am wiping down the frames with a wet cloth before I apply the Titebond III glue. That seems to help a lot. You can see the trailer's back wall on the bench in the foreground and the already skinned driver side wall, leaning against the shelving, in the background to the right. That’s not the final finish. The walls look dark because they have the first coat of CPES on them, to help protect them.

I trace the ‘ribs’ of each wall before I attach the final ‘skin’ and make notations for the part that the paper doesn’t cover. This will make it easier to find the boards and screws after they are hidden by the plywood. You’ll notice that some of the boards have cut-outs in them. That’s because, when I was building the frames, I over-built and am paying for it now. I weigh each framed piece and calculate approximately how much it will weigh when finished. Then, I check my original estimates. If I’m over, (which I usually am) I do a little ‘plastic surgery’ where I can, to trim off unneeded excess and try to keep the weight down as close as possible to my original, slightly flawed estimates.



I’m running out of room in the garage; so, the folding walls have been moved inside, to the hallway.

[aggie79]

Hi Sharon,

Your craftsmanship continues to impress! I'm following your build thread closely because #2 for me will have some type of expandable capabilities - perhaps a raising roof, a slide-out or both. Thank you for sharing.

By the way, do you mind if I show my wife your pictures showing materails being stored inside? (At this point in my build, I am "space challenged" in our small garage.)

Thanks, Tom

[S. Heisley]

Aggie79 wrote:

Hi Sharon,

Your craftsmanship continues to impress! I'm following your build thread closely because I #2 for me will have some type of expandable capabilities - perhaps a raising roof, a slide-out or both. Thank you for sharing.

By the way, do you mind if I show my wife your pictures showing materails being stored inside? (At this point in my build, I am "space challenged" in our small garage.)

Thanks, Tom

Hi, Tom:

Thanks for your kind words, Tom. I've never built a trailer before and it feels like I'm making a lot of rooky goofs. The biggest ones are buying cheap plywood and over-building. As far as the cheap wood goes, I didn't think I had a choice. I had called everywhere, looking for 1/8" birch plywood and nobody had any. It turned out that nobody had "birch" 1/8" plywood! Just by chance, I found a source other than the box stores. I'm told it is the only source in a 180 mile radius of here. I had originally called them but they didn't have "birch"! Having better plywood has been a God-send!

I'm sweating bullets, trying to get and keep my trailer weight down below 1000 pounds. I framed everything too sturdy! It's definitely a learning experience! For me, being a rooky builder means I'm doing the teardrop dance in reverse...Forward, back...Forward, back, back...Forward, forward, back.

If you think the hall is a kick, you should see the guest room closet! (Oh, Oh! I'm telling secrets that you might use to persuade your wife with! She isn't going to be happy with me!) I should tell you that I have an 'L' shaped hallway; so, company in the front part of the house can't see my 'storage area'.

[Steve_Cox]

Hi Sharon,

Nice to see you working on your trailer. Enjoyed the new photos, thanks.

[S. Heisley]

Sorry for the late reply, Steve. Thanks for your support.

After responding to Aggie79 (Tom), I slipped out for a quick camping trip. I think I finally broke my tent zipper for good and, the first night, the dog got me up at 4:30 AM with 40 F degrees (inside the tent) but we had a good time anyway. The tent's hole patches are peeling back. I think the tent is asking to be retired. Now, I gotta get that trailer done!

[2bits]

Good job retiring the tent! Nothing like that for motivation!

Sharon my friend I apologize but I must've just been checking the board during the gremlin times and didn't see your build until now but I just read the whole thing and I am impressed with the original ideas you are putting forth. I am sooo glad for the new Build Journals forum! ! ! I have found a couple of other people's builds too!

I am watching ya now so get out there, it's not hot anymore just HUMID haha!

[robertaw]

Sharon - Just found your build thread tonight and read through the whole thing! I'm really impressed! Your build is amazing and inspiring. It's really cool how you jumped right into doing something you wanted to do.

Everything on your trailer looks so neat and perfectly put together. It looks like it's being built by an experienced builder.

Looking forward to watching your progress now that I know its here!

[S. Heisley]

Thanks for the encouragement, Thomas and Roberta.

Since I have limited space to work in, I have been buying 2 or 3 pieces of plywood at a time. But, the company that I get my plywood from is running really low and they don't know when they will get more in. (Companies up here, at the north end of the valley, often wait to order until they have a full truck load…saves money.) I guess that gives me extra incentive to get my skinning done!

I just finished skinning the third wall tonight. Tomorrow, I'll clean up the edges. (I'm beginning to see why some folks on the forum complain about sanding and rasping!) As I skin a wall, I'm putting a coat of CPES on the outside and a couple coats of urethane on the inside to protect it from my bumbling self. It already saved me from accidentally messing up one wall. So, tomorrow, the wall in the foreground will also get a coat of urethane.



Since I still have one piece of plywood, I may skin the stationary ceiling this weekend. But, I need to cut out some weight on that piece first as it is 12 pounds over my estimate. I guess I really got carried away on that one! Then, Monday, I'll try to get some more plywood to finish the skinning of the rest.

The plan is for the walls and stationary ceiling to interlink when installed on the trailer deck. I was really careful with my measuring and cutting. Here's hoping that when I put them together, they fit!

[S. Heisley]

I got the stationary roof’s ceiling skinned and ready for a protective coat of urethane. I thought this might be a good picture to show for two reasons.

1)To give people a feel for the size and design of the roof. The part displayed is the stationary portion and will be about 46 inches high. The empty part in the middle will be a separate roof that lifts up to standing level in the front, slanting down like an attic bedroom in the back.
2)Because Aunti M will like seeing all the sawdust on the floor. There’s plenty of it!

[Steve_Cox]

Sharon,

Looks really good from this side of the country.

[S. Heisley]

Thanks, Steve. I amazed myself on this one...except for one thing. I discovered I can't think upside down and I planned and cut everything backwards. So, the one awkward plywood joining that is slightly imperfect and was supposed to be hidden behind a cupboard is on the opposite side of the ceiling from where it's meant to be. Ah, well...Even there, it will be partially hidden by a light fixture. I guess no harm was done.

Speaking of messing up, I discovered I can't put urethane on at night, even with the doors down in the garage. Bugs take to that stuff like they were glue sniffing and they find a way to get inside. A moth did a break-dance on my freshly coated side. Then, after I fixed that, I went to bed. When I got up the next morning, it was peppered with gnats that had a urethane-sniffing party while I was sleeping. Ah, well...they sanded out and, from now on, I'll only use that stuff in the day-time!

[robertaw]

I discovered I can't think upside down.

... it was peppered with gnats that had a urethane-sniffing party while I was sleeping.

I can't think upside down or backwards either. Just an hour ago I had a huge fiasco mounting a keyboard shelf under my desk. Four screws - four holes - not exactly rocket science but I had to actually hold it in place to get it right!

When we painted our roof with rubber paint every flying bug on the property was attracted to it. We have bees, gnats, flies, mosquitoes, etc all now a permanat part of our roof. Fortunately you can't see them without a ladder...

[Steve_Cox]

I also end up with lots of little bug legs and feet in most things I paint, polyurethane or varnish. Last time I poly'd the teardrop the cat managed to put footprints on the roof, even though I was sure he never got into the garage....

[Ageless]

Cats can bend time and space. Ever notice how they always find the sunbeams? They are recharging the solar powered warp field generator.