First plan

[Dirke]

Well I woke up plenty early this morning, so I got some graph paper out and started to sketch a bit. Here is what I have so far:


I'm not sure what you would call it. (looks kind of like a whale...could be interesting paint job) I am thinking a hybird with foam sides and a white vinyl roof. I thought about all foamie but I have some free vinyl billboards that my brother in law might give me. I think I can do 1/8 masonite treated with waterproofer, then glue the billboard vinyl to the top. It would all be one piece and I could overlap it a bit. That would make the roof white which may keep things cooler in the summer.

[48Rob]

Hi Dirke,

You have a good start!

The "whale" look is because the proportions need a little adjustment.
For the length you've chosen, you might try increasing the height a little.

If you really are after a Mammal shaped trailer, be careful, you might start a new trend

Rob

[Dirke]

Well, I have never been a trend setter. I want to keep the height at 4ft just to make things easier but I also want some extra leg room inside. I also want to make it 5 ft wide so we aren't too cramped. I was looking at a full 8 ft inside and then 2 or 3 ft for the kitchen. How much room do most people leave for the kitchen?

Of course, I don't even have a trailer yet but I am looking. I am sure what ever I manage to come up with will have a big influence on how long I make it.

[DMcCam]

Hi Dirke, Looks pretty good to me. We wanted to have extra room in ours too so we went for 10'x4'x4.5' wide. We have a full extra long mattress (queen length) and plenty of interior room to turn around in. The cabin is 82" by 54". Here's an early design of our teardrop.



You might not need to extend the body to 12' unless you need a larger galley.

Looking forward to more on you build, and welcome.

Dave

[Dirke]

Thanks! I have learned a ton so far. It takes a lot of planning to get things just the way you want it. I think 8' for the sleeping area and 3' for the galley should work for us. I want the interior to be a bit bigger because we are expecting a baby soon. I was planning on making a couch that can double as a bed. That way we can have a place to lounge out of the rain. There will be some storage underneath that but I want to keep it to a minimum. We are backpackers and tent campers so we don't have that much stuff to store. My main goal is to have something very light that we can tow behind any vehicle we want. I am thinking about making a foamie with a canvas roof that can be removed to let in light and air. That should keep the cost down as I won't need to add extra windows and it should be very light. I like my design so far but, of course, have already changed how I am going to build it a dozen times, wood, foam, hybrid, etc. etc.

I may add a bit to the height and could possibly shorten the bed some. Once I get a trailer and some materials I will have a better idea of how it will all go together. In the meantime, I am reading as much as I can and asking a lot of questions.

Dirk