Howdy

[Porterboy]

My name's Noah. I live in NJ. My wife and I are planning to move to CO summer of 18.I intend to build a teardrop to pull behind my Outback. It will serve as temporary residence upon our arrival.
Anyway, I have a 6.5'x12' utility trailer i plan to convert.

I am going to use 1" steel tubing for the frame and skin the outside with a combination of steel plate (on front facing panels) and wood paneling everywhere else.


this is just a plan for the steel frame. Im pretty sure it'll be nice and sturdy once assembled. Ill start a build thread once i purchase some steel.

[Porterboy]

sorry about the image size. not sure how to edit that.

[drgrumpus]

Hey Porterboy, welcome to the center of the teardrop universe. 6.5 W X 12 L with steel frame plus sheet steel on front may come in somewhat heavy for the Outback. My 5 X 10 with ply walls and top weighs 1100lb and tows behind my Forrester ok. Note I said ok. Any more and I'd have to think about a stronger tow vehicle.

Just my useless 2 cents.

[Porterboy]

thanks for your input! Ive been towing it with 3 truck toolboxes full of tools and materials for a couple years. I do feel it back there and have been wondering about the best way to build this camper as strong as possible without making it too heavy.

Im going to obviously replace the floor with foam board sandwiched between sheets of .5" ply to make it lighter than the 2x8 decking it has now. Also going to take off the load gate and hinge. that'll shave another 70lbs or so. the metal frame will weigh in at about 230lbs and the 16g sheet metal on the front will weigh about 60lbs.

I actually worry more about the weight of the interior wood components. That could add up quick.
The trailer in its original, empty condition was about 1000lbs. stripping it of the gate and adding a lighter floor would probably get that down to 800, easy. adding another 300 for steel frame and front would beef it back up to 1100 or so.

without researching it, My guess is that i could finish the trailer with light components and keep it less than 1800lbs or so. with brakes i think thats a safe weight.

That said, PLEASE don't hesitate to disagree if you know better. I want this thing to be comfortable and large but, above all, safe.

Any guidance is greatly appreciated.

Noah

[Shadow Catcher]

Rather than steel why not Aluminum.
You are building an aircraft not a tank. Ours uses 1X 1.5 X .060 aluminum frame 1/8 Filon covered plywood exterior 1/8 internal.

[Andrew Herrick]

Rather than steel why not Aluminum.
You are building an aircraft not a tank. Ours uses 1X 1.5 X .060 aluminum frame 1/8 Filon covered plywood exterior 1/8 internal.

Easier to weld steel, for one thing

[Andrew Herrick]

Why steel plate, though? Aluminum's the de facto standard for a number of pretty good reasons. Unless you're talking stainless steel sheeting .. which is 2-3x more expensive. Just curious.

[Porterboy]

my plan was to weld 16g sheets to the front panels to enhance rigidity and protect against road debris. with proper treatment it'll never leak or come undone. glueing and riveting aluminum to steel framework is just the first step in planning for its eventual removal. however, i guess ill be dealing with the exact same scenario with the paneling all over the rest of it.

i actually bought the welder I've been putting off for the last 15 years specifically to build this tear. its not a good reason to think of ways to use it, but there it is.