Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[GPW]

Yet to try as a glue is Acrylic Polymer ... sticks to foam , remains flexible , Been using it for years on canvas (painting) ... Not that expensive in larger quantities ... from The Art supply store ... http://www.utrechtart.com/dsp_view_prod ... ?item=5205

[GPW]

Steve , 6’ wide works for me , if I scrunch up a bit ... tested on my old 6X12 wooden TD ... which was very comfortable ... Have to make a custom bed cushion(s), and Lots of pillows ... My 8’ wide Jayco TT is not very good for seeing around with standard PUT mirrors ...
Good point about the front AC seal... but being a Geezer I never drive that fast ... I’m always the old guy in the right lane driving slow ... the one everybody complains about ... Have to think more about the AC .... just seemed like a good place to put it ... with a travel cover...

Eagle , Thanks !!! Glad to “Get it Done “ !!! The other trailer is my tiny cargo trailer ( 4X4X8) ... all Steel and heck for STOUT !!! Planning on a conversion ... sooner or later ... Just have to get my axle lengthened a bit as it rubs the tire now ... another “projectâ€

[linuxmanxxx]

[quote="GPW"]Steve , 6’ wide works for me , if I scrunch up a bit ... tested on my old 6X12 wooden TD ... which was very comfortable ... Have to make a custom bed cushion(s), and Lots of pillows ... My 8’ wide Jayco TT is not very good for seeing around with standard PUT mirrors ...
The other trailer is my tiny cargo trailer ( 4X4X8) ... all Steel and heck for STOUT !!! Planning on a conversion ... sooner or later ... Just have to get my axle lengthened a bit as it rubs the tire now ... another “projectâ€

[pete42]

Casitas all fiberglass travel trailers has an AC that the grill sticks out the front of the trailer it is covered with a snap-on Naugahyde cover.

they don't seem to be flooded when driving down the road I thought they would but good friend says his doesn't.

[linuxmanxxx]

Is the casita flush or sticking out? Flush would be pretty easy to make seal but sticking out is another story and for 15k price it better not leak on a casita.

[GPW]

Steve , my Jayco is a prime example of everything that is Wrong with the RV business... Poorly constructed of the worst and cheapest materials , many problems that just shouldn’t happen ... I tow the 4000lb. beast with my 2001 6 cyl Silverado ... (barely) Ok in the flat lands , tough on hills , and that’s EMPTY ... Already at it’s GVW ... I bring the dog and I’m overweight ... grrrr!!! Real POS !!! And the factory didn’t give a Rat Zaz about customer service , referring everything to their A-Ho dealer ... Just keeping it intact is like throwing good money after Bad ... (enough of that rant )
7’ would be much easier to see around ... 6’ would “blendâ€

[pete42]

Is the casita flush or sticking out? Flush would be pretty easy to make seal but sticking out is another story and for 15k price it better not leak on a casita.

ever hear you get what you pay for?
they make quality product.

[bonnie]

Yet to try as a glue is Acrylic Polymer ... sticks to foam , remains flexible , Been using it for years on canvas (painting) ... Not that expensive in larger quantities ... from The Art supply store ... http://www.utrechtart.com/dsp_view_prod ... ?item=5205

So am I reading the properties correctly -- it glues, remains flexible and is clear? Would it fill the canvas weave? Does it require only canvas or could you use other materials?
Like say, spandex?
http://spandexworld.com/c3/catalog/product/2195

Picked that one cause it's 120" long and on sale. Besides the website name made me laugh.

With the idea of using fabric, a clear drying, waterproof adhesive would rock. We could use any printed material and really do some fun designs.

Can you tell I sew?

[linuxmanxxx]

ever hear you get what you pay for?
they make quality product.

Yeah I sell a camper I build and know exactly what it takes to build it and I have nowhere near the buying power they have and theirs is 2 hunks of fiberglass with carpet walls....their whole draw is the lightweight aspect more than anything else.

Don't get me wrong they are nice but a bit marked up like the whole established RV industry is.

[linuxmanxxx]

So am I reading the properties correctly -- it glues, remains flexible and is clear? Would it fill the canvas weave? Does it require only canvas or could you use other materials?
Like say, spandex?
http://spandexworld.com/c3/catalog/product/2195

Picked that one cause it's 120" long and on sale. Besides the website name made me laugh.

With the idea of using fabric, a clear drying, waterproof adhesive would rock. We could use any printed material and really do some fun designs.

Can you tell I sew?

Spandex would be ok if it holds the outer surface tb3 or epoxy or whatever you use.....I think if you use a glue and then just paint you won't have enough surface rigidity to hold up like if you had a bird hit it while traveling per say that it would seriously destroy a lot of the surface if it doesn't have some kind of hardness to it. My only fear with the acrylic glue is how it would hold up to direct sunlight heat and if it would break down any or not. A canvas that is kept inside all its life doesn't compare to what stresses an outdoor environment would place on that glue.

The sock effect is really a sandwich core build and the strength is in how rigid the skin is as well as the strength of the glue it is bonded with. It does get stronger with a thicker foam but nothing in proportion to the strength it gains from a hard rigid inner and outer skin. Go to the construction tips section and read all the threads on lightweight wall construction and see the engineering behind what makes it work. If you can spare an additional ben franklin I'd say use luan or cheap panelling for your inner walls using a good water base flexible glue to adhere it to the foam and then you really make the camper strong and much more rigid with not really a lot of weight.

I still think after you apply the cloth with a good adhesive that you need to go to a surface coating that gets hard like the tb2 or tb3 does or splurge and spend a good deal applying an epoxy coating to it.

A hint for doing the epoxy route and go cheaper is go to box store and look at the garage epoxy coatings and you'd do it not overly cheaply but a decent price and have a very hard outer surface that would be very easy to make smooth and look extremely good. Being as I built the majority of my campers from lowes I know their store and products better than their employees lol as when I was in my engineer designing mode I'd just walk the aisles hrs brainstorming and noting what possibilities were there in glue and coatings.

[bonnie]

The molded fiberglass community might differ with you. One of the draws is they last forever. Yes, they are light, but still too heavy for my current TV. The market bears the cost in part because the trailers hold their value.

Lots more fun here, watching the whole invention process.

[bonnie]

My first trailer was a fiberglass 13" -- since sold. I had redone the floor with the garage epoxy and it didn't hold up. Ended up cracking. I didn't put the sealer on it, though, so that might have been the issue. Was easy to use and apply though. Tint-able too. Has anyone used it on the outside of their tear, I wonder.

Bonnie

[linuxmanxxx]

My first trailer was a fiberglass 13" -- since sold. I had redone the floor with the garage epoxy and it didn't hold up. Ended up cracking. I didn't put the sealer on it, though, so that might have been the issue. Was easy to use and apply though. Tint-able too. Has anyone used it on the outside of their tear, I wonder.

Bonnie

Bonnie it wouldn't be strong enough to walk on as its a coating and no glass cloth is used with it but over the canvas outside would work very well. It works on concrete due to how stiff concrete is so it wouldn't crack unless the floor cracks. Edit reread and saw you said you put it in your garage and it cracked. Was it spider cracking or a few cracks?

[vwbeamer]

Read the whole thread. What do i get ?....

So what's the best glue to glue the foam to Aluminum. I want to have aluminum sides.

[atahoekid]

Yet to try as a glue is Acrylic Polymer ... sticks to foam , remains flexible , Been using it for years on canvas (painting) ... Not that expensive in larger quantities ... from The Art supply store ... http://www.utrechtart.com/dsp_view_prod ... ?item=5205

OK GPW, since you're the artist, you probably have the most experience with this stuff and the most first hand knowledge about it. So a few questions come into my mind

1) does it bond canvas to foam well?
2) Does it maintain it's flexibility for a long time or does it gradually harden?
3) Is it suitable for exterior use?

If you think that it should, then I think that some testing is in order... The long term hardening test might prove to be impossible to do... Is there some way to replicate the aging process in an accelerated manner?