The Wedge ... UPDATE 07/07/2012

[mckenney56]

Had 2 nice days weather wise yesterday and today. I wish they would come on the weekend. Anyway, I made some saw dust and cut out the floor and sides from the plywood. Started assembly of the floor. Lots of glue, screws, and clamps. Pictures speak a thousand words.

[Martiangod]

Let the fun begin....
Glad you chose to go ply and not wafer. You will be happier for that choice in the end

[mckenney56]

Got a little bit done today. I added the blocking in the floor where the bolts will be going through.



I used a hand saw to cut the insulation. It worked great.



But it creates quite a mess.



The floor insulation is finished.

[mckenney56]

More progress. Lots of glue to close up the floor.



A whole lot of clamping going on. And lots of screws too.



Floor done.



High tech weighing process.
Before lifting one end.


After lifting one end.



Do a little math and the floor weighs in at 86 lbs.

Anybody got an opinion on whether that is light or heavy??

I've used just over 16 oz. of Tite Bond III on the floor.

[Martiangod]

You must have had what I had for lunch///


Looking good, Should ne good and strong.
Smells like the walls are about to be built

[mckenney56]

Tested out the floor strength.

It holds up a 15 pound cat



And it holds up me.



Progress today. I sorted through all my 1 by lumber and ripped and cut for a while to make the frame pieces for the sides and front.

[mckenney56]

More progress. Side walls framed and insulation installed. I going to wait until I have the front wall and rear tail gate made before I install them.

[Elizabeth C.]

High tech weighing process.
Before lifting one end.

Greg, I don't think you would see many women builders brave enough to post this type of picture. If I did it, I would have to photoshop it before letting anyone see it .

Nice floor, very well thought out and executed. And I like the Kitty cat too!!!

Thanks for the Pics,
Dr. C-Dawg

[mckenney56]

Progress report.

Front and back framed and insulated.



Time for undercoating. I found this on a shelf in my barn. Decided to give it a try.



Taped off all but the bottom layer.



Trouble was, one can wasn't quite enough.



The spots in the middle are where I started by covering the screws.

I guess I'll have to go the the store and find another can of this stuff.

[mckenney56]

I aquired more black stuff and applied it to the bottom of the floor.



Here is a view of the edge with the masking tape removed. I was attempting to make sure that plywood edge was sealed up good.



While that dries, I turned my attention to packing for an up coming canoe/camping trip to Arkansas. I don't think I'll have the camper ready by then so my galley looks like it always did.



After sorting out what I wanted to take, leave home, and replenishing some things in there I decided to weigh this stuff. Those 4 containers weigh about 65.8 lbs. Add my tent and chair bring that up to about 82.2 lbs. Add 3 gallons of water you get 106.2 lbs.
Ice chest with ice, food, and beverages I'm guessing is at least 50 lbs.
Total 156.2

Other things to consider that I haven't weighed yet are:
Sleeping Pad
Sleeping Bag
Blanket
Pillow
Floor pad
Tarp, poles, ropes, and stakes
Clothes bag, extra shoes, hiking boots
A kitchen sink
A half cord of firewood
Paddling gear bags ??
Paddles ??
Canoes 80lbs

Just kidding about the sink and firewood. I might throw in a box of kindling though. I seem to be generating quite a bit of small bits of lumber lately, but I can't figure out why.

[Martiangod]

We got 3 days of campfires out of scrap from the build

[S. Heisley]

.
You're doing good, Greg. Keep up the good work!

I weighed everything before and during, too. It really helps keep you from over-building and that's smart. That way, you have a pretty good idea where you stand at all times.

[mckenney56]

I got back into the shop today and started on the wheel wells. I encountered some bad places with large voids in my CDX quarter inch ply.




I decided to to build the wheel wells in place one piece at time. Seemed to take forever, but I got it done.






Maybe tomorrow I'll finally install the walls and front.

[mckenney56]

Finished the wheel wells.



And installed two of the walls.





But now it is time for NASCAR.

[mckenney56]

More progress. I got the other wall side installed. And test fit the tailgate. It's finally starting to look like something.



The side walls won't stay square. They are splayed out at the top. I experimented with a couple of options.
One was put a brace on the outside, then I could mount the tail lights to them.





The problems I see with this option are that thing will catch some air flow and also catch mud from the tires.

The other option is put it on the inside. I'll have to make them narrow enough so I can still load 4 foot wide sheet goods in the trailer when I want to use it to carry plywood home (To build campers with of course).



Any other ideas out there?

I still have to come up with how to latch the tailgate in place. Then I'll move on to constructing the roof.