Looking for Feedback on my Off-Road design

[Onajourney]

Got the frame well under way and trying to firm up the camper design. You all have been very helpful so Thanks.

 

[MickinOz]

Looks good.

My random thoughts:

I believe 6' 7" is one inch short of a standard US 80" queen bed length and 4 inches longer than a standard US 75" double. Can you design to take a standard mattress size or are you happy going for a custom made mattress?

Looks like you are only allowing around 10'' between top of mattress and bottom of interior cupboard.
A smidgeon cramped for foot room?

I estimate your trailer to be about 106-108 inches from end of drawbar to centre line of axle.
I met a lady who has an 8 x 5 teardrop built on a bolt together kit trailer.
The draw bar is about 3 feet 8 inches long.
The length for drawbar tip to axle centre is about 102 inches.
She said it is a PITA to reverse.
The lady owns a boat as well, and says she has absolutely no issues reversing the longer boat trailer.

The short-ish drawbar will probably have some advantages for off-road work, but may be a bit of a pain to reverse up your driveway.

 

[KCStudly]

Some builders use a receiver hitch tube to create an adjustable length tongue. That way they can leave it long for stable towing on highway and easier backing; or they can shorten it up for better wind shadow (improved fuel mileage) and tighter trail work.

I didn't want that complication for my planned type of forest service road use, so looked for a happy medium.

 

[Tony Latham]

Looks like you are only allowing around 10'' between top of mattress and bottom of interior cupboard.

That's my wife's feet warming up to the Propex heater. The upper shelf is 22" above the floor –-with an 8" mattress.

Your wheels are cranking, eh?

I'm not sure how you are planning to seal the bottom of the hatch but I find butting it to the rear of the floor works well.

Tony

 

[MickinOz]

Looks like you are only allowing around 10'' between top of mattress and bottom of interior cupboard.

That's my wife's feet warming up to the Propex heater. The upper shelf is 22" above the floor –-with an 8" mattress.

Tony

Tony, based on that photo, I would call 14" between mattress and shelf the minimum number.
I may even re-design my own new build for just a little more tootsie space. (currently sitting at 14" above the 6 inch mattress.)
Do you find yourself stubbing your toes on the underside of the shelf when you roll over?

 

[Onajourney]

Thanks MickinOz for the great feedback! Good catch on the interior size but I was aware of the mattress issue. I found a tri-fold memory foam mattress on Amazon that is 58"x 78"x 6". I am figuring I can squeeze the 58" into the 57". It's actually going to be 56 1/2". I agree with you guys on the foot space. I will raise up to 15". KCStudly is correct, I am planing on a 2" receiver on the tongue to have 2 different tongue lengths and have the ability to adjust if needed based on how it pulls with my Jeep.